Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Blake Lewis
“A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream)”

1. Silence is Golden
2. Break Anotha
3. Gots To Get Her
4. Know My Name
5. How Many Words
6. Surrender
7. Hate 2 Love Her
8. Without You
9. Here’s My Hello
10. What’cha Got 2 Lose
11. She’s Makin’ Me Lose It
12. BShorty Grabs Mic!
13. End of the World
14. 1,000 Miles
15. I Got U
16. I Choose the Noise

Editor’s Note: On weeks when a new Idol album isn’t released, I’ll take a quick look back at an Idol album from the past. Hopefully, one day, I’ll catch up and include them all. For capsule reviews of previous Idol albums, go here.

Try to ignore the cover art that makes this CD look like it belongs in the bargain bin. Released in December 2007, “Audio Day Dream” is an underrated first album from an underappreciated American Idol finalist.

It’s certainly far more ambitious than first efforts from many of the Idol alumni. And Blake clearly had more of a hand in its creation. He has writing credits on 12 of the 13 songs. (Of the tracks listed above, one’s an intro, one’s an exit and one’s a beatbox interlude.)

Blake grabs our attention with the first single, “Break Anotha,” then does a neat twist on an old classic (“Puttin’ On the Ritz”) with his “Gots To Get Her.” (Hey, Idols, if you’re going to steal a song, this is the way to do it.)

Other highlights include “How Many Words,” “Here’s My Hello,” and “Hate 2 Love Her.”

Unfortunately, “Audio Day Dream” was far from a smash hit. It entered the Billboard 200 at number 10, the lowest debut for an Idol finalist until Kris Allen came along. Neither single — “Break Anotha” or “How Many Words” — cracked the Hot 100, though the former climbed as high as number eight on the dance/club play chart.

As a bit of trivia, fellow season six contestant Chris Richardson has a writing credit on “What’ca Got To Lose?” as well as “Human,” an iTunes bonus track.

Grade: B

Download worthy: “Break Anotha,” “How Many Words,” “Here’s My Hello.”

Other reviews:

Los Angeles Times: Gives Blake 3 stars out of 4
Entertainment Weekly: Gives Blake a C
AllMusic.com: Gives Blake 2.5 stars out of 5