Agree to Kenny G.
I'll also add Nicholas Cage, Tom Cruise, Keanu Reeves, YANI and Bobby Brown. |
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Adam Sandler. Biggest loser in entertainment history. Makes Brett Michaels, et al seem like Lennon and McCartney. |
New spin on old thread!
I also happen to like William Shatner!
I still stand by Kenny G as the worst of all time, in a tie with Michael Bolton and the singer from Nazareth ''Love Hurts'' closing in rapidly, what an ear bleeder this guy is. |
I actually like William Shatner, to me, he seems to be taking his acting abilities less seriously these days. I think he gets the joke. |
I'll go with Garrison Keillor. |
I immediately thought of William Shatner, I think his partner in crime Leonard Nimoy produced an LP too. Now put those 2 together and it would be judgement day. Great work on Star Trek though guys, but stick to the day job. |
Agree w you completely, Tubegroover. Not sure what entertainer or performer means in context of the OP, so I was trying to be more precise. Whenever I heard her singing good material that was not overproduced, it makes me want to bang my head against the wall in frustration. The "devil" sure had his way w that woman and it seems as though he's got his hooks into her daughter, too (no surprise there, it would have been a freakin' miracle for that kid to turn out right...nature and nurture doomed her, I fear). |
THIS is the point Swampwalker, she would be 1st on my list on wasted talent, by a big margin. Coming from a solid family with very musical roots and being born with a very rare gift that was nurtured from childhood. At 21 years old coming out with a successful debut album to highlight that talent and along the way taking a detour at the crossroads and GIVING her soul to the devil. This is a true American tragedy.
What does worst entertainer mean in the context of this thread? Whitney Houston's musical choices have nothing to do with her immense talent which is the point. Yoko Ono has no talent, nada, zero. She is/was a tag along on Lennons shirt tails and I am surprised she is even mentioned. When will she go away? I never realized she had a career to tell the truth. |
more than half "artists" on this planet...just lots of bad wannabes unbearable to listen... |
Yoko. Not because she assisted greatly in the demise of the Beatles but because her music is often atonal, her singing off key, her lyrics embarrassing. When will she just go away? |
The way I would classify Whitney Houston is "worst waste of talent ever" or "best voice/worst music". |
Whitney Houston's music is generally unlistenable, but her version of the Star Spangled Banner at the Super Bowl, during the Gulf War, was great.
Yoko gets my vote for absolute worst, because a. whatever it was she was doing, it was not music; and b. her amazing destructive power. |
Sunnyjim,
Good question, perhaps best put to Acoustic Sounds Chad Kassem.
Chad has the clout to get master tapes like this and if remastered and pressed to his "Quality Records" standards it would be the best ever version. |
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To Mr. Porter, Thank you for info about D&D's "Layla" . I wonder if the original master tapes still exist and whether any music producer or engineer has considered remastering them. Even a 15% improvement in sound would be worth the price of admission |
Dayglow I'm refering to the voice, THE TALENT, that voice. I get the part about the music choices although I thought she did make some excellent individual recordings and her debut album was excellent overall. Then of course the acapella performance at that super bowl in the early 90's, who will say that was lacking in anything? If so I challenge that assessment. Her voice could soar like few with real range and power and I for one never considered her one of the "screaming diva sisters". I always expected she would eventually get to that stage where she would mature into the artist that was in her but never realized and in that respect it was a REAL disappointment to witness the evaporation of her career. |
Sunnyjim To Albert Porter, I believe you are the Agoner with Soundlab monoliths, and a part/full-time recording engineer. If yes to the latter, then can you inform or enlighten us why the sound quality of Derek and the Dominoes' " Layla" blows. I owned Sound-Lab speakers for more than 10 years but never was a recording engineer. I was the factory rep for JBL Commercial many years ago and worked with a recording engineer at a music store when I first graduated from college. Perhaps the source of confusion? I have "Derek and The Dominoes" on LP but no digital versions. The recording of Layla I have is both compressed and bandwidth limited. Eric Clapton Unplugged and Nirvana Unplugged represent very nice rock sound, at least my LP copies. You may have to consider "Layla," like I do my old blues collection. Frequently these old blues labels are musically primitive, at least from a technical standpoint. Many songs are over driven to the point of distortion. I listen to them anyway because they're important to me. |
Tubegroover-Many of us on Agon agree that Whitney Houston's music sucked! Her younger voice was techincally fine but IMO lacked heart and emotion, almost like she was singing in a drug induced coma. Screaming r&b divas are not my favorite genre of music. Her contemporaies Regina Belle-Miki Howard-Patti Labelle and Teena Marie sang with more heartfelt emotion and had better songs/production during that time period. |
To Albert Porter, I believe you are the Agoner with Soundlab monoliths, and a part/full-time recording engineer. If yes to the latter, then can you inform or enlighten us why the sound quality of Derek and the Dominoes' " Layla" blows. I launched a thread of my own inquiring as to WHY OF THIS, and so far got one response claiming the LP, CD SACD,, all are mediocre in sound quality.
