Bono in his prime: rank him amongst rock singers

[Lila64]

what about John Lennon?

I love Bono's voice. Anytime anywhere any decade. But that's just me...

 

[Aardvark747]

Jagger is NOT a good singer at all. The Rolling Stones are relatively talentless and have minimal artistic talent. Those two records are far from being the best. No way do they top Abbey Road or Revolver, or Dark Side Of The Moon or Wish You Were Here, or LZIII or ZOSO or Physical Graffiti, or OK Computer or Kid A, or Joshua Tree or Achtung Baby, or a host of others.

Spot on...

 

[Aardvark747]

what about John Lennon?

I love Bono's voice. Anytime anywhere any decade. But that's just me...

Spot on...

 

[BVS]

Jimmy Gnecco of OURS has quite possibly the best voice I've ever heard. Too bad he's too indie to be noticed. Seriously. I'd describe him as a mix between Bono from the mid-to-late 80s, Freddie Mercury, and Jeff Buckley. (listen to their song "Sometimes")

He's amazing live too, I'll get to see him next month.

 

[JOFO]

why did this thread need to automatically turn into whining and an argument?

thanks you to the few who actually responded to the topic.

 

[Mr. MIKEphisto]

I think Mick is overrated (and intolerable to listen to sometimes)

The guy from Ours has a crazy good set of pipes on him..

Yorke is amazing (I like that devil or angel comment)

Bono is an original, and although he has lost a little of his volume and range.. he's still a great vocalist, and very distinctive.

Lennon Belongs on the top of this list!! (with Yorke and Bono)

.... and Mercury too!

I guess the King can go there too.. although I really don't listen to Elvis haha.

Can we put a chick on here? How about that singer from Jefferson airplane?

 

[Rafiennes]

This conversation is so hard to have cos it does tend to bleed out the “you suck for thinking this” side of people and ends up becoming an anti-Coldplay, Beatles are overrated thread, but, here goes nothing…

Bono’s voice has a range, I’m not talking about notes per se, but more of styles, without not sounding like Bono. He has done the forceful singing and he can do the whisper-singing, he can do the falsetto and the raspy, Been-out-drinking voice. And as the band have evolved, so has his voice. No longer with the clarity of the Lovetown days, just different, that’s all.

As far as other rock singers go?

Lennon, McCartney – amazing voices. Lennon has a razor sharp quality to his voice and McCartney fluidity.
Jagger – maybe can’t sing with super power, but man can he put some swagger and some stank on it! Same could be said about Bowie, his style has pretty much been the same through out his career…but he’s still one of the coolest sonuvabitches on the planet!
Freddie Mercury – Such a range in notes and power. This man’s voice was amazing and may very well be one of THE best there ever will be
Thom Yorke – Love him on all albums up to Kid A. After that I found his voice kind of grating when he did the whiney kind of thing (calm down people, this is my opinion for Christ’s sake!!!!) But you know what, I love this next singer’s voice and the same could be said about him…
Liam Gallagher - One of the most recognizable and original voices to come out of the UK in a long time (I also think Noel has a fantastic McCartney-esque voice)
Jeff Buckley – Had an amazing voice but from what I’m kind pf pissed at him for dying so I won’t give him props he deserves.
Chris Martin – A lovely voice, but relies too much on the falsetto. I’d love to hear him try and belt out a few tunes, but maybe he can’t. That’s OK.
Ed Harcourt – Fantastic voice, similar to Buckley and Yorke
Elvis Costello – Criminally underrated singer. Character in his voice that some of these other singers would kill to have.
Jim Morrison – Over rated. I’ve always felt that he wasn’t this shaman that people propped him up to be, and more of a drunken poet….once again, MY opinion, calm down.
Van Morrison – Every so often comes a white man with more soul than he should be allowed to have in his voice. Van’s voice is the preacher and the world is his choir. Preach it brother!!!

It’s getting close to that What Qualifies As Rock & Roll area so I’ll closeout with who I think are some of the greatest voices of all time:

Frank Sinatra, Al Green, Marvin Gaye, Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays), Sammy Davis Jr., Fran Healy (Travis), Scott Walker (Walker Brothers), Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Sharleen Spitiri (Texas), etc.

But the greatest voices in rock history of all time?

TENACIOUS D!!!! LONG LIVE THE D!!!!

 

[angelordevil]

why did this thread need to automatically turn into whining and an argument?

thanks you to the few who actually responded to the topic.

When you ask to "rank" anything, you're opening the floodgates to whining and argument. If you didn't expect that, maybe the thread should've be titled "Bono's voice is so beautiful, isn't it?"

