The two greatest female pop voices (not singers) of our time belong to Karen Carpenter and Barbra Streisand. I’ve featured Karen many times (she was a heartthrob), but not such much La Streisand.
Streisand, of course, had a much better oeuvre of songs, but you shouldn’t turn your nose up at Carpenter’s talents on non-schlocky songs, like “Little Girl Blue.” Here’s one of my favorites from Barbra, one that really shows off her ability to belt without sounding dreadful (viz., the musical travesty Lea Michele). It may be due to those t.v. programs featuring competitions between amateur singers (“America’s Got Top Vocal Talents” or the like), but belting seems to be the vocal style du jour. Most singers can’t do it well.
“All I Ask of You,” is, of course, from the 1986 Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “The Phantom of the Opera” (music by Weber, lyrics by Charles Hart). Originally recorded by Sarah Brightman and Cliff Richard, it was released by Streisand, in a much superior rendition, in 1988. It’s this one, which misspells her name at the beginning.
No Carly Simon? No Mary Chapin Carpenter? No Kathy Mattea?
I’d agree with Streisand certainly, not so much Karen Carpenter.
Streisand is almost unapproachable in her talent. In a lifetime, few have sustained the breadth she has accomplished. Even if you do no like her choices (of songs), I think her voice is so pleasant to listen to and study every nuance.
Ha!
Thanks for the little detour down memory lane…
Curious though; the compiler of this little musical Slideshow, doesn’t seem to recognize that Streisand’s first name is misspelled. Who is ‘Barbara’ Steisand? 😉 A minor quibble perhaps.
-Evan
Oh do I know what you mean about the penchant for “belting it out” singing.
On American Idle the audience is primed to wait in performance until the singer reaches that “screaming it for the rafters note” moment, at which time they break out in applause, encouraging this nefarious version of “singing.”
What was worse, and thankfully this has really declined, was the “over-singing” that took over R&B in the 90’s through lots of 2000. It was like singers had signed some contract to never stay on one note longer than 3/4 of a second, without trilling up and down the blues scale all around the note…to the point melody had been almost replaced by vocal acrobatics. Maria Carey was an evil queen in that respect. Basically, it was like an entire generation trying to be Stevie Wonder, but without his
talent and musical taste.
What also gets me is all the grimacings in conjunction with all those ululating melismas.
To slightly paraphrase Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy: “My God, man! Can’t you see that this singer is suffering from post-prandial lower abdominal distention?!?!”
My two favourites as well! Both have/had amazing and unique voices. Karen Carpenter -such a sad waste. Her voice was like having a velvet scarf wrapped round you while you drink a mug of hot chocolate.
Yes, Karen Carpenter had that very warm voice. I think Anne Murray’s voice is actually very similar. Both quite unusual in that respect.
Yes, I see what you mean, particularly on the low notes. Thanks for that, I hadn’t really noticed before.
Yes, Anne Murray’s another one with a gorgeous voice but not always the best choice of songs….
Re: the several posted opinions about certain singers not making the best choices of songs: do I correctly understand that artists signed to (major) labels are beholden to the whims of producers and the “suits” who think they have the “pulse” of the recording-buying public? It seems that those sentiments should be directed toward the producers and suits.
One may not care for one or more of the Richard Carpenter/John Bettis-penned songs, but most of them were hits, and purchased by some sufficient-significant segment of the public. Ought one be no less inclined to critique those who bought the Carpenters’ records?
I don’t think so. In my (limited) reading of performers’ biographies, it is common that they are contracted to a record company for a particular period of time or a number of albums, and it may be that some of the artists’ choices are deprecated by the ‘suits’ as not being commercial enough; but I’ve never seen it suggested that the suits told the artists exactly which songs to play. (Of course most of the biographies have been of highly successful artists who the suits may have been reluctant to mess with).
And I certainly don’t think you can blame the public for buying whatever the artists/producers choose to put out, H L Mencken notwithstanding.
I think more likely Sturgeon’s Law applies.
