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Best 1990's rock vocal performance?

felixfelix Posts: 19
edited February 2007 in Other Music
I've had the Temple of the Dog album for quite some time and I find it incredibly hard to argue against Chris Cornell's intense and aggressive performance. Nothing has come close imo.

A honorable mention to Thom Yourke's performance on OK Computer. He has such a calming urgency on that album

What do y'all think?
Sorry... i got nothing witty to say in the time allotted to me.

Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments

  • Jeremy1012Jeremy1012 Posts: 7,170
    My personal favourite? the whole of Facelift, Dirt or Jar of flies by Alice in Chains.

    I think the best performance is undoubtedly Temple of the dog though. The vocals on say hello 2 heaven are just astounding. no other word for it.
    "I remember one night at Muzdalifa with nothing but the sky overhead, I lay awake amid sleeping Muslim brothers and I learned that pilgrims from every land — every colour, and class, and rank; high officials and the beggar alike — all snored in the same language"
  • Jeremy1012Jeremy1012 Posts: 7,170
    and also, Layne's vocals on Mad Season's river of deceit make me want to cry
    "I remember one night at Muzdalifa with nothing but the sky overhead, I lay awake amid sleeping Muslim brothers and I learned that pilgrims from every land — every colour, and class, and rank; high officials and the beggar alike — all snored in the same language"
  • SavedFuckerSavedFucker Posts: 215
    jeff buckley
    i'll trade you my tee shirt for a grilled cheese
  • Marie CurieMarie Curie Posts: 1,250
    Chris Cornell on TOTD, Jeff Buckley on Grace, Eddie Vedder on Ten
    “Life is life everywhere. Life is in ourselves and not outside us. There will be men beside me, and the important thing is to be a man among men and to remain a man always, whatever the misfortunes, not to despair and not to fall - that is the aim of life, that is its purpose.”
    Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  • webberf1webberf1 Posts: 160
    Marie Curie wrote:
    Chris Cornell on TOTD, Jeff Buckley on Grace, Eddie Vedder on Ten
    youve said it all
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    webberf1 wrote:
    youve said it all

    agree.
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • lalalalaaaaaaaalalalalaaaaaaaa Posts: 2,445
    I think anything Reznor did beats the hell out of anyone in the 90's, personally.

    But I guess that wouldn't officially count as rock.
  • melodyman22melodyman22 Posts: 326
    Layne-Dirt, Jar of flies
    Eddie-Ten, vs
    Cornell-totd, superunkwon
  • soulsingingsoulsinging Posts: 13,202
    Marie Curie wrote:
    Chris Cornell on TOTD, Jeff Buckley on Grace, Eddie Vedder on Ten

    id pick vs over ten. the vocals on ten weren't that great. i think it was largely the production, but still.
  • gossardstradlingossardstradlin Posts: 324
    Jeremy1012 wrote:
    and also, Layne's vocals on Mad Season's river of deceit make me want to cry

    That Mad Season album is one of my favorites. The whole feel of the album is great. Layne's vocals on Wake Up are so amazing. Cornell is something else on Badmotorfinger as well.
    "She knows there is no success like failure
    And that failure's no success at all."

    "Don't ya think its sometimes wise not to grow up."

    "Cause life ain't nothing but a good groove
    A good mixed tape to put you in the right mood."
  • darthvedder88darthvedder88 Posts: 1,023
    What about Eddie's vocals on Vitalogy people?!! C'MON!!!
    "Darth Vader would say 'Impressive'."

    -Eddie Vedder

    6/24/06 Cincinatti, Ohio
    6/14/08 Manchester, Tennessee
  • artjamartjam Posts: 227
    Best vocal performaces of the 1990's (by album)

    Vitalogy
    Unplugged in New York (c'mon bashers, you cant deny it)
    Temple of the Dog
    OK Computer (beautiful)
    The Ghost of Tom Joad (boss)
    Recovering the Satellites
    Jar of Flies
    Alien Lanes (GBV!)
    Automatic For The People
  • keeponrockinkeeponrockin Posts: 7,446
    Ya, my favourite is Unplugged in NY. 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night' is astounding.
    Believe me, when I was growin up, I thought the worst thing you could turn out to be was normal, So I say freaks in the most complementary way. Here's a song by a fellow freak - E.V
  • off_the_recordoff_the_record Posts: 843
    keeponrockin wrote:
    Ya, my favourite is Unplugged in NY. 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night' is astounding.

