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It sounded really good. RUSH meets Dixie Dregs doing "Journey to Mariabronne" by KANSAS. Which is meant as a compliment. But yeah, there were times I thought I was singing falsetto and it wasn't. It just seemed "soft" because I wasn't trying to sing over a F-14 taking off from the USS Reagan.

Cool vid and I like the idea of doing intervals for harmony. But I don't think you were doing falsetto. It wasn't breathy enough, in my opinion, to be falsetto. You do know that falsettto is a tone and not a range, right?

Great job, Geno. I like the way you harmonized on chorus. And you sang it the way I normally sing it. I had to change that somewhat when I was recording for here. I really like the tone on your voice. It seemed made for this song or vice versa, this song was writtten for your type of voice.

Use this phrase from "Spirit of Rock" to experiment with. "We are in the ocean. Every kind of fish. We are a human rainbow. We are whatever we wish." Why? because it involves mixing. Second, it is a new song, so you can get away from ingrained expectations in the older stuff. And these are easy syllables that could allow you to change vowel shapes to find your path to fully support your notes, though I think you can already do it. This will also help build confidence. When you have confidence, you commit to the note. Here's the song. And trust me, he's not using much chest. Mostly mix, and more head voice than you think. What Scorpions do retire, at least as a group? We need someone to carry on. It could be you. When I was your about 26 years and was first learning to resonate in the head, I thought I sounded like Klause Meine. I think I have changed since then. But you remind me of me when I was that age and I want to see you succeed. Plus, you have picked songs and a group near and dear to our hearts. I have "Sting in the Tail" and my wife has the greatest hits album.

Yes, do what Bob says, in order to build support for the upper end. And while you are at it, get it out of your head that you sound like a girl. Don't make me come over there and whoop the girly thoughts right out of your head. I have told you that you have the voice of an angel and I still think so. Since we are individuals, we each have a specific sound, stemming from the construction of the cords themselves. How limber our muscles are to control them, even the shape of our vocal tract, including how big and loose the false cords are, what the shape of the sinus cavity and soft pallete are. All these things can affect our final sound. So, to some extent, you voice is a gift from God, or, you are born with it, whatever. Even, to some extent, the language you grew speaking, as it definitely affects how you phonate. What is different is what you do with it. Would you say Justin Hawkins sings like a girl? I know plenty of women and a few girls that cannot sing as high as he can, regardless. David Lee Roth misses the days when he had a voice like an angel and could make his russian grandma cry with a church hymnal. Anyway, do like Bob said but get it out of your head that you are hiding something in chest voice. Now that I think of it, even my version of "Rock you like a hurricane" was actually mixed for most of it. Please consider that word. Mixed, that means some of each. Some chest, some head ( when actually those are handy misnomers to describe a resonance) neither one being rejected. As you practice the support, also experiment with resonances. Make it sound funny, evil, super-angelic. Also, can you explain how you know beyond any reasonal doubt that Klaus Meine is not using mixing, essentially with curbing and crying and using more head voice than you think he does. That means that he is using head voice quite a bit, just not the tone that you thought was "true" headvoice." The point of this is, as Dolph Lundgren said in the Rocky movie, "I must break you." "I must break you" of this notion that the quasi operatic tone that you generated was not the definition of head resonance. If you were resonating in the head fine, but that sound was a tone. A tone that can be changed. So, we'll hear no more talk about how you can't sing tenor, that one particular tone defines a range of resonance. "I must break" you of the notion that the entire range of tenor must be sung in chest voice, except for the very highest notes where it's okay to shriek like a girl in head voice. I definitely must break you of that. Falsetto is a tone, not a resonance. It is a specific tone brought on by cords being close enough to produce a sound but not much closer, and therefore more air escapes. You can do falsetto at any part of your range, including low end, which makes it a tone or, as I used to say, a style of singing rather than a range. I must break you of the notion that falsetto is a range. When the cords are close enough to make a fully support sound and almost no air is escaping, that is a supported note, not falsetto, no matter how "girly" or angelic the note sounds. Just because a note doesn't have grit does not make it falsetto. I know what you are talking about when the voice flips. That's to get around the passagio. The passagio is where you are shifting resonances. Why must I break you of all this? Because I want to hear you perform any song from the entire Scorpions catalog, including the newest and supposedly last album, Sting in the Tail, with confidence. For example, you could really do "Lorelei." And you would nail it on "The Spirit of Rock." Now, I have taken liberties with expression. Of course, I wouldn't really break you physically. I'm just saying that I'm going to keep reminding you that you can do this and I'm going to make comments when I think you misunderstood something and that misunderstanding is holding you back from where you want to be. You can do this and I will be your cheerleader (though I am not going to wear one of those skirts and do cartwheels and I would hurt myself with a handstand.)

