Who are your three favorite female singers?

I would defer to Linda Ronstadt's book where she says that she can tell in about 30 seconds who a singer is imitating as all singers imitate someone else until they find "their own" voice, so to speak.  (I would say Buddy,  Chuck, Jerry, and Elvis did not, but what do I know? They all learned by listening to Black singers sing the blues, except Buddy:

"During his early childhood, Holley was influenced by the music of Hank Williams, Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Snow, Bob Wills, and the Carter Family. At Roscoe Wilson Elementary, he became friends with Bob Montgomery, and the two played together, practicing with songs by the Louvin Brothers and Johnnie & Jack." )

I listened to some of these singers I had not heard before, and sure enough, one sounds EXACTLY like Ronstadt (same time period) and some sound like versions of her and some, obviously, have their own unique sounds.

People like Diana Ross and early blues and jazz singers have certainly carved out their own styles that most of the modern ladies copy somewhat.  I would say the SONG and the arrangement add a lot to the quality of the voice--keep it in the vocalist's range, style, etc.

Funny, Ronstadt, a technically excellent vocalist, likes Bonnie Raitt, who is not listed at all.  I don't necessarily agree with her, but Raitt isn't chopped liver, either.  check this out:

https://www.npr.org/2019/09/13/760502128/linda-ronstadt-on-making-music-i-knew-how-to-sing-my-whole-...

And most importantly, play the music!

Cheers!

@cd318 THANK-YOU for mentioning Joan and Diamonds. I just bought a new pre-amp (replaced my Lux CL-32's, which were 50 years old and finally gave out) with an Audio Research SP-6B (used of course--all I could afford) and WOW! Huge difference on that song, which is what I use to first listen to a new piece of gear. I will be playing Midnight at the Oasis soon as well to hear it like we used to in the day when I was selling Audio Research/Magnepan systems in my shop. Sold a lot of them with that song, and it is a telling recording.

@nonoise6--YES!  Everyone should read her book.  Linda is, in fact, a very well-trained vocalist who started with talent and went through some weird times--rock 'n roll will do that to you--to eventually come out with both the Nelson Riddle trio of recordings of standards and to honor her personal family history with her Latino recordings.  She may have started as a rock singer (she says she really did not like it), but after training to do Pirates in the Park, she learned to be a true vocalist and stretch to use her instrument in many genres.  She is a gifted artist and I am sure we are all sad that her genes betrayed her and her beautiful voice so early in life.

Also, thanks to the OP for this topic. I have a long list of singers I never heard of that I can now explore, and some that I know well that I can listen to and enjoy again during our extended time at home.

Great idea!!

Cheers!