Best Live Rock Vocalist you ever saw

[socksoff]

Here's another Rock orientated question.

I don't know about you by I've been to many a concert in my time and sometimes you can hear the vocalist quite well and other times his/her voice is either worn with time or the guy manning the mixer board has overloaded the sound in favour of the Instruments.I can remember finally seeing Deep Purple at Maple Leaf Gardens in 1985 (Their first Reunion Tour)and Ian Gillan's voice,once strong and loud in the 70's,had either lost its strength or the band was too loud!
Robert Plant pretty much lost his high voice after 1972-73ish.

But if I had to name one singer I saw live in the 70's and the 90's that kept his voice pristine and powerful for 20+ years - it would have to be Greg Lake of ELP fame.
Other notables would be Jon Anderson of Yes and Adrian Belew of King Crimson.

 

[featherfingers]

He may not be a 'rocker' in the manner of Robert Plant or any of those 70's hard rock vocalists, but I'd say Paul McCartney had and still possesses a powerful voice. I saw him and Wings perform here in Tucson in 1976. Great music by a great band. His greatest hits CD "Wingspan", is one of those CD sets I never get tired of hearing.

 

[Ghost2004]

For me it's a tie

James Hetfield of Metallica( I've seen them twice.. once in 92 with Guns and Roses, once this past May in Ohio)Each and every year the man just keeps getting better and stronger.. That throaty powerful GROWL..IMHO he( and Tallica as a whole) is one of those bands that just gets better with age.

The second, Amy Lee of Evanescence,( whom I saw in concert in July) What more can be said: the lass can SING, she puts such depth and feeling into her vocals, and her range is fantastic! She inspires emotion, whether tis all out rocking of "Going Under" or the wistfulness of "My Immortal", her voice strikes some chord deep inside.

The ULTIMATE would be Hetfield and Lee together.. I( and quite a few people I know)would pay great money to see that! LOL

Ghostie

 

[Traveler]

A solo Stevie Nicks tour.She played in Oklahoma City,it was one of the best shows ever saw.Her voice just sort of echoed around the building it was incredible.I still have the program from the show.I was a big fan.

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

Well, she's not a "rock" singer, but we saw Darlene Love(from the 60s) in a production of "Nunsense" earlier this year. She absolutley blew the roof off the theater, incredible, strong vocal performance.
Had no problem hitting the high notes.
Also, saw Yes this year, Jon Anderson's voice was a little off during the first song. But after a few minutes he sounded perfect. By the end of the 3rd hour(!!), he sounded as phenomenal as he did in the early 70s! We saw Jethro Tull back in 1993, sounded good but singer Ian Anderson's voice gave out after 80 minutes and they had to do their encore as an instumental.


Drew

 

[Dave2112]

I was able to catch Journey in '83, and it was one of those nights when everything was just on. Steve Perry was absolutely perfect.

While not a rock singer, Sarah Brightman was awe-inspiring to see live, as was Amy Lee.

Rik Emmett was another rock singer whose voice came across very well live.

 

[Nige]

Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden. I have seeen them many many times and his vocals are always powerful.

 

[Mimi]

Sebastian Bach from Skid Row. OMG that man has the most phenomenal high vocaled wail I think I've ever heard (or he's at least tied with the lead singer of Steelheart).

Paul Stanley is also rather impressive live. He's definitely not a studio produced voice. That range you hear on their albums is every bit as magnificent when performing live.

Mimi

 

[featherfingers]

Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden. I have seeen them many many times and his vocals are always powerful.

I heard that he's a pilot and flies for a commercial airline these days.

 

[socksoff]

Ghost2004 wrote:

The second, Amy Lee of Evanescence,( whom I saw in concert in July) What more can be said: the lass can SING, she puts such depth and feeling into her vocals, and her range is fantastic! She inspires emotion, whether tis all out rocking of "Going Under" or the wistfulness of "My Immortal", her voice strikes some chord deep inside.

And she's easy on the eyes!!!!! ..and I want to YOU KNOW!!!!

 

[natural tickler]

I would say the lead singer from Creed. (I forgot his name) I just loved his work, which would lead me to say that Creed was one of the best bands of all time

 

[daddy]

This is an easy one...out of all the bands I have seen live, the strongest, sounds just like the album voice would be Rob Halford of Judas Priest. He is amazing!

peace out,
daddy

 

[BlackmoonDoll]

And she's easy on the eyes!!!!! ..and I want to YOU KNOW!!!!

Amy Lees voice is so beauty. shes like a goddess . and i love the song ''My Immortal'' of thier first album. i'm gonna have to pick up there new album thats coming out soon here

 

[TklDuo-Drew]

Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden. I have seeen them many many times and his vocals are always powerful.

Never bought an Iron Maiden album or saw them in concert, but I agree that Bruce Dickinson is an outstanding singer. "The Trooper" is enough proof of this.
Another underatted rock singer is Ronnie James Dio. Saw him in 1983 and even at the end of the show his vocals were strong and clear.

 

[Nige]

Yep, "Bruce" is a commercial pilot. He is also an Olympic standard Fencer as well. Though I am not sure when he gets the time to do these things as well as being in Maiden.

I agree with you Mimi, Paul Stanley is another outstanding vocalist. One of those singers, where studio albums don't do his voice justice.

