QueenZone discussion #1116254

Saif wrote: Freddie's voice is quite horrible in Ibex' "Communication Breakdown"... But it's quite amazing how he later acquired the voice of "God"...

henke1980 wrote: Yeah you might be right, maybe I mixed up the intreviews. In fact, now that you mention it I think it was Roger, not Brian...BAH! Nevermind. Great to see so many "adult" replies in the general discussion forum! Must be a record of some sort don't you think? SO, generally what most of you guys are saying...with a lot of practice you can get a great voice? I know for damn sure that I sound better that the early Larry Lurex or Wreckage recordings. You'll think that one day I can outshine Freddie Mercury?

Steven wrote: ^Great post -- you weren't rambling. As inappropriate as his singing techniques were, we can't deny his ability to project himself. He was able to convey emotions effectively. Take for example 'One Year of Love'. While his singing voice sounded edgy and strained, he was still able to deliver with great power and emotion. It's for that very reason I feel we often overlook his destructive technique. Sometimes when Freddie performed live his vocals sounded sketchy and strained -- but the fact remains the concert goers had a great experience. This is because he delivered to them the emotion and raw power of each composition. For what he lacked in technique he made up for in power and determination.

Freddie Mercenary / Darth Mercury (Saif) wrote:

Steven wrote: ^Great post -- you weren't rambling. As inappropriate as his singing techniques were, we can't deny his ability to project himself. He was able to convey emotions effectively. Take for example 'One Year of Love'. While his singing voice sounded edgy and strained, he was still able to deliver with great power and emotion. It's for that very reason I feel we often overlook his destructive technique. Sometimes when Freddie performed live his vocals sounded sketchy and strained -- but the fact remains the concert goers had a great experience. This is because he delivered to them the emotion and raw power of each composition. For what he lacked in technique he made up for in power and determination.

IMO, Roger Daltrey is a person who had the technique. He didn't have the power and his voice didn't sound that good but he made up for it in technique. Don't you think?

Steven wrote: ^Great post -- you weren't rambling. As inappropriate as his singing techniques were, we can't deny his ability to project himself. He was able to convey emotions effectively. Take for example 'One Year of Love'. While his singing voice sounded edgy and strained, he was still able to deliver with great power and emotion. It's for that very reason I feel we often overlook his destructive technique. Sometimes when Freddie performed live his vocals sounded sketchy and strained -- but the fact remains the concert goers had a great experience. This is because he delivered to them the emotion and raw power of each composition. For what he lacked in technique he made up for in power and determination. I don't think any one of us can say that what he was doing was completely and utterly wrong. Perhaps he wanted his voice the way it was. After all, I recall hearing in an interview that one of the reasons he wouldn't quit smoking is because he liked to hear his voice get raspier. I think that's stupid logic -- but it was his career, and more importantly his singing voice. Say, for example, I wanted to make my trumpet sound more dazzling by shortening the bell. God dammit, I'm a musician! I'll do whatever the hell I want!

Yara wrote: Freddie's vocal technique was in fact superb, probably one of, if not the, finest in the history of rock 'n' roll. From physiological and anatomycal aspects - such as those people have been hinting at - to the whole range of difficulties and shades involved in singing, he managed it all with remarkable flair. He's almost too technical for a rock 'n' roll musician and, if you do watch him sing in many concerts, it hard to find an occasion where he really strains, beyond necessary, his vocal muscles, even when it seems he's shouting - which he's not many times if you take a closer look, it's just that his range was considerable and his voice very powerful. His control over his voice, as well as his ability to find new ways of singing the songs and creating new musical structures live, on spot, without getting out of tune, is awe-inspiring. I usually tell people who want to learn some singing and enjoy rock and popular music to watch Freddie's performance at Hammersmith Odeon, 1979. It's perfect throughout in terms of posture, breathing, the movement of his mouth - to what extent he felt he needed to open it more and how he moved his lips and his chin - and he works his abdominal muscles to the point of perfection. It's also worth noticing that the shoulders are, except here and there, to give drama to the performance, in the right position - he didn't push them up or forced them up, and he often left them very relaxed or on the right stance. He would strech open his legs to avoid bowing his thorax forward and he'd lean it backwards slightly when necessary, without moving his head to the side too much, which is a sign of a very self-conscious singer in terms of technique. It's all there. His shape and his condition got worse over time, however, he put on some weight and he did have to strain his body a bit later on, but nothing serious. In fact, his later years, like the works and the magic tours, although his physical condition is not that good and he had developed some annoying vocal nodules, are some of his finest in terms of technique and his use of different registers is jaw-dropping, especially when he gets to explore his lower register to its full potential or his falseto skills, which were amazing. Smoking, drinking, putting on weight, all of that made up for the worsening of his physical conditioning, and that's why he sounds so tired in his later years in some concerts, he couldn't stand the tour routine anymore, but the technique was there, and it was tremendous. One of my friends, who's a singer - good one - and not much of a Queen fan, got amazed by Freddie's vocal improvisation in Vienna, 1986, I guess, before they do Under Pressure. The technique is really great throughout, as well as the choice of notes and the way he sounds and the intelligence behind the singing. I think it's quite the contrary: Freddie had a tremendous technique which did make up for his bad physical conditioning at times. I can't think of a more skilled and self-conscious singer, in terms of technique, in rock 'n' roll's history. There are all too many technical aspects to singing and he managed it all, really, to the point of being an encyclopedia when it comes to it. And, of course, he was a musical genius. But, that aside, he did learn a lot of technical aspects, and as most of the greatest popular singers, he did it by himself and took some tips here and there, listened to the stuff he liked, watched the people he admired, and that's it. But he was a musical genius. And then it's an alltogether different history.

