What the heck is in Haley's head?

[john]

I was just reading a critique of Haley on Idol that stated:

Then, when Jimmy Iovine said she must find herself as a performer she drops a bleeped profanity...The thing is, Jimmy is right and Haley confirmed his opinion when she tried to rebut him by saying her style was soulrockbluescountryjazz. Haley, all styles are no styles.

"Haley, all styles are no styles."

That is Haley's style. She likes songs that are dynamic and music that includes a lot of influences. She adds another layer of complexity with her unique voice.

Many singers have stated they don't think the public understands the complexity of what she is doing vocally because she makes it seem so effortless. So she is already garnering professional respect in one way. If she can marry her voice to the right music in the right way she could truly be hailed as a visionary.

At least she's shooting high. As a great adman who also hailed from Chicago once said, "When you reach for the stars, you may not quite get one, but you won't come up with a handful of mud either."

Being the geezer I am, I recall the Beatles evolution through the 60s. Early on they did a lot of covers of Chuck Berry, Leiber and Stoller, and others. Then they were writing songs like "I want to hold your hand" and "She Loves You." They changed things up considerably with Rubber Soul. Within a couple of years it's "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "Magical Mystery Tour" and on to "Let it Be" and "Come Together." They were continually pushing out a new sound and the rest of the music world scrambled to keep up. But the Beatles would just move on and create the next thing. They started out with the basic guitars, bass, and drums, and later made use of exotic instruments such as the sitar, added sound effects and environmental noises, and used a partial or full orchestra (while staying grounded in their roots). They did things that nobody had dreamed of doing previously and it often involved blending diverse styles of music. (And a lot of it came from spontaneous tinkering around with sound in the studio.)

A lot of bands were kind of left in their wake or achieved some success by filling stylistic niches that had been pioneered by the Beatles.

Haley has the potential to musically exploit the synergy of her diverse music tastes and influences in ways that have popular appeal, but are fresh and unique. She can also move among genres. I think her Youtube account name is youmaysayimadreama, and why not? She can be a trend setter.