Yes, The Singing Blogger went to the David Cook and David Archuleta: Live In Manila concert! It was a very fantastic night and must say, a memorable one, both to the benefit of all the people who watched it and of course, the two Davids, who wouldn’t stop the expression of gratitude due to the overwhelming support of 40,000 people at SM Mall of Asia concert grounds.
Photo courtesy of an article in fansofdavid.com
Anyway here’s my personal time line log for the said concert:
7:43 P.M – Arrived at the venue, the parking isn’t that hard compared to the Rihanna – Chris Brown concert, a big space is just fit enough for the “carred” watchers.
8:11 P.M. – The sounds started to change, and introductory video was shown. And yes, we all know David Archuleta’s on-stage in a few minutes!
8:13 P.M. – A very endearing instrumental intro (which I already guessed what David A.’s first song is because of it), David Archuleta entered the stage and made everyone touch his hand (not literally, it’s the song Touch My Hand). We can feel the Archuleta shock, he sounded a bit jittery with some notes, in which we thought he was overwhelmed with the number of people watching! What adds to the nervous feeling? The attention! Everyone in the Gold/Platinum area, was standing over their chair! Pinoys obviously love standing when watching superb concerts like this!
8:16 P.M. - The concert continues with the song Barriers with Archuleta looking cute and funny drinking a bottle water or something just in front of him on the stage. Yes it’s cute. Even our pinoy singers does that! 
Then he reached out and tried to make more noise. How? Simple. By singing A Little Too Not Over You. The song was performed nervously on the start. But after a few lines, he already did great. Still overall, a goosebump performance for Archuleta. And yes, he performed this in a memorable unique way!
8:20 P.M. - Archuleta gets to connect with the big percentage of Filipino people by letting the Filipinos hear the word Salamat po! After this, a rest from those high-note songs was done. He performed a lovely song You Can, which some people can’t relate because it’s just in the album. But we can hear a number of people singing to it, that includes me! Haha!
8:24 P.M. – Finally, Achuleta gets the real pace of singing in a concert! The song My Hands was a bit similar and yet a bit better because of modified notes. It was fantastic and performed well! This song was followed by Your Eyes Don’t Lie, in which I heard people saying “What? He’s singing Hips Don’t Lie?” Lolz people.
8:31 P.M. – My personal best timeline part! I already mentioned in my recent blog that I am so dying to hear Archuleta perform To Be With You, and oh my… this is it! Together with the only female band mate Kendra (which he mentioned after the song), he performed this one perfectly. In my experience, I went crazy, and I was about to cry during the part “what I wouldn’t give to feel that waaaaaaayy“. Haha! David A. progresses with the way he sings, now more confident and more lovely (did I sound biased?). This was followed by the song Waiting For Yesterday with the mineral bottle in between haha!
8:39 P.M. - He mentioned that he’s going to sing a song which he performed in American Idol. OMG was that Imagine? Because I was about to cry real hard… not. It was a very surprising rendition of Stand By Me. And wait there’s more! The controversial song that made David A.’s father to get banned in American Idol show because of attempting to sing this with the song Beautiful Girls, was performed here! And I can proudly say, damn good ending Archuleta! way to go, I got more goosebumps during this time.
8:49 P.M. – Who would’ve though David Archuleta is going to sing an extremely unexpected song from Vanessa Carlton!? He said this was his first song to study. And yes, it’s A Thousand Miles! In my own opinion, David A. nailed this one better that Carlton’s (No offense to Carlton fans). If only I could look for it over iTunes Store.. 
8:55 P.M. – And my time has come. Nah just kidding. It’s because during this time, Archuleta performed of my my all-time favorite song, which I used to perform in contests for years already. This is Angels, his piano-only rendition. My impression? Just perfect. Recording quality, you may think he did this lipsynch, but you’ll just fail. Imagine his prowess singing and playing keyboard in front of a thousand people!
9:02 P.M. - The new song Zero Gravity, which is not on the album is the next installation to the very best last bits of Archuleta’s set. Love it so much, people are already dancing during this segment… and more, because at…
9:09 P.M. – David performed his last song and also his first single, Crush. Everyone was freaking out and I saw all these digicams and cellphones! Recording (the screen). Haha!
