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Posted: Fri Nov 09, 2007 7:55 pm Post subject: Male vocals
Rose suggested a thread about the hottest male musical acts, but given that BookTalk is usually kind of a sausage-fest, I figured this would go over better. Who are your favorite male singers?
I tend to go for quirky voices or odd phrasing. To that end...
Actually, that's not such an odd combination. While Paul Simon has since branched out to African and South American influences, his original passion was the sound of Americana. And both are, perhaps bar none, the greatest living American song writers. I defy you to tell me any differently.
Here’s a ballad, “Thousands are Sailing,” that unfortunately Shane doesn’t always do justice to. I have a recording of Philip Chevron singing this that’s beautiful. But this is a fairly good recording with Shane.
And here’s a Christmas duet, “Fairytale in New York,” that’s really fantastic. For some reason the end is cut off, but it’s the best quality version of the song online. Actually, it's probably mimed, Shane rarely sounds that clear live.
A really close second for male vocal performer, and to be sure they’re not comparable, is Bing Crosby. Sorry for the poor quality, but it’s hard to find live spots for Bing.
And here’s a great clip of Strummer performing “London Calling” with the Pogues. His vocals are excellent and you can really see he’s enjoying performing. If you had told anyone at this show that Shane would outlive Strummer, they would have laughed.
It wasn’t until years later that I learned Christopher Plummer wasn’t even singing here. In fact, he hated The Sound of Music and called it "The Sound of Mucus." Nonetheless, this scene can still make my heart go aflutter. I know none of you in this sausage fest (as Mad has dubbed us) will get it, but he is absolutely gorgeous. And it’s not just about his looks, which are lovely, but far from perfect.
And last, I’ve had the opportunity to see the Chieftains live for close to ten years now. They put on a spectacular show every year. What I most admire is how they incorporate local, and sometimes new, talent into their shows, and have been doing so for years. Here’s a partial clip from a curtain call at one of their shows, if you watch it to the end, notice the camera pan all the artists on stage, the Chieftains themselves consist of six members, everyone else is a guest:
Of the group, Kevin Conneff is my favorite, though he’s not their front man. Unfortunately this is the only performance of his I could find, not his best song, but still good.
Well I know that this is kind of random, but these are the most significant male vocal performers that have struck me along the way.
Oh and Mad, thanks for thinking of me. I like that Sinead is shot in partial profile for most of that video. She always looks so uncomfortable performing, especially on video, I think the profile shots make her look more vulnerable, even tender, than awkward. She’s absolutely stunning though, isn’t she?
And both are, perhaps bar none, the greatest living American song writers. I defy you to tell me any differently.
I’ve given it some thought and have decided to submit to your challenge, Mad. I proffer Stephen Sondheim as America’s greatest living composer/lyricist. Granted, he is not a performance artist, and writes for a totally different beast than Simon and Nelson…but there it is.
This is the late Carl Anderson as Judas Iscariot from the 1973 film, Jesus Christ Superstar, singing Too Much Heaven On Their Minds . Great video and tremendous voice, thought provoking lyrics :
DH, I like Anderson alright for the movie version of Judas. But his most powerful scene, for me, was the reprise of “I Don’t Know How to Love Him.” (It starts at 2:50 on this video.)
I love how Jesus just stands there staring, like: "What the hell is wrong with this dude."
After working a production of JCS, the little patience I had for the musical finally evaporated. If it weren’t for Timothy Rice’s book/lyrics the show would really have very little value.
I think the "I don't know how to love him" scene with Anderson is an excellent choice, and an opportunity to experience the same song in a much different context from Mary Magdeline's midnight rendition earlier in the film. And Herod Antipas' androgynous poolside boogie is unforgettable..."show to me that youre divine, turn my water into wine...show to me that you're no fool, walk across my swimming pool"
Here's Yusuf Islam (aka Cat Stevens) performing live in Naples, one of my favorites from Teaser and the Firecat... a beautiful song and voice: The Wind .
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or is it more like this: 