Take a pill and chill!

 

[the tourist]

He's amazing live too, I'll get to see him next month.

Lucky!

 

[OnFire]

I'm not a huge Pearl Jam fan but Eddie is one of the most immitated vocalists in rock. Jeff Buckly would be more immitated if there were enough singers that could pull it off.

Off hand, one singer I can think of who compares to Bono at his peak is Roger Daltrey of the Who.

 

[beau2ifulday]

I'd place him third, behind Freddie Mercury and David Bowie.

 

[Judah]

From 1990 onward:

Kurt Cobain
Thom Yorke
Bono
And i like the uniqueness of Bjork

 

[Bono's Doll]

Bono is still in his prime--he's still going strong--still has that rock star voice, looks, attitude & grace at the same time.

 

[Cassis]

stipe!

mercury!

 

[flangerchorus]

have any of you guys ever heard of Chris Cornell? , also there is a HUGE difference between a good singer and a good vocalist, cause Vedder is a great vocalist but a pretty average singer, on the other hand Mercury or Buckley are amazing singers, and so on

 

[namkcuR]

From 1990 onward:

Kurt Cobain
Thom Yorke
Bono
And i like the uniqueness of Bjork

Cobain? I like Nirvana but come on, the guy screamed everything. He's hardly a good singer.

 

[MrPryck2U]

I agree, Cobain was no singer. But, he sure was one hell of a yeller. Rock and Roll will let you get away with yelling.
If you wanna talk about a singer, how about Micheal Hutchence. Anybody remember him? He died in 1997, but he used to front this band called INXS.
When you are in a rock band, your job is to highlight your strengths and hide your weaknesses. A good band can do this very well. Was Mick Jagger the greatest singer? No, but he had strengths that could hide that. Plus he was ok, lol! The Stones have been rocking for over 40 years! You gotta give Sir Mick his due.

 

[BVS]

Jeff Buckley – Had an amazing voice but from what I’m kind pf pissed at him for dying so I won’t give him props he deserves.

You won't give the man props because he died.

That's just fucking cold.

 

[Lila64]

Elvis Costello – Criminally underrated singer. Character in his voice that some of these other singers would kill to have.

have any of you guys ever heard of Chris Cornell? , also there is a HUGE difference between a good singer and a good vocalist, cause Vedder is a great vocalist but a pretty average singer, on the other hand Mercury or Buckley are amazing singers, and so on

I LOVE Elvis Costello - great vocalist, writer,... And still going strong.

Yes, I know Chris Cornell - good voice (Soundgarden, Audioslave...), but don't believe in the same league with the greats mentioned earlier (Bono, Lennon, McCartney, Daltry, Jagger, Dylan, Mercury,...)

 

[BVS]

If you wanna talk about a singer, how about Micheal Hutchence. Anybody remember him? He died in 1997, but he used to front this band called INXS.

I hope there's a hint of irony in that question?


But yes Hutchence was an amazing front man, along with having an amazing voice.

 

[gareth brown]

You won't give the man props because he died.

That's just fucking cold.

My thoughts exactly. "Grace" alone [never mind the second disc of the Legacy Edition, 'Mystery White Boy', 'Live at the Olympia' and some of 'Sketches for my Sweetheart the Drunk'] is enough to make you give the man every 'prop' he deserves!!

 

[Nube Gris]

how could i forgot Michael Hutchence
What a singer, what a performer

Hutchence maybe alongside Bono one of the best rock singers ever

 

[xaviMF22]

1)Robert Plant
2)Freddie Mercury
3) Bono

 

[BVS]

My thoughts exactly. "Grace" alone [never mind the second disc of the Legacy Edition, 'Mystery White Boy', 'Live at the Olympia' and some of 'Sketches for my Sweetheart the Drunk'] is enough to make you give the man every 'prop' he deserves!!

Have you checked out Live at Sin-e, the full version?

It's a live recording before he made Grace. It's basically him at this regular gig he use to have. Just him and his guitar. He does covers, tells stories, there's early versions of Last Goodbye, Mojo, etc...

It's amazing.

 

[Bono's shades]

This is a difficult question.

I think it is safe to say Bono is in the Top 10 of most people's lists of best rock singers of all time (anyone with half a brain anyway), but is he No. 1? He may be my personal favorite singer of all time, but it would be very difficult for me to argue against anyone saying Roy Orbison, Jeff Buckley or Freddie Mercury as the best ever.