Now, I know what your problem is. And it's not one of vocal ability or range. Or pitch control. It is one of perception. It was incredibly helpful when you gave an example of what you thought of head voice. What you thought was head voice is a tone you have developed but actually, it sounds like a tone you created while mixing registers. But that tone is not headvoice. In your higher rendition where you think you are cracking, (and I don't think you are, cellphone mic and all), that was also headvoice, different resonance and timbre. By the way, I think you did fine on the second version, even though tempo changed, I knew it was a rough cut to simply illustrate what you were talking about. Do you remember in your other Scorpions thread where I gave you an example of "Rock you like a hurricane"? The high parts, "are you ready, Baby?" and "Come on, come on, come on!"? Those were in head voice. Head voice is an area of resonance, not a tone, such as what you displayed, which was actually something close to operatic. I invite you to look at your own video again and see how your face is shaped in the operatic version that you think is head voice and the "cracked" version that I think was better. Dude, you can sing this song in the original range. When I hear it, Klause is using curbing or crying for much of it and head resonance on the highest notes. I know you think you are stuck as a baritone but your latest example shows me you can do tenor. You just have to shift to a new paradigm as to what you think head voice is.

Your pitch was perfect for the range you were singing in. I think what is preventing you from going higher with the confidence you want is that, in the range you are singing, you sang I think what they call neutral. No twang or curbing. So, singing-wise, you were in your comfort zone. Curbing is going to require less air pressure than you are using and you fear that might weaken the note. Funny thing is, properly resonated, a curbed or twang note does not lose any strength. Now, you could try it in falsetto, just concentrating on pitch. Once you are comfortable with that, then experiment with the falsetto by bringing the chords closer together until not so much air is bleeding through. That is, sneak up on a fuller head voice. Or, transition slowly from falsetto tone to a crying tone (which I think is what Klaus is doing in that song.)

A cheap concert I have been to here was at the Winstar Casino in Oklahoma, $30 USD for regular seating, to see a double bill of Robert Cray and Buddy Guy. The cheapest is Hot Summer Nights in Sherman, Texas, paid for by sponsors and the Chamber of Commerce. They've had local greats such as Bugs Henderson, Jeff Strahan, and legendary Ray Wylie Hubbard. My wife and I are friends with Hubbard. He wrote "Redneck Mothers" but Jerry Jeff Walker made a big hit out of it.

What an ambitious song. Vocal line soaring and diving. This is the second time I listened to it. You sang it clean, probably neutral most of the way through. I think your second ending fits in with that better but both endings were good. That's one hell of a sustained note. I liked this performance and thought it could have a little more bite with a little more twang. Not a criticism, just a stylistic choice. That is, what I think sounds good doesn't mean that you did it wrong. It would be the same thing if I wanted to hear it sung like Neil Young, for example. Just a stylistic thought, but not necessarily what is needed, if anything is needed.

I think you made an excellent review. And I'm glad you noticed the shifting accent. As I said, I don't mind of Fahim sings in his accent but there were a few times it disappeared and he sounded like Jon bon Giovanni, and that was cool, too. I thought the harmonies were neat in the chorus, even though they distracted me a little, I chalked up to me comparing it to the original.

In the case of this recording, I am about 2 to 3 feet away from the mic, literally. Which holds down on the mic splat. And it also cuts out some tonality. And you can tell me that I need a better mic and then I'll just cut and paste the post I made above. I didn't realize that I needed a minimum of equipment and disposable cash to be here. But I learn as I go along.