9:14 P.M. – End of Archuleta’s set. Very endearing! He is just deserving to get lots of applauses. The “Gold” people started sitting again, waiting for the next set.
So here’s the complete David Archuleta’s tracks during his set:
Here’s David Archuleta’s message after the concert:
9:38 PM. – 9:46 P.M. – Waiting for Cook, and hearing people shout “Humanda na kayo! Cook! Cook! A fireworks show was instead shown instead of Cook just yet.
9:48 P.M. – Straight from the riser, David Cook is now live! Singing The World I Know, Cook amazes the audience with how he performs like a superstar already. The crowd is hyped. The song is then performed together with Heroes.
The song was followed up with Mr. Sensitive. Again, the people from Gold / Platinum stands over their chairs!
Cook’s stage set has all these visualizers while he’s performing. Archuleta’s got camera feeds most, they both looked stunning on stage with all these lights and effects. This concert just makes people love both of them!
9:58 P.M. – Cook tried to pronounce this well… Magandang Gabi, Sir! And everyone became frenzy! Lolz! Then David sang Declaration, followed up with the song he said was his history during the past 1 1/2 year, Life On The Moon.
By the way, he mentioned during this time, Archuleta talked to him and he was like “You’ll never know how overwhelming it is outside!” something like that.
10:13 P.M. – Cook will always be a part of us, baby! Everyone went wild hearing the first note of the song… Always Be My Baby! And mind you, he said “This is the first time I will perform this live with the band”. Boom! An ace for us I guess!
Damn, he performed this one the way he did during the AI, the words “linger on” at the last chorus was not a falsetto! Amazing how Cook sings high notes, and never cracked up for once just yet during his set!
10:17 P.M. – Cook sang A Kiss On The Neck, a hidden track song on his album. Just an extra: I saw a girl reloading credits on her phone from a prepaid card. Of all the places where she can reload… Haha! Later, he also performed Straight Ahead.
10:28 P.M. – David C. said he’s going to perform with his band mates whom he knew for 6 years, and a band mate for 4 years, WMK. This was the song: Make Me.
10:31 P.M. – I can see the people starting to feel tired. A lot of them are already sitting on the floor and just listening to the song. What woke them up is a very nice song that David Cook performed fantastically, Avalanche.
10:36 P.M. – Did I just hear David Cook saying another Filipino phrase? Yes I did! Cook “tried” to say Salamat Po, in a very shy way, followed by a statement “Oh well, I tried?” Haha! This act was then followed-up with a song from Fleetwood Mac ( I dunno if it’s entitled Little Lie? correct me if I’m wrong).
10:40 P.M. – Cook called a band mate Neal to let him see a fan made banner saying “Marry Me”, I forgot the name though. Then Cook mentioned that he should give him a wedding song and it’s entitled… Come Back To Me! Haha!
10:44 P.M. – Surprisingly, David said “Goodnight!”. What? Is that a joke? Indeed. He actually made a big preparation to sing another popular song of his, Light On! Perfect rendition, still no change in notes, great quality performance. This was followed by his so-called the heaviest song in the album, Bar-Ba-Sol (Thank you Michelle for pointing that out!). The crowd was all head-banging.
10:57 P.M. – He said he’s gonna sing his last song but he promised they’re gonna give a blast. I thought he’s going to sing The Time Of My Life, but I failed, and surely most of the people were a bit disappointed not to hear this song, because the last song of the night was A Daily Anthem, dedicated to his brother, and all the people.
10:59 P.M. – David Archuleta went back to stage! The crowd then yells for the very last time. Humming for the last part of the song, Archuleta gave us the final goosebumps! The two Davids then gave each other a hug and together went out of the stage.
So here’s David Cook’s complete track list during his set:
11:01 P.M. – End of concert. What’s weird, the song being played during the audience exit, was Purple Rain! Lolz!
Overall, the concert was fantastic and exciting. Both Davids showcased their real talents in their own unique routine. the only sad part was David Cook not singing the song The Time Of My Life. I’m pretty sure the two Davids won’t get over this experience easily. Let me mention one reason why.
