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Ron,

thanks man....you can pick up some pretty decent back-up singers on Itunes these days And my wife is a fiery red dirt girl for whatever that's worth.

Marcus,

thanks a lot. That's a huge compliment! I've been getting back to my roots lately and am enjoying it immensely. I can't sing Journey for shit, but this kind of stuff is in my blood. I'll definitely post more when I get the chance.

MDEW,

Thank you :)

Just got back from Spain(my second time over there...man I love that country) and this was one of my favorite songs as a kid. I've sang this live many times and it's definitely in my "wheelhouse," but this is my first time recording it.

Any feedback appreciated!

https://app.box.com/s/f8lvywqobrx3bjpzc6nq

MDEW,

you've got a great tone for this style of music(and one of my favorites on this forum) you just need more work on the upper notes. You're still closing down the sound WAY WAY WAY too much. G# is still "relatively" low in range so you want to keep vowels wide open. Think EH/OH/A depending on word. If you shout out "Hey" to someone in the next room or across the street, you'll be getting closer to the sound you need for this song.

If you're working on your own, that's about all I can recommend. Would love to hear you get a few more notes hammered out and situated, so if there's anything I can help you out with, let me know.

MDEW, Ron thanks....and a pint sounds great. Heck, with all the delicious craft breweries around, we should skip the pub.

Nah man you're very in tune. You were spot on like 98% of the time. I just figured that must be not good enough for you or else you wouldn't be asking for critique.

It's much appreciated!!!

I'm just slapping vocals on top of karaoke tracks so for me it's always great to have as many pairs of ears as possible....I usually have spots that bother me, but sometimes can't put my finger on it(or more likely just get lazy and don't want to mess with it ).....other times people hear things that don't bother me in the slightest, but will make me re-evaluate and really listen with an open mind(ears.)

Thanks again

Ha...thanks guys. I've been dialing in my "rock voice" for awhile now....getting closer to my ideal. And Owen...I don't think my high pitched catarwauling is ever in tune :lol:

The old party band staple...tried to capture the original vibe the best I could

https://app.box.com/s/co9vozawyy8fl9sw1yeh

This was a rock singing clinic! Excellent balance between heavy/light/distorted/clean. Awesome!

you've got the materials so build

Awesome as usual!!! I like 'orrendo canto'. http://speedydeletion.wikia.com/wiki/Orrendo_Canto

Orrendo Canto is a proposed vocal technique that has also been referred to as 'perfect support' or 'true belting' by some singers. The name 'Orrendo Canto' (Italian: Horrible singing) is a play on words that contrasts with the popular technique 'Bel Canto' (Beautiful Singing); though the actual sound can be seen as typically neutral. Depending on the resonance, the singer may use the technique to resemble a Bel Canto effect. It is designed to achieve optimal support and compression via restricting the airflow with the use of several muscles located below the jaw and above the larynx, and naturally increasing sub-glottal pressure.

The proposed technique is sometimes said to be capable of initiating both the normal vocal folds and vestibular folds simultaneously, though the research here is scarce. Oftentimes this method of support is initiated with vestibular folds in Tuvan throat singing to optimize air flow. With the true vocal folds, perfect support prevents the falsetto register from taking over the notes higher than the individual's chest voice. The increase in sub-glottal pressure within the singer's natural range allows the use of the technique within classical music, and is attributed to the effective broadcasting of the voice in large spaces. The intense amount of support proposed by users of the technique also makes the transition to falsetto register a physical impossibility unless the support is ceased.

MultiphonicsEdit

Another proposed capability of this method of support is the production of two notes at once without the use of overtones. These techniques have been used in contemporary experimental music on occasion. The scientific research in this area of singing is nonexistent - and for good read. Though, the increase in experimental music in the past few decades has shown an increase in unorthodox vocal approaches - this amongst the bullshit. Orrendo Canto singers who produce multiple notes are sometimes capable of controlling both notes independently.

Excellent song and singing. You've got more than enough range style and passion. Keep on keeping' on man. Great work.

Jugulator,

look forward to it.

Ron,

in my experience after gigs, 100% of the compliments I've received have been the result of material I connected with AND fit my voice to a T. Being in cover bands means covering LOADS of songs that are not a "great" fit. I still sing them of course, but the end result is pretty meh on those tunes.

I have a good female friend who is considered one of the most "powerhouse" vocalists around. She changes the key to almost all of her songs(lower and sometimes way lower.) It's extremely diva-ish to do from the band perspective,) but the audience has no idea about key sigs and/or couldn't care less . She wouldn't be caught dead singing something that didn't fit her voice. It was a powerful reminder to me….if you want to connect with an audience, stay in your "sweet spot."

Hobbit Rock,

thanks man. Keep training your voice. You'll get there. An A4 is plenty of range for a LARGE part of the singing catalog. Obviously certain genres require quite a bit more, but most don't. Good luck.

Gneetap,

thank you for your kind words! The Ray Charles thing is interesting, I never thought of that until you mentioned it, but you're right. I used to sing+rap Gold Digger by Kanye West where the intro to that has Jaime Foxx singing the interpolation Of Ray Charles' I Got a Woman. Always went over well.

WHat a great tone to your voice. I especially liked your Under Pressure cover. Man that is killer.

So how did you figure out how to sing those A4s. Does it really feel like F#4 and lower once you achieve that level or is the fullness from some sort of distortion?

I can sing A4s but it still sounds shrill and feels different even with full cord closure.

