Is Falsetto what makes Prince''s vocal " Prince" ?

Fans like to say that falsetto makes Prince a better singer

but it was his songs with normal chest singing

voice that made him famous.

Little Red Corvette made him crossover .

His biggest hit album Purple Rain is dominated

by Prince's chest singing voice with a small dose of falsetto,

only notable on The Beautiful Ones.

Songs like 1999,When Doves Cry,Purple Rain,Baby I'm a Star don't have Prince singing in a falsetto style,only as a back vocal here and there.

thebanishedone said:

Is Falsetto what makes Prince''s vocal " Prince" ?

Fans like to say that falsetto makes Prince a better singer

but it was his songs with normal chest singing

voice that made him famous.

Little Red Corvette made him crossover .

His biggest hit album Purple Rain is dominated

by Prince's chest singing voice with a small dose of falsetto,