Lots of great nominees here. This past Christmas I re-established that my no.1 all-time greatest single performance is "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" by Darlene Love. But that performance reminds me of the earlier "Maybe" by Arlene Smith (as a member of The Chantels). Both powerhouse vocals in the style of Big Mama Thornton, a female Blues Shouter if you will.
The above are all African Americans. For white singers, I generally gravitate towards those of the Country/Bluegrass persuasion. I've been listening to my sister's Patsy Cline's Greatest Hits in the car lately, and love her phrasing. While many singers (and guitarists, I came to learn in the studio) tend to "rush", Patsy waits for the downbeat (the "1") to pass by before singing the first note/word of a line, leading to a "relaxed" feel that I love. That's something that Southerner singers (and musicians) seem to know instinctively; the rest of us have to learn it. ;-)
