Bands better live than in the studio?

[Jakey Styley]

Freddie not hitting the high notes live is in my opinion what made him such a GREAT live singer. Instead of trying to hit notes that he couldn't hit in a live setting, he sang it differently than the studio. That to me is a great sign of professionalism. Instead of risking botching the song by having a cracking voice, he just sang it in a comfortable range. Take a listen to the vocal takes of the studio version of Bohemian on YouTube. He does many takes to try to nail the high "die" in the heavy part, and even cracks completely. In a song like We Are The Champions, the last song of the night, he would naturally be tired from the whole night of moving around and singing, so what did he do? Let Roger Taylor take the high notes, who has a very impressive vocal range, and Freddie took the low.

Besides, Freddie's live vocals were full of passion. Take Bohemian again for example. On the album, he sings much of the verses in falsetto. Live, he just belted them out with pure energy and emotion. I suppose the Live At Wembley concert is the easiest to find, but this shows a good example of that.

He sang DIFFERENT live, but in no way did he suck. His voice still sounded perfectly fine. Now, if he was consistently singing off-key or had a terrible voice, then that would be another story.

If you make a song in the studio that you can't perform almost the exact way life then don't make it, you're a fake. Singing something differently because your voice can't handle the normal version of it isn't good.

Edit: Making Hot Pockets because you can't cook a nice Steak dinner doesn't make the Hot Pockets taste better than the steak dinner.

Edited July 17, 2010 by ItsSuchACrimeUKnowItsJAKE

[bacardimayne]

Edit: Making Hot Pockets because you can't cook a nice Steak dinner doesn't make the Hot Pockets taste better than the steak dinner.

Quote of the year.

[Axl Knows]

Did you read my post?

For every performance like the one you posted, there was one like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFwP-KwEGYk

[Scaramouche]

Did you read my post?

For every performance like the one you posted, there was one like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFwP-KwEGYk

Wrong. That performance of We are the champions in Japan is indeed not very good. But there's noe way that video describes Queen. I think you know that as good as me.

[Axl Knows]

How about this one then?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nno0sBkD_Yc

[Tater Totts]

How about this one then?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nno0sBkD_Yc

You're using videos from the same gig which was obviously a bad one, if you want to prove a point atleast use different gigs to show it was something that was wider than that one gig

[Scaramouche]

How about this one then?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nno0sBkD_Yc

You're using videos from the same gig which was obviously a bad one, if you want to prove a point atleast use different gigs to show it was something that was wider than that one gig

Exactly! And I never said they didn't do any bad performances other than WATC in Japan. Of course they had some off nights.

Just stop it. Freddie didn't suck live. And as a band they always took the songs to new levels, doing everything to not make it sounds as on the record. I remember Brian even comment on that a few years ago, that they always wanted it to sounds different than how the album was. Now, that's live...

[Axl Knows]

It's just, like, my opinion.

Let's hear Freddie match either of these.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igxsEu-iceY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCGcIdfh8Bo

[GivenToFly]

If you make a song in the studio that you can't perform almost the exact way life then don't make it, you're a fake.

Then what's the point in live performances if you just hear the exact same thing as on the album?

[James Bond]

If you make a song in the studio that you can't perform almost the exact way life then don't make it, you're a fake.

Then what's the point in live performances if you just hear the exact same thing as on the album?

Thank you! It's DIFFERENT, which is why it's good. If they sounded exactly the same, why would I go see them? They make it unique live.

Also, how can one say Freddie COULD NOT hit the notes live? He did it in the studio, he probably could do it live too. But who knows? Maybe he'd end up just standing there like Celine Dion or something. He obviously had a strength as a performer, so he naturally took advantage of that. With all his moving around and constant sweating, he wouldn't have the proper breath to hit the high notes as clearly. So again, instead of risking making the performance sound like shit, he sang it differently. No big deal, better than hearing a cracking Freddie Mercury. That was smart of him and very professional. He wasn't cocky about those highs and didn't want to go out there to prove his abilities to hit them. He was more focused on giving his all in a great performance.

