A quick scan down Q magazine’s Top 10 Greatest Voices Of All Time shows that, at the very least, they were trying to include someone for everyone and irritate as few people as possible. Until you hit #1 and realize that they took a wrong turn at Graceland.
10. Jeff Buckley
09. Mick Jagger
08. Robert Plant
07. Kurt Cobain
06. Marvin Gaye
05. John Lennon
04. Otis Redding
03. Frank Sinatra
02. Aretha Franklin
01. Elvis Presley
On the flip side, Q offers their choices for the worst singers of all time, too, including Ozzy Osbourne, Mariah Carey, Céline Dion and Yoko Ono. That’s a pretty good start, but no such list is complete without this dude.
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are you bloody serious!? elvis had a horrible voice. i cant stand to listen to elvis. id rather listen to ozzy osbourne trying to sing like mariah carey than listen to elvis sing.
HAHA! I totally agree with you, Elvis isn’t that good at all…
no roy orbison? WADDA THEY THINKIN?!
no roy orbison? WADDA THEY THINKIN?!
Freddy Mercury?
Sam Cooke.
No Ashcroft or Bono? Worst list evs. Cobain top 10? Blow me where the pampers is.
somehow freddie mercury was only 47.
also rufus wainwright was like 97. for comparison, chris cornell was 93.
Freddie Mercury should have been number 1. Ann Wilson sounds like the female version of Freddie.
Freddie Mercury should have been number 1. Ann Wilson sounds like the female version of Freddie.
Freddie Mercury should have been number 1. Ann Wilson sounds like the female version of Freddie.
one woman in the top ten.
Cobain? Please… his nasally whining does not quallify for the top 10.
Stevie Nicks?
thom yorke anyone? hmm.
why are there 9 dudes on this list?
No Meatloaf? This list is a joke.
Where is Roger Daltrey?!?
Replace Jeff Buckley with Dorothy Moore or P.P. Arnold, and Kurt Cobain with Dusty Springfield, and you might be getting somewhere, I suppose.
Freddie fucking Mercury.
Where is Elliott Smith on there?
Celine Dion Is the best singer in the world.
Where’s Scott Walker? Or is this the list of top 10 singers after Scott Walker?
I’d take Jesse Presley over Elvis any day.
Bump Jeff Buckley up a few notches, drop Cobain, Jagger and Presley, add Cass Elliot, Freddie Mercury and Billy Joel…
and I heart Thom Yorke, but not for a top 10 of all time list.
Chan Marshall of Cat Power…the most beautiful voice around in my book.
one female in the top ten singers is sort of ridiculous, especially since there are so many in the ten worst. nina simone, ella fitzgerald, bjork etc. – at least one of them should have been in the top ten over buckley or cobain. there is still a great deal of sexism in mainstream rock journalism.
Hey, Ella Fitzgerald was alright. I reckon Sam Cooke, Nat King Cole and especially the rich voice of Karen Carpenter. Fuck she can sing. Not sure about Sinatra, I mean he could sing, but often he didnt try.
why the hate for elvis.. the guy could sing.
john fogerty over mick jagger.
Yeah sorry, anyone showing contempt for Elvis being on a Top Ten Singers list should just stop. You’re being contrary on purpose, knock it off.
…….Kurt Cobain? I won’t deny that his particular vocal sound added to the greatness of the melancholic out-of-it Nirvana. But i mean…. his singing was mumbling at a higher pitch and volume.
I have never been more upset by one of these lists.
Omg, that is a shit list. That list fucking blows. Fire that editor!
Lists like this are intended solely to agitate me…and they work everytime. I’m happy to see Cobain in the top ten though. Calling Mariah Carey one of the worst singers ever reeks of a shitty corporate magazine trying desperately to please the indie kids. Looks like they accomplished that. Yeah, she sucks, but she CAN sing. Just like John Mayer sucks but he CAN play the guitar. They are both good with their instruments, they just use them for evil instead of good. And how in the fuck did Mick Jagger make the list?
1. Sam Cooke
2. Frank Sinatra
3. Al Green
4. Rod Stewart (in the Faces)
5. Curtis Mayfield
Billie Holliday deserves to be on this list far more than Kurt Cobain (and probably a couple of others).
poor stereogum,
you used to be alright
A little less well known, but where is Eva Cassidy? That voice could shatter the coldest hearts of the most bitter of Stereogum editors…
And yes, where the FUCK is Sam Cooke?
rod stewart in top five– you’re right.