henke1980 wrote: -I like my voice husky, that's why I smoke. :)

Jacob Britt wrote:

henke1980 wrote: -I like my voice husky, that's why I smoke. :)

He did say that, but I think he smoked due to anxiety problems. From what Peter Freestone and Jim Hutton wrote in their books, it sounds like Freddie had some un-diagnosed anxiety issues. Sometimes he'd flip out so much that people would have to hold him down on the floor until he calmed down. He maybe even drank and did cocaine to self-medicate that. Not many people talk about Freddie having anxiety, but I suspect he did. I also suspect he had a severe case of ADHD. He was a nervous man a lot of times. He also had depression, as Peter Jones said that sometimes he'd go into a slump and stay indoors for three weeks at a time and told his minders to just not let anyone talk to him when they called, and had them tell them he was busy. It reminds me a lot of my anxiety and depression problems I've had through the years. As for the ADHD, he was also jumping from one subject to the next, couldn't really sit still, got bored very easily, couldn't stay in a room for too long, etc. Smoking is easy to pick up when you're nervous, bored, and depressed. Freddie's love life wasn't easy it seems. Freddie is said to have left Mary, but I tell you, it is hard to leave someone, no matter what. It's very hard and I'm sure it took an emotional toll on him for years. Then the people he did had relationships with, a lot of them would leave him eventually, or cheat on him, etc. It's a hard life!

henke1980 wrote:

Jacob Britt wrote:

henke1980 wrote: -I like my voice husky, that's why I smoke. :)

He did say that, but I think he smoked due to anxiety problems. From what Peter Freestone and Jim Hutton wrote in their books, it sounds like Freddie had some un-diagnosed anxiety issues. Sometimes he'd flip out so much that people would have to hold him down on the floor until he calmed down. He maybe even drank and did cocaine to self-medicate that. Not many people talk about Freddie having anxiety, but I suspect he did. I also suspect he had a severe case of ADHD. He was a nervous man a lot of times. He also had depression, as Peter Jones said that sometimes he'd go into a slump and stay indoors for three weeks at a time and told his minders to just not let anyone talk to him when they called, and had them tell them he was busy. It reminds me a lot of my anxiety and depression problems I've had through the years. As for the ADHD, he was also jumping from one subject to the next, couldn't really sit still, got bored very easily, couldn't stay in a room for too long, etc. Smoking is easy to pick up when you're nervous, bored, and depressed. Freddie's love life wasn't easy it seems. Freddie is said to have left Mary, but I tell you, it is hard to leave someone, no matter what. It's very hard and I'm sure it took an emotional toll on him for years. Then the people he did had relationships with, a lot of them would leave him eventually, or cheat on him, etc. It's a hard life!

Yes, I know he SAID that. That he smoked for his anxity problems is closer to the truth I think. Strange state to be in huh? One day you hide from people in your giant house, afraid of the press and fans waiting to get a glimpse of you. The next day you command 60000 something at wembley stadium to fuck off. I can't understand it! But then again, I'm not Freddie Mercury.