Some of our most beloved singers are not the most technically adept.
The Mick Jaggers, the Van Morrisons, the Bruce Springsteens...
these are all examples of great storytelling singers who aren't relying on multi-octave ranges and world-class vocal chops.
Why is this so? Because we typically don't listen to popular music because we like technical ability...
we listen because we are moved emotionally, and those voices have a time-honored way of connecting with us emotionally and through great storytelling.
In fact, many singers with incredible range and precision lack the one element that makes a singer really connect: soul.
And while there are a great many singers with incredible technical abilities and a range that spans three or four octaves, there are comparatively few who have the technical ability underpinned by a rich, soulful delivery that makes them the finest golden voices of their generation.
In the 70s, one vocalist who embodied just these elusive elements was Boston's Brad Delp.
With a solid four octave range, golden tone and the ability to nail double and triple-tracked vocal lines on Boston's 17 million selling debut, Delp could have easily been relegated to one of those technically adept but soul-free artists who sounded great...
but really didn't connect with listeners.
Instead, Delp's voice helped propel not one, but three multi-million selling Boston albums to legendary status, and he did so with an amazingly soulful, warm delivery that moved listeners for thirty years on hits like 'More Than a Feeling', 'Don't Look Back' and 'Amanda'.
To say Delp is one of the greatest male vocalists to ever step up to a mic would not be an understatement.
No one has ever accused Earth, Wind & Fire of having no soul.
It's silly to even contemplate.
But one of the most soulful, rangey and precise elements of EW&F's great catalog of hits is the mighty vocal prowess of Phillip Bailey.
Blowing incredible vocal parts on hits like 'September', Bailey's phenomenal range and precision still does not overshadow the fact that he has the heart of a great soul singer.
Going from upbeat funk numbers to lilting ballads, his singing is the fuel behind some of the greatest recorded performances of his generation.
Stepping into the shoes of a globally-loved vocalist is not an enviable position.
But Jason Scheff wasn't just any old replacement vocalist.
Scheff walked into Peter Cetera's position in Chicago and not only could light up Cetera's signature hits, but also blazed a trail of his own with beautiful numbers like 'Will You Still Love Me' and 'What Kind of Man Would I Be' among others.
Scheff not only had the precision and range to cover classic Chicago material, but the soul to make old and new hits all his own.
The lineage of the supersinger is an elusive thing.
While many singers can hit the notes, it's a completely different thing to really sing them and make them soulful show-stoppers.
The Mick Jaggers, the Van Morrisons, the Bruce Springsteens...
these are all examples of great storytelling singers who aren't relying on multi-octave ranges and world-class vocal chops.
Why is this so? Because we typically don't listen to popular music because we like technical ability...
we listen because we are moved emotionally, and those voices have a time-honored way of connecting with us emotionally and through great storytelling.
In fact, many singers with incredible range and precision lack the one element that makes a singer really connect: soul.
And while there are a great many singers with incredible technical abilities and a range that spans three or four octaves, there are comparatively few who have the technical ability underpinned by a rich, soulful delivery that makes them the finest golden voices of their generation.
In the 70s, one vocalist who embodied just these elusive elements was Boston's Brad Delp.
With a solid four octave range, golden tone and the ability to nail double and triple-tracked vocal lines on Boston's 17 million selling debut, Delp could have easily been relegated to one of those technically adept but soul-free artists who sounded great...
but really didn't connect with listeners.
Instead, Delp's voice helped propel not one, but three multi-million selling Boston albums to legendary status, and he did so with an amazingly soulful, warm delivery that moved listeners for thirty years on hits like 'More Than a Feeling', 'Don't Look Back' and 'Amanda'.
To say Delp is one of the greatest male vocalists to ever step up to a mic would not be an understatement.
No one has ever accused Earth, Wind & Fire of having no soul.
It's silly to even contemplate.
But one of the most soulful, rangey and precise elements of EW&F's great catalog of hits is the mighty vocal prowess of Phillip Bailey.
Blowing incredible vocal parts on hits like 'September', Bailey's phenomenal range and precision still does not overshadow the fact that he has the heart of a great soul singer.
Going from upbeat funk numbers to lilting ballads, his singing is the fuel behind some of the greatest recorded performances of his generation.
Stepping into the shoes of a globally-loved vocalist is not an enviable position.
But Jason Scheff wasn't just any old replacement vocalist.
Scheff walked into Peter Cetera's position in Chicago and not only could light up Cetera's signature hits, but also blazed a trail of his own with beautiful numbers like 'Will You Still Love Me' and 'What Kind of Man Would I Be' among others.
Scheff not only had the precision and range to cover classic Chicago material, but the soul to make old and new hits all his own.
The lineage of the supersinger is an elusive thing.
While many singers can hit the notes, it's a completely different thing to really sing them and make them soulful show-stoppers.
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