Best Prog Rock Singer

I find it surprising how few posts cite women and especially Annie. If it was a straight up 'vocal skill' question... she would have to be near the very top...

 

I love Geddy more than many of those mentioned - his distinctiveness and range are huge pluses IMO - but this is tough company. The only issue I have with Geddy's singing is that he seemed to trade off power for feel starting in the 80s, and that wasn't wholly a great trade-off.

 

Jon Davison - he really nails that falsetto.

No, sorry ... I think I mean someone else called Jon something son.

 

I am also surprised that nobody has mentioned Fish.

 

This thread, like most, goes to show how very different taste / perceptions people have.

I consider Peter Hamill, Steve Walsh and Peter Gabriel the best Prog singers, and very different from each other. Power, range, emotion, timbre, technique - it's there.

To me, Wetton's vocals is the biggest downside to Red-era KC etc. I just don't care for his tone or monotone delivery, he's barely passable. I'm stunned he's one of the most-mentioned singers in this thread.

I'm a Rush fan, and I'm OK with Lee's voice, but I just can't consider him a cream of the crop vocalist. He's a stellar multi-instrumentalist who also sings. Like someone said upthread, this is a tough competition.

Fish is decidedly unique and passionate, but ends up in the strain range too easily.

J. Anderson has a unique choir boy quality to his high delivery, but his voice is a bit too thin and one-dimensional.

But, classic Rush, Marillion or Yes simply wouldn't be the same with any other vocalist.

 

Greg Lake
Jon Anderson
Justin Hayward
Annie Haslam
John Wetton (King Crimson, UK, Asia)

 

I did (post #67).

 

Demetrio Stratos - from Italian band, Area. Not only did he have a 5 octave range, but could sing up to 4 tones at once*.
Alberto Piras - from another Italian band, Deus ex Machina.
The late, Francesco Di Giacomo - yet another Italian with a 5 octave range. From one of the best prog bands ever, Banco Del Mutuo Socorrso. Seriously, if anyone thinks that the best prog only comes out of the UK, give these guys a listen.
Devin Townsend - prog-metal vocalist has over 5 octaves, but not quite a full 6 octaves.

I am always somewhat dismayed that so many people on SHF, seem to be ignorant of, all the world class prog that comes from Italy.

*His study of the voice used as a musical instrument carried him to reach for the limits of human capabilities. Stratos was able to reach 7,000 Hz, when a tenor normally reaches 523 Hz and a woman soprano 1,046 Hz (C6). He would hold notes for long periods of time, modulate them vibrato-like, and leap and dive from low to high and back again, with pinpoint accuracy. Using various overtone singing and other extended techniques, he was able to perform diplophony, triplophony, and also quadrophony, the ability to produce two, three, and even four sounds simultaneously (multiphonic) using only the human voice as the musical instrument.[

 

Peter Gabriel for sure. Well if you account not just his singing and writing, but his crazy stage shows.

 

Not Jon Anderson is all I can say (for me).

I like a few Yes songs, but his voice keeps me from any interest into delving deeply into their catalog.

 

Although John Wetton and Greg Lake might be technically better singers, I really love the uniqueness of Peter Gabriel's voice.

 

Derek Shulman, Peter Gabriel

 

He does sound a lot like Rocky the Flying Squirrel (June Foray).

 

What a great post! I love Itali-prog. My #1 Italian band has always been Goblin — and by extension, Claudio Simonetti's Daemonia . I also like Nuova Era, Le Orme, Alphataurus, Tale Cue, Il Balletto di Bronzo, Cherry Five, Biglietto Per L'Inferno and others.

I saw Banco in Los Angeles, back in 2000 at Progfest (La Mirada Theatre). (Something tells me you were there, too!) That was an astounding performance, so good that it went by much too quickly. Watching Vittorio light up his Minimoog was a real treat.

Le Orme appeared at Progfest '97 and they, too, were sensational!

 

Jon and Pete!

 

Greg Lake
John Wetton

 

I love Hammill's solo work, especially:

Nadir's Big Chance
A Black Box
Sitting Targets
Enter K
Patience

All stellar albums in my opinion.

 

Honorable mention to Roger Chapman


Family Drowned in Wine (live at Glastonbury Festival 1971)

 

Robert Wyatt gets my vote

 

Another vote for Peter Gabriel.

 

Honorable mention to Colin Goldring


Gnidrolog Ship (from Lady Lake, 1972)

 

The Strawbs have indeed had a number of good singers. Dave Cousins voice is rather an acq
Uired taste these days, but when Tony Hooper was in the band their voices were a fine blend. Messrs Hudson and Ford sang very well together in Hudson Ford.
Dave Lambert sings okay, but I think at times the song seems to be pitched just a bit too high for him, and he only just makes the note.

 

Honorable mention to Zlatko Pejaković


Korni grupa Fall of the Land of Woman (from Not An Ordinary Life, 1974)

 

Honorable mention to Andrei Vieira


Tisaris Elegy to Magdalene (official video) (from What's Beyond, 1992)

 

My favorite is one of my top ten singers period, Adrian Belew:



After Belew, I might rank the rest of my top 15 something like this (with half of them doing vocals for Zappa, including Belew):

Peter Gabriel
Todd Rundgren
Napoleon Murphy Brock
Freddie Mercury
John Wetton
Ike Willis
George Duke
Jon Anderson
Bobby Martin
Phil Collins
Roy Estrada
Jerry Garcia
Ray White
Greg Lake