    yup. love or hate nirvana, kurt's vocals were spine tingling.
    Cheat the odds that made you
    Brave to try to gamble at times
  • soulsingingsoulsinging Posts: 13,202
    silverchair- neon ballroom
    anything by elliott smith
    tragically hip- phantom power
    jimmy eat world- clarity
    aic- jar of flies
  • artjamartjam Posts: 227
    off_the_record wrote:
    yup. love or hate nirvana, kurt's vocals were spine tingling.

    Yes. What a great, great performance. I feel lucky that I was alive at that moment. Just amazing. Love the screen name BTW, must be a MMJ fan!
  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    Temple of the Dog is not only one of the most emotional albums ever written but one of the very best vocal performances in rock music history. Forget the 90s.
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    SavedFucker wrote:
    jeff buckley
    One of the purest, most incredible voices in history. I don't think I've ever heard a better singer.
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • spatspat Posts: 644
    not sure what kind of reaction this will get, but i was listening to quicksand jesus by skid row the other day, which actually came out in 1991, and i was really blown away by sebastian's vocals on that song. he's got a really good voice for a 80's metal band anyway, but that song inparticular is amazing.
    My favorite Pearl Jam song: "Corporate Greed Boat Asshole Behind a Counter in the Oval Office"
  • tonadaxtonadax Posts: 594
    In Yield vedder perfomance was amazing,brilliant especially on songs faithful and given to fly....

    Mad season it´s impressive, layne is great...
    aenima, maynard kickass...
    nyc nirvana unplugged
    and definitely maybe by oasis...
  • Rhinocerous SurpriseRhinocerous Surprise Posts: 4,423
    Mike Patton - Angel Dust
    Mark Lanegan - Whiskey For The Holy Ghost
    Chris Cornell - TotD
    Eddie Vedder - Vitalogy
    Smokey Robinson constantly looks like he's trying to act natural after being accused of farting.
  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    tonadax wrote:
    and definitely maybe by oasis...
    I dunno if I'd say they had the best vocal performances..

    Certainly could say the wrote some of the best songs and melodies though..

    Goddamn that Champagne Supernova.. I can't listen to that album much because that song gets stuck in my head for days and makes me depressed.
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • soclosesoclose Posts: 628
    I'm not as much of a Chris Cornell fan as I used to be, but I recently got my Temple of the Dog CD out for the first time in a while, and I was impressed by the guy's performance. I don't have a complete view of everything he's done (I've got the latter three Soundgarden CD's, Euphoria Morning and the first Audioslave CD), but I think the bluesy style of TotD best fit Chris' voice. At this point in time i can only take so much high-pitched screaming, and his solo record always more or less bored me. I think the TotD record provides just the right combination of hard rock power and beautiful vocal work. It's definitely not my favorite album of the 90's, but vocally speaking it is pretty great.

    I generally prefer singers with rougher voices that no one would ever refer to as technically superior. I'm listening to Son Volt at the moment, for instance. I love the sound of Jay Farrar's voice, but I'll be the first to admit that the man can hardly hold a note. His voice appeals to me, but I won't try to convince anyone that Trace or Straighaways contain the 90's greatest vocal performances. I appreciate Jeff Buckley's vocals on Grace - it's a beautfiul album - but I still prefer Jay Farrar mumbling and croaking his way through "Ten Second News" to a perfect rendition of "Lilac Wine."

    I'll take a worn out, distinctive voice over a pitch-perfect one nine times out of ten. To me, music is about an emotional response and what simply feels good, so that makes it hard to judge a musician (especially a singer) on a technical level.
  • ScarfishScarfish Posts: 25
    James Hetfield - Black Album
    Eddie Vedder - Ten,Vs
    Axel Rose - Appetite for destruction
    "Vocês são do caralho" Eddie Vedder 4/09/2006 Lisboa
  • facepollutionfacepollution Posts: 6,834
    I can only concur with others about Temple of the dog. I know we all have our favourite performers and what not, but it's pretty damn rare for a singer to put all that emotion in and still be so technically capable. It was also such a departure from the balls out wailing of Soundgarden (ok I know there was a lot of wailing, but he proved he could actually sing too). Plenty of singers during the 80's and early 90's had those really high voices, but Cornell had a lot more grit and passion in his voice.

