catlhere
Rock n' Roll Doggie VIP PASS
Because he can't, and he knows it. But that doesn't mean he is bad at singing. So I wish people would stop getting so defensive about his voice obviously not being capable of what it used to.
Bono’s young voice vs. older voice
- Thread starter pcfitz80
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone that follows U2.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Because he can't, and he knows it. But that doesn't mean he is bad at singing. So I wish people would stop getting so defensive about his voice obviously not being capable of what it used to.
Rob33
Rock n' Roll Doggie
dude, what on Earth are you talking about? He sang it just fine....the falsetto included. It was an awesome performance.
(@3:05)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmcIweh-KjQ&feature=related
the falsetto wasn't even as good as the 360 performance...actually it's terrible...and that video is from the exact time period you're talking about...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke_W0FEDQeQ&feature=player_embedded
"Bono's voice can't do it" ?
Rob33
Rock n' Roll Doggie
and I wish people would stop conveniently ignoring the fact that he can do things now that he was incapabale of doing in the 80's
Yeah, that version of Spanish Eyes the other night was noticeably faster than Elevation and even blew the JT "wrong night for an arm wrestle" version out of the water!
I knew as soon as Larry started clapping the sticks together at the end of Still Haven't Found that it was going to be an on fire performance.
And it didn't disappoint- instrumentally or vocally!!
They just ripped right into that and didn't let up until it was over.
Listen to Bono belt out the "love the way..." lines.
Awesome, not something he could come close to doing on Elevation or even Vertigo.
I knew as soon as Larry started clapping the sticks together at the end of Still Haven't Found that it was going to be an on fire performance.
And it didn't disappoint- instrumentally or vocally!!
They just ripped right into that and didn't let up until it was over.
Listen to Bono belt out the "love the way..." lines.
Awesome, not something he could come close to doing on Elevation or even Vertigo.
coolian2
Blue Crack Supplier
like screaming his vocal cords out
Rob33
Rock n' Roll Doggie
yeah, those parts sounded sweet
actually he can still do that...and he does, just not that often
last unicorn
Blue Crack Addict
I think he could, but he doesn't want to. Bono has said many times that he kind of develops the songs he's singing live while performing them, that he just likes to try out new interpretations. Many songs on this tour are sung differently from previous tours. I think Bono still has what it takes to sing old songs like he used to, but he's more careful about his voice now and doesn't belt out the stuff like the used to, which IMO is a good thing because I prefer him as a singer not as someone who's simply shouting out the lyrics.
yeah, those parts sounded sweet
actually he can still do that...and he does, just not that often
Actually he used to it in the 80's to the point of almost ruining his career, but not since.
That was good, and it wasn't trying to copy 1987 because this is 2010. And miles ahead of the 2001 version.
Cactus Annie
Refugee
Does anyone else think that these threads never bring up anything new? It's just the same people bleating about how they wish Bono was more of a stylist than a singer like he was in the 80's? There's not much point in me reading through all of this thread, is there? I'm rather short on time.
Screaming is not the same a s singing.
Screaming is not the same a s singing.
corianderstem
Blue Crack Distributor
gvox
Ghost of Love
1:47 - 1:54 = lol wut?!
He sang that part wayyyy better back in the 80s.
That gives me an idea. I should make a highlight compilation of current screams and cracks just to prove my point.
Wait...
Rob33
Rock n' Roll Doggie
"...but not since" ? That's just not accurate haha...there's plenty of moments, even on 360, where he screams...it just doesn't happen nearly as much as it did...I personally think the 360 version is on the same level as that R & H outtake version...maybe better
1:47 - 1:54 = lol wut?!
He sang that part wayyyy better back in the 80s.
That gives me an idea. I should make a highlight compilation of current screams and cracks just to prove my point.
Wait...
did you even watch that R & H outtake I posted?
mad1
ONE love, blood, life
I agree that Bono is not trying to sound like he did back in the 80s with certain 80s songs, I would say that he is singing them same way he did back then.
juliaguliaxo94
War Child
This thread is bull...
gvox
Ghost of Love
did you even watch that R & H outtake I posted?
Yeah but I don't even think it's a fair example to be honest. Is he even sober in that clip?
but anyways he does sing that particular part better in the R&H outtake. He's singing the actual line from the studio version.
Kindof unrelated...but when I heard they had played this song, it just elicited another head-scratcher...I mean..let's just use youtube clips as an example..check out past versions of Spanish Eyes. They aren't all that great, and they sound a bit train-wreckish. So why, of all songs, do they keep hauling this song out in Spain? It's not reallly an ode to Spain or even Spanish people, it's more about a girl with dark eyes dark hair who happened to walk into his whiter than Wonderbread classroom..she was unique, so she looked Spanish.
So having said all that...why this song? Why in Spain only? Was Ali in the audience? Isn't she in the audience sometimes in other venues? And if this song, with all it's rough edges live, why not others? I mean, they're willing to somewhat muddle through this song to give the Spanish audience a treat every 5 years or so, so why not remember/learn some others that actually made it to, you know, their albums?! Or, perish the thought, former tours' setlists?
But I digress...
To me his voice sounds especially thin on that specific lyric. Yes, he hits the note, but with a narrow, constricted throat singing an "eee" sound.
Not really the best example of how great his voice is these days, imo.
gvox
Ghost of Love
Exactly. Bang on. Edge hits the same note but with a full voice that tapers off into that 'constriction' that you mention, at 1:41.
