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Your Top Five Solo Female Singers?

Amy Winehouse

Stacey Kent

Ella Fitzgerald - everything she ever did

Sade

Joni Mitchell


Not included as I don't adore most of their work
PJ Harvey
Cassandra WIlson - Blue Light 'Till Dawn
KD Lang - Inginue
Gloria Estevan - Abriendo Puertas and Mi Tierra
 
Kate Bush (of course)
Sarah McLachlan (vastly under appreciated in the UK)
Adele (not really my cup of tea, but what a voice)
Donna Summer (disco with gravitas)
Kim Sanders (her work with Schiller is spine tinglingly good)
 
As said above, not many of those I've heard of that I could disagree with.

But, my top five on a regular listening basis..

Joni M. Everything.. esp.. Blue
Jennifer Warnes.. Esp.. FBR The Hunter and Shot Through the Heart.
Rickie Lee Jones
Joan Baez
Sarah Vaughan

Another five who feature regularly..

Helen Forrest (40s Dance Band singer.)
Amalia Rodrigues.. Fado
Eva Cassidy. She was a staggeringly competent and versatile singer.
Etta James
Nanci Griffith.
 
Having been thru my collection of female singers over the last few days due to some of the choices posted here +
A bit of spotifing I have another five to add.

Judy Collins, Bohemian.
Agnes Obel, Philarmonics.
Mary Coughlan, Tired & Emotional.
Tanita Tikaram, Ancient Heart.
Mary Black, speaking With the Angel.
 
nice to see Tanita get a mention...mine would include

Mary Gauthier 'Mercy Now'
Joni Mitchel 'Court and Spark'
Suzanne Vega 'Solitude standing'
Madeleine Peyroux 'Bare Bones'
Mary Chapin Carpenter 'Sand and Water'

Aretha is queen but she's a shoe in to any list, so too obvious for me here.
 
Rockmeister said:
nice to see Tanita get a mention...mine would include

Mary Gauthier 'Mercy Now'
Joni Mitchel 'Court and Spark'
Suzanne Vega 'Solitude standing'
Madeleine Peyroux 'Bare Bones'
Mary Chapin Carpenter 'Sand and Water'

Aretha is queen but she's a shoe in to any list, so too obvious for me here.
Click to expand...

Not heard the Mary Chapin Carpenter album my favourite one is 'Stones in thRoad' must get up to date with her out put.

Tanita Tikaram was a breath of fresh air when it came out as there was sooo much pooey music around at the time.
Totally original & unique I played it constantly.
 
I agree. She was a storyteller in old folk tradition, just honest and heartfelt. Good voice too.
That BNC album has two of the saddest tracks ever written. Blimey. The title track deals with her attempt to find some direction after the death of her partner IIRC. Blimey. Two tissue stuff.
 
Yeah she lost her way after parting company with Peter Van Hooke & Rod Argent which was after her second album 'Sweet Keeper' I think? That is another great album & so well produced like the first. Not heard any recent stuff do you have any to reccommend?
 
Rockmeister said:
nice to see Tanita get a mention...mine would include

Mary Gauthier 'Mercy Now'
Joni Mitchel 'Court and Spark'
Suzanne Vega 'Solitude standing'
Madeleine Peyroux 'Bare Bones'
Beth Neilson Chapman 'Sand and Water'

Aretha is queen but she's a shoe in to any list, so too obvious for me here.
Click to expand...

no because Ive gone mad and confused MCC with BNC as edited above. Ignore me! :)
 
Couple of posts above had me 'double taking' and getting myself in knots between Beth N-C and Mary C-C.. :D. Easily done..

Excellent shout for 'Sand and Water' A very nice album. My fave is 'Seven Shades of Blue'. I believe it's about the death of her husband from cancer. Stunningly inventive lyrics including a quite phenomenally evocative chorus.


Breaking the list of 5 rule, I'd also mention Iris De Ment, Mary Black, Karine Polwart and Thea Gilmore. On the soul front Carla Thomas was always overshadowed by Aretha, but did some excellent stuff herself.

Keely Smith is also underrated these days, but a great jazz/ballad singer.


I can't take to Madeleine Peyroux, or Eleanor Mc Evoy, for similar reasons. To me, both sound like they are trying to be someone else.

I have one album by Mary Chapin Carpenter and could never understand why I didn't take to it much.. Then a reviewer in one of the Hi-Fi Mags described one of her albums as 'A collection of well crafted, well recorded and well performed.. but ultimately not very enjoyable songs' That sort of expressed it for me. YMMV.
 
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Four from one family...Norma Waterson, Lal Waterson, Marry Waterson, Eliza Cathy.
And because I'm just listening now, Lhasa de Sela.
 
gundula janowitz
maria callas
astrid varnay
margaret price
billie holiday


+ one more -- natalie dessay (mainly on the strength of her acting, like callas) .
this would be a sort of fetish fulfilled:

 
The Top Five (Band names for relevant albums, shown in brackets)
1. Natalie Merchant - In My Tribe (10,000 Maniacs)
2. Kate Bush - The Kick Inside or Aerial
3. Joni Mitchell - Blue
4. Harriet Wheeler - Reading, Writing and Arithmetic (The Sundays)
5. Bjork - Life's Too Good (The Sugarcubes) or Debut

Honorable Mentions
Lorde - Pure Heroine
Tracy Chapman - Tracy Chapman
 
Joni Mitchell
Carol King
Isobel Campbell
Natalie Merchant
Harriet Wheeler

Special mention to Lisa Stansfield who at 14, sang I Will Survive and Sunday Girl in consecutive weeks to win our school music competition. I've been to a lot of gigs and her performances (with our music teacher on piano) were among the very best I've ever heard, unforgetable.

Cheers BB
 
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