Greatest Frontman Ever?

#103
#103
kidbourbon said:
Robert Plant was a better frontman than Freddie Mercury.

Nobody cares about vocal range. Christina Aguilera has an amazing voice, but that doesn't mean I like to hear her sing. I get the distinct impression that when she sings, her intent isn't to sing in a way that makes for a better song, it's to sing in a way that most displays her ability to sing. Her songs would be much better if she wasn't trying out for American Idol on all of them.

Same deal with Mercury. When I hear Queen songs -- primarily live renditions -- I find that I'm paying more attention to Freddie Mercury's voice, than I am to the song. He oversings, and it detracts from the song.

Case in point: here are two live versions of "Somebody to Love". The first is with Freddie Mercury. The second with George Michael (at a Freddie Mercury tribute concert). Which version sounds better?

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRt2jX1kaYo[/YOUTUBE]


[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYAR8RigqDA[/YOUTUBE]

The George Michael version sounds better. And I actually don't even think it's a particularly close call.

I hope I've illustrated to you that there is a difference between a guy with a great voice and a guy who is a great frontman.

Mercury used his voice to show off the fact that he had a great voice. Plant used his voice to make Zeppelin songs sound awesome.

Robert Plant was a better frontman than Freddie Mercury.
Click to expand...

Mercury>>>>>Plant

Sorry bout it.
 
#109
#109
Cash would be in the singer/songwriter thread (which hasn't happened yet, but needs to) with Dylan, Neil, and Bowie.
 
#110
#110
kidbourbon said:
Robert Plant was a better frontman than Freddie Mercury.

Nobody cares about vocal range. Christina Aguilera has an amazing voice, but that doesn't mean I like to hear her sing. I get the distinct impression that when she sings, her intent isn't to sing in a way that makes for a better song, it's to sing in a way that most displays her ability to sing. Her songs would be much better if she wasn't trying out for American Idol on all of them.

Same deal with Mercury. When I hear Queen songs -- primarily live renditions -- I find that I'm paying more attention to Freddie Mercury's voice, than I am to the song. He oversings, and it detracts from the song.

Case in point: here are two live versions of "Somebody to Love". The first is with Freddie Mercury. The second with George Michael (at a Freddie Mercury tribute concert). Which version sounds better?

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRt2jX1kaYo[/YOUTUBE]


[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYAR8RigqDA[/YOUTUBE]

The George Michael version sounds better. And I actually don't even think it's a particularly close call.

I hope I've illustrated to you that there is a difference between a guy with a great voice and a guy who is a great frontman.

Mercury used his voice to show off the fact that he had a great voice. Plant used his voice to make Zeppelin songs sound awesome.

Robert Plant was a better frontman than Freddie Mercury.
Click to expand...

Without a doubt

This a spot-on analysis of Mercury.
 
#114
#114
DinkinFlicka said:
Cash would be in the singer/songwriter thread (which hasn't happened yet, but needs to) with Dylan, Neil, and Bowie.
Click to expand...

Apologies. Was not privy to all of the semantics of stage performers within the rock genre.

Regardless, for me, you can put Cash in front of whatever you want on a given stage and call it whatever you like and he's still the best frontman of all time. Most of the frontmen mentioned here as favorites idolize Cash for good reason.
 
#115
#115
_vol said:
Apologies. Was not privy to all of the semantics of stage performers within the rock genre.

Regardless, for me, you can put Cash in front of whatever you want on a given stage and call it whatever you like and he's still the best frontman of all time. Most of the frontmen mentioned here as favorites idolize Cash for good reason.
Click to expand...

FWIW I wasn't attempting to be condescending.

When they say "frontman," they mean the member of the band (who usually never plays any instruments) considered to be the lead singer. They usually take a backseat role in writing/composing the music and focus more on stage presence, crowd pleasing, and mystique.

I agree Cash is a legend, but a frontman he is not.
 
#116
#116
DinkinFlicka said:
FWIW I wasn't attempting to be condescending.

When they say "frontman," they mean the member of the band (who usually never plays any instruments) considered to be the lead singer. They usually take a backseat role in writing/composing the music and focus more on stage presence, crowd pleasing, and mystique.

I agree Cash is a legend, but a frontman he is not.
Click to expand...

Not that it's important to go Rolling Stone and make a fake religion out of trying to categorize music, but if you consider taking a backseat role in composition then most all of the artists listed in this thread to date do not qualify. I consider Mercury, by your definition minus a few nuances, to be quite high on the list and he, along with Brian May, wrote most all of the Queen material.
 
#118
#118
_vol said:
Not that it's important to go Rolling Stone and make a fake religion out of trying to categorize music, but if you consider taking a backseat role in composition then most all of the artists listed in this thread to date do not qualify. I consider Mercury, by your definition minus a few nuances, to be quite high on the list and he, along with Brian May, wrote most all of the Queen material.
Click to expand...

Okay then, we'll do it this way:

Plant-didn't compose much of Zepp's music, since Jones, Page, and Bonham were doing most of that work. Rarely played any instruments (harmonica on a few occassions).

Staley-wrote a few songs (lyrically speaking), but Cantrell wrote most of Alice In Chains material. Played acoustic in a just a couple of performances.

Axl Rose-lyrically composed most GnR songs, but had no hand in writing the music. Never played anything.

Same with David Lee Roth, Jim Morrison, and the like. If they had much involvement with composing the sounds, it usually was just writing lyrics. Yes, Mercury is an exception to a lot of these rules... but he is Freddie effin' Mercury.

Not trying to "make a fake religion," but this thread is about that silly categorization of music. Could we really say Bob Marley or Paul Rungren were frontmen?
 
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