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Originally Posted by dougiefresh
This thread reminds me of something I heard from Joe Strummer on a CD somewhere. He was talking about how they first went into a studio with a professional producer. The producer insisted Joe sang his words clearly. At first, Joe said he did it and then realized that it took all of the "piss" out of the songs. He also mentioned how he loved listening to the reggae albums and how it took a bunch of listens to make out what they were singing about. Like, the song became a puzzle of some kind. Amen to that.
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dougiefresh, you are absolutely on to the meat of the matter here.
Joe Strummer is a great example of a great singer who "can't sing" according to convensional measures.
If Joe would've had a different life; if he'd of been an opera academy graduate from Tuscany rather than an art school dropout in London; then the essence of what made Strummer's voice what it was-- uniquely powerful, angst-ridden, beautifully desperate, blue, lively, angry, impathetic, gravel-spitting, take-no-fuckin'-prisoners passionate--it all would've been lost in hitting the high notes and chasing the low ones.
Listen to the Clash's "The Card Cheat." Joe's voice is a fuckin' wreck on that one, but oh my dear God is it beautiful.
Joe Strummer, RIP.