Look at Paul Stanley from KISS. As a huge KISS fan, I can still say Paul often in the 80s especially tried to hit notes that were just out of his range. He needed to accept defeat and just return to singing the songs in his comfortable range, which is what he did. Freddie accept defeat from the beginning, which again, was very professional.

Also, posting random videos and saying the songs always sounded like that doesn't make sense. I could easily post a bunch of Guns N' Roses videos where Axl sounds like shit or Slash fucked up big time and say that they sucked live. Is that the truth though? Of course not. Every band has their off days. We can look at a Guns performance like Paris or the Ritz and say yes, they really were a great live band. Just the same as we can look at a great Queen performance, like Wembley or Montreal or even Live Aid, and say yes, they were awesome live.

[Axl Knows]

If you make a song in the studio that you can't perform almost the exact way life then don't make it, you're a fake.

Then what's the point in live performances if you just hear the exact same thing as on the album?

Thank you! It's DIFFERENT, which is why it's good. If they sounded exactly the same, why would I go see them? They make it unique live.

Also, how can one say Freddie COULD NOT hit the notes live? He did it in the studio, he probably could do it live too. But who knows? Maybe he'd end up just standing there like Celine Dion or something. He obviously had a strength as a performer, so he naturally took advantage of that. With all his moving around and constant sweating, he wouldn't have the proper breath to hit the high notes as clearly. So again, instead of risking making the performance sound like shit, he sang it differently. No big deal, better than hearing a cracking Freddie Mercury. That was smart of him and very professional. He wasn't cocky about those highs and didn't want to go out there to prove his abilities to hit them. He was more focused on giving his all in a great performance.

Axl hits notes far out of Freddie's range night in night out while running up and down the stage with more vigour than Freddie ever did.

TBH, Freddie's range was never all that great though. Nowhere near Axl's.

Edited July 17, 2010 by Axl Knows

[Demon Wolf]

If you make a song in the studio that you can't perform almost the exact way life then don't make it, you're a fake.

Then what's the point in live performances if you just hear the exact same thing as on the album?

Thank you! It's DIFFERENT, which is why it's good. If they sounded exactly the same, why would I go see them? They make it unique live.

Also, how can one say Freddie COULD NOT hit the notes live? He did it in the studio, he probably could do it live too. But who knows? Maybe he'd end up just standing there like Celine Dion or something. He obviously had a strength as a performer, so he naturally took advantage of that. With all his moving around and constant sweating, he wouldn't have the proper breath to hit the high notes as clearly. So again, instead of risking making the performance sound like shit, he sang it differently. No big deal, better than hearing a cracking Freddie Mercury. That was smart of him and very professional. He wasn't cocky about those highs and didn't want to go out there to prove his abilities to hit them. He was more focused on giving his all in a great performance.

Axl hits notes far out of Freddie's range night in night out while running up and down the stage with more vigour than Freddie ever did.

TBH, Freddie's range was never all that great though. Nowhere near Axl's.

Eeeeeh wrong. Freddie had a four octave vocal range.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KY8Z69Oowc

And he avoided the higher notes later in his career because he developed vocal nodules. He didn't sing all of them in the early days either, but that is because the Queen-material is INCREDIBLY hard to sing. Luckily, Queen had two amazing backing vocalists in Roger Taylor (who hits the high notes flawlessly every night while drumming) and Brian May.

Axl and Freddie are my favourite singers, but Freddie has the edge.

It's just, like, my opinion.

Let's hear Freddie match either of these.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igxsEu-iceY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCGcIdfh8Bo

You asked, I deliver performances that blow those out of the water

Somebody To Love - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aduNahDPjBA

Save Me - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF-x2ycs-vE

In The Lap Of The Gods... revisited- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myw8QLbuu5U

EDIT: As for the topic, I think Bruce Springsteen is infinately better live than on record. The energy just isn't carried over.

Edited July 17, 2010 by Demon Wolf

[moreblack]

Cornell's range lasted far less into his career...

During his live Audioslave days he sounded like a shadow of his former self.

