October 30, 2002 Well hi there kids: It's been a chilly ass fall here in the mountains. I did a show recently and a man in the audience asked me some of my favorite songwriters. It got me to thinking about the many top 10 lists I have made over the years and how very little they have changed. It is a tough call on top ten lists because you just got to keep thinking and rationalizing in your head... well alright is Johnny Rotten one of my fav singers and yes I would have to say so... however I can listen to hours of Sinatra. A single EP is enough of Johnny Rotten but it's just that "enough" that makes him so special. He sang with such feeling and zero vibrato that you have to love his effort. To me there are "singers" and then there are what I call vocal "stylists" like Sting, Tom Waits, Bob Dylan. They are not in the league of the Sinatra or the Merle Haggard's. So there should be two vocal lists really Singers and Vocal Stylists. Oddly enough I never listen to women vocalists. I don't in general care for them. I prefer the meatier sound of the male tenor. For my money Frank Sinatra was the world's greatest pop vocalists. He had it all, diction, timing, phrasing, breath, ability. A genius to the end. Happy Halloween (my favorite holiday next to Valentines Day) All my well wishes, Nancie's Musical Top Tens Top 10 Rock/Pop Records |