Damien Leith - Got My Mind Set On You

Damien Leo Leith (born 18 January 1976, in Dublin) is an Irish-Australian singer–songwriter. He was the winner of the Network Ten music contest Australian Idol 2006. Since winning the title, Leith has released nine studio albums, four of which peaked in the top two of the ARIA Charts, including two number ones. He has been awarded seven platinum and one gold certification for albums and singles by ARIA, which equates to sales of just over half a million.

As a teenager Leith formed a family band, "Leaf", with his sister Áine and brothers Paul and Darren. Leaf recorded in New York City and then again later under the new name "Releaf", which made an appearance in the Irish Top 100. After moving to Sydney, he played in a number of high-profile venues, as front-man for a band known as Revelate. His first Australian performance was at The Basement in Sydney's Circular Quay.

Before auditioning for Australian Idol, Leith worked in Sydney as a chemist with Pharmalab utilising the Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Chemistry he obtained from University College, Dublin and postgraduate experience within the Metallosupramolecular Research Group in the Chemistry Department of Trinity College, Dublin.

Only following determined coaxing by friends, Leith auditioned for the 4th series of Network Ten's Australian Idol along with some 25,000 other contestants. He was selected by the judges as one of the final 24 contestants, and was the first person voted into the competition's top 12 as the result of a nationwide viewer vote. He was praised by the show's judges for his falsetto technique, which he used regularly in performances. For the first time, Australian Idol 2006 permitted contestants to perform with instruments, and Leith accompanied himself on guitar for his renditions of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game", Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", Alex Lloyd's "Never Meant to Fail" and Ben Harper's "Waiting on an Angel", and on piano for his rendition of Split Enz's "Message to My Girl". Leith also played piano for the non-competition round "Up Close and Personal" night, when he performed his original song "Sky".[citation needed]

Despite adverse comments from judges Mark Holden and Kyle Sandilands in relation to Leith's appearance and a performance of Kool and the Gang's "Celebration" on the "Disco" theme night, which drew ridicule from Holden, the judges' assessments of Leith's performances were usually positive with Holden labelling him a 'darkhorse' early in the competition. His renditions of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game", Roy Orbison's "Crying", Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and Puccini's "Nessun Dorma" each earned Leith a "Touchdown" from Mark Holden, Holden's ultimate accolade for an excellent performance.[citation needed]

Leith holds the record (with Australian Idol 2004 winner Casey Donovan) for being awarded the most touchdowns, at four apiece. Sandilands also stated that the family of Roy Orbison had contacted the Australian Idol producers requesting a copy of Leith's performance of "Crying". Although he was one of the most popular interviewees on Idol's behind-the-scenes show Idol Backstage, he was not expected by betting agencies to win the competition with Dean Geyer punted as the favourite to win throughout.

Leith is one of only few contestants to never land in the bottom 2 or bottom 3 throughout their series. During a live broadcast from the Sydney Opera House, Leith was announced the winner, over runner-up Jessica Mauboy. At age 30 at the time, Leith became the second oldest winner of any Idol series in the world. Controversy among viewers was created as Leith was not an Australian citizen at the time of winning the Australian Idol