    I find these kind of questions kind of difficult, cause you'll get people who say 'I don't rate Cornell at all', and I can appreciate his vocal tone or whatever might not suit some people's taste, but looking at it purely from a vocal ability kind of way, it's hard to see how people can deny his talent.

    Anyway, my other choices based on ability are:

    Jeff Buckley - Grace
    Eddie Vedder - Ten/Vs/Yield
    Maynard James Keenan - Aenima/Lateralus
    Layne Staley - Dirt/Jar of flies
    Adam Duritz - Recovering the Satelites
    Scott Weiland - Purple
    Michael Stipe - Automatic for the people
    Thom Yorke - The Bends
    Skin - Stoosh
  • transplanttransplant Posts: 1,088
    spat wrote:
    not sure what kind of reaction this will get, but i was listening to quicksand jesus by skid row the other day, which actually came out in 1991, and i was really blown away by sebastian's vocals on that song. he's got a really good voice for a 80's metal band anyway, but that song inparticular is amazing.
    it would probably get the same reaction as yours if people would actually take the time to listen to it with an open mind.
  • intodeepintodeep Posts: 7,228
    SavedFucker wrote:
    jeff buckley

    Please lock the thread. we have a winner
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  • LiftedLifted Posts: 1,836
    Eddie Vedder on ten. (black)...i only say ten because the way the rest of their albums were produced, his voice didn't sound as good in the studio but we all know it was just as great live.... anything by rem, michael stipe has an amazing voice. anything by radiohead, thom yorke another amazing voice. and early my morning jacket was late 90's and jim james has one of the best voices in rock music. chris martin has a great voice too....wish coldplay would experimented a little more with their music, a lot of it sounds the same but that doesn't take away from the voice.
  • gleemonexgleemonex Posts: 848
    Some of my favourite particular vocal performances from the 90s include

    Nirvana - Where Did You Sleep Last Night (Unplugged)
    Pearl Jam - Porch, Do The Evolution, and In Hiding
    Jane's Addiction - Ted, Just Admit It..., Jane Says
    I Mother Earth - So Gently We Go, Used to be Alright
    Kyuss - Space Cadet, Thong Song
    Beastie Boys - Sabotage, Sure Shot, Intergalactic
    Dandy Warhols - Be-In, (Tony, This Song is Called) Lou Weed
    Foo Fighters - Weenie Beenie, Monkey Wrench
    Weezer - el Scorcho, Pink Triangle, My Name is Jonas
    Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun, Limo Wreck, Outshined
    Stone Temple Pilots - Crackerman, Big Empty, Tumble in the Rough
    Sublime - Waiting for my Ruca, Get Ready
    The Hip - Greasy Jungle, Blow At High Dough, Boots or Hearts, Fiddler's Green, Long Time Running, Wheat Kings, Fully Completely, Gift Shop, etc.
    Tom Petty - You Don't Know How It Feels
    Pixies - Planet of Sound, Head On, Wave of Mutilation
    Radiohead - Stop Whispering, Airbag, Fake Plastic Trees
    RHCP - Sir Psycho Sexy

    Last but definitely not least: Absolutely everything by Mark Lanegan!!!!
    “Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you’ve got about a hundred years here. There’s only one rule that I know of, babies — ‘God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.’” - Kurt Vonnegut
  • pirlo21pirlo21 Posts: 534
    Anything by Cornell & Mark Lanegan. Quick mention also to James Dean Bradfield. Great singer, underrated guitarist.
    Cymru Am Byth

    PJ albums, at the moment!! -
    1,Vs 2,Vitalogy 3,No Code 4,Yield 5,Ten 6,Backspacer, 7Pearl Jam 8,Binaural 9,Riot Act.
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