VideoHere Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 folks, if you haven't seen this video and you want to sing "steve perry like" (lighter registration) please check this out. this really was explained in such a way it really hits home. especially if you tend to sing on the heavier side, this is a good watch. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Korzec Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 Damn he has some serious laryngeal strength and coordination. Good tips of course but what I'm hearing more than anything is a particular exotic sound that is gradually shaped and crafted through loads of practice time. I really think what he's doing can't be learned in months, it takes years for most people...it's very hard for the nervous system to figure out how to put the voice in the delicate balance that he's demonstrating and keep it there with stability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VideoHere Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 it's a very "insecure" place to sing from, but a much less physically demanding one. i can sing that song the "harder" way but i want to be able to dial back at times. arnel tends to sing it the "harder" way but it's a half down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Damn he has some serious laryngeal strength and coordination. Good tips of course but what I'm hearing more than anything is a particular exotic sound that is gradually shaped and crafted through loads of practice time. I really think what he's doing can't be learned in months, it takes years for most people...it's very hard for the nervous system to figure out how to put the voice in the delicate balance that he's demonstrating and keep it there with stability. Yeah, well, then, the time to start is now. All the most successful people in various fields started out unremarkable without recognizable "talent." Even those with a nice sounding voice, such as Pat Benetar or Marie Osmond had to work as hard as any of you to get where they are. Even Ronnie James Dio. Maybe he doesn't talk about who taught him to sing. But what he did have is a rock solid work ethic, all the way up to his untimely death, when he was in the midst of planning yet another tour. You are never "finished." You have to "work" at it. And don't measure in years or the 10,000 hours others are batting around. Get away from numbers. Just work at it until you succeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felipe Carvalho Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 If its Steve Perry emulation, why does he sound like Labrie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VideoHere Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 it's not an actual emulation just ways towards singing the "perry" way. i really liked the way he explained things part by part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 If its Steve Perry emulation, why does he sound like Labrie? Awesome, Felipe. That made me smile. I don't think he sounded like Perry, either, but I get the point he was trying to make. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felipe Carvalho Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Fair enough Bob and Rowns, sorry for the bitchness, I just think that people overdo the "marketing thing" sometimes . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Fair enough Bob and Rowns, sorry for the bitchness, I just think that people overdo the "marketing thing" sometimes . Cool. If I were to make a tutorial video, I would have to title it, "How to not sing like Ron." And then explain to not do what it is I do. But actually, I agree with you, Felipe. I am not all that fond of teachers claiming to teach you how to sing like another singer, whether the object is to sound like them, or not. If someone wants to belt a Journey, go right ahead and do it. Then, again, I say that because I believe in doing what it is your voice can do. And if it is more comfortable and strong for your voice to belt it, then belt it. Which may place me in a very small group of people who think that way. Again, I am not an expert, as if anyone here thought otherwise. :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePowerOfOne Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I have a question ,and please don't throw rocks at me, but why is that most everybody in the singing/voice community looks at Steve Perry as the be all end all when it comes to great singing? It seems that everybody is always "Steve Perry this and Steve Perry that" Why? I mean, sure he may have had a great voice, but I personally always found his tone to be very thin, airy and lacking in depth and Hmmmm balls. Are those the qualities that people love about it? Please enlighten me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gno Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I have a question ,and please don't throw rocks at me, but why is that most everybody in the singing/voice community looks at Steve Perry as the be all end all when it comes to great singing? It seems that everybody is always "Steve Perry this and Steve Perry that" Why? I mean, sure he may have had a great voice, but I personally always found his tone to be very thin, airy and lacking in depth and Hmmmm balls. Are those the qualities that people love about it? Please enlighten me... I felt the same way about Steve. He was never one of my favorites. When I started doing my own renditions of Journey songs I belted the songs out - I didn't want to do it "light". Then we had the infamous Steve Perry thread that got removed. Through that thread I learned a lot about him, and started to gain tons of respect for him. If you've ever sang a Journey song you realize how difficult they are because they all lie right in the passagio. He did all these songs live and in concert. And if you watch some of the early live videos, he gave tremendous energetic performances, and sang all those songs and nailed them - night after night. He figured out back then to sing rock lightly so that he could preserve his voice for live performance. And - what doesn't get talked about enough - was that his phrasing was world class. If you listen close to the live performances you'll find he had a high attention to detail when it comes to phrasing. Nearly the same attention to detail as an Opera singer does. I guess in a nutshell - he created a style of singing rock that was truly original. (Kind of like what Van Halen did on guitar) And he could