After the concert, we ate at Mandarin Wok at SM Mall of Asia, IMAX area. Cool they have this extended operation hours when there are concerts. After the meal, we decided to go back home already. We observed something over the backstage gate: A hundred or more fans were waiting for the 2 Davids to come out. They’re screaming and all that everytime the gate opens.
One funny thing though, when we tried to see as well if the car’s gonna go out, the gate opened. And again everyone was freaking out to see them in the car. What did they see when the gate opened? A Big GRM Truck! And everyone was laughing hard! Fail. But funny! Haha!
I hope you enjoyed my share of story during the concert. Cheers and looking forward to Pussycat Dolls! JAI HO!
Please do not post any Pro-Archuleta or Pro-Cook comments. I don’t want any comparisons between them. They obviously performed well on their own style, their own routine, and their each own unique talent.
P.S. My sincerest apologies for FOD readers. I didn’t mean to offend you that way. Edited the post. This article claims no direct comparison between Archuleta and Cook. If you can remove my link from the site, please do. Thanks.
Ed, I left your final comment to let you know that I learned from you and I assure you the incident won’t happen ever again. Thank you very much Ed! I really appreciated your criticism and advice. 
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May 17, 2009 at 04:06:53
OMG! Thanks for this notes, you sent chills down my spine. Great job! I so love David Cook!
May 17, 2009 at 04:11:00
No problem Earthlinggorgeous! This is how so loved the concert! A dorky stuff and yet a fun to share time line story a such a memorable night of a lifetime!
May 17, 2009 at 04:29:01
Hey, Nice Blog you got goin on!.. good timeline too!.. it must of been a concert of a lifetime!.. cool..
May 17, 2009 at 04:32:54
Thanks HECTOR! I really appreciated the fact that they came here for such a wonderful concert.
May 17, 2009 at 05:10:35
glad you had fun at the concert!! AWW he i can see he was nervous on TMH i mean there were a lot of people aww thank 4 the review I LOVE DAVID ARCHULETA
May 17, 2009 at 05:11:52
CESAR thank you 4 posting the VLOG david archuleta did after the cocnert
May 17, 2009 at 05:16:49
No problem Gloria! Now I’d like to record a cover song dedicated for both of them!
May 17, 2009 at 05:29:03
Hi Cesar, apologies accepted. But next time and I know you are an Archie (maybe) please do not glorify one at the expense of the other. Just do not make comparisons anymore, AI is done, it’s past, they’re both have very successful careers, both have strong fanbase and they are friends. Ok Cesar! Peace!
May 17, 2009 at 06:36:18
I liked some of your review. I don’t know what you meant about people head banging. Usually that means you really dislike something. Were they wishing he would quit? I also don’t understand “jizzy”. I don’t know that word, but my guess is it’s not good. By the way, David drinks water between each song to keep his one vocal cord healthy.
May 17, 2009 at 06:38:17
David Archuleta Rocks!!! I love the vlog you posted!
May 17, 2009 at 06:39:48
Head Bang – People are rocking!
Whew I used a wrong term I guess.
Jizzy! Haha sorry, it’s jittery, kinda nervous. Editing it now to make it sound better.
May 17, 2009 at 08:08:58
You are welcome Cesar, I really appreciate you edited your blog. That was so kind of you and now I can honestly believe that you are a real Archie, like me and the many others. Come visit often FOD, we will love you there and make known that you are a David’s fan (BTW, when we say David, we always refer to David Archuleta, not Cook)and a little sorry if you will. And btw again, I am a Filipino Canadian, Philippines was my birthplace. That’s why I was all excited and in euphoria with this gig there in Manila, with the 2 Davids. Can’t get any better than that bro.
May 17, 2009 at 08:27:16
The “head-banging” song by Cook is called Bar-Ba-Sol!
May 17, 2009 at 08:42:59
Cesar,
i don’t know why you edited your blog but it was appreciated. i am not ready to say that you are really an archie fan, not yet. we’ll see.