And here’s number four for Sam Cooke. In my book, he’s got the most effective set of pipes I’ve ever heard. But that’s in my book. Seriously, who among us could write a list that wouldn’t make ninety five percent of the population scoff? It’s impossible. This whole making of lists – everyone has their lists – is ridiculous enough without reading them with the assuption that they actually mean anything. lets all make lists of our favorite singers and read them while eating slices of buntcake (i find bunt cake equally arbitrary because it never really seems to satisfy that need-for-cake-urge, but it wouldn’t do in any other situation, either, right?). And “greatest” is so ambiguous. I could try to write an All-Star list of singers, but it would be based on my speculations on popular opinion, or some sort of historical/gravitational equation which i’m not smart enough for (meaning, who first influenced who, etc).
so, for me, one through ten,(in order of ten down to one) singing voices that have the most intense effect on me, limited to people who sing predominantly in English, in order of how greatly the sound of the voice has affected my ambition to stay alive:
10. Sly Stone
9. Perry Farrell
8. Patti Smith
7. Skip James
6. Smokey Robinson
5. Billy Holiday
4. Crissy Hines
3. Otis Redding
2. Nina Simone
1. Sam Cooke
I want to read one hundred lists, of everyone’s top ten. it’s such a personal thing. let’s share.
When I think of best voices, I think of Sam Cooke and Smokey Robinson. I also think of Horton Barker, a traditional (anglo-american) ballad singer from recorded in the 40s–they didn’t say well-known, best voices after all.
Elvis definitely had a good voice. It had range and subtlety (just listen to “Suspicious Minds”), but at the same time, calling it the best voice every is a bit ridicilous.
No Elliott Smith, Thom Yorke, Jarvis Cocker, Beth Gibbons, Emily Haines? Fuck this list.
And as for the worst voices ever list: William Hung, Britney Spears, Joanna Newsom, Chad Kroeger, Scott Stapp, and the assholes from The Rapture and Cover Your Ears Say Oww
for the person who asked about elliott smith, he doesn’t feature in the list!
if the list was for top 100 distinctive voices, it would have been ok. but it was fucking GREATEST voices. kurt cobain does not have one of the greatest voices in music. that’s a joke. they need to decide what exactly they are compiling before they fuck it all up.
thismust be a fucking joke. Kurt Cobain?! John Lennon?! WTF?!
Where is Geoff Tate? Where is Chris Cornell? Where is Allison Krauss, or anyone from the top notch new country scene?
Those guys at the Q must have some serious hearing problems, besides not having any musical hearing at all…
billie
Yeah this list does suck. Even talking from a strictly Beatles perspective, Paul has a better voice than John, come now.
Though I may catch shit, Bobby McFerrin needs to be on the list–dude can sing the shit outta some shit, yo!
Steven Patrick Morrissey.
I far as I am concerned the two greatest voices ever are Neko Case and Jim James. Also i would vote for Michael Stipe, Emily Haines and George Hunter.
brian wilson?
Elliott Smith? I never heard any range in that guy’s voice.
Nix to Thom Yorke as well. I think he’s great, but can you imagine him singing over anything other than a Radiohead song? It’d sound terrible. He’s the perfect singer for his band, but nothing more.
Let’s see more love for Rod Stewart. Man, he used to be great.
Why no Dave Matthews? Just because he’s not dead? Shit list for sure.
I assume they left Dave Matthews off this list because he could not sing if his life depended on it.
The fact that Cobain, Jagger and Plant are on there and Neko Case, Sam Cooke, Roberta Flack and Morrissey are not, really makes me question this shithole of a list.
Mavis Staples
Mahalia Jackson
Odetta
John Lennon??? He had a horrible voice!!!!!
Let me elaborate here. I love that this post reflects much of what I´ve been listening to lately. There have been numerous mentions to Sam Cooke, Curtis Mayfield, Sly Stone and Al Green, all of which have been in pretty constant rotation on my iTunes as of late. I´ve swapped the usual indie fare for soul. These guys all sing and write melodies that have affected me emotionally in a way that almost nothing else can. Especially when any of their songs are about unrequited love or being heartbroken. When Al Green´s cover of How can You Mend a Broken Heart comes on, for example, I´m floored. I don´t get up from my bed and I can barely breathe. And I´m not even heartbroken or anything. It just gets to me. Every time.
On a seperate note, thank God they included Marvin Gaye on this list. What´s Going On is a perfect album. When he sings:
Who really cares, who is willing to try
To save a world that is destined to die
That makes me want to bawl more than anything that any politician could ever say. It is still so amazingly relevant to this day. Stereogum if you could write a post on its anniversary or whatever my respect for you as a blog will skyrocket. And I´m a pretty big fan.
Sorry to ramble. To conclude, if any of you are disaffected by the indie scene currently, check out all of the singers mentioned above. They will remind you of why you listen with music to begin with.
Now back to my usual armchair critic status.
