Katharine McPhee (2007)

SINGER, NOT THE SONGS Idol runner-up McPhee's voice sounds terrific on her debut CD, but her material is second-rate

Great voice — better than it sounded on American Idol — but wow, McPhee is working with some poor material. There's the painful rapping on ''Open Toes,'' which also has the dubious distinction of adding to the catalog of Idol Odes to Random Footwear (see Kellie Pickler's ''Red High Heels''); the single ''Over It,'' which sounds like a JoJo leftover; and some midtempo ballads that Mariah would've deemed too banal in 1991. Only on the Babyface-penned ''Everywhere I Go'' does a snapshot of an intriguing Toni Braxton-esque pop star develop. C+