The 25 Days of Great Singers Day 17: John Lennon & Paul McCartney Thats right, folks: a double bill. I was racking my brain as to which one to put on this list knowing full well that to have a list of great singers (and make no mistake, performance and musicianship weigh heavily on this list as well) that doesnt include these two would just be wrong. I posed this question to one of my closest friends whose love of the Beatles matches my own and he said quite literally why not do both? Revelation. The thought had not occurred to me. So here we go... In the making of this list I tend to do a bunch of research. I do my best to give some info laced with my own opinions and educated analyses of the voices themselves. When it comes to these two artists, however, I can do this all out of my brain. That is how much I love them and how much respect I have for them both. Most people tend to fall into a John or Paul camp, but not me. I could never decide. Im just glad the world got to have the two of them and not just one. Though Lennon & McCartney are forever linked they really could not be more different singers and songwriters. Id say the only similarities they really have in songwriting are the fact that they both wrote across genres with ease and in terms of singing they were both master harmonizers. Other than that, weve got two different people here. So no Sophies Choice here for me... I choose not to choose. Paul was the more typical natural tenor who had a passion for belting out high screams which prompted Little Richard himself (see earlier in this list) to call him the best white screamer. Songs like Im Down, the end of Hey Jude, and Maybe Im Amazed showcase this voice perfectly. But dont let them fool you, he had a beautiful and melodic side as well. Michelle, The Fool on the Hill, Yesterday, and one of the great love songs ever written Here, There, and Everywhere show off his masterful blend of chest and head voice so much that you really dont want to hear anyone else do them. John was the slightly more gritty, raw singer of the two. Songs like Come Together and Yer Blues are downright nasty but typically he sang in a much more reserved almost intimate way. Girl from Rubber Soul is a perfect example along with A Day in the Life, Imagine, and In My Life. He sang with an honesty that put you right into the shoes of the singer. So heres a beautiful duet with the two of them entitled Two Of Us.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 18:53:57 +0000
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