Who had the greatest singing voice in music history??

[Thump553]

For PJ and anyone else interested in this subject: For the last couple of months NPR has been running a periodic feature, 50 Great Voices. Not limited to any particular genre, but basically restricted to singers after recording became popular. Excellent series, here is the link:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122287224

 

[soulcougher73]

I always liked Aaron Neville's voice.

 

[lxskllr]

No love for Classical/Opera?

Damn, what the great ones can/could do with their voices as an instrument blows most of these singers out of the water.

I'm not a fan of opera, and that genre really should be disqualified for this discussion. I doubt there's many here that have the qualifications to critique the top opera performers, and a crappy opera singer will be better than a great jazz/rock/gospel singer almost every time.

 

[*kjm]

BIZ!
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xc28z_biz-markie-just-a-friend

 

[thepd7]

Absolutely. This question is so open-ended it's really impossible to answer but if you are talking about someone who could sing his heart out and was as entertaining as hell Freddie is the first to come to mind.

I wouldn't care about MJ - and I doubt anyone else would - if he didn't have those addicting beats for his most popular songs.

He could sing, no doubt, but "Thriller", "Beat It", "Billie Jean", "Rock With You", "Wanna Be Startin' Something", etc. wouldn't be much without the killer music that was the backdrop for his vocals.

It's the same way I feel about Lady Gaga (lol, TFP). She can sing, but her voice isn't the main driving factor. Just listen to some of the less beat heavy songs in "The Fame Monster". You could find tons of other female singers (or even male ones ) just as talented vocally or even better. A lot of what makes successful pop successful pop successful is the production team behind the main artist (in Gaga's case, herself and RedOne, mostly).

I'm saying this as a huge fan of MJ's music.

Absolutely. Good voice, incredible music, not the greatest singing voice in music history.

 

[JM Aggie08]

No John Fogerty yet?

AT...i am disappoint.

 

[ccryder]

I have to go with Nat King Cole.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHBHH0BK5ys&feature=related

 

[nageov3t]

limiting myself to pop/rock music...

male -- Stevie Wonder
female -- Ella Fitzgerald

honorable mentions: Elton John in his prime, Whitney Houston in her prime

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

Difficult to pick just one...

John Oliva & Freddie Mercury for teh men.

I don't listen to too many female vocalists... Sarah Brightman, maybe?

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Sam Cooke

"Best" singing voice is pretty arbitrary though. There are so many different styles.

Sam Cooke gets my vote too.

 

[sdifox]

Difficult to pick just one...

John Oliva & Freddie Mercury for teh men.

I don't listen to too many female vocalists... Sarah Brightman, maybe?

I am not even sure Brightman makes it into Top 100...

 

[Lean L]

Thom Yorke
Edwin McCain
Kurt Cobain
Josh Groban

 

[AMDZen]

EDIT: Misread thread

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

I am not even sure Brightman makes it into Top 100...

Like I said, I don't listen to many female vocalists... but I do know that Brightman sounds a lot better than the crap you hear on TV, piped thru stores, etc.

Looking thru my music collection... Sam Brown. Can't believe I forgot her!

Also, not the greatest "voice", but an impeccable singer: Van Morrison.

 

[Platypus]

too many to pick a best

Freddie Mercury and Jeff Buckley immediately jump to mind for more 'modern' ones.

 

[SSSnail]

I love him as a guitarist but I don't think I've ever heard him sing anything but backup. Any links?

I'm surprised it took that long til someone noticed.

 

[kalrith]

POP/Soul easy Aretha Franklin #1. Elvis/Sam Cooke/Marvin Gaye, honorable mention.

This man speaks the truth.

Taylor Swift

This man (hopefully intentionally) lies.

 

[Dominato3r]

This man (hopefully intentionally) lies.

No I'm not

 

[tk149]

I generally don't really like their type of music, but I can appreciate their talent:

Aretha Franklin
Ella Fitzgerald
Whitney Houston

I don't know if she's a great singer, but I love Annie Haslam's voice (from the band Renaissance) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_(band))

 

[zoiks]

Justin Bieber.

I lol'd.

 

[kalrith]

No I'm not

Have you heard Taylor Swift live? If she sounded the same on her albums as she does live, then no one would know who she is.

IMO, the person with "the greatest singing voice in music history" has to be someone with a voice that sounds great before it's all touched up by the studio.

Listen to Taylor Swift live then Aretha Franklin live. If you can still say that Taylor Swift sounds better, then I pity your listening abilities.

 

[IGBT]

Shirley Bassey has to on that list somewhere.

 

[shortylickens]

EG Daily

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwdipJqHrIs

:awe:

 

[lxskllr]

Greatest sing voice can construed to mean most identifiable/distinctive. That's why I picked Louis Armstrong. He could call your name once, and you'd know exactly who it was without looking. I agree with the Bob Dylan choices, and I would also throw Tom Waits in there. Most of the choices people have posted here are justifiable on some level. It's really an unanswerable question.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Andrea Bocelli?
Luciano Pavarotti?