[Axl Knows]

Eeeeeh wrong. Freddie had a four octave vocal range.

Wrong. With falsetto included yes, but falsetto isn't factored into your full voice range. Freddie was a low tenor who's range spanned from F2 to F5. Three octaves. Axl is a natural bass who's range spans from A1 - A5. Four octaves in full voice alone. Queen songs rarely went higher than tenor C, Axl sings these for breakfast. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A50sJU3UJVE

And he avoided the higher notes later in his career because he developed vocal nodules. He didn't sing all of them in the early days either, but that is because the Queen-material is INCREDIBLY hard to sing. Luckily, Queen had two amazing backing vocalists in Roger Taylor (who hits the high notes flawlessly every night while drumming) and Brian May.

Actually he sung the high notes more often later in his career. Listen to some early bootlegs. He only became more daring during the Hot Space tour. And Queen material is difficult to sing? Get outta here. 90% of Queen material is just regular tenor singing in the fourth octave. I can sing every Queen song in the original key but if I tried to do the same with GNR or Soundgarden my guts would fall out.

Axl and Freddie are my favourite singers, but Freddie has the edge.

Nah. Axl has it

You asked, I deliver performances that blow those out of the water

Somebody To Love - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aduNahDPjBA

Save Me - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF-x2ycs-vE

In The Lap Of The Gods... revisited- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myw8QLbuu5U

:rofl-lol:

Try again. Sorry, but what Chris Cornell was doing on those videos I showed you blows Freddie out of the water in terms of power, range, and singing ability in general. You realise that most Soundgarden songs are based around hitting the kind of notes Freddie never even managed to croak out ONCE in his career?

On those songs I posted,, Cornell is belting in the soprano octave with the kind of power Freddie couldn't muster in his wet dreams.

Edited July 17, 2010 by Axl Knows

[Tater Totts]

Enjoy Cornell's R&B album did we?

[Axl Knows]

Nah. Soundgarden, Audioslave, and his first two solo albums though? Better than anything Queen ever did. Freddie would shit his pants if he tried to sing anything from Soundgarden's catalogue.

[Demon Wolf]

Nah. Soundgarden, Audioslave, and his first two solo albums though? Better than anything Queen ever did. Freddie would shit his pants if he tried to sing anything from Soundgarden's catalogue.

Chris Cornell is great, but in my opinion he is a bit one-dimensional. Part of why I like Freddie's so much is his incredible versatily. From the low to the high, the edge to the smooth falsetto. Singing isn't all about who can hit the highest notes. Same reason I love Axl, they both sound so different on many songs. Cornell is more of a "one style" singer. As for Axl and Freddie, back when I got into GNR and Queen, I couldn't tell if it was them or another singer on some songs they sang.

Edited July 17, 2010 by Demon Wolf

[moreblack]

Nah. Soundgarden, Audioslave, and his first two solo albums though? Better than anything Queen ever did.

absolutely not

[Guest Satanisk_Slakt]

Don't bother with him, he is obviously just trolling.

[Tater Totts]

Don't bother with him, he is obviously just trolling.

Yep its RoboAxl

[Demon Wolf]

Don't bother with him, he is obviously just trolling.

Yep its RoboAxl

Singing isn't about who can hit the highest notes, but he seems to have missed that part. Quite honestly, I don't know anyone who can talk crap about Freddie. He was brilliant in every aspect, who cares about avoiding some high notes at live gigs? He's still the best rock frontman of all time, Axl being a second and then a huge leap to the next batch.

[Axl Knows]

Nah. Soundgarden, Audioslave, and his first two solo albums though? Better than anything Queen ever did. Freddie would shit his pants if he tried to sing anything from Soundgarden's catalogue.

Chris Cornell is great, but in my opinion he is a bit one-dimensional. Part of why I like Freddie's so much is his incredible versatily. From the low to the high, the edge to the smooth falsetto. Singing isn't all about who can hit the highest notes. Same reason I love Axl, they both sound so different on many songs. Cornell is more of a "one style" singer. As for Axl and Freddie, back when I got into GNR and Queen, I couldn't tell if it was them or another singer on some songs they sang.

