MERGED --> What is the highest note Bono hits w/o falsetto? + To all key/note experts

[clifedge]

What is the highest note Bono hits w/o falsetto?

I was just wondering this. I think it's gotta be in WGRYWH ("Don't you looooook back") or in Red Hill Mining Town ("I'm still waiting...I'm hangin' on").

Any other candidates? Or does someone know for sure?

 

[U2girl]

I think Bad and Who's gonna ride... both have that tenor "C*" note.

Maybe Red hill, as he hasn't been able to sing it live.

 

[elevateandy]

I think "can't help falling in love" during the Sydney Zoo TV show was the highest?

 

[Axver]

Isn't "fade away" in Bad the highest note he's hit?

 

[chickadee]

I know nothing about notes, lol, but what about the 'yeah, yeah' in Angel Of Harlem? I only mention cause he wasn't exactly hitting it on Slane (but it was still great!).

 

[U2DMfan]

he can go much higher in falsetto's, his highest note, I am not sure

the highest note without falsetto is a C# in Bad (album)

 

[U2DMfan]

Isn't "fade away" in Bad the highest note he's hit?

It's actually the "wide awake" part.

That's the highest note any of us have found so far.
I never bothered to check falsettos, the end of Gone is awful high as well, but even I can hit that note in a falsetto, whereas I couldn't sniff that C# in Bad.

 

[Axver]

It's actually the "wide awake" part.

Oops, yeah, that's what I meant. Maybe I need to start listening to U2 again ...

 

[clifedge]

I think "can't help falling in love" during the Sydney Zoo TV show was the highest?

I'm sure that was the highest falsetto note. The version from the Honeymoon in Vegas soundtrack is amazingly high.

 

[clifedge]

he can go much higher in falsetto's, his highest note, I am not sure

the highest note without falsetto is a C# in Bad (album)

Thanks. I'm glad you can actually figure out what note it is. I'll bet that is the highest.

 

[BrownEyedBoy]

I know that the "wide awake" is the highest note without falsetto.

And I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the highest falsetto note he's hit is at the end of "Heartland" at 3:56-ish.

 

[Joey788]

Probably either Bad or Red Hill Mining Town.

 

[xaviMF22]

what about stay?

 

[U2DMfan]

what about stay?

A#

 

[xaviMF22]

A#

can you please explain......

 

[U2DMfan]

can you please explain......

"the real high 'STAY' during the last chorus" is an A# above middle C.

going higher......
A (Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own)
A# (Stay)
B (Pride album)
C (Red hill, Horses, SHF)
C# (Bad album)

pretty much anything lower than the 'A' isn't worth talking about, Bono could fart those notes.

 

[kristbg]

Hmmmm.... someone told me once that the "COLD man/COLD heart" part in Wire was higher... but I can't be sure.

The other notes I can think of are the "YEAH, yeah" in Angel Of Harlem, the last "NIGHT and dayyyy" in Night And Day, and "what MORE in the name of love" in Pride. I'm also curious to know what note is the "AMOOOOOOORE" in Miss Sarajevo.

I'm pretty sure that Bono's highest falsetto note is either the one Bono did in Mysterious Ways (Zoo Tv Version), or the amazing note Bono hits before "night, night, night and day" in the end of Night And Day.

Anyone care to try to find out what are the lowest notes he's hit? I'm guessing either "Your Blue Room" of "If You Wear That Velvet Dress".

 

[Zoots]

It's definitely 'Wide awake' from Bad! But speaking of Red Hill Mining Town, I realized the other day that I can hit all of the high notes in that song myself! It's really not that hard to sing like some people think it is.

 

[U2DMfan]

Hmmmm.... someone told me once that the "COLD man/COLD heart" part in Wire was higher... but I can't be sure.

The other notes I can think of are the "YEAH, yeah" in Angel Of Harlem, the last "NIGHT and dayyyy" in Night And Day, and "what MORE in the name of love" in Pride. I'm also curious to know what note is the "AMOOOOOOORE" in Miss Sarajevo.

Pride, as I said=B is the highest note
Miss Sarajevo=A
Cold heart in Wire=B, although the second one is very odd and hard to decipher, I'll work on that a little more, damn he is straining his voice
Yeah, Yeah (AOH)=also very strained C, good find on that one

 

[BVS]

SHF

What song?

 

[kristbg]

Still Haven't Found

 

[U2DMfan]

What song?

Still Haven't Found

 

[BVS]

Still Haven't Found

As if the acronyms weren't confusing enough, now I have to figure out the shorthand versions??!!

 

[kristbg]

Some more I thought of...

"RAINING in my heart" in One Tree Hill
"And now we LIE together" in Ultraviolet
"nothing at ALL" in SIAMYCGOO
"I'm a MAN" in Kite
"fe-E-el" in Vertigo

BTW, I was shocked to know that the "Wide awake" in Bad was only a C#5... it sounds pretty high!

 

[clifedge]

U2DMfan,

Don't mean to be a bother, but do you have any stats on the high falsetto notes? I really appreciate your input with the other songs.

 

[ChargedVT]

Non-falsetto notes
Some of the songs are tuned down half a step, hence the reason "If God Will..." is a B instead of C.

Bad C#
Who's gonna Ride, Red Hill, Angel Of Harlem, One Tree Hill C
Pride, If God Will..., Vertigo B
Still Haven't, Hawkmoon, Like A Song, Last Night on Earth Bb
Miss Sarajevo, Stay G#

There are lots of songs that hit an A, such as "Sometimes", "Sort Of Homecoming", "Even Better", and most of the songs from the last 2 albums in fact.

the "COLD man" part in Wire is actually a D which makes it the highest non-falsetto note so far, I believe.

I own "U2 - The Complete Songs" which has all their songs up until 1998 with the vocals tabulated.

Try singing along to "Like A Song" with all those A's and B's, VERY hard to do, even tuned down half a step.
Hitting a high note is one thing but maintaining it for a few seconds is even harder. Listen to the end of "A Sort Of Homecoming" where Bono holds that A note for like 7-8 seconds.
Then you have the middle 8 in "Native Son" which I think is an elongated B note.

 

[ChargedVT]

Other mentions....
New Year's Day B ("say it's true")
Sunday Bloody Sunday Bb (main refrain)
Gone Bb ("are you still holding on")
Kite A ("the shadow behind..."), the "I'm a man" part is G#, then the word "who" is falsetto B.
Ultra Violet B ("now we lie together")

 

[LyricalDrug]

Great thread. My vote for highest falsetto is the snippet of "Fool to Cry" that he adds to the end of "Bad" at the Dublin ZOOTV radio broadcast.


[-edited because there is no such word as 'voe']

 

[The_One1932]

In terms of true falsetto, i would say the ending on mysterious ways zootv era during the "i'll show you roses i'll tell you things i'll take you places you've never been" is about as high as he's ever gone, which is then followed by his roaring "cmon love, cmon love" portion, which i consider his strongest singing ever. Listening to the boot from dublin (the famous one thats soundboard quality) is incredible.

 

[Ellay]

The falsetto in the Jools Holland Version of Velvet dress has got to be one of the highest.

probably on par with falling in love from zoo.