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Who would you nominate as having the best male voice, (solo or lead singer of a group) in the rock/pop era (50s, 60s, early 70s)? I'm thinking in terms of pure singing voice, considering characteristics such as pitch, tone, resonance and range.
My nominees would be:
Roy Orbison
Jay Black
Johnny Maestro
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Jay Black was the first one I thought of, without even seeing your post.
I'd also add Gary Puckett in his heyday. I saw him a few years ago and thought he lost the power of that great voice, which is a shame.
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Ray Charles would be my first choice, with Solomon Burke a close second.
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GrimsbyFan wrote:
... considering characteristics such as pitch, tone, resonance and range.
Those qualities would refer to Wayne Newton though he wouldn’t be my pick.
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Lou Christie
Jerry Butler
Eric Carmen
Rick Astley
Chuck Jackson
Darrell Banks
Anthony Gourdine (& His Imperials)
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And how about Jackie Wilson?
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Two more to add to my list:
Jimmy Beaumont
Scott Walker (aka Noel Scott Engel)
Would anyone include Elvis on this list?
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I'd go with Roy Orbison who I saw perform a pitch perfect concert 40 years ago. But I would throw in Gene Pitney
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Cloud9 wrote:
Ray Charles would be my first choice, with Solomon Burke a close second.
i initially thought of solomon too. but simply as a pure singer, regardless of range or depth, i don't think percy sledge can be beat.
Last edited by gopher (February 2, 2022 8:34 am)
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GrimsbyFan wrote:
Who would you nominate as having the best male voice, (solo or lead singer of a group) in the rock/pop era (50s, 60s, early 70s)? I'm thinking in terms of pure singing voice, considering characteristics such as pitch, tone, resonance and range.
My nominees would be:
Roy Orbison
Jay Black
Johnny Maestro
Cannot argue with that list! Roy's my first thought, too. So glad to see someone recognize Johnny Maestro, what an incredible singer. Probably never sang a bad note in his life.
B.J. Thomas certainly had a great voice. And I know this falls outside the area, almost no one could out-sing Ray Price.
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Flo wrote:
this falls outside the area, almost no one could out-sing Ray Price.
He charted with "For the Good Times" in 1970, well within the era, Flo
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Well, it was only one song, so I figured it might not count. It certainly doesn't show his capabilities, you should probably hear Danny Boy or Night Life. Marty Robbins also had a great voice, and quite a few crossover hits - perhaps the most versatile singer ever.
Here are a couple more great voices - Arthur Prysock.
And another guy who had only one hit here, but a lot of them internationally - Frank Ifield. Listen to The Summer is Over, or for real effect, he does an incredible version of Roy's' Crawling Back.
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mroldies wrote:
And how about Jackie Wilson?
Good call mroldies. He was great. Even considered Sam Cooke.
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Dennis Yost
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He probably is just outside the era, but in his prime Billy Eckstein was outstanding. His hit of "I Apologize" is one of my karaoke choices.
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Good grief, what was I thinking? How did I leave out Aaron Neville? And I'm surprised no one's mentioned Tony Williams. Another great voice - Charlie Rich.