Here are 3 who haven't been mentioned, which I find hard to believe as this (great) thread is now running for five years!
Kiri Tekanawa doing any Gershwin, Cole Porter, or the role of Maria in West Side Story...to me the most exquisite female voice ever.
Elaine Paige is a Brit who has spent most of her career doing musicals. Her CD "Encore: Elaine Paige" is a wonderful introduction to her talent and includes such as "Memory" from "Cats," Piaf's "Hymne A L'Amour," and "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina" done the best I've ever heard it done.
Gladys Knight has a great voice but her style is what sets her apart for me. This gal knows how to sell a song! I would suggest starting with "The Best of Gladys Knight and the Pips."
This has been a wonderful thread for me as, through it, I have found my way to Cassandra Wilson, Patricia Barber, Holly Cole, and more of Jennifer Warnes beyond "Famous Blue Raincoat." (others, too)
how could I not add my current love - Lucinda Williams- try "world Without tears" its HDCD in case your gear decodes that. More imprtantly, it's soulful and beautiful!
holy crap, i've just spent $375 at Amazon adding a bunch of the recommendations made here. I know you guys would eventually be the cause of my downfall.....
Elly Emeling - classical. Sounds like an angel herself... kind and beautiful. I like all kinds of music, but the classical musicians tend to be more refined than others - heaven knows they work at it harder than most others from youth.
Ken, Jane Monheit is one of my favorites. Not only is her latest CD a jewel, but the recording is outstanding. Talk about a cd to display the capabilities of your rig, this is it for me.
Just picked up the new cd from Jane Monheit" Taking a chance on love" ...if you love stunning female vocals and some excellent songs by Jerome Kern,Cole Porter, Andy Razaf, O. Hammerstein and G.& I.Gershwin...she's got the goods! Anyone else think so?
This woman has been wasting her talent on rap. Go get this album, and get ready to hear a woman that can do blues, soul, jazz, you name it. I would have never thought.
Has anybody here heard Pure - by Hayley Westenra ( a kid from New Zealand) Wow!!!!!!!!! Go listen, now!! What a magical voice and a great recording, too (Decca)
A newer person who has an outstanding voice is Vienna Teng. She has two cds (I believe) that can be purchased. I like her Warm Strangers cd best, and on this there are several tracks which I find to be outstanding - Anna Rose, Passage, and the Atheist Christmas Carol. In addition to her beautiful singing, her piano is quite nice. Her voice is reminiscent of Sara McLachlan. Vienna Teng has a web site where her music can be sampled.
I've been enjoying this thread for a long time. Lots of intriguing selections, some great suggestions and some.. not so great, but I'll spare everyone a flame war by not mentioning those! :P
One not or hardly mentioned artist thus far, whom I want to "champion" is PJ Harvey. She's arguably the most versatile artist in rock music today, certainly the most versatile vocalist. There are singers who may have stronger voices, but very very few (if any) who can match her ability to alter vocal style to match the material.
To demonstrate my point, I suggest downloading the following songs:
To Bring You My Love (To Bring You My Love) Meet Ze Monsta (To Bring You My Love) The Wind (Is This Desire?) Catherine (Is This Desire?) Angelene (Is This Desire?) Big Exit (Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea) It's You (Uh Huh Her)
Compare these to see her many varying colors: demonic, masculine, ethereal, soft-spoken/conversational and finally, straight ahead/mid-range vocals. There's a reason why virtually every fellow artist and critic kisses her butt.. she's the real deal. Consistently challenging and original, never resting in one place artistically. Plus, her musicianship is first rate; she's renowned as a rhythm guitarist by those who know about such things (not I).
Here's a primer on her albums if you want to explore, each quite different from one another:
Dry - brittle and imaginative, stripped down punk/blues rock. Rid of Me - Steve Albini produced, take-no-prisoners hard rock fury. 4 Track Demos - PJ alone in a room w/ her guitar and a tape machine. Courtney Love called it the purest & rawest music ever made by a white person. Her most "difficult" album (next to Dance Hall). To Bring You My Love - The blues reinterpreted, made fresh and original. Desperate, elegiac and mysterious. For the first time, keyboards prominent throughout. Dance Hall At Louse Point - Stark, abrasive, languid and chilling.. great for winter afternoons spent in isolation. Is This Desire? - most experimental, adding electronic beats and more 3rd person storytelling. Favorite among the Tori Amos/Bjork/Kate Bush crowd. Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea - multi-layered, glossy and shimmering record, but at the sacrifice of some substance. The record long-time fans dismiss, but still good enough to garner the prestigious Mercury Prize. Uh Huh Her - a mixed bag of previous styles, sounding at times tired and sometimes utterly brilliant.
Also, definitely worth checking out are her B-sides, and her contributions to records by Marianne Faithful, Nick Cave, Sparklehorse, Desert Sessions (Josh Homme), and Mark Lanegan, among many others.
I have to third Jenna Mammina. I listened to two copies of her Cd's and really like her voice. Yes, similar to Norah but different in a good kind of way. Nicely recorded too.
I bought "Careless Love" at the weekend on the strength of the Stereophile review (I was bored and wanted to buy something new) and have not been dissapointed. I'm not a huge Billie Holliday fan but she does sound very close -- it's a real "old time" sound that lends a very satisfying and warm quality to most of the songs. I particularly like tracks 1, 2 and 9. the recording quality is high and really shows off the low-level resolution and imaging in my system. A lot of tracks use brushes which add a certain "air" to the sound. Highly recommended1!
Wonderfull list, quite a few new discoveries for me here.
I would like to give some back!
Anouk- sacrifice (unplugged) Betty Wright - tonight is the night Carly Simon - Comin around again Celine Dion - pour que tu me aimes encore Ilse deLange - All the answers Roberta Flack - Killing me softly Silje Nergaard - every time we say goodbye Vaya Con Dios - Heading for a fall
Impressive young talent that may not have been mentioned here yet, Rachael Yamagata. On Happenstance, she authored most of the music and lyrics. She plays piano. Anyone else enjoying her blend of music and vocals?
Jackie Allen's "Love is Blue" has moved her up a notch in my list of very enjoyable artists. Not claiming "best", but everything seems to click on this album for me, as compared to her "Men in My Life". Great thread! Many additions to my library have come from contributions above!
If you have not heard her yet you need to give her new CD a listen - Renee Olstead. She is 14 and plays the teenage daughter on "Still Standing" The CD is excellent and her voice is quite incredible. You will not believe she is only 14!!
Is everyone here deaf? Amy Lee of Evanescence has a fantastic voice that I have not seen mentioned.
There is only so much Allison Krauss, Faith Hill ect to listen to but for something new that is dripping whith talent...check out Amy Lee on the Evanescence Fallen cd.
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