Only from myself. No one, except for you and akarawd have understood that a large chunk of my problem is the mic I am recording on. And I would dearly love to save some pennies and get a decent mic. What has kept me from doing that? Well, my steady job went away in March, right after my birthday. A week of job hunting yielded nothing and so I called a temp service I worked through last year. They got me a 1 week assignment in Oklahoma doing a power addition to a casino. Then, another week of no work. Then, they got me back out to the casino and that lasted almost a month. Then two weeks of no work, even as I was looking elsewhere. Here's the hard part. I am eminently qualified to do electrical in different industries. Residential, commercial, and industrial. I started doing electrical in 1983 and I have a master license. And that counts against me. But the temp service found me another assignment and we just tell the client that I am a journeyman and that's good enough. I need the job more than I need to have people know what my real license is. In the meantime, paying a $245 electric bill, $100 water bill, $179 for auto and home insurance. $372 car payment (I have to have a car to get to work, so that bill gets paid first, regardless. Phone, putting groceries on the table, gas in the car, car registration, vehicle inspection, new tires to pass inspection. I still haven't paid the property taxes from last year and those are up to $2,000 now, thanks to penalties and interest. I still owe about $800 to the dentist, another $1500 to carecredit for dental bills. An apprentice broke my 1/2 inch pipe bender and I had to get a new one. I have to update my dog's vaccinations next month but those aren't too expensive. We have 3 year rabies protocol and his is still good, so he only has to get one for the 5 other common diseases in dogs. Rabies is non-existent in our county, so that's a good thing. Food for the dog. Food for the cat. And yes, they get along. And the project they have me working ends by July 30 of this year. So, it's not looking like I can spend a couple of hundred dollars on even a basic decent mic, though if I could upgrade from this one just a smidge, that would be lovely. Don't worry, you are not hurting my feelings and yes, I think a better mic would make my recordings better. There are some tones and overtones that are lost, from both my voice and my guitar. I've explained that a number of times, to explain sound quality problems.

I'm jealous of anyone living in South America. Guns and Roses always tours there. The people love hard rock and roll and are generous and lovely.

I was going to say, on the track of mostly just voice, it sounded like high chest, which doesn't mean anything. I've hit a solid note and someone thought I was screaming, etc. Then, you put it with the music and the same note has urgency and emotion. You sing this song like it was written for you. And I really like the sound of your voice outside of the Brian Johnson timbre.

That was great. In this song, different from your other stuff, you sound a little reminiscent of Paul Young. And I enjoyed motoring in the countryside. I had a brief moment of panic when I thought we were on the wrong side of the road, then I remembered you live across the pond. Right side of the road, different country.

You did not sound whiny. Nor girly, but it did sound light. I, too, would recommend changing eq to something that brings in the mid or lower overtones, as I think your eq made it the recording sound light. Then your rasp would fill out in recording. And I think you have the range to not drop 1/2 tone but whatever floats your boat. Though, and some may think I'm strange, I like accent in singing. For example, I hope that Klause Meine never sings like an american. I totally love his diction and pronunciation. But I noticed here and there that you were able to sing without your native accent you were almost from Red Bank, New Jersey. I thought that was pretty cool. Not a complaint, just a neat effect, I thought. And actually, you have a nice rasp in your lower notes. I think it was inventive and imaginative that you did harmony in three registers for "woooahh!" You have a way better mic than I have and you are splatting on it, which makes me feel better, as I am not alone in overloading a mic. The only thing I can is like Jen suggested, hold the mic away. I recently did another song and splatted the mic pretty good without trying and I didn't move it away like I usually do. I sent it to someone for review and he suggested I move the mic away on the high loud parts, which is what I usually do. I happen to like the tone of your voice. And you are a nautural tenor made for this song, I think.

Excellent song. I like the way that you use the second capo to create an "open" tuning. I think your voice sounds fine and I like the country yodel feel to it. I don't know what "next" step there is unless it is to sound like someone already famous. I think you should sound like yourself. One thing you can do to brighten notes is smile while singing. It changes the charcteristics of your resonating space when you sing. It'sn't just to see you smile. Your singing was just fine but, I guess, you could experiment with different sound effects in your voice to see what happens.

That was amazing. Nice grit. Wide range, going from clean to twang and down to screamo. Well done.

And to further illustrate a point of where resonance actually happens, in my version of "Heaven and Hell," near the end, I am humming and then ah'ing the guitar fill. The range is baritone. But I feel it vibrating the soft palate. Many would call that chest voice. It can't be. It's vibrating the soft palate and it certainly isn't originating in the lungs. There is only the air column and the vocal chords or folds, which are approximately the size of your thumb (again, with the anatomy.)