Wrong. Don't tell me Temple of the Dog sounds anything like Superunknown or that his blues/RnB solo career sounds like either. Cornell's more versatile, AND has more range AND has more power, and is a better singer, and a better songwriter (Freddie wasn't even the best songwriter in Queen), fronted a better band etc etc

Let's hear Freddie sing something like this without sounding like he's about to drop dead.

Don't bother with him, he is obviously just trolling.

Yep its RoboAxl

Singing isn't about who can hit the highest notes, but he seems to have missed that part. Quite honestly, I don't know anyone who can talk crap about Freddie. He was brilliant in every aspect, who cares about avoiding some high notes at live gigs? He's still the best rock frontman of all time, Axl being a second and then a huge leap to the next batch.

I never said he wasn't a great frontman. I said his voice in a live setting sucked most of the time.

[Tater Totts]

Nah. Soundgarden, Audioslave, and his first two solo albums though? Better than anything Queen ever did. Freddie would shit his pants if he tried to sing anything from Soundgarden's catalogue.

Chris Cornell is great, but in my opinion he is a bit one-dimensional. Part of why I like Freddie's so much is his incredible versatily. From the low to the high, the edge to the smooth falsetto. Singing isn't all about who can hit the highest notes. Same reason I love Axl, they both sound so different on many songs. Cornell is more of a "one style" singer. As for Axl and Freddie, back when I got into GNR and Queen, I couldn't tell if it was them or another singer on some songs they sang.

Wrong. Don't tell me Temple of the Dog sounds anything like Superunknown or that his blues/RnB solo career sounds like either. Cornell's more versatile, AND has more range AND has more power, and is a better singer, and a better songwriter (Freddie wasn't even the best songwriter in Queen), fronted a better band etc etc

Let's hear Freddie sing something like this without sounding like he's about to drop dead.

Rolling Stone wrote that Scream "veers between drab–sleek and rock–dude soulful; Cornell's yowl never sounds at home".

You know why it doesn't sound at home? One dimensional.

[Axl Knows]

Rolling Stone wrote that Scream "veers between drab–sleek and rock–dude soulful; Cornell's yowl never sounds at home".

You know why it doesn't sound at home? One dimensional.

Do you want me to bring up Rolling Stones reviews of Queen's records?

Jazz

"Anyway, it shouldn't be surprising that Queen calls its album "jazz." The guiding principle of these arrogant brats seems to be that anything Freddie & Company want, Freddie & Company get. What's most disconcerting about their arrogance is that it's so unfounded: Led Zeppelin may be as ruthless as medieval aristocrats, but at least Jimmy Page has an original electronic approach that earns his band some of its elitist notions. The only thing Queen does better than anyone else is express contempt. "

". Indeed, Queen may be the first truly fascist rock band. The whole thing makes me wonder why anyone would indulge these creeps and their polluting ideas. "

News of The World

"Once you've seen Queen onstage, away from the cut and paste of the studio, it's painfully clear that "Sheer Heart Attack" is less a matter of slumming than of warfare among equals in incompetent musicianship. "

Live Killers

"If Live Killers serves any purpose at all, it's to show that, stripped of their dazzling studio sound and Freddie Mercury's shimmering vocal harmonies, Queen is just another ersatz Led Zeppelin, combining cheap classical parody with heavy-metal bollocks. Using a recorded version of "Bohemian Rhapsody" in their show may actually be Queen's "typically uncompromising" way of taking care of business. "

etc etc.

[Demon Wolf]

Cornell more versatile?

You'd have to look hard to find a more versatile rock band than Queen. Freddie sang rock, blues, trash metal, vaudeville, music hall, jazz, disco...

Some examples-

Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon -

Gimme The Prize-

How Can I Go On-

Pain Is So Close To Pleasure -

Mother Love (last song Freddie sang before his death) -

In My Defence -

Edited July 17, 2010 by Demon Wolf