I’d say belting is virtually required by most Broadway musicals – the ‘big’ songs demand it. My pick would be Lea Salonga, who can belt with the best of them but still hits every note and enunciates every word perfectly. Eponine, of course:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRXWgCOX6Rc
But the most beautiful and distinctive voice (and powerful when she needed it to be) must be Linda Ronstadt’s.
Adios:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjCqTI2TxRo
Talk to me of Mendocino:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaH9BnuGH68
Well, there’s precious little belting in the older musicals like “Brigadoon,” or “Oklahoma,” or even “Camelot.” I think Mary Martin started it in “South Pacific.”
Okay, you’re talking about Rodgers & Hammerstein vintage musicals (though South Pacific was Rodgers & Hammerstein, even I know that).
I’m absolutely not an expert on musicals, but it seems to me that most of the more recent ones – say from the 70’s onwards – Andrew Lloyd Webber’s for example – have featured ‘big’ songs with a crescendo somewhere in them. It certainly increases the dramatic effect of the song.
It’s a matter of personal taste but I like those ‘big’ songs. But they do demand a singer with a really powerful and controlled voice if they’re not going to break up.
I’m still trying to find a perfect version of ‘Memory’ from ‘Cats’, there isn’t one on Youtube. The best I’ve found is by Barbra Streisand though the recordings don’t seem to do her justice.
Rodgers and Hammerstein ( and Rodgers and Hart) were sooooo much better than Lloyd Weber, imho. As much as I love cats, and T.S. Eliot, I found Cats to be a huge disappointment ( except for the costumes). And you couldn’t understand the wonderful Eliot lyrics! Not enunciated.
Well that (not enunciated) is surely a fault of the singer or director, not the composer. It happens in many musicals. I was a little disappointed in ‘Cats’ too, IMO there was only one really good song in it, ‘Memory’ of course.
The other fault (I call it a fault, tastes vary) of some performers is, they feel expressing emotion has to mean they let their voice break down and go off tune. It is possible to express emotion and stay in tune.
I’ll take another listen to Martin’s vocal approach in “South Pacific.” I don’t recall her being any more forceful in her singing than was Mitzi Gaynor in the film version.
Ethel Merman easily-enough comes to mind regarding “belting.”
Agreed on Mary vs Mitzi. Neither seems forced.
Re Ezio Pinza and Giorgio Tozzi (singing voice of actor Rossano Brazzi [sp.?]) playing Emil de Becque (sp.?) in the stage and film versions: both were quite robust opera singers, but I doubt anyone considers them “belters,” which Ah reckon is frowned upon in that thar opera community.
🐛
Carpenter surely had the most wonderfully clear and perfect voice ever. Never much of a fan though. Best females of the era? Carly Simon’s ‘That’s The Way I Always Heard It Should Be’ tops my list.
Loved Karen C’s voice but not her choice of songs. Pretty much the same w Barbra. Can’t bear most of Lloyd Weber’s stuff.
Yeuch! Not a chance. If I hear either of those voices, I almost have a visceral reaction to clear my bowels. Maybe it’s their song choices, but I have never heard any recording of theirs that I would voluntarily replay.
My great female voice choices are Sandy Denny, Linda Ronstadt, Maddy Prior, Dusty Springfield and Annie Lennox. All of these have great replay value for almost anything they have recorded.
Would you care to evaluate The Carpenters’ harmonic blend?
“The two greatest female pop voices (not singers)”
I would need to hear more about the distinction you are making.
I expect Jerry would count Janis Joplin as a great singer who did not have a great voice.
Deeply Touching songs. Surprised to see Karen Carpenter is listed on the top. I listened to a lot of her songs when I was teen but was told Carpenter was popular but never very popular in US. Carpenter was famous for her sad songs, but I really like her happy song “Top of the world”, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRgNIQ32G1o
I don’t know if Joni Mitchell counts as”pop” (whatever that is) but the young Mitchell, before smoking ruined her tubes, had the purest voice I’ve ever heard. The evidence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoKBGotuNhc She’s written a few great songs as well.
More than a few great songs!
My “a few” was meant ironically, or sarcastically, or something like that. I’d say she wrote more great songs than any other singer/songwriter of her era. Yes, I mean even more than Dylan.