"You... Sing... Sexy."
Jetting into the stratosphere at number 3 is the weird and wonderful song which inspired the namesake of this blog, Haley's cover of (Sir) Elton John's 'Bennie and the Jets' on Top 11 week (after Casey's save). Like The Beatles' 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' and 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,' 'Bennie and the Jets' is a whimsical tune, a psychedelic joyride that's trippy and fun. What is notable about this performance is that it marked the turning point when Haley distinguished herself as an artist and established her own unique jazzy style. With 'Bennie and the Jets,' Haley became a serious contender and one to keep an eye on.
Inspired by Michelle Pfeiffer's character Susie Diamond from 'The Fabulous Baker Boys,' Haley began her performance on top of a piano. This dramatic entrance evinced the sexy smoky jazz lounge stylings that we will be seeing more of in her later performances. A student of jazz in high school and college, Haley has gained an innate ability to seamlessly fuse jazz with other eclectic musical influences from her childhood. Haley's rendition of this song can be equally split into two parts. The first half is light and jazzy, but after that spirited 'yeah!' she gave about halfway into it the performance took on a whole new character as Haley unleashed her inner diva and really belted it with her rich and powerful vocals. This was an incredible performance, even in light of her improvised exit version of this song over two months later.
The expression on JLo's face between 1:51 and 1:54 in the video below really said it all, and we all know what Steven thought of it (hint: see photo caption). Even Randy called it the 'best performance of the night.' While Haley got kudos from the judges the previous week for her soulful cover of 'You Really Got a Hold on Me,' 'Bennie and the Jets' further boosted her confidence and separated her from the rest of the competition. It's no wonder this song held a special place in Haley's heart, as it was also her 'exit song' and one of only two songs in the solo set she performed throughout the Idols Live! tour.
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