This concert is an EPIC. Unbelievable. Amazing on every level. Gosh. I never knew that I’ll using words from that American Idol fourth judge.
The most awaited concert of the Davids was held at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay last May 16 ‘09. The concert was produced by the Fearless Productions.
My sister, aunt and I were seated at the Gold section. Not bad, really. I saw a teeny-tiny bit of Cook and Archuleta from where I was at. And all I can say about Archie was… he has a really white complexion! That is how ‘white’ he is. I can even see it from a distance.
Also, another downside of sitting on the Gold section was you have to come early in order to have good seats because it is on a “First come, first served” basis. We arrived the SM Mall of Asia at around 2:45 pm. The we ate for a while. We went to the Open Grounds at around 3:45 pm where the concert will be held. When we came to the area where all the concert-goers on the Gold section were seated, we were shocked! A lot of people have been on the line for hours! That’s dedication, really. At 5:30, we were admitted to the Gold section. We were surprised to see reserved seats on the Gold section. My aunt asked one of the ‘bouncers’ about that and he said that they just followed the instructions from the organizers of the event. He also told my aunt that it is for people close to Jomari Yllana or something like that. It brought confusion to the place. I completely understand the sentiments of those who complained (Obviously, we were one of those). They were in queue for long hours and they weren’t able to get good seats and on the other hand, those ‘oh-so-fortunate’ people just came in minutes before the concert and they don’t have to suffer the aches of lining up for hours!
If I were the producer of the concert, I would also do that for my close pals but not on the free seating area! Because it is understood that on the particular area, no one is reserved. No exemptions.
This brought h
eated arguments between a lady and a concert organizer. Guess what? The lady won the battle for those good seats. I overheard her saying that she and her kids have been in the queue since 12 noon but I did not see anyone pacify her. But all these, heated tensions were washed away when David Archuleta sang Touch My Hand. Squeeeeee~! David Archuleta is singing for his Filipino fans.
Though we are on a seated section, it did not refrain us from standing up on our monoblock chairs since those people seated on the VIP area were standing up already so why don’t we?
At this point, I am already spaced out. I don’t know what to say besides it is truly magical. Archie’s voice is pure magic. The adrenaline I felt during the concert is rushing on my mind. He sang songs from his album (aside from Touch My Hand which was stated) namely:
- Crush – His last song of the night
- Barriers – The action song
- My Hands - “Here’s another song about hands called ‘My Hands’” Awwww.. David. :)
- A Little Too Not Over You
- You Can – Squeee!
- To Be With You – Sang behind the keyboards and together with Kendra
- Don’t Let Go – The mic stand song according to ArchuletaPhilippines
- Your Eyes Don’t Lie – Loving the whistles! I did not know that it was really him!
- Angels
- Waiting for Yesterday – A bonus track on iTunes
He also sang “Stand By Me” which he performed originally during his appearance on American Idol 7. He also sang my current favorite song – Zero Gravity. I was floored when he said that he’ll sing that! My heart fell on the floor. He also sang “A Thousand Miles”. This became my aunt’s favorite song in an instant! :D
I remember the event security people saying that the DA and DC will have the chance to sing eight songs each but it’s a ‘myth busted.’ :D
Then it was Cook’s turn to show what he got. But before that there was an intermission. During that intermission, the people at the back kept chanting “Walang tatayo! (Nobody will stand!)” I really felt for them. But what can we do? The people in front of us were already on their feet. Then Pyrotechnics kept us busy while waiting for the Cookie. Those fireworks were really stunning. I just hope that Ar chie got to see them.
We “patiently” waited again after the pyrotechnics. 
Then Cook started singing “The World I Know” originally by Collective Soul. He sang this during the finals on American Idol 7. He made a really subtle entrance. But this was actually a preparation for the duration of his performance because he was really RAWKING the house down!
I am not familiar with DC songs but what was great that he performed his ever-famous “Always Be My Baby” which he sang during the Mariah Carey Week (Top 7) on American Idol. He said that he sang it first in a crowd, post-Idol, here in the Philippines. How cool is that?
He performed… performed… performed songs which are all unfamiliar to me but really good! It’s just that I do not have affinity for rock music that much, then all of a sudden, Cookie and the rest of the band went out of the stage. We were really surprised! There was still about ten minutes left. Then Cookie came out of a blue saying “I hope that you’re not planning to go home yet…” Phew! I thought the concert was over just like that. He also promised that the show will end with a bang. And it did! He invited Archie to the stage again and they sang “A Daily AntheM”. They even asked the audience to sing along with them. I thought Cookie will sing “Permanent” as his last song but I was wrong. Good thing I did not wager money for that. But it’s alright. I think “A Daily AntheM” is a song for his brother who passed away recently. Just check out the capital letters of the song and you’ll see. :)
It still seemed surreal for me to hear both of them live. I am really fortunate to witness them perform. I really feel for my friends especially Abby who weren’t able to go to the concert because of circumstances I refuse to recall.
PS: I am thinking about compiling all of their Manila concert videos. I’ll do it some other time and I’ll also post it here.
ETA: I forgot to include one of the highlights of the night! While Cook was singing “Straight Ahead”, he went down the stage and he grabbed one of those cameras, then, he took a picture of the crowd and a picture of himself. Awesome! :D
