EWB's Favorite Singer III: The Voting Thread

[GoGo Yubari]

It's been two years since the last one and I've wanted to make this one happen every other year, so it's time for the third thrilling installment of EWB's Favorite Singer! I'm sure you all know how these things work by now, but there are a couple specific guidelines for this one so check 'em out;

1. While I'm not going to be all hardline about this or go YOUR VOTE DOESN'T COUNT, please do remember that this is EWB's favorite singer, not songwriter. By this I mean that ideally, your criterion for inclusion is based on how much you like their voice. But, of course, opinions and tastes in singers varies, and what you consider "good singing" might not be what the cat posting directly after you considers good singing! Maybe it's about technical skill, maybe it's about being able to project emotion in their lyrics, maybe they technically sing horribly but you fucking love their voice anyway. Just saying, is all.

2. You cannot vote for Freddie Mercury or Frank Sinatra. What I'm interested in is seeing what happens to the votes for this one if you make previous winners ineligible, so consider Mercury and Old Blue Eyes to be in like the EWB Singer Hall of Fame and Awesome. I think I've run enough lists and this is type of one that doing something different is fine. If you vote for Mercury or Sinatra, you're just wasting points so don't do it!

Ballot goes from 1 to 10 for this one, as always with ten points going to #1 and then one point less for each successive name on your list. Voting will be open until I'm done with college at the very earliest, so around June 3rd or 4th. Get voting!

[GoGo Yubari]

My ten, tentatively, is as follows.

1. Ella Fitzgerald

2. Patsy Cline

3. Marvin Gaye

4. Michael Jackson

5. Stevie Wonder

6. Neko Case

7. Al Green

8. Johnny Cash

9. Jimi Hendrix

10. Billie Holiday

Also, no need to announce if you've edited your list because until I say voting's over I won't be tallying things up at all.

[KONGO]

1. John Garcia

2. Baby Huey

3. Kirk Windstein

4. Mark Lanegan

5. Scott Weinrich

6. Darondo

7. PJ Harvey

8. Maynard James Keenan

9. Lee Dorrian

10. Chris Cornell

[Matt]

I'll probably get shit for mine but I'm going for voices that I like listening to rather than one that is technically brilliant.

1. Kurt Cobain

2. Johnny Cash

3. Dave Grohl

4. Michael Jackson

5. Jimi Hendrix

6. Simon Neil

7. Dallas Green

8. Bob Dylan

9. Ozzy Osbourne

10. James Hetfield

I'll probably change this around at some point, do I have to inform you of that or are you not going to count until the votes close?

[Sousa]

Patsy Cline flash mob!

1. Patsy Cline

2. Margo Timmins

3. Howlin' Wolf

4. Ella Fitzgerald

5. Al Green

6. Patty Griffin

7. Hank Williams

8. Billie Holiday

9. Adam Duritz

10. Michael Stipe

[LittleDaniel]

1. John Darnielle (of the Mountain Goats)

2. Regina Spektor

3. Paul Baribeau

4. Jack Terricloth (of the World/Inferno Friendship Society)

5. Kimya Dawson

6. Madeline

7. Pat the Bunny (of Johnny Hobo, The Wingnut Dishwasher's Union, and Ramshackle Glory)

8. Robert Johnson

9. Joanna Newsom

10. Spoonboy

[Quom]

I wish to ask a question, are you after the singer I personally think is the most gifted i.e. Antony Hegarty, is it the singer who makes every song seem like they are doing it easily and are almost bored i.e. Lisa Mitchell, or is it the singer who takes you on a journey and imbues the song with emotion so you feel the lyrics i.e.(surprisingly) Jack White.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

I like voices that stick with me and are just right for their genre(s) of music.

