[b]miraclesteinway wrote: [/b] Oscar I've no idea about that, I suspect that the differences in sound might have been to do with a little help from Montserrat, and learning different voice placement techniques. To me it sounds more like voice placement changes.
Also, it sounds like a voice on the mend rather than a voice on the decline - it sounds like a voice being repaired from all the years of touring, smoking, drinking, straining, and it sounds like he did a little re-training for Innuendo.
[/QUOTE]
Voice placement changes for sure - which enabled him to sing in a way that was less physically demanding. While he might have learned some of that stuff from Montserrat, he still used a lot of chest power on the Miracle, and it wasn't until Innuendo that he started to take advantages of the techniques to give his increasingly frail body a break. At least that's my theory.
miraclesteinway · Member since
That's true, but he worked on the Miracle and Barcelona at the same time. It usually takes a few months for a new technique to become established in a musician, up to a year really, even with an experienced artist.
The Miracle LP does see the onset of the new technique.
Every singer wants to sing in the least physically demanding but most effective way possible.
I don't know if it was to do with being frail, or wanting a different sound, or being a better singer, or what. We'll never know that. Perhaps he didn't really know what or why he was doing certain things.
raucousmonster · Member since
I'm amazed at how many people love the vocals on Innuendo as you can clearly hear the illness beginning to take its toll on his vocals. His range and power were superb of course but for me his tone was a little thin in the later songs and not as satisfying as on everything he did prior to that album. I enjoyed the dirt of his power singing in the 80's and I loved the purity of his 70's voice. But on Innuendo it's too clean and too thin for me and lessens my enjoyment as a result.
tomchristie22 · Member since
[QUOTE] [b]raucousmonster wrote:[/b]
I'm amazed at how many people love the vocals on Innuendo as you can clearly hear the illness beginning to take its toll on his vocals. His range and power were superb of course but for me his tone was a little thin in the later songs and not as satisfying as on everything he did prior to that album. I enjoyed the dirt of his power singing in the 80's and I loved the purity of his 70's voice. But on Innuendo it's too clean and too thin for me and lessens my enjoyment as a result.[/QUOTE]
I think it's pretty widely agreed upon that the thin tone was a result of his using his head voice much more, not really a result of the fact he was dying - at least, not so directly.
In answer to the original question... I'll always most love his tone on Queen II through A Night at the Opera - so tender and expressive. Still, his vocal performances on things like Who Wants to Live Forever, One Vision, and all of Innuendo, are stellar in entirely different ways. There's something so utterly transcendent about Freddie's delivery 'On with the show', it almost sounds effortless the way he glides into it. Very beautiful.
Viper · Member since
The Show Must Go On is simply a bliss!
brENsKi · Member since
[QUOTE] [b]Viper wrote:[/b]
The Show Must Go On is simply a bliss![/QUOTE]
but it ain't an album
Oscar J · Member since
[QUOTE] [b]tomchristie22 wrote:[/b]
In answer to the original question... I'll always most love his tone on Queen II through A Night at the Opera - so tender and expressive. Still, his vocal performances on things like Who Wants to Live Forever, One Vision, and all of Innuendo, are stellar in entirely different ways. There's something so utterly transcendent about Freddie's delivery 'On with the show', it almost sounds effortless the way he glides into it. Very beautiful. [/QUOTE]
Well, by that time I think he was able to hit high C's, D's and D#'s pretty effortlessly. Sure, he was really ill, but he had developed a great technique that made his singing a lot less taxing for his body. Also his voice was spared of all the live singing, partying and smoking.
Nitroboy · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]raucousmonster wrote: [/b] I'm amazed at how many people love the vocals on Innuendo as you can clearly hear the illness beginning to take its toll on his vocals. His range and power were superb of course but for me his tone was a little thin in the later songs and not as satisfying as on everything he did prior to that album. I enjoyed the dirt of his power singing in the 80's and I loved the purity of his 70's voice. But on Innuendo it's too clean and too thin for me and lessens my enjoyment as a result.[/QUOTE]
I think part of it was him being so ill, but still delivering such amazing vocals. He also stopped smoking (if I remember correctly), and his tone was a bit cleaner compared to say The Works or A Kind Of Magic
musicland munich · Member since
A lot of the vocals on Innuendo were from 1989, when they mainly worked in Montreux.
AlbaNo1 · Member since
Don't Try So Hard sounds strained and really thin in a couple of parts, as does The Hitman.
raucousmonster · Member since
[QUOTE] [b]tomchristie22 wrote:[/b]
[QUOTE] [b]raucousmonster wrote:[/b]
I'm amazed at how many people love the vocals on Innuendo as you can clearly hear the illness beginning to take its toll on his vocals. His range and power were superb of course but for me his tone was a little thin in the later songs and not as satisfying as on everything he did prior to that album. I enjoyed the dirt of his power singing in the 80's and I loved the purity of his 70's voice. But on Innuendo it's too clean and too thin for me and lessens my enjoyment as a result.[/QUOTE]
I think it's pretty widely agreed upon that the thin tone was a result of his using his head voice much more, not really a result of the fact he was dying - at least, not so directly.
[/QUOTE]
Even Roger said in a recent TV interview that you could hear Freddie's voice was very thin on the last album due to his illness. It understand why people might say he's using more head voice or it's cleaner because he'd given up smoking but it' smore than that. His whole tone has completely changed. It's nowhere near as rich and sounds like someone who isn't very well which of course he wasn't. I find it very hard to listen to from an emotional point of view.
The interview is from this year and is on YouTube somewhere...
joerijoerijoeri · Member since
Live at the Rainbow. He suddenly gets all the notes right.
musicland munich · Member since
[QUOTE] [b]joerijoerijoeri wrote:[/b]
Live at the Rainbow. He suddenly gets all the notes right.[/QUOTE]
You`re a proper lout my dear :)
Biggus Dickus · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]joerijoerijoeri wrote: [/b] Live at the Rainbow. He suddenly gets all the notes right.[/QUOTE] lol nice one. My favourite has to be Magic. I really like the vocal performances on that album.
hobbit in Rhye · Member since
I have to go with the obvious. ANATO, then Barcelona, and Innuendo.
ANATO for his masterful control of his studio voice, the dynamic between the pure smooth falsetto and the gritty voice. Sometimes it doesn't need to be an all powerful voice to achieve the effect. And Freddie's falsetto is rather special. I'm normally not interested in male's falsetto, but Freddie's has a crispy quality to it, especially when he interchanged it with his gritty voice.
Barcelona, that's like his most technical vocal performance.
Innuendo, for many things, the emotions of the songs, the soprano sound of the high notes, the "brightness" of his voice. It has some thin moments in between, but that helps bringing out the brilliant moments more.