Roy Orbison and George Jones are glaring omissions. So are almost all of the soul singers that we´ve been talking about. And yes there should be more women on this list. It would be really cool if the lead singer from the group The Sundays were on this list somewhere. Or Elis Regina. Terrible list, but what are you going to do?
iggy pop. there is no other.
yes! Elis Regina! nobody ever talk about her, but I think she has the greatest female voice out of almost all of the bossa nova singers i’ve ever heard. (this is why i limited my list to people who sing in english, because it’s just too complicated otherwise; too much to think about, too many people to consider) and i think someone up there was correcting my earlier mispelling of billie holiday’s name. yes. thank you. in my defense, it was the middle of the night . . . and i’m also really happy to see so many mentions of chris cornell. I just don’t like soundgarden anymore, so he’s not on my mind, but, in terms of greatest singing voices, yeah, fer sure, his voice (and his music aside) is pretty mind blowing.
the list is perfect as is. get over it.
win butler!
and morrissey gets 2 through 10.
im trying to decide which is more embarassing – the actual list or some of the suggestions being offered here.
as much as i love elliott smith, he really didn’t have a great voice.
perry farrell? he goes on the worst voice list.
win butler? iggy pop? dave matthews? thom yorke? jarvis cocker? MEATLOAF?
and may the flames of hell consume whoever says jeff buckley doesn’t deserve to be on the list. flames of hell.
exactly
i hate lists that are the best ANYTHING “OF ALL TIME!”
Of all time?
So, nobody could sing until the 1920s?
Stupid – of course, they couldn’t throw in singers from 1740 or 876. So, simply call it best singers of the 1900 til now.
OF ALL TIME!
Stupid
Whoever said Dave Matthews must be on crack. I’d rather hear an elephant fart than listen to his voice. And what kind of name is Kegstand? What are you, 16 or something? Are you related to Funnel and Ice Luge?
WTF? This list is a joke. Mick Jagger? Kurt Cobain? Elvis at #1?!?!?
I’d like to see The Chairman of the Board somewhere in the top 10, and I guess John Lennon’s selection must have canceled out McCarney/Harrison. I’m guessing that the same logic goes for the omissions of Freddie Mercury and Axel Rose’s screaching (canceled out by the selection of Robert Plant?).
What about Roger Waters? Janis Joplin? Bob Marley? Morrissey? Thom? This list blows.
why… i think they made a misprint. taylor hicks isn’t up there. of course they made a mistake. taylor hicks created the soul patrol. where would we be without the SOUL PATROL!?!?!?
Anyone who doesn’t think Elivs deserves number one must not be a fan of music. The man had the most powerful voice in Rock history, not even arguable. Watch this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=1f9TBAYjyUA
elvis ain’t got shit on taylor hicks
hey eddie,
elvis sounds like shit in that video.
My choices for best singer:
Neko Case
Feist
the guy who says “We’re Explosions in the Sky, thanks for coming” at the start of their shows.
There are some worthy names on that list, but any such list that doesn’t include JOHNNY CASH cannot be taken very seriously.
i’m still shocked that ella fitzgerald didn’t make the list. really? kurt cobain better than ella?
and the incredible EDDIE VEDDER!!??
Ella Fitzgerald hands down. Don’t mind Elvis though. And Mariah Carey is a great singer! Of woeful songs.
Joni Mitchell is sorely missing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Qgsn0U340
Uh . . .
Maria Callas? Diamanda Galas?
Elizabeth Frazer? Lisa Gerrard?
Joan LaBarbara? Meredith Monk?
Again: Roy Orbison?
David Bowie? Peter Murphy?
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan? Pandit Pran Nath?
I know that Q covers pop music, but it boggles that the “greatest” singers of “all time” doesn’t include singers that are actually trained to sing, in a classical fashion, or even that many singers that naturally have the depth, range, nuance and power to be considered good at, really, anything.
Plant, Cobain, Jagger sing the same way all the time, with variations in technique only limited to dynamics.
Taste aside, Luciano Pavarotti is technically a better singer than all 10 of the above people. These lists need to be more specific in their titling, as mentioned above and as mentioned before with previous lists.
For example: “Greatest Western Mainstream Pop Singers Since 1950.”
Stop hatin’ on ELVIS.
Tom Waits
It seems like they went more for the most popular singers of all time rearranged to fit the editors’ tastes than anything to do with true talent, which, to me, is more than just being able to sing well. A good vocal coach can bring out good singing, but I really think the mark of a good singer pretty much lies in every other aspect of the singing.
H.R. from bad brains.
no mike patton, no freddie mercury, this list is just stupid.
oh, and harry nielson definitely in the top 10.
Look this list is the best. I love Eddie Vedder. He wasn’t in the top 100 but whatever. They were putting singer not by talent here. If that was the case they would look up the whole world. They were putting singers by personality and depth. That’s what singers should be judged by. I don’t totally agree completely but it’s awesome that they did it this way…did you see the worst singers. Celine Dion, Mariah Carey HAHA! I loved it. It is true they do nothing but ripp notes!