Speaking of Edge... Edge's harmonies in that song are just
ETA: In honor:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXxefgAlrag
Speaking of Edge... Edge's harmonies in that song are just
ETA: In honor:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXxefgAlrag
"...but not since" ? That's just not accurate haha...there's plenty of moments, even on 360, where he screams...it just doesn't happen nearly as much as it did...I personally think the 360 version is on the same level as that R & H outtake version...maybe better
Yes, but the argument is the screaming is more controlled now. Because now he actually knows what he's doing with his instrument, he won't get a blown out voice, won't have to cancel shows and won't have to see medical help re: his voice.
Inner El Guapo
War Child
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2004
- Messages
- 609
I thought that argument (for some people), from all that I've read, is also under the delusion that the instrument is about the same as it's always been.
I mean...seems to me to be two different conversations people are having.
One group is saying "yeah but NOW he knows how to sing and he still occasionally sounds as good as he ever has" while the other group is saying "but his voice is physically different!! How can you say he sounds the same?"
I think the truth is, regardless of preference, that his voice is absolutely, demonstrably different. End of story. And from there, it's entirely opinion as to which we prefer.
What aggravates me is the delusion that Bono has even near the same voice he had in the 1980's. He doesn't, period. I'm sorry, but will all due respect, if any of you believe this, you're just delusional. Or tone deaf. Or just plain stupid.
It's different and because it's different, he sings differently than he used to. End of story. If we agree on that, then the critical arguments about his voice can't be invalidated. And that's what some around here don't want to see happen. And that's why, IMO, otherwise intelligent people make themselves look silly by pronouncing meaningless events as evidence of something.
"Look at how bad my delusion has become!! Five seconds of this certain video has proved the reversal of the aging process, reversal of smkking damage, touring strain, general wear and tear, it's time travel baby! How many gigawatts did it take?" My goodness...it's not just an opinionated debate, there are people piping up, who are just flat wrong.
Its not as black and white as you say it is.
I think part of the debate, a good part of it, represented maybe by Peterrr and DoctorWho is that Bono's voice has changed. No denying that whatsoever. Its just the degree argument where they get off the boat. Along with most other reasonable people.
I think where you and others miss the mark is in the degree of the change. Certainly, Bono sings a different way now, sounds different in spots, approaches his vocals differently. However, that does not mean he isn't consistently sounding good and singing powerfully. And it also does not mean that Bono's voice is entirely different- as if one could not recognize 1983 from 1993 from 2010. It is most certainly the same voice- and if you go up to anyone on the street, they'd probably not even notice the difference between 1983 NYD and 2010 NYD. No one with Bono's touring schedule and time in the business has a less changed voice over time. Listen to some other artists.
You also are wrong when you go after Peterrr as a cherry picker. Its not like he is picking highlights that haven't been replicated throughout the time periods he picks them from. Bad consistently sounded good in 2006, NYD and IWF consistently sound very close to how they sounded in the 1980s. Pride is the closest to the studio version its ever been. And you are just kidding yourself if you can't see this or want to argue that its not really that much better/closer to the 80s versions than 2001 or 1997 or even 1992/3.
It just baffles me that people think Peterr finds 5 seconds in a sea of mediocrity and jumps up and down like a giddy teenager at a Jonas Bros concert "Bono's voice is back." Give me a break. Listen to some bootlegs, its consistently there. People like Doctorwho who have actually been attending U2 concerts since the 1980s say Bono sounds the closest to how he sounded then now.
So of course he's changed, but to the degree that you and some others here claim? Not by any stretch of the imagination. Its more than clear he is still the same singer.
No need for this.
last unicorn
Blue Crack Addict
Just get over it, ok? Some people just happen to like Bono's voice as it is today. No need to be rude. Everyone can have their opinion on this issue without being insulted by someone who doesn't agree with it. You're being very aggressive here. I think we all got your point.
gvox
Ghost of Love
Guys this just in: Bono is the same singer he was way back then! I swear it, the same damn singer! Ha! And here y'all thought they had replaced him with a clone. How could you?
Peterrrrr
New Yorker
To me his voice sounds especially thin on that specific lyric. Yes, he hits the note, but with a narrow, constricted throat singing an "eee" sound.
Not really the best example of how great his voice is these days, imo.
I didnt wrote anything about that it was a high note, I wrote that I like that sound he get. I think Bonos voice today is much more personal, it has a much more unique sound. And I like the sound he get when he sings something with an "eeee" in it.
gvox
Ghost of Love
mad1
ONE love, blood, life
this voice thread could be bigger than U2.
A (subjective) opinion maybe?As opposed it being what back in the 80s? Impersonal?
gvox
Ghost of Love
I don't understand how "personal" can be used as an adjective to describe anything quantifiable about a voice. I believe it's always been "his" and very unique also.
Rob33
Rock n' Roll Doggie
To me his voice sounds especially thin on that specific lyric. Yes, he hits the note, but with a narrow, constricted throat singing an "eee" sound.
Not really the best example of how great his voice is these days, imo.
....how you hear that "eee" sound as being thin is mind-boggling...I mean, I get what you're saying, but that's just not what a thin vocal is...he's just shaping the note differently...thin is the last word I would use to describe that note.
Bang on? Haha, how do you seriously think that's thin?
As opposed it being what back in the 80s? Impersonal?
Maybe Peter means that Bono of the 80's (and perhaps 90's too?) was sort of trying to sound a certain way, whereas today, Bono doesn't try to sound like anything and it sounds more "real" I guess? Not sure I agree with this, but maybe that's what Peter was getting at. Other people have mentioned this before.
gvox
Ghost of Love
Bang on? Haha, how do you seriously think that's thin?
You're right, it's his Grover voice. Or Fozzie The Bear. I get them mixed up all the time.
Similar threads