deliver it Live - night after night. You may not like that style (I didn't either) but the guy carved out his place in rock history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gno Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Great post Bob. I hadn't seen that video before. He's right - if you start to belt out some of the notes, you end up doing it for the rest of the song. And that can get very fatiguing in a hurry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remylebeau Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I have a question ,and please don't throw rocks at me, but why is that most everybody in the singing/voice community looks at Steve Perry as the be all end all when it comes to great singing? It seems that everybody is always "Steve Perry this and Steve Perry that" Why? I mean, sure he may have had a great voice, but I personally always found his tone to be very thin, airy and lacking in depth and Hmmmm balls. Are those the qualities that people love about it? Please enlighten me... I'd start with the fact that Journey has a huge amount of mass appeal to begin with and everyone not living under a rock for the past half century has heard their music. Add to that the fact that the music is extremely hard to sing, for most. It lives in the upper part of the passaggio where people have the most trouble and it requires that light registration. Also, fact of the matter is that the man has a distinct voice. Most can do a decent Axl Rose impersonation with enough twang and distortion. Few can really really do a good Steve Perry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felipe Carvalho Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Be all end all is a bit too much, but he was really a monster of technique. Specially his dynamic control on head voice, and the depth of his interpretation, its really bizarre, and he did it all live with little trouble and with consistency. I am not a fan of the style, but I think its an important study all the same. Of course, the media ellected him The Voice and there is the whole idolization thing. So saying that you teach Steve Perry style has appeal like saying you teach Freddie Mercury style, Pavarotti style, Mariah Carey style... And so on... Steve Perry is good, but there are tons of other great singers that are more than worth to study too. Its not an end all... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDEW Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Be all end all is a bit too much, but he was really a monster of technique. Specially his dynamic control on head voice, and the depth of his interpretation, its really bizarre, and he did it all live with little trouble and with consistency. I am not a fan of the style, but I think its an important study all the same. Of course, the media ellected him The Voice and there is the whole idolization thing. So saying that you teach Steve Perry style has appeal like saying you teach Freddie Mercury style, Pavarotti style, Mariah Carey style... And so on... Steve Perry is good, but there are tons of other great singers that are more than worth to study too. Its not an end all... Not really commenting on your post Felipe, just the appeal of Journey. To me it is not Steve Perrys' voice that deserves the attention but the songs. You had heartfelt stories with a message usually about being faithful in a time when other songs were about spending the night with someone you have never met before or just getting drunk. You had an homage to your hometown and a song about being out on the road missing your loved ones. Plus you had Kick butt guitar playing and an over all sound that just made you feel good. The songs made Steve Perry sound great. Not Steve Perry made the songs sound great. But people tend to relagate the success to the singer instead of to the whole unit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remylebeau Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I think one would be rather hard pressed to sing this song with a full belt sound. I'd certainly like to see it done. I think Tony's aim isn't to teach people how to "sound like" Steve Perry. I think he's trying to teach people the most efficient way to get through a Journey song in the original key. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Validar Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I have a question ,and please don't throw rocks at me, but why is that most everybody in the singing/voice community looks at Steve Perry as the be all end all when it comes to great singing? It seems that everybody is always "Steve Perry this and Steve Perry that" Why? I mean, sure he may have had a great voice, but I personally always found his tone to be very thin, airy and lacking in depth and Hmmmm balls. Are those the qualities that people love about it? Please enlighten me... I don't think "balls" was ever an objective for him. He was essentially an R&B crooner placed in a rock band. (which wasn't exactly on the heavier side of rock, either) He did what came naturally to him, and it worked within the context of Journey. As much as I'm a fan of his voice, am I fan of him as a person, as well. His girlfriend died about a week and a half before Christmas last year, yet he has signed autographs and taken pictures since her death with fans who have recognized him in public, while many others flat out refuse in better times in life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonpall Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I felt the same way about Steve. He was never one of my favorites. When I started doing my own renditions of Journey songs I belted the songs out - I didn't want to do it "light". Then we had the infamous Steve Perry thread that got removed. Through that thread I learned a lot about him, and started to gain tons of respect for him. If you've ever sang a Journey song you realize how difficult they are because they all lie right in the passagio. He did all these songs live and in concert. And if you watch some of the early live videos, he gave tremendous energetic performances, and sang all those songs and nailed them - night after night. He figured out back then to sing rock lightly so that he could preserve his voice for live performance. And - what doesn't get talked about enough - was that his phrasing was world class. If you listen close to the live performances you'll find he had a high attention to detail when it comes to phrasing. Nearly the same attention to detail as