What if Bob Dylan had been a fantastic singer?

This is a very subjective question.
Are you asking if he had the voice of Pavarotti would it had made a greater impact on his career? No.
Are you asking if he had the voice of Sinatra would it had made a greater impact on his career? No.
Are you asking if he had the voice of John Lennon would it had made a greater impact on his career? No.
Are you asking if he had the voice of Dean Martin or even Andy Williams would it had made a greater impact on his career? No.

The bottom line is, a singer is a singer is a singer. Either you like it or not. There is no objective answer to the question.

There are hundreds of singers who have their unique gifting in the vocal department and it works within the context of their music. Dylan is no exception.

 

That is a great disc, on the Linn label. I have the SACD - "Every Grain of Sand - Barb Jungr Sings Dylan".

 

Until the late 70s, he did have a great voice.
Occasionally effective since then.
Now i wish he would use that throat-cleaning device that Chris Farley demonstrated in that fake SNL commercial--McCartney as well!

 

Genuine Imitation

That's what makes "Tell-Tale Signs" such a revealing audio document. The opening salvo—an acoustic "Mississippi" with a relaxed vocal delivery, gives us the voice sans affectation. Aspects affecting Dylan's vocal art include all the low-level adjustments to his 'default' voice. The 'default' once was a close imitation of Woody Guthrie. It morphed into something owing a lot more to classic Chess blues, then we got a folkier voice for John Wesly Harding, then Skyline. By the time he got to "Blood on the Tracks" it was an altogether different voice, one of his best. But time and again on "Tell Tale Signs" we find Bob Dylan with his 'mask' off, hearing real singing instead of 'vocal performances.' Really interesting, if you think about it. Dylan knows he would not be nearly as influential or popular if he had a 'better voice'. I think he probably could do a passable imitation of the "Nashville Skyline" persona up 'til about 2000. And when Sinatra was that old, Sinatra could no longer do a plausible Sinatra impersonation.

 

The only way I could could see a more polished voice working for Bob Dylan would be something like Rod Stewart's appropriation of American soul singing, a gritty vocal that could maintain the every-man persona essential to folk music while hitting the notes. Think of Stewart's singing of "Wicked Messenger," "Only a Hobo," and probably some others I'm forgetting.

 

What if Picasso had been a fantastic painter?

 

Actually, he was a good technician. His student drawings show he could have drawn/painted like the traditional masters (Raphael, etc.) if he wanted to.

 

Thinking of starting some additional threads along these lines...


What if Jimi Hendrix could play guitar?

What if Keith Moon could drum?

What if Bill Evans could play the piano?

What if Bob Marley could write a good reggae song?

 

As they say - It is what it is! Bob Dylan's voice is so etched in my mind, I just can't imagine it any other way. I do think there have been some better covers of his songs than his original, namely All Along The Watchtower by Jimi Hendrix. I have always enjoyed Bob Dylan's interpretations of his own songs.

 

Louis Armstrong was a great singer, too. That's how it was.

 

I'm really glad to see so many people here talk about what a great singer they've always considered Dylan to be. I have more than a few friends who look at me like I have horns when I try to make that argument.

His voice is a little like a classic car, I think. Might need some paint or sparkplugs now, but it still grabs your attention, and god knows, it can still take you to some pretty amazing places.

Then again, I love the voices of Joe Strummer and Bruce Springsteen, too. Llike David Berman of the Silver Jews once said: All my favorite singers couldn't sing.

Jeff

 

Yes. In the pantheon of 'fantastic singers' I rank Dylan up there with Armstrong, Sinatra, and Elvis.

 

I think (like most other posters before) that Bob Dylan is a fantastic singer. His singing style takes a little getting used to (but only a little!) because he does have an unconvential voice, but the singing itself is marvelous. I also agree with previous posters that his voice is especially suited to his material.

But I can engage this question a little bit even if I disagree with its premise. It would weird if Bob Dylan sounded like Frank Sinatra. But what if he had a voice like one of the absolute best singers who use a rawer style, like Otis Redding, or David Ruffin, or Van Morrison, or Matt Berninger of the National? When I imagine that, I can see Dylan's records being just as powerful and influential, but being quite a bit more popular. Not that Bob Dylan wasn't (and isn't) popularly successful, but his audience would have been even wider, because people wouldn't have to initially grasp his unusual voice to appreciate his music, and his appeal would be more immediate to more people. He wouldn't be any more of a figure for "serious" music fans than he already is, but he would be bigger among casual music fans; his greatest-hits album might be diamond instead of five times platinum. As strange as it sounds to say, I think he'd have even more cultural currency and be even more deeply ingrained in the public consciousness than he is now.

 

He's a good singer ...

I know a lot of pop singers have covered what appear to be definitive versions, but nothing can compare to how the original was sung.

 

Great analogy. But on the various music discussion sites I've encountered, I've never experienced people advocating Dylan's talent as a singer to be any less than the overwhelming majority; I think those who don't care for his vocals tend to be in the vocal minority or have long since accepted that Dylan just isn't for them and so don't bother participating in debates of this nature. Admittedly I don't know many Dylan fans in real life, but I don't recall meeting any who claim he "can't sing".

Here's a recent interesting similar Dylan discussion on RYM:

http://rateyourmusic.com/board_message?message_id=4140971&board_id=1&show=20&start=0

 

That's the best thought experiment I have heard to illustrate how well Bob Dylan's singing style is for his particular material.

Great point!

 

Agreed 100%.
Would Neil Young, Leonard Cohen and Lou Reed have ever stepped up to the mike?

 

[MOD: Please cut the political garbage. You know the rules.]

 

"The jester sang
For the king and queen
In a coat he borrowed
From James Dean
In a voice
That came from you and me...."
~Don McLean

Bob Dylan
Revolutionary singer, songwriter, poet and visionary.
The man who was the crossroads.

Great singer.

 

[MOD: Please cut the political garbage. You know the rules.]

 

I always thought the same. Lay Lady Lay is sublime IMO. Just one example.

 

It would be odd if Bob had range; power; versatility and tone. I like his voice as is.

 

Thanks, I've probably spent far too much time listening and thinking about Bob Dylan's music.
IMO a huge part of the success of LARS from HWY61 is in Dylan's delivery. It's obviously a great song/arrangement to begin with but Dylan's vocal takes it into the stratosphere.

He can also do ballads