 

[BOFH666]

I'm afraid I'm going to have to cheat a bit for my answer as I was too young to get the chance to catch them live, but for me the best of them all was the late, great Freddie Mercury. Astonishing front man, amazing voice and just the perfect performer. Proof? See Live Aid where, without the aid of any stage effects, props or more than about twenty minutes of performance Queen dominated the event with Freddie being absolutley on top of his game.

Current performers: both my answers have already been given but when's that ever stopped me from waffling before? Of the 'old guard' I'd go with James Hetfield. Not the best voice in terms of range but if you're looking for a voice to herald the apocalypse look no further (see South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut). He's become the voice of metal and an iconic image in his own right. Instantly recognisable, a superb performer live and capable of firing up a crowd of 50,000 like it was a 500 person show in a crowded pub. Plus he handles vocal duties at the same time as playing some of the best rhythym guitar on the planet, so bonus points there. Doesn't hurt that he's got one of the best bands in the world behind him of course To quote Sully Erna of Godsmack: "Pantera says they're the kings of metal. And I'm okay with that. They are the kings of metal. But ... if they're the kings, then Metallica is God."

From the 'up and comers' Amy Lee without question, though perhaps not for the obvious reasons. Yes, she's got a hell of a voice and her performance on stage is amazing but what impressed me most was just how much better she became in the space of six months when I saw Evanescence last. Much more relaxed and, I don't know, more comfortable I guess with working the crowd. Plus she's having to carry all of the show really, the band is just there to play and stay rooted to the spot for the most part. My only reservation right now is the shows are relativley short, as you'd expect for a new band, it might be tricky to keep the energy level up when they go to two hours or more. But hell, anyone that can sing like that (and she really does match the studio tracks live) while moshing gets my vote. Now if we can somehow convince her to front the Queen tour that will (PLEASE GOD PLEASE!) be happening next year....

 

[Ghost2004]

Amy Lees voice is so beauty. shes like a goddess . and i love the song ''My Immortal'' of thier first album. i'm gonna have to pick up there new album thats coming out soon here

Socks and Blackmoon.. OMG is she EVER...she's perfect, beautiful in her OWN way, without being a Hollywood Cutout..that's what I love about her..


Mimi.. I have to agree about Bach as well.. when did you see Skid Row? I saw them back in I THINK it was 88( I was not even a teenybopper) or 89, when they were touring with Bon Jovi.. I LOVE the way Sebastian bears his soul on " 18 and Life" " I Remember You" and later on "Quicksand Jesus" and esp "Wasted Time"...

Traveler.. you lucky SOB, that you got to see Stevie Nicks... I was SUPPOSED to go see the reunion tour of Fleetwood Mac in Sept, but good ol life and finances got in the way. I'm too lazy to look it up( end of a VERY long week here) but I posted awhile back about Stevie Nicks & the Mac... I got the Dance and I LOVE it!!

Ghostie

 

[Knife-X]

Now if we can somehow convince her to front the Queen tour that will (PLEASE GOD PLEASE!) be happening next year....

In my opinion, itll be hard to have a Queen tour without freddy. No one could ever replace him. Ever. Not even my nomination for best singer.

Ville Valo, of H.I.M. One of the greatest male vocalists of our time, and still manages to sing in english better than most englsih speaking vocalists, even though hes a native to Finland. I saw H.I.M earlier this year and they RAWKED. Also, my girlfriend kind of 'likes' Ville, so I had to put him in, or she would hurt me (Grrr...envious of Ville.....grrr)

 

[Mimi]

I'll echo on Freddy Mercury as well. Never got to see him live, unfortunately, but one of the greatest vocalists ever regardless. I agree with Amy Lee as well. Such a haunting, powerful voice. Just beautiful.

Ghostie - I did not get to see him in his prime. I saw him in 2000, when Skid Row was touring with Kiss during their farewell tour. And even THEN he was STILL as incredible as he was in the 80's. He has not lost one ounce of power.

Knife - I, too, love Ville's voice. Whenever I hear "Join Me In Death" I feel like my heart is being ripped out. Just awesome. I've yet to see HIM live though. Someday, hopefully.

Mimi

 

[Dave2112]

Holy crap, Mimi...you're the only other person I've talked to around here who remembers Steelheart! My old band "Medicine Man" used to do "I'll Never Let You Go"...I was dead by the end of the song! We did it as an encore for last set, I couldn't even talk after doing that song. Even though I could more or less hit it (which I'm doubtful about at my age now), we used a really good compressor so I wouldn't have to strain as much and so I could fake some of it with a technique I call "full-falsetto".

I loved Steelheart and wish they were a bigger band than they became.

 

[Mimi]

Oh HELL YEAH I remember Steelheart! In fact, "I'll Never Let You Go" is one of mine and Lazzy's songs! I loved em in the 80's, and I still love em now. They were sadly overlooked in the 80's. The lead singer was IMO one of the greatest vocalists of the decade.

YOU used to sing that song? My god, I'd pay large sums of money to see and or hear that! Did you have to grab your crotch to hit that last note?? Let alone hold it for any length of time? Anyone who can do so should be entered in the Guiness Book of World Records! LOL

Mimi