Excellent choice.
The best part is when his voice gets deep “... when the people bowed and prayyyyyyyed, at the neon gods they maaaaaaaade...” is what does it for me in this version
Might I add that any song with a kettle drum is awesome
The best sung song ever
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The best part is when his voice gets deep “... when the people bowed and prayyyyyyyed, at the neon gods they maaaaaaaade...” is what does it for me in this version
Might I add that any song with a kettle drum is awesome
If you want to see some cool videos, google "voice coach reacts to disturbed sound of silence". Some pretty amazing reactions, some were moved to tears.
It depends on you define best vocals, just as it depends on how you define "best actor".
Howard the Duck technically isn't an actor, but I would put some comedic actors (e.g. Will Ferrell) up there with dramatic actors in terms of being great at evoking the desired audience response.
Same thing with Johnny Rotten. Is he good at doing what he is trying to do with his voice? If this answer is yes, he is a good vocalist. You may not like what he does (I don't like 99% of the stuff mentioned on this thread) but that doesn't mean they aren't good vocalists.
Being a good vocalist is about talent and some people have more of it than others....William Hung evoked a desired response, but he’s not a great vocalist. I’m not talking about the music, or the band, or the song writing....I’m talking simply about the ability to sing. That doesn’t matter whether I personally like it or not....I am not a Whitney Houston fan, I dislike her music greatly, but she can flat out sing. Like I said in an earlier thread, I love Eddie Money....I know he never was a great vocalist, but I love his music. I would never say Eddie was a better vocalist than Whitney just because I like his music better. Many people who weren’t great singers had successful musical careers.
This is a point I make to my wife often. She has a beautiful voice. Angelic. But when I am listening to Springsteen (or Neil Young, or another similar artist) and she starts singing I just shake my head because she takes the soul out of the song. Those songs are generally not meant to sound beautiful.
Fun fact: One time in college my wife sang backup at a concert for Barry Manilow.
You are defining vocal talent in a very narrow (classic?) way. This is like saying abstract art isn't art because you don't like or understand it (or the famous "I could do that!"). Art is about conveying ideas or feelings. If I'm am trying to convey feelings of pain or frustration or terror or anger, a singer like Whitney is not the most effective way to do it.
Brief aside:
And perhaps this is apocryphal but during mid-East operations US forces were known to play music during enemy interrogations. Apparently, many prisoners were terrified by Metallica because they thought it was actually Satan singing to them. That has to be best compliment a heavy metal musician can receive and is certainly indicative of vocal talent.
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I think you’re being way too deep on this. This isn’t about the music, it’s about singing talent. If you can’t sing a ballad or a slow song, you’re not a great vocalist....doesn’t mean you don’t make good music, just means you’re not as good a vocalist as someone else....nothing wrong with that. And this has nothing to do with my likes or dislikes, you’re the one making this very subjective.
You are missing my point.
If a painter can paint amazing abstract pieces, but not a landscape or a portrait are they any less of an artist? Based on your definition of vocalist, you are arguing that the abstract artist is not a good artist. I strongly disagree with that.
The point of vocals is to make an artistic statement. That statement could be a love song (for which one type of vocalist would be best), a protest song (for which another type of vocalist would be best), or a song praising Satan (for which another vocalist would be best). No one vocalist, no matter how good, would be the best at all of those. So you can argue that the vocals praising Satan are not "musically valuable" (I would strongly disagree), but you cannot say that vocalist is not good vocalist if they are evoking the response in the audience.
Evoking a response cannot be the measuring factor....many singers evoke a response and they can’t carry a note. If you can’t carry a tune, you’re not a good vocalist. Screaming into a mic is not good vocals regardless of what response you’re evoking.
Strongly disagree. The purpose of art is to evoke a response. So unless you are saying that being a vocalist is merely the physical act of holding a certain note, the response of the audience to singing/screaming/rapping/chanting whatever is the MOST important metric by which to judge how good of a vocalist someone is.
If you want a human tuning fork that's a different story.
So a rapper who evokes a response is a great vocalist and should be compared to someone like Whitney Houston? Apparently Chris Stapleton and William Hung are the same....my bad. A group of people liking someone doesn’t make them a great singer.
I don't know who Chris Stapleton is, but IIRC Hung was a horrible singer on one of those horrible "reality shows"? If he was trying to sing badly and people appreciated that he was trying to sing badly (i.e. that was his art...being bad in a satirical way) then yes, he is a good vocalist. My recollection is that he was not trying to be bad in which case he is not a good vocalist.
So yes a really good rapper (a type of vocalist) should be compared to someone like Whitney Houston (who I guess is good at her art, but I don't like her art, so it is hard for me to evaluate) in that they are both at the top of their art. As vocalists.
local boy done good, won at least a couple of Grammy's.....another highway 23 product....
DIdn't even have to scroll down all the way...by seeing his hat I knew I would never have any reason to listen to him...haha.
Really? It seems pretty ordinary to me. It’s certainly not the best ever.
If you don’t know who Chris Stapleton is then you really don’t know great vocalists.
First time I’ve ever heard the Meatstick referred to as “ordinary”. Meant it as a joke but phish is amazing. one the best bands you’ll ever see.
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
Pretty much impossible to discern what is the best sung song ever, but this is the best rendition of Hallelujah.
Cohen, himself, stated that Lang owned the song.
Considered by many to be the best female vocalist of today (not counting opera) - Sohyang.
Comparison of high notes with Dimash (considered to be the most talented male vocalist of today).
Cohen, himself, stated that Lang owned the song.
Considered by many to be the best female vocalist of today (not counting opera) - Sohyang.
Comparison of high notes with Dimash (considered to be the most talented male vocalist of today).
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
Rufus Wainwright’s version of Hallelujah is the best IMO. His version popularized the song. Much better timing than Lang. And he has a child with Cohen’s daughter. I’d love to see Coehn’s quote about Lang - his praise for Wainwright is well documented.
He may be a great vocalist, but I do not care for that kind of music (in the same way I do not care for Whitney Houston...who is obviously a great vocalist as are many of the other folks mentioned in this thread)
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