Years and years of training. Plus 20+ years of singing A LOT!!! First 10 years doing original stuff, last 12 years doing party band stuff for a living more or less. I started losing my voice a lot and that started my vocal training search. Best thing I ever did was take lessons. I'm a decent "mimicker" but there's no way I would've worked this out on my own or through books or whatever.

Now many years later I can sing what I want in a completely healthy manner(no loss of voice.)

I still can't sing "everything," but I'm sure I'll die long before I get close to that :P

Jugulator,

ha...maybe you should throw a version into the mix. This is such a fun song to sing, would be cool to hear different interpretations.

MDEW,

youtube never fails to amaze me. Great find on those!!! And absolutely do a mountain version w/ fingerpicking. I love bluegrass and have some bluegrass stations on my pandora....you have the perfect voice for that style.

That jump in pitch always thows me off. When you sing it and Adoney it does not sound out of my range but when I go to sing it it sounds screechy and seems like I am singing an octave higher than I should.

Well it's tough...it jumps up to A4 and hangs out there. Bob Seger used to do the same for me...when I first started singing I would think oh that's not that high and then try to sing it going what the hell???? How could it possibly be that high....what the hell's going on? He must be a wizard

Same thing w/ Lou Gramm stuff although I always new it was up there just not how far up there.

Ron,

ha...exactly!!

The horror movie heavy metal and the bluesy biker version have now been done. Now, we need the apallachian version.

Thanks everyone. The high note here is supposed to be a G#4 in the key I am playing. I don't think I quite made it But the note I sang sorta fits.

Mixing was not a priority for me as you can tell. I mainly just wanted to see if I could sing it. I had to sing the chorus by itself quite a few times to even have it sound OK. That jump at "There's nuthin' "LEFT HERE" to remind me" always created problems. Each time I tried that part it came out different. I just don't know how to sing it yet.

Thanks Ronws for the incouragement to try this.

MDEW,

your voice really does fit this song! As far as hitting the note, well, you have to keep the vowel the same(EH vowel) and go for it(of course, way easier said than done that's why we train and all that.) It can be tough at first to "allow the volume" so to speak, especially if you've been suppressing your voice your whole life. But, it's what needs to happen.

I found a live version with Phil tuned down to the same key. Watch his body and what he does with the mic on those high notes:

So you recorded this track? Sounds better than the karaoke one I got! hehe

Hahaha...God no. It's karaoke + garageband. (what happened to autoedit?) savant "like some people" that play every instrument and record every track perfectly.

I like the one take method for vocals(at least on these types of songs) where I leave in warts and all but capture a "vibe." It's probably all in my head and I over-romanticize the Mles Davis method and all that...but oh well...

Ron,

thanks man!! I was laughing because this track sounds like every soundtrack to HBO shows nowadays(True Blood and True Detective.)

Got inspired to lay this one down....My old "original" band used to close our show with the Animals' We Gotta Get Outta This Place and our "sound" was very Animals-esque.

Anyways, one take through it (except for playing around with couple different endings.) Comments always welcome and my hats off again to Adon for his awesomely ghoulish interpretation. Mine is very bland in comparison

https://app.box.com/s/v24uvqtac4tz89rucb8t

What I love is you have developed your own style and you stick to it no matter what genre. You remind me of Tom Waits with vocal range on this one. But still you of course. How's the new band coming? Are you gonna tour?

jesus dude...can I have an autograph? Burdon cover pulled me from lurk mode. World class voice as usual..

Makes me wonder, what, approximately is your natural vocal fach? With your voice for some reason I get this sense that you are a baritone that has trained to get up really high. It has a boominess to it lacking in a lot of tenors.

Thanks Owen.

No idea what fach I am, but certainly always assumed I was a baritone. I had/have an incredibly boomy/dark voice "naturally", but not necessarily deep. I'm known professionally as a bariton-ish guy for sure...but after years and years and years of training, fachs are meaningless to me.

Do you think that being a trumpet player has helped you with singing? Some think that trumpet playing somehow is transferable to singing.

Yeah...it taught me to be loud and obnoxious But honestly, spending 8 hours a day practicing trumpet...for years on end, transcribing tunes, listening non-stop to my idols....all of these made me a musician...first and foremost.

But, with that said.....don't think it helped me at all from a "technical" perspective...vocally speaking. I still did just about everything wrong that I possibly could...ha.

Being a big Rita Coolidge fan, I've probably heard her cover of this more than the Jackie Wilson version, but man, this was just superb. Although it is a very subjective term, this oozed unbridled "soul", which made listening to it all the more fun.

Thanks Validar. Yeah....Rita's version was certainly the popular radio version when I was a kid. Talk about artistic interpretation. Almost unrecognizable from Jackie's but great nonetheless.

I'd wear one of those jumper suits if it meant I could sing like that

I would too if I could move like that. I get tired watching him

....What I really appreciate is the feel and rhythmic phrasing....

Geno, I played trumpet for so many years that I always think like a trumpet player. I mean, haven't really played the trumpet in close to 20 years, but my brain still works like an instrumentalist. For instance, if somebody starts talking about singing an A4, my mind immediately imagines the trumpet fingerings for an A4. Weird.

Hey guys,

thanks so much for the support. This song has always made me feel so damn happy! I mean, sweet jesus, look at Jackie here:

and...WHAT THE (*auto edit*) IS HE WEARING??? Looks like a damn toddler jumper.

Funniest shit ever!

Jackie one of my top singers so hope I do the song justice...it's one of my all time favorites. Tried to keep the raw "live" vibe. Any and all comments appreciated as always.

https://app.box.com/s/lguobrb99tdt3tk0aip6