an Opera singer does. I guess in a nutshell - he created a style of singing rock that was truly original. (Kind of like what Van Halen did on guitar) And he could deliver it Live - night after night. You may not like that style (I didn't either) but the guy carved out his place in rock history. geno nailed it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gno Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Not really commenting on your post Felipe, just the appeal of Journey. To me it is not Steve Perrys' voice that deserves the attention but the songs. You had heartfelt stories with a message usually about being faithful in a time when other songs were about spending the night with someone you have never met before or just getting drunk. You had an homage to your hometown and a song about being out on the road missing your loved ones. Plus you had Kick butt guitar playing and an over all sound that just made you feel good. The songs made Steve Perry sound great. Not Steve Perry made the songs sound great. But people tend to relagate the success to the singer instead of to the whole unit. Excellent points. Those were mostly Steve's lyrics. Not only were the lyrics absolutely top notch, but you point to the positive messages contained in them which flowed from Steve's soul. No wonder females loved Journey - the songs were about being faithful - girls love that stuff! And you're right - Journey wasn't just Steve Perry, although his contributions weighed pretty heavy. It was a great combination of talent that made the whole thing work. (kind of like the Beatles) I love Neal's guitar work and the melodies and chord structures he came up with. And then Jonathan's ability to generate mega hits - which sparked inspiration in the rest of the band. Journey's music was sophisticated yet simplified to reach the masses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felipe Carvalho Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Remy, you dont have to belt it, just not brake: But anyways, the thing is, why saying that its Steve Perry "style", if its not? Why not just keep it honest and say its a way to sing light? ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gno Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I think one would be rather hard pressed to sing this song with a full belt sound. I'd certainly like to see it done. At the risk of coming across as self promoting, here's my "belting" version of this song: http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=10370969 I recorded this a few years ago - my first Journey song. The first part is light, but the during the rest of the song I am belting with as much intensity as I could at the time - that was my goal. I wouldn't advocate singing it this heavy - it's way too heavy. Just like Tony said it is very fatiguing. I approach this kind of song much differently now. (my vocal technique wasn't that good back then) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin H Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Yes, it's very important to lighten up to be able to sing those high songs without fatiguing too quickly. Here's a friend of mine and earlier colleague (actor) who sings his own material. He's great at lightening his voice to sing those catchy power-ballad tunes: https://app.box.com/s/37ipx3wqhudksi0thv36 :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VideoHere Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 it really quite interesting..... to i guy like me who likes to belt and wail and sing things intensely and a little heavier, learning this lighter way has actually helped to get me even more powerful.....when i go back to the thicker fold songs..... hard to explain....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronws Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Warning, useless trivia to follow: At the beginning, Journey was an avant-garde rock band flirting with "fusion," a mix of rock and jazz. Especially when they brought on prodigy, Neal Schon when he was 17. But their gigs were lightly attended, mostly by musical geeks. Then, they changed managers. In comes Doc McGhee. Doc always seeks to elevate a band to the stratosphere, such as he did later with Skid Row and other bands. "What you guys need is a singer. I know a guy. He's a crooner but he will get larger audiences for you because the women just love to hear him sing. A guy you have never heard of named Steve Perry." And the rest is problematic history. So, let me now dodge the slings and arrows certainly to follow. Perry was not doing a "Perry" technique. He really does have a light, dusty voice and was singing as clean as he could manage. Following all the basics we follow. That's just how his voice turned out. So, while I understand the adoration of Perry as a beloved singer, I am always mystified by this religious fanaticism to try and sound exactly like him, or some other singer. The point of the video was how to sing high stuff with a lighter registration, which is how it is imagined that Perry does it, though I don't know if Perry goes lighter because he is not talking about it. It is not talking about sounding just like Perry. It is talking about singing with a lighter weight to conserve the voice through the song. Is this how Perry does it? I don't know. Should I care? I don't know. When I sing it, I sing it my way, whatever that is. Which may not always be acceptable to others expecting a Perry clone. If I do the song, I am not looking for people to mistake me for Perry. I think I did a good job if they appreciate that I was on pitch with good volume in the original key. Or not. As long as I sing on pitch in whatever key it is played is always going to be stronger with an audience. Live, I have sang songs and do not sound like the original singer and it was applauded because I sang the song well. But, to end on a lighter note, I am waiting for the day of the elevation of Billy Corgan to sainthood. :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andresonance Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Yes, it's very important to lighten up to be able to sing those high songs without fatiguing too quickly. Here's a friend of mine and earlier colleague (actor) who sings his own material. He's great at lightening his voice to sing those catchy power-ballad tunes: https://app.box.com/s/37ipx3wqhudksi0thv36 Awesome tune! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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