Where is Russell Mael of Sparks? Surely one of the best and most unique voices in popular music.
Buckley should be closer to the top, and Elvis certainly should be nowhere near the top ten (or top hundred even), he was a performer first vocalist second. Roy Orbison should be in there. Chris Cornell too. And where’s Mike Patton at???
tim buckley bobby mcferrin janis joplin lou reed eddie vedder jim morrison maria callas susan tadeschi ricky lee jones freddy mercurry laarbi batma(nass el ghiwane) and more and more
and we cant compare betwen vices every voice is a feeling that we must taste!
it’s ALL about Pat Benatar and her four and a half octave range!
Where the fucking hell is Freddie Mercury and Roy Orbison??
They are, like, only the two greatest vocalists of all time, so yeh, don’t put them in the top 10. Who made this fucking useless piece of shit list? And why the FUCK am I wasting my time writing about this?
Such toilet paper! UGH!!
John Lennon should definitely be on the list, whoever claims differently hasn’t heard his singing; whoever said that John Mayer sucks, needs to recheck his/her brain ability of critical thinking, however women singers and some exeptional notmentioned male vocalists as well… Cobain doesn’t belong there.
…are missing… (edit above post)
freddy mercury !!!! is the best !!!!the voice !! the band!!!!
please !!! what happend??
1.- whitney houston.
2.- aretha franklin.
3.- steve wonder.
4.- mariah carey.
5.- alicia keys.
6.- beyonce.
7.- dionne warwick.
8.- lionel richie.
9.- luther vandrous.
10.- celine dion.
11.- elliot yamin (bonus)
1. WHITNEY HOUSTON
2. Mariah Carey
3. Celine dion
4. Jennifer Holiday
5. Dionne Warwick
6. Bette Midler
7. Madonna
8. Shirley Bassey
9. Shania Twain
10.Aretha Franklin
Whitney Houston is far way better than the rest.
where is Freddie Mercury
are you crazy?
he was the best voice on world, hey guys, never listen to the Queen
ok, first of all, KURT KOBAIN? he has a great band, but the singing voice isnt the best in the world. try stevie wonder, don henley, elton john, but marvin gayes already on there. but these guys are the real shit
I agree with a few but where the hell is Chad Kroeger!!?? Where’s Brett Scallions?! Amazing voices and you put Elvis, Mick Jagger up there? Messed up.
hello freddie mercury is the all time greatest singer in history! no one is better than him. elvis sounds like shit by the way
From Bueno Aires,Argentina
-1-Fredy Mercury (Queen)
-2-Allan Clarke (the Hollies)
-3-Roger Daltrey (th Who)
-4-Phill Collins
-5-Elton Johnn
-5-El cantante de Keane
-6-Iam Gillan (Led Zeppeling)
-7-Joe Cocker
-5-Tony Braxton
-9-Barry Gibb (Bee Gees)
-10-Kurt Cobain
From Bueno Aires,Argentina
-1-Fredy Mercury (Queen)
-2-Allan Clarke (the Hollies)
-3-Roger Daltrey (th Who)
-4-Phill Collins
-5-Elton Johnn
-5-El cantante de Keane
-6-Iam Gillan (Led Zeppeling)
-7-Joe Cocker
-5-Tony Braxton
-9-Barry Gibb (Bee Gees)
-10-Kurt Cobain
From Bueno Aires,Argentina
-1-Fredy Mercury (Queen)
-2-Allan Clarke (the Hollies)
-3-Roger Daltrey (th Who)
-4-Phill Collins
-5-Elton Johnn
-5-El cantante de Keane
-6-Iam Gillan (Led Zeppeling)
-7-Joe Cocker
-5-Tony Braxton
-9-Barry Gibb (Bee Gees)
-10-Kurt Cobain
Layne Staley – best singer of the grunge era
Eric Burdon of the Animals and War – great British singer turned great funk/soul singer
has anyone listened to atif aslam ,the guy from pakistan i think he is one of the best ever , try to listen to his songs , and you will realise his soul touching voice , he is a genius musician
as far as kurt cobain , i think he is one of the best ever
mike jaggers also good, others should also include richard ashcroft , bono , axl rose , sting , john lennon and chris martin
elvis , MJ and kurt cobain should make the top , i think atif aslam is the best
Where the hell is STEVEN TYLER????????
Where is STEVE PERRY??????
The list is “Greatest Voices of All Time”, not “Your Personal Favorite Singers of All Time”.
I heart Elvis Costello, but there’s no way in hell he’d make the top 50 in terms of voice. Same with Stipe, Butler, Yorke.
You don’t have to like Jeff Buckley, but you have to admit he had a beautiful voice. Two glaring female omissions — Cyndi Lauper and kd lang. lang especially, I’m not sure there are many people out there with her range.