May 17, 2009 at 09:43:48
great… i just love love love david archuleta
May 17, 2009 at 10:25:00
nanood din ako ng concert nila kaso sa youtube lang.ahehehe
May 17, 2009 at 13:53:11
Maraming Salamat for your wonderful review!!! i am across the Pacific Ocean but all eyes and ears were set on this concert!!! this must be the most memorable concert in the Philippine soil (Eheads, being #1 local band and the Davids concert #1 international artists). Peace!!!
May 17, 2009 at 14:00:38
Got it! Thanks a lot for this information Michelle!
May 17, 2009 at 21:38:42
you have pictures ba of the concert? i-upload mo naman. thanks =D
May 17, 2009 at 21:38:48
Thanks for your blog! did not get the chance to watch it! tickets for the reserved seating are sold out! Glad you all had a blast! Hoping there’s a repeat in araneta coliseum! hahaha
May 17, 2009 at 22:12:35
David Cook sang “LITTLE LIES” by Fleetwood Mac, it’s with an S. I loved loved loved seeing Archie perform. I’ve gotta admit that I was planning to leave after Archie’s set but decided stay since I was with my sister and she wanted to stay. I sat at the back, I wasn’t hogging with the crowd anymore but I just listened and every once in a while stood up to check out Cook but he was good.
May 17, 2009 at 22:16:05
Buti ka pa napanuod mo sila ng live!
May 17, 2009 at 23:49:16
ILOVEJBDAVID thanks a lot for the correction!
May 17, 2009 at 23:50:05
Yes INA! We only get to watch it over Silver Area, because apparently, we bought the tickets on the same day of the concert!
May 18, 2009 at 18:38:43
david archuleta is a class act all the way down the line. how many stars of his caliber are gracious enough to record a vlog of appreciation and thanks to their fans hours after such an occasion?
this speaks to his character, and to the genuineness and ”realness” of him that ofttimes gets misunderstood and misconstrued in a world looking through cynical and jaded lenses. david lets his talent speak volumes for him – he needs no smoke and mirrors, gimmicks, studio tricks to capture the attention of an audience. and man did he deliver in manila…
i’m in awe of his talent, and so glad the world is beginning to see what we’ve seen in him all along – a formidable talent, underpinned by a kind and gracious spirit, topped with loads of appeal to fans across all ages, races, genders and cultures.
May 18, 2009 at 21:32:27
Hi GG, my dear friend, am extremely glad you did post here. I just tried to come in here after FOD to check on the comments and boy I was glad I did, but am really going to rest now after this. But before I do I’d like to say that I really love you came in here and expressed yourself, thanks. As usual your eloquentness coming from your heart and soul is second to none. That’s why you are my fav.
And Cesar, may I add that David Archuleta does not need to do anything, does not need to sing nor talk, he just needs to stand on the stage and show his smiles (that great smiles of his) and the fans will go nuts, his smiles will invoke cheers and screams. Hope you know that.
May 18, 2009 at 21:37:01
BTW, Bro. come and visit FOD again and post.
May 18, 2009 at 21:51:08
I will Ed! Yes I am all delighted of Archie’s presence. I mean, there’s a camera angle in that concert that makes all girls scream and shout his name! Those smiles are sure priceless!
I’m coming back there after recording an Archie song dedicated for him. Stay tuned.
May 19, 2009 at 06:48:58
BTW, Cesar, have you read this review from Manila Bulletin. What can you say! He seems to be anti-Cook.
David disappoints, David delights
By JOJO P. PANALIGANMay 18, 2009, 4:53pm“American Idol” champion David Cook disgruntled some of his Filipino fans by excluding “The Time Of My Life” in his Manila concert set list last May 16.
“The Time Of My Life” was the coronation song of “American Idol” Season 7 which Cook won. The song went as high as number three in the US Billboard charts and became an even bigger hit in Canada (#2) and in the Philippines (#1).
Instead, Cook performed a barrage of unreleased tracks from his self-titled album that left the crowd lethargic. Songs from “Analog Heart,” an album he released during his pre-“Idol” days, made the crowd even more listless.
“We’re playing songs you’ve never heard before,” Cook explained, noticing the lull. “Is that okay?”
The only familiar songs from Cook that night were “Light On” (first single off “Cook”) and his remake of “Always Be My Baby” (originally by Mariah Carey).
