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Geddy's Aging voice


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It inevitably happens as you age. It's hard to name any vocalists it hasn't happened to. You lose your range; you can't get your voice to the same places as you could when you were younger.

 

Neil Diamond and Frank Sinatra basically spent the later years of their careers speaking the lyrics in a lower octave rather than truly "singing" them, because they knew their voices couldn't reach the higher sung notes.

 

Annie Haslam of the 70s Prog band Renaissance had a legendary 5.5 octave range at her peak, and she's worked to preserve her voice... but I've seen her twice in as many years and she's definitely lost some speed off her fastball, to use a baseball metaphor. She's now 63.

 

Jon Anderson, on the other hand, is that rare case: last I saw him, his voice was just as strong as it was in Yes's 1970s heyday.

Edited by GeddyRulz
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i thought his voice sounded great during the last tour,,, he just had a bad night

 

You can search youtube for anything ,,,, every performer has had a bad night,

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QUOTE (D3strukt @ Mar 25 2011, 07:11 AM)
Yeah, I thought he sounded bad on the 2008 tour. I was hoping he would get his 07 vox back, but then when I heard him on Presto on the first night. I cried as well.

You think he sounds bad on Presto?

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QUOTE (Lamelight @ Mar 25 2011, 03:50 AM)
QUOTE (D3strukt @ Mar 25 2011, 07:11 AM)
Yeah, I thought he sounded bad on the 2008 tour. I was hoping he would get his 07 vox back, but then when I heard him on Presto on the first night. I cried as well.

You think he sounds bad on Presto?

wtf.gif 2.gif

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QUOTE (GeddyRulz @ Mar 25 2011, 12:24 AM)

Jon Anderson, on the other hand, is that rare case: last I saw him, his voice was just as strong as it was in Yes's 1970s heyday.

Jon Anderson is an extraterrestrial elf. The laws of Nature don't apply to him.

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QUOTE (Ron2112 @ Mar 25 2011, 05:29 AM)
QUOTE (GeddyRulz @ Mar 25 2011, 12:24 AM)

Jon Anderson, on the other hand, is that rare case:  last I saw him, his voice was just as strong as it was in Yes's 1970s heyday.

Jon Anderson is an extraterrestrial elf. The laws of Nature don't apply to him.

Yes, his great voice is better than ever after his rather serious illness.

Check out Jon's album with Rick Wakeman called The Living Tree wub.gif

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On the last couple of DVD's you can really tell his voice is starting to go. It is very sad, as otherwise the group's musical chops are still top notch.

 

If it were up to me they'd just save his voice for albums, but then again if it were up to me they'd have made a lot more albums in the last few years, so obviously it's not up to me. wink.gif

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yeah,overstretched himself a little here but it can happen to anybody and probably does.

ged as we all know has done literally thousands of shows and rarely f*cks up.

i started a thread not long ago asking"is ged often tempted to just go for it"? specifically refering to temples of syrinx,and i maintain that he is and often does but alas this is the result sad.gif

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QUOTE (1-0-0-1-0-0-1 @ Mar 25 2011, 02:42 AM)
They have only so many tours left in them, and Geddy's voice has only so many shows left. That's why I kinda wish they didn't do another Time Machine leg, and instead opted to finish the album and then do a tour after that.

+1

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He's said on occasion that he never took care of his voice, even on tour, in his younger days. Now he avoids certain foods and beverages and does not speak on the days off between shows unless he has to. I wonder if this has made much of a difference?

 

Also - does anyone know if he has worked with professional voice coaches on techniques to preserve his voice and make the most of what he does have? A lot of singers do (though often not until there's already some damage - to wit, Stephen Tyler).

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I couldn't watch the whole thing because... there were tears. sad.gif

 

Well, I said it many yon months ago that even the best of the best (i.e. OPERA singers) even lose their ranges in the end. And that's saying something because they preserve their voices and take lessons, not to mention are hypochondriacs and are generally crazy.

 

He does sound really bad there. Hopefully he won't sound too bad on the tour, but I agree, they should have finished Clockwork Angels and then gone on tour.

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QUOTE (ReflectedLight @ Mar 25 2011, 09:35 AM)
can't they come up with some kind of a geddy voice friendly mic? if the mic senses geddy's voice cracking, it automatically mixes it and sends out a perfect pitch for whatever note he was aiming for. biggrin.gif

Or I can just stand behind him and sing those high notes. I mean, I may be a girl but a. I have an amazing rocker scream, b. I am small enough to fit behind him and c. I have long dark hair. Seriously, no one would know. I would be like... Phantom Geddy. ph34r.gif

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He simply had a bad night. We all know that his voice has lost his range from their early career, but their are some nights Geddy sings pretty well. From what I have noticed, I haven't seen Geddy cruise through Red Barchetta (no pun intended) without struggling at some points. Other songs, he usually can make it through with the exception of a crackle or so in his voice. Also, it may just be how the song flows, or something like that. Personally, I feel Geddy can sing Freewill (the high part after the guitar solo) better than some of his high parts in Red Barchetta.

 

I've watched many Time Machine Tour videos, and I tend to look passed that stuff. I'm worried what my Dad and brother may think of this when we go see them at MSG in a couple of weeks. They may not be as forgiving. Also, don't quote me on it, but I thought I read somewhere that Geddy indeed has had some voice training with a coach. I wish I had a source for that, but I don't remember where that was.

 

I think Geddy still has a voice left in him, I just don't think he can go as long when it comes to tour length. Geddy's voice diminishes as the tour moves onward, which is understandable because when you are singing, and trying and sometimes succeeding to reach those notes almost every other night, it's bound to happen to have what we saw in that video.

 

Personally, I have a feeling that the Time Machine Tour may the last time we see some staples, such as Freewill, Red Barchetta, etc., the one's he really struggles with, unless they drop the key of those songs as well in vein to 2112 Overture/Temples. (Freewill he can sing pretty good, and maybe will simply have to avoid singing that high after the solo.)

 

I just want to end saying that Geddy still does a great job singing, and deserves a lot of credit to try and hit those notes from back in the day. Most singers today can't do that, or simply won't try. Geddy has a lot of courage and respect to the fans to try to sing the song as it was.

 

Looking forward seeing them at MSG! I have a feeling he will sing great there! Of course, they will be awesome playing their instruments! 2.gif

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I think Geddy has one of the most amazing voices on the planet, but I know from listening to other aging singers that everyone's voice goes as they get older. I just hope he doesn't push himself and do damage to his vocal chords. He's already had surgery once on his vocal chords; I don't think they can do it again. That's why I wish he wouldn't try to sing songs like Freewill anymore. I won't miss it, and his voice still sounds fantastic when he sings the lower songs.
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I think he still pulls most things off quite well live. Sure, he has his moments like this more frequently than before. That's because it does not come as naturally to him as it use to. He use to really push his vocals to the max on many songs on all the albums up to Moving Pictures. He still had some pretty powerful moments on albums after that but I think that he did tone it down a bit and most of those songs are easier for him to sing. We all get older and over time we start noticing that a lot of things that we did when we were younger don't come as easy to us. I for one am willing accept that his voice will never be what it use to be but the last time I saw them during the S&A tour his voice was pretty damn good.
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