Which are your favorite male and female popular singers of yesteryear?

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Mary_Gail_36 said:
I also like Frank Sinatra.

I like to listen to Italian music. One of my favorite Italian singers is Renato Carosone. He sang Neopolitan songs, some I think had success in the states, “Tu Vo Fa L’americano” I think.

Here he is:

youtube.com/watch?v=BqlJwMFtMCs

Also Domenico Modugno, he sang “Volare”. Here is another song, “Tu si na cosa grande”

youtube.com/watch?v=_Pf7LygOM6k&list=PL2n_Ip5vV3GBBMcWAJ73a8sYWKpkEUygU

And Mina: Il Cielo in Una Stanza

youtube.com/watch?v=b6s_kjlhP5U
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Two other crossover artists I remember, who sang Neapolitan songs and opera arias, were Sergio Franchi and Enzo Stuarti.
 
Bing Crosby. Duh! Also, Fred Astaire. Yes, FA. He didn’t just dance, he had a very good voice. Songwriters loved to write for him because his phrasing was so point on that the lyrics always came through brilliantly. Also, Art Garfunkel–beautiful tenor voice. James Darren had a smooth sound that only improved with age. And the little appreciated Bob Shane from the Kingston Trio whose voice had a smoky, husky quality. He’d have made a great jazz singer if he hadn’t devoted himself to folk music.
 
meltzerboy said:
I suppose it does help to look good as well as sound good as a live stage performer. I remember Judy Collins, who is still performing, remarked when she first saw Odetta on stage, that she not only looked and sounded great but also smelled great. I understand that John Walker passed away a few years ago.
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Yes,I heard that too:( so many talented artists,past and present.Really difficult to choose a favorite.
 
Della said:
Bing Crosby. Duh! Also, Fred Astaire. Yes, FA. He didn’t just dance, he had a very good voice. Songwriters loved to write for him because his phrasing was so point on that the lyrics always came through brilliantly. Also, Art Garfunkel–beautiful tenor voice. James Darren had a smooth sound that only improved with age. And the little appreciated Bob Shane from the Kingston Trio whose voice had a smoky, husky quality. He’d have made a great jazz singer if he hadn’t devoted himself to folk music.
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You’re so right about Fred Astaire. He had perfect timing in both his dancing and singing, as well as being a fine actor even in drama. Art Garfunkel is still performing (without Paul Simon) and has a scheduled appearance at Carnegie Hall this coming October. The Kingston Trio were a folk music lover’s dream.
 
meltzerboy said:
You’re so right about Fred Astaire. He had perfect timing in both his dancing and singing, as well as being a fine actor even in drama.
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Yes, his acting was underated until he did “On the Beach” and showed that he had gravitas not just charm and talent for dance.
Art Garfunkel is still performing (without Paul Simon) and has a scheduled appearance at Carnegie Hall this coming October.
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What a blessing that he’s still with us–not that he’s that old, but you never know. How I’d love to hear him in concert, but even if he came to my area I probably couldn’t afford the tickets. 😦
The Kingston Trio were a folk music lover’s dream.
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I was crazy about them as a teen. While everyone else was mad for The Beatles, I was deep into folk music. I learned to play guitar farily well–enough to accompany my singing, and did a lot of folk and gospel singing in my youth. Ah, those were the days! 😃
 
A few lesser known singers from the 40s that I thought were pretty good…

Helen Forrest
Vaughn Monroe
Jo Stafford
Kay Starr

More recent singers…

Karen Carpenter
Patsy Cline
Roy Orbison
Linda Ronstadt
 
Jeanne_S said:
Linda Ronstadt put out a CD ,maybe ten fifteen years ago,where she sings Spanish Ballads as a tribute to her father,who was a band leader…Her beautiful voice is really best suited to this style of music.Just georgeous!
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I loved that CD! She would have been a great mariachi singer!
 
Perry Como, Red Foley, Eddie Arnold, “Sons of the Pioneers”, Anna Maria Alberghetti (sp?), Righteous Brothers, Temptations, and ANNA MOFFO. 🙂
 
I don’t think anyone has mentioned Rosemary Clooney. Yeah, she had style, class, and a great voice.
 
Ridgerunner said:
Perry Como, Red Foley, Eddie Arnold, “Sons of the Pioneers”, Anna Maria Alberghetti (sp?), Righteous Brothers, Temptations, and ANNA MOFFO. 🙂
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Anna Moffo, of course, was primarily an opera singer and a darn good one. I heard her sing on several occasions, particularly at Central Park in Manhattan.
 
johnnyc176 said:
A few lesser known singers from the 40s that I thought were pretty good…

Helen Forrest
Vaughn Monroe
Jo Stafford
Kay Starr

More recent singers…

Karen Carpenter
Patsy Cline
Roy Orbison
Linda Ronstadt
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Patsy Cline was regarded by many as the queen of country music. Jo Stafford had a great influence on Judy Collins’ career.
 
Della said:
I don’t think anyone has mentioned Rosemary Clooney. Yeah, she had style, class, and a great voice.
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Clooney was great. She could sing anything and even made the stuff she hated to sing sound good. Her comeback years were equally as good

She did a radio show with Bing Crosby in the early 60s where each would sing a song solo and then a duet. You get to hear her sing a lot of different material. It’s public domain just do a search and you should find it.

And here’s one more for the list…Aretha Franklin.
 
Jim Morrison and Chuck Negrin,lead singer for the band Three Dog Night…
 
meltzerboy said:
For sheer expressiveness (intertwined with a bit of screaming), it’s hard to beat Janis Joplin. It’s not difficult to tell she really meant what she sang.
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My second choice would be Cecilia Bartoli. I saw her sing in the Barber of Seville when she was just staring out. When she sang her first aria I felt sorry for every other member of the cast-she was so far superior to everyone else it must have been embarrassing to share the stage with her
 
meltzerboy said:
Two other crossover artists I remember, who sang Neapolitan songs and opera arias, were Sergio Franchi and Enzo Stuarti.
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Sergio Franchi was often on The Mike Douglas Show! 🙂 I loved his italian accent when he spoke.

The comedian, Norm Crosby, used to call him Surgical Franchise. In fact, as I was typing Franchi, spellcheck changed it to franchise. :rotfl:
 
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