1. PJ Harvey

2. Jónsi Þór Birgisson

3. Ray Davies

4. Karin Dreijer

5. Joe Strummer

6. David Bowie

7. Debbie Harry

8. Terry Hall

9. Hugh Cornwell

10. Sophie Ellis-Bextor

[GoGo Yubari]

I wish to ask a question, are you after the singer I personally think is the most gifted i.e. Antony Hegarty, is it the singer who makes every song seem like they are doing it easily and are almost bored i.e. Lisa Mitchell, or is it the singer who takes you on a journey and imbues the song with emotion so you feel the lyrics i.e.(surprisingly) Jack White.

Both sound like totally valid criteria to me.

[cloudtheconfused]

1. David Gilmour

2. Reba McEntire

3. Merle Haggard

4. David Bowie

5. Patsy Cline

6. Chris Cornell

7. Don Henley

8. Ian Anderson

9. Dave Mustaine

10. Dean Martin

[Skummy]

Kind of a mix for me of people who I think are objectively some of the greatest singers, and some who have voices that are just perfect for the music they do, and for relating the lyrics of the songs they sing.

Orbison, Walker, Galas and Simone manage to hit both categories.

1. Roy Orbison

2. Diamanda Galas

3. Sainkho Namtchylak

4. Runhild Gammelsæter

5. Scott Walker

6. David McAlmont

7. Tom Waits

8. Martyn Jacques

9. Jeff Buckley

10. Eliza Carthy

[SRN]

I don't know, I just picked out names at random.

1. Attila Csihar

2. Kongar-ol Ondar

3. Michael Gira

4. Tom Waits

5. Leonard Cohen

6. Kirk Windstein

7. Hank Williams

8. Baby Huey

9. Louie Armstrong

10. Nate Ruess

[apsham]

1. Steven Page | Barenaked Ladies, Solo |

2. John Darnielle | The Mountain Goats |

3. Jonathan Coulton | Solo | The World Belongs To You

4. Nate Ruess | The Format, fun. | Some Nights (Intro)

5. John Linnell | They Might Be Giants |

6. Dallas Green | Alexisonfire, City & Colour |

7. Leonard Cohen | Solo | Famous Blue Raincoat

8. Neil Young | Crosby, Stills, Young & Nash, Solo, Crazy Horse | Hey Hey, My My

9. John Roderick | The Long Winters | Nemeses (On Jonathan Coulton's 'Artificial Heart' but vocals are by Roderick)

10. Craig Finn | The Hold Steady |

[Steeb]

1. Ray Charles

2. Marvin Gaye

3. Tom Waits

4. Regina Spektor

5. Imogen Heap

6. John Legend

7. Billy Corgan

8. Eddie Vedder

9. Tom Jones

10. Jeff Buckley

[New Damage]

1. Chris Cornell

2. Eddie Vedder

3. Kurt Cobain

4. James Hetfield

5. Brent Smith

6. Jamie Lenman

7. Layne Staley

8. Dave Grohl

9. Mike Patton

10. Shannon Hoon

[METALMAN]

1. Cher Lloyd

2. Shane MacGowan

3. Ronnie Spector

4. Lady Gaga

5. Jacques Brel

6. Neil Hannon

7. Scott Walker

8. Hank Williams

9. Lana Del Rey

10. Diana Ross

lots of good stuff in other people's votes as well. This could be a good list!

[apsham]

I had to do an alter on my list just to acknowledge Craig Finn, although Jim Cuddy is still a honorable mention VERY worth making.

[Skummy]

No space on my list for Martyn Jacques, Eliza Carthy or David McAlmont And I can't justify removing anyone from the list, either. Someone vote for those guys for me! >_<

[RPS]

1. Elliott Smith

2. Aretha Franklin

3. Antony Hegarty

4. Beth Gibbons

5. Michael Jackson

6. Joe Strummer

7. Ella Fitzgerald

8. Karen O

9. James Brown

10. Beyonce

[apsham]

I just listened to a bevy of Barenaked Ladies/Steven Page and I had to move him into number one. After listening to War On Drugs, Tonight Is The Night I Fell Asleep At The Wheel, Break Your Heart - I just can't help it. But it was really hard to do over Darnielle.