So true, Fahim. If you actually study anatomy or just ask your doctor, the diaphragm is an inhaling muscle, not an exhaling muscle. As someone here rightly pointed out at one time, you inhale with effort but exhale by relaxing and should sing in the exhale. So, in reality, one should concentrate on fold closure and resonance and the breath should balance itself. But so many teachers have said, "Sing from the diaphragm." You don't actually sing from the diaphragm and when you push air, you are contracting with your chest muscles, not the diaphragm. And I used to think it was the diaphragm, too. And part of the pitch problems you may have heard from me was pushing air, which forces the folds too much and they resist and thicken and go off pitch or don't vibrate freely, as they should. The speed of sound is 750 mph or about 1100 feet per second. And your resonating space is mere inches in comparison.

Thanks for the advice. I've found I can hit those exact notes you are talking about better now that I am backing off the air pressure. And I would rather hit the note than drop 1/2. And the song, whether doing backing tracks or my guitar arrangement is in Eb, per the original.

Thanks for the kind words. And you're right, pros may spend a week recording just one song and editing tracks and pieces of tracks together to create a seemless, spotless whole. Where as, I tend to come home and record live or only two tracks. One guitar, one vocal. And when you hear the vocal, that is one track, not snippets from here and there. If I go from a high C to middle C, or vice versa, that's in that performance. Even David Lee Roth and Melissa Etheridge admit to adding bits to the vocal track when their voices are rough from a cold, or smoking and drinking in a night club, or hollering and shouting at a sporting event, in order to get an extra layer of rasp in Melissa's case or a subterranean low in David's case. And I thought physical exhaustion had contributed to some of problems, as well. My job is extremely physical. To get an idea of what I am putting up with, grabs 20 lbs of weights (approx weight of tools that I carry.) Since you can't fit a ladder in a sauna, go up and down the steps a few times. Set the sauna temp with med humidity at somewhere between 95 and 100 F. Now, start doing that at 6 in the morning. Stop at 8:30 for 15 minutes buy by going to a room that 85 to 95 with slightly less humidity and a slight breeze. That will feel like air conditioning. Go back in, endure this some more, essentially walk around in circles in the sauna to get a feel for the constant physical exertion. Stop at 11:30 for lunch for 30 minutes. Go back in and stay there until 2:30. Then you get in you car, clothes literally dripping with sweat from 8 hours of this and that's my day. And the other day, for about 2.5 hours, we received a shipment of lights at the school remodel. Since the delivery truck had no pallet jack and no lift gate, I had to push the pallet of lights to the end of the trailer so that the big forklift could get it. For 29 pallets. Pushing across a wood floor. Once outside, I grabbed a small pallet jack from the mechanical company and the forks were too wide so I had to tip the pallet up on a side and get the jack underneath and carry the whol thing. Up an incline and into the building and disperse each pallet to a classroom, inspite of other people, power cords, crap on the floor. For all of those 29 pallets. By myself. And imagine doing it at my age of 46. Not to mention that the weather changes in Texas play hob with my sinus and I get some allergies. And then go home and perform and record "Gethsemane" or the "Immigrant Song" by Led Zep. That's the next song I want to do but I won't post it. I've already been told that I have posted too much. If I do post it, it will have to be in the main site. When you do go home to do that, I want you to put away the nice mic that you have, the one that cost a pretty penny. I want you to sing and record on your cellphone, for the sound quality that I am getting out of my mic. And, in spite of eating bananas and drinking water all day, I am getting dehydrated for electrolytes because, in the middle of the night, I am awakened by severe cramps in my legs. So, I'm not getting a sound sleep. So, sometimes, I do hit a slightly off note in passagio. But I think I am improving that by better breath or air pressure control. But sometimes, exhausted is just being exhausted all over.

Good luck. I think you were on pitch but when have two vibratos out of synch you hear the beats of where the frequencies match and with different frequencies one wave is rising and falling faster than the other and that gives that odd auditory effect. I understand about neighbors. I have lived in apartments, before.

I just listened to it again and I couldn't remember doing any rasp. So it must be the mic clipping or something. And it seems Audacity added some harmony that wasn't there. That is, I didn't sing harmony to the lead. So, I am having technical problems, it seems. And the sound quality is like that of an old phonograph.

I thought of that, too! And check out the Axis of Awesome "4 chords" video in the related videos from your link. And mvraselli, yes, I've been having pitch issues in passagio. I've been fixing that with air pressure control. And, in some cases, if the words are problematic, either I change the pronunciation to an easier vowel or I go higher.