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| From | Bill Silvers <wsilvers@earthlink.net> |
| Subject | Re: Liz Phair's Singing - Does It Matter? |
| Date | Wed, 5 Oct 2005 14:04:48 -0500 (GMT-05:00) |
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Several different posts through this kinda dire thread-- Liz has been relatively prominent and well-known for at least a dozen years now, and I have a hard time understanding how her voice's inadequacies would be news at this point-- but the most recent:
At date: Tue, 04 Oct 2005 20:13:03 Gabriel wrote:
>I understand the disappointment in Liz's singing..but who cares!!..Just
>look at her..freakin' amazing
>
>Liz Phair could play hop scotch and I would pay to watch...
>
>she is freaking hot..
And people wonder why the music industry is falling apart.
Give me talent over tits anytime. Cause those puppies will eventually sag,
but the music will still be fresh as the day it was recorded.
-----
A bold statement, that.
C'mon now. Anybody who's paid more than a few minutes attention to any of the records Liz has done from the Girlysounds stuff to the new one (which I haven't heard a bit of yet) knows that Liz Phair has a limited vocal instrument. Sometimes it's clearer than at others, depending on the material, but Liz is in no danger of ever being invited to sing opera. On the other hand, when her songs are as compelling (dare I say "important?") as they are with her best material, her voice's relative flaws, rather obvious ones, are completely irrelevant. The great bulk of the time, the fact that Liz is, at best, a mediocre singer with a tendency to flatten, isn't particularly important to the overall enjoyment of the tunes.
As far as the recent teevee appearance that spurred this thread goes, it reminded me of the first time I saw her on Letterman years ago (I think she was doing "Supernova" and WHIP SMART had just come out). She was pretty awful, and it was entirely because of her voice. She was clearly too nervous not to warble, and there was nowhere to hide. On the other hand, I've paid good money to see Liz play in concert and at both shows (1998 in San Francisco touring WHITECHOCELATESPACETHINGYWHATEVER and in 2003 touring her much-maligned, self-titled record) she was in fine voice, more than holding her own and fronting a crack band (in '99) and even a lesser sloppier rock crew last time 'round. Sure, the limited range is there and will stay there, but Liz was confident and cool-- everything you'd expect from a front-person in terms of performance. To say that she is incapable of competent live performance is simply wrong, I'm here to witness. Did none of us see her "Sessions on West 54th" performance with that '98 band (which had Ric Menck on drums, most notably, plus others who I've forgotten)? Liz was just the same as I saw her in San Fran, completely confident.
Liz is not a strong singer. This is news? She is certainly more than capable of getting the job done both live and on record.
b.s.
p.s. Sure, Liz is also a babe. SFW?
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