Jofo, I love your story about the opera people praising Bono's voice. What a wonderful tribute.

 

[Judah]

Aw...no other Cobain defenders?!

I would say Kurt had one of the most beautiful, mournful voices ever in rock. Yes, it came out best when he wasn't screaming (i.e. the unplugged album), but even the aggressive songs were delivered with some unparalleled passion.

 

[LMP]

Elvis
Bono
Freddie Mercury
Bowie
Lennon
McCartney
Roger Daltry (showin some Who love)
Springsteen
Steven Tyler
Steve Perry
Sting
Thom Yorke
Lou Reed

*bottom of the list*
Chris "Tryin' to 'Single White Female' Bono" Martin

 

[Max_theHitman]

If you are going to rate the singer by what he has sang and by the way he expresses it with his voice, you better have at least one "Greatest Hits" record from all these singers to understand why I have made the following list.

1. Frank Sinatra
2. Elvis Presley
3. Bono (Paul Hewson)
3. Mick Jagger
4. Van Morrison
5. Otis Redding
6. Bob Dylan
7. Marvin Gaye
8. Prince
9. John Lennon / Paul McCartney (tie)
10. Ray Charles
11. Roy Orbison
12. Curtis Mayfield
11. Johnny Cash /Willie Nelson (tie)
12. James Brown
14. Michael Jackson
15. Stevie Wonder
16. Sam Cooke
17. Robert Plant
18. Nat "King" Cole
19. Tom Jones / Barry White (tie)
20. David Bowie
21. Smokey Robinson
22. Bob Marley
23. Hank Williams
24. Mick Hucknall
25. Bob Seger
26. Leonard Cohen
27. Elton John
28. Bruce Springsteen
29. Jim Morrison
30. Peter Gabriel
31. Freddie Mercury
32. Steve Perry
32. Elvis Costello
34. Liam Gallagher
35. Gordon Lightfoot
35. Sting
36. Roger Daltrey
37. Billy Joel
38. Neil Young
39. Iggy Pop
40. Charles Azvanour
41. Morrissey
42. Neil Diamond
42. Lou Reed
43. Tom Waits
44. Joe Cocker
45. Wilson Pickett
46. Paul Simon
47. Julio Iglesias
48. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
49. Mel Torme
50. Serge Gainsbourg
51. Rod Stewart
52. Robert Palmer
53. Kenny Rogers
54. Al Green

 

[U2phan]

If you are going to rate the singer by what he has sang and by the way he expresses it with his voice, you better have at least one "Greatest Hits" record from all these singers to understand why I have made the following list.

1. Frank Sinatra
2. Elvis Presley
3. Bono (Paul Hewson)
3. Mick Jagger
4. Van Morrison
5. Otis Redding
6. Bob Dylan
7. Marvin Gaye
8. Prince
9. John Lennon / Paul McCartney (tie)
10. Ray Charles
11. Roy Orbison
12. Curtis Mayfield
11. Johnny Cash /Willie Nelson (tie)
12. James Brown
14. Michael Jackson
15. Stevie Wonder
16. Sam Cooke
17. Robert Plant
18. Nat "King" Cole
19. Tom Jones / Barry White (tie)
20. David Bowie
21. Smokey Robinson
22. Bob Marley
23. Hank Williams
24. Mick Hucknall
25. Bob Seger
26. Leonard Cohen
27. Elton John
28. Bruce Springsteen
29. Jim Morrison
30. Peter Gabriel
31. Freddie Mercury
32. Steve Perry
32. Elvis Costello
34. Liam Gallagher
35. Gordon Lightfoot
35. Sting
36. Roger Daltrey
37. Billy Joel
38. Neil Young
39. Iggy Pop
40. Charles Azvanour
41. Morrissey
42. Neil Diamond
42. Lou Reed
43. Tom Waits
44. Joe Cocker
45. Wilson Pickett
46. Paul Simon
47. Julio Iglesias
48. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
49. Mel Torme
50. Serge Gainsbourg
51. Rod Stewart
52. Robert Palmer
53. Kenny Rogers
54. Al Green

nice list, I like it

anyone like Noel Gallagher's voice better than Liam's? I had always thought Liam's was too brash and scrawling on some of the songs, plus he's an ***hole for all his anti-U2 comment lol

i don't think Bob Dylan is a great singer, I'd always thought he was one of the worser singers in rock, but his lyrics redeem him. But you gotta put Springsteen higher than Bob on any list when comparing voices.

 

[Lila64]

where are the female singers? There's got to be at least 1, come on guys!! Janis Joplin?