“Little Lies” (Fleetwood Mac), although a charter in the US back in the 80s, received little airplay in the Philippines, thus, was hardly recognized when Cook performed it.
The rock singer opened his set somberly with just a guitar accompanying him in “The World I Know;” perhaps in honor of his brother, Adam, who died of brain cancer in March.
At one point, the “Idol” champ mingled with the audience and took a picture of himself using the camera of a fan.
He asked for a show of hands of those who bought his album. Cook, however, must have been let down when the audience couldn’t sing along.
“You guys are still having a good time…right?” he’d check on the crowd from time to time.
To catch the audience’s attention, the singer uttered the Filipino words “Salamat!” and “Magandang gabi!”
“I hope I didn’t butcher ‘em,” he said good-naturedly.
His latest single, “Come Back To Me,” Cook dedicated to newly weds. His doing so had some people scratching their heads.
Part of “Come Back To Me,” after all, goes, “You say you’re leaving as you look away/I know there’s really nothing left to say…”
Cook only gave an encore. Few fans shouted for more the second time he left the stage. Many were more interested in leaving The Mall of Asia Concert Grounds as fast they could to beat the expected traffic jam.
“American Idol” Season 7 runner-up David Archuleta served up a more balanced repertoire.
Although with fewer hit songs (two to Cook’s three), Archuleta was able to keep the audience interested by peppering his set list with four remakes: “Stand By Me” (Ben E King), “Angel” (Robbie Williams), “A Thousand Miles” (Vanessa Carlton) and a snippet of “Beautiful Girl” (Sean Kingston).
The remakes were performed successively at the latter part of the show, thus, establishing a sense of climax. Archuleta also wisely alternated between fast and slow songs instead of a stream of songs that had the same time signature and arrangement.
Archuleta was all over the stage. That’s why after doing certain fast numbers, he would reach for his bottled water and drink which, oddly enough, earned hoots of approval from the audience.
He also accompanied himself on the piano in some songs (e.g. “To Be With You”) and even whistled the instrumental hook in “Your Eyes Don’t Lie.”
The 18-year-old singer had some breathing issues in a couple of the fast numbers. Nevertheless, he was pitch-perfect in most and he was able to reach the high notes especially in “A Little Too Not Over You” and “Crush.”
Other songs that Archuleta performed were “You Can,” “Barriers,” “Don’t Let Go,” “Zero Gravity” and “Waiting For Yesterday.”
May 19, 2009 at 09:17:37
That’s just true actually. It was a bit disappointing not to hear Cook sing his AI song. We were standing over for 5 minutes waiting and hoping Cook will get back on stage for that final song. But since Archie already went backup with him on stage, we guessed “Time of my Life” is not going to happen.
Yeah, no offense against David cook fans, but I can easily relate to the Archie set because I know all his songs. (Except when he sang “A Thousand Miles”, which was an unexpected sweet surprise )
May 19, 2009 at 22:38:35
it was a great concert! both davids were good! however, i feel for those in the silver and bronze areas because they paid hundreds just to watch the concert through the mounted screens. i think there’s a lot to be said about the venue. could have been better if it wasn’t in a flat space like the moa concert grounds. the two davids were in manila for days, couldn’t the concert producer have scheduled them for two nights and charged for more expensive tickets in a venue where everyone will be seated and can still claim to have really seen the two davids perform live? i overheard one concert-goer say it was plain greed on the part of the organizers that it was set up that way. i wouldn’t know if she’s right or not. i wonder if the silver and bronze ticketholders would agree.
May 21, 2009 at 09:26:01
It’s true Justine. Unfortunately, I was at the silver area.
I saved up for the concert which was first announced to happen on Jan 27. But when it didn’t happen, something came up and I had to use the money I saved. 
Anyway, that experience made me swear never ever again to buy a cheap ticket to watch a big concert such as the Davids’. It’s either watch the concert with an expensive ticket or don’t watch at all. I felt so disappointed because the jumbotrons in our area were not of high quality, unlike those in the front. Plus the audio was horrible! At first the fans at the back were screaming. But you can’t here them sing when you scream so a lot just became silent. My sister and I really felt like losers…