JPF Home Page Forums Musician Gear and Techniques Microphone and Vocalist Forum Rolling Stone's 100 greatest singers of all-time! {this should be

We all know the uproar that R.S's 100 best Guitarists caused..Well they're back for round #2! First of all, what defines a GREAT singer? Someone with great range and technique? Maybe doesn't have the greatest range or technique but conveys a song well? Or merely someone with a very distinctive voice? It's all open for debate, so let the fur fly!
Here's my take..If it entails technical prowess ONLY, a whole bunch need to be eliminated from their list pronto...
Bob Dylan {#7}{!!!!!}, Kurt Cobain,Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Stevie Nicks, Lou Reed,Neil Young, Patti Smith and Tom Waits {!!!!!}

Then there's the order..{Bob Dylan ahead of ANYONE!}
Lou Reed {#62}ahead of Wilson Pickett, Patsy Cline, Roger Daltrey, Steven Tyler, Luther Vandross,Rod Stewart, Gregg Allman, John Fogerty, Steve Perry,and Levon Helm to name a few.

Ditto for Bjork {#60}
Tom Yorke of Radiohead ahead of Wilson Pickett????

Paul Rogers and Steven Tyler #55 and #99{???!!!!}
IMO the 5 greatest hard rock singers in no particular order are Plant, Rogers,Tyler, Mercury, and Daltrey!

Gregg Allman, arguably the greatest white blues singer {along with Van Morrison} #70??

And of course they ignored all the great Heavy Metal singers who could rip ALL these folks a new one vocal range wise!{Rob Halford, Ronnie James Dio, Ian Gillan, ect,

Well, that's just scratching the surface, so have at it and let the hilarity begin! for the full list go to www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/241619721/page/60

Bob Dylan? Sing? Did these guys ever listen to their top hundred?

joe

My sentiments exactly...I realize he's changed vocal "personas" many times over the years, and is one of, if not THE greatest songwriter {sounds like ANOTHER poll of all-time!}but greatest singer? What are these folks smoking?

There are many great one's no doubt that are most likely not even on that list.
I do not have one particular preference myself with singers outside or who influences me in my songs.

I think Bob Dylan though had a certain distinction and personality about his voice.
I will take the unpopular view that he should have been on there.
But I have been weened also on acts like Foreigner and Lou Gramm would definitely deserve a spot.
He is both unique and has the pipes.

And ditto to Steve Perry and the other singers you mentioned Bob.

Where is Delbert McClinton?

I'm on record already as believing Dylan is one of the best singers ever.

However, I never judged the quality of a person's voice in a vacuum. To me, it's always been about whether it gets the song across effectively.

This quote from the article written by Bono for Rolling Stone probably says it best. It's from a conversation between Sam Cooke and Bobby Womack:

"Cooke explained that from now on, it's not going to be about how pretty the voice is. It's going to be about believing that the voice is telling the truth."

Actually, the list seemed pretty good to me, though I just skimmed it. Perhaps it should have been entitled "the 100 most distinctive voices in rock and roll". When you hear a record by most of these folks, there's no doubt in your mind who you are listening to.

Scott

I'd have to put Ann Wilson from Heart in the top 5 (if not AT the top!)

As far as pure singing ability...did you ever hear that guy from Steel Heart sing "Never Let You Go"? I think he was neutered! LOL

It is all down to opinion. Quite frankly this list are not worth printing. What criterias do they base these judgments on. It is all objective and down to individual taste and genre preferences. One man's meat is another man's poison. Whilst some of the people on the list are legendary artists a few cannot be called great singers by any stretch of the imagination. Bob Dylan is a great example. Whilst he is probably one of the most popular artists of the twentieth century he aint no singer technically. He has poor technique, tone and frequent pitch problems. Many people, myself included, cannot bear to hear his whiny out of tune voice and would not have him featured in the top 1000. This whole exercise is a waste of time. Ask 1000 people for a top 100 and you get 1000 completely different answers. One thing that also bothers me about such lists is that current pop artists are usually rated higher than all time greats. The current pop artists are generally forgotten and plunge into obscurity in six months time.

Count me in regarding Bob Dylan as one of the world's top vocalists.

It ain't opera, folks, it's the voice that interprets the song. No one else does it like him, and no one else conveys the song like him. If you don't get that, fine...but expect to be mystified about it for the rest of time, while the rest of us get it.

He is unique and certainly innovative and revolutionary a great poet and songwriter. I prefer other people performing his songs. I do not rate him much as a performer. Just taste... a matter of opinion proving that a list of the best of anything that can only be judged objectively is a waste of time.

Do you really want Rolling Stone to tell you who the best of anything is? There are rock critics who write for that magazine, and remember the adage, "those who can do, those who can't review."

I happen to believe there is a great truth in this old salt.

Well, I had a certain amount of respect for their judgment when they gave me a free subscription. I lost that respect when they didn't renew it. And all that "100 Best" stuff has happened since, I think. I think they either alzheimered their good judgment or put it on a shelf believing it wasn't needed any more.

Joe

It's always laughable when complete joke singers get put up because they appeal to the left and right coast elitists while awesome singers who had mass appeal are looked down on.