David Archuleta
David Archuleta

Review By Joe Walker

C'mon, David. I know you're a young singer with a horde of teen fans, but you don't have to let your label Disney-fy you. First of all, you're on Jive and they're the furthest thing from the music empire the Mouse built, and even further from the teen-pop they promoted back when Aaliyah was alive, R. Kelly was cool and N'SYNC, Britney Spears and Backstreet Boys were topping the charts. So, you need a fresher approach. Coming off American Idol as the runner-up, I think you're getting a raw deal, kid.

Young Archuleta's self-titled debut is a food club attempt on a gourmet formula. The flavor is wrong. Well, it's not just the flavoring: more seasoning was needed, as in the guy needs more vocal training. He shined on TV. He dulls here. Outside Idol's image-making machine, Archuleta doesn't function as well. His producers, writers and vocal arrangers didn't nurture and care for him the same. And it shows like a new zit in primetime. "Crush" is cute, not stellar. You can easily hear Miley Cyrus singing it (or at least a better version of it). JC Chasez (of N'SYNC) and Jimmy Harry help Archuleta pen the passionately inspirational "Don't Let Go" but apparently they couldn't help him vocalize its potential. Let’s hope David's next effort is brushed with better quality.