Tom Dowd was the exec producer of the project. Seems a shame, if not tragic, that some of the greatest electric guitar playing sounds like it is coming through a linen screen with little texture, or separation of instruments....If you don't know... Ok,... but if you have a few ideas as to the "why" of this mess of a recording, please answer straight up, without BS or inside jokes |
I am surprised by some of the responses, particularly
"Yaw-nie witless Houston". One of the greatest voices I've ever had the pleasure of listening to at her best, regardless of the waste of her immense talent. Oh well. |
Frogman This is the first time, after all these years on the 'goN, that I disagree with something that Albert has written. I think that there is value in a thread like this. I think that the expressed opinions say almost as much about the musical tastes and acumen of the writers, as do expressions of likes. I guess my reply was more a rhetorical answer to Rpeluso than fact. I've learned from this thread and even amused by it, especially the back and forth between members. |
TAYLOR HICKS....FORMER American IDOL winner. Hopefully, he has returned to selling shoes at Sears. |
David Hasselhoff has to be the worse. And he looks like Bruce Kardashian. |
This is the first time, after all these years on the 'goN, that I disagree with something that Albert has written. I think that there is value in a thread like this. I think that the expressed opinions say almost as much about the musical tastes and acumen of the writers, as do expressions of likes. Additionally, it can motivate some to reconsider some of their opinions about certain artists.
Sure there is "bias" in how we each process what any given performer brings to the table, but I think it's also important to be able to discern wether our reaction is due to liking or not liking the performer's style, and when the performer just plain sucks; they are two very different things. I would turn the question around and ask what value it serves to be stuck in
a kind of artistic relativism where everything "must" have some value. Not!
I must say I am surprised by some of the nominees, and it proves my previous point. Take Kenny G. We love to knock Kenny G. I think we can all agree that he is not the most inspired improviser of all time; and the tone he produces (on soprano, not on tenor) is hard to take. No, he is not one of "the greats". But, to overlook (or not understand) the fact that the guy has a significant amount of proficiency on the instrument, can phrase, and has reasonably good time is just silly. And to nominate him for "worst ever" just shows a lack of understanding of just how bad other performers are (Britney Spears) who are simply the "product" of producers, and have very little ability. |
Rpeluso, Will someone, anyone, please educate me to the value of this topic? It seems to me to be a free forum for anyone to display their bias towards others. .......Human behavior is ugly at time. This is one of those times. Three is no value in the topic. It's just personal taste. There are other threads like this for wrist watches, Scotch whisky, automobiles, motorcycles and likely a dozen more. It's just a way to share opinions with people we know and like here at Audiogon. Some of the posts here about music and artists made me laugh out loud although I admit mine was not the least bit funny. I dislike TV ads too, I could fill pages about how bad some most of them are. |
Will someone, anyone, please educate me to the value of this topic? It seems to me to be a free forum for anyone to display their bias towards others. What good does it do? Remember, Paul SImon said it best, one man's ceiling is another man's floor. Human behavior is ugly at time. This is one of those times. |
Glad to see this thread resurface, I was just thinking about how many Hollywood actors belong on this list, especially after watching the movie "Unforgettable" last night and enduring Ray Liotta for over an hour and a half.
At the end it made me wonder, who do I hate more, Ray Liotta or Vincent D'Onofrio? |
Hard to say, but--I saw the McCoys in the 60's and couldn't stand them. Then in the 70's I couldn't stand Rick Derringer (their guitarist) as a solo act. So there must be something there.
I was surprised to see Walter "Wolfman" Washington on this list. |
Jay Z-The wool he is pulling over his fans eyes must be a very thick gauge! |
Carrot Top
Gallagher
Rick Wakeman
Phish |
any "new" country artist. |
Kat and Garth, repeat SNL quests. If only they'de rehearse more! |
Now back in the 1st Century AD there was this comedian, played at the coliseum I believe.........
Then there was the guy who plied his schtick in front of the pyramid of Kufu........
And the Troubadour whose act some said was worse than the plague.........
Of all time? How are we supposed to know? |
Adam Duritz, lead singer of Counting Crows. The contrived sincerity and spastic, pseudo-soul searching mannerisms takes pretentious posturing to heretofore unforeseen levels.
Watching him is as excruciating as watching the cast of "The Walking Dead" pull that bloated zombie out of the well as he splits in two. |
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Moody Blues
Liberace
Wayne Newton
R Kelly (especially at kids' birthday parties)
Bob Seger
Serge Gainbourg (his daughter is a hottie however) |
"Sorry, but Kenny G's "Classics in the key of G" is a pretty good record and definitively audiophile quality.
My fellow Audiogon brothers, we really need to institute some kind of tribunal, disciplinary board or whatever to deal with wayward members. :-) |
Jlo and Bieber. (I've heard Bieber is going to be in a movie? i hope not) |
Easy: Charlene, of "I've Never Been To Me" Infamy.
If she's unable to perform her duties, then YOKO can step in. |
Sorry, but Kenny G's "Classics in the key of G" is a pretty good record and definitively audiophile quality. It's not the usual Kenny G stuff. |
OK. She seems like a nice girl and probably deserves the benefit of the doubt but I must say it...Rebecca Black. |
Tiny Tim...Terry Bradshaw...The Oriental kid from American something or other tv talent show who had that one stupid hit.
Came to me...American Idol. Can`t remember the name of the song. |
I think the thread should be limited to people who sing as their day job, not sports stars or actors like William Shatner. Alright, bad example, not an actor either.
Anyone can be persuaded by a sycophant hanger on, that the world has been waiting for their off key crooning.
Some wondrful suggestions, not many classical. May I nominate Monserrat Caballe, the Spainish Soprano. One of those voices that go through your ears like an icepick. An icepick would be preferable. |
I once sat thru a Yoko Ono set at John Lennon's One to One charity concert at Madison Square Garden. I can still recall thinking that, when the subway screeched around a turn on my ride home after the show, it sounded more musical than Yoko.
Another candidate for honors in this thread was the host of that show...Geralso Rivera. |
>she pretty much launched me into puberty ... Joey Heatherton
Oh, me too ! |
OK, more choices:
Before going on, just to mention again that after carefull consideration, Kenny ''G'', ''microwave-your-meal-is-ready'' sound he makes with his instrument, is the absolute worst performer of all time in my book.
I just could not imagine sitting a 2 hours concerts of this ear-bleeding stuff. I bet even HE wears ear-plugs to his own concerts.
William Shatner. Disclosure: I happen to LIKE his ''Has Been'' cd!. But, EVERYONE I know puts him in the 3 worst performers of all time.
Foreigner: Just can't stand the singer. When he sings ''your'e as cold as ice'' I actually feel the ice run down my back. Cold and aseptic music if I ever hear it.
''ZZZNorah'' Jones. I know she is a sweetheart and all that, and that the record company WANTS me to like her. But it just gets me to sleep faster than any night-time Tylynol ever could.
Britney Spears: Ok not of my generation, but I can tell when a performer is auto-tuned and technology supported. Sings like a turkey, moves like one too. Shame.
Michael Bolton: Like Kenny G, bad enough for a second-round vote, probably a third one too if it comes around. When I hear him on the radio, only one word comes to mind: WHY?
Stay tuned for a third round....
Cheers all, and my apologies to all Kenny and Bolties fans out there - I call 'em as I hear 'em. |
Phaelon, I'm not quite sure if you remember but Joey was quite a hoofer. She really wasn't a singer, more an overall entertainer ala Ann Margaret, easy to look at. You are not alone! |
I dont think Jlo is good...oh and Britney spears is not as good as before. |
