Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

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Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by spirit in the sky »

Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Freddie Mercury? Bono? Mick Jagger? Robert Plant?

If you fancy a vote http://www.thisdayinmusic.com/pages/poll

To music discussion with this one - David
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by moom »

Ian Gillan :smt034 :smt029
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by Hudini »

spirit in the sky wrote:Freddie Mercury?
Easily.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by moom »

In my book, Mercury probably comes second. Gillan has a very wide range of voice (Freddie, too), but where Freddie could at times be a little too much pompous, Gillan is simpler, just sharing emotions with crowds.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by czgibson »

I think Mick Jagger deserves some credit, because he seems to have basically created the role of the rock frontman. Rock singers who don't play an instrument for much of the time have a lot of work to do to keep their act interesting visually, so what do they do? Most of them, essentially, do what Mick Jagger does. Iggy Pop is a good example of someone who's got a similar style to Jagger, but ramped up to a level made possible by boatloads of stimulants.

Having said that, nobody could control a large crowd like Freddie Mercury. Watch the Wembley 1986 DVD - that kind of power is extraordinary.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by snifferdog »

I'd go for Freddie Mercury as well. Even if he had a face for radio and a wardrobe to match, he certainly knew how to work the crowd. A thing I noticed when they held that tribute concert to him after he died was how few of the acts who took to the stage could actually sing his songs.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by wiped »

Bon Scott
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by moom »

Ian Gillan:
Rock'n'roll attitude? check.
Great voice? check.
Memorable tunes? check. Because this also applies to his solo career, and he has one.
Stage presence? check.
optional:
Alcohol problems? check.
Fights with bandmembers: check.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by The Gunner's Dream »

I guess moom won't be happy until every single person shares his opinion...which has already been stated three times in the space of one page of a thread.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by Hudini »

moom wrote:Alcohol problems? check.
Fights with bandmembers: check.
Judging by this kind of criteria, I'd probably choose GG Allin.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by moom »

Hudini wrote:
moom wrote:Alcohol problems? check.
Fights with bandmembers: check.
Judging by this kind of criteria, I'd probably choose GG Allin.
Mark E Smith :lol:





No... no no no...

Liam Gallagher!

Gus... no, I'm cool.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by olzen »

moom wrote:Ian Gillan:
Rock'n'roll attitude? check.
Great voice? check.
Memorable tunes? check. Because this also applies to his solo career, and he has one.
Stage presence? check.
optional:
Alcohol problems? check.
Fights with bandmembers: check.
Inappropriately creepy sexual stage moves? Check. I've seen 'em with my own eyes and they sure weren't pretty.
Loss of range? Check. See above.
Inability to remember lyrics while in Black Sabbath? Check. I do wish I had seen that line-up, though.

On the more serious side of things, Freddie Mercury was indeed a great frontman, if not the best. Another late legend would be Ronnie James Dio. He was wonderfully energetic on a stage, but still very classy and humble. And while his voice did deteriorate slightly during his final years, he was always a great singer.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by my breakfast. »

Fuck yas all. Alex Harvey all the way.
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by moom »

olzen wrote:
Inappropriately creepy sexual stage moves? Check. I've seen 'em with my own eyes and they sure weren't pretty.
Loss of range? Check. See above.
Inability to remember lyrics while in Black Sabbath? Check. I do wish I had seen that line-up, though.
Creepy? What did he do?

Loss of range? He still has lots of voice, it's still more listenable than Plant's live struggles when he was young. Gillan simply can't sing as high as he used to, but still not bad. Besides, we're not talking about just now, are we? ;)
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Re: Who has been the greatest frontman ever?

Post by olzen »

I saw Deep Purple live last summer. Gillan did a few "humping" moves to the rhythm of No One Came at one point. That might have worked back when he was 30 (barely), but considering he now looks like someone's kind old uncle, it really was friggin' creepy. Dirty old man. Doesn't really offend me, but there are certain things you don't want to think about.

I do agree Gillan sounds better than Plant. It's not that I don't like Gillan, but really, greatest front man ever? I think that's stretching it a little. There are far more dynamic performers out there, and since the classic Mark II-Purple sound relied on his belting, it really is a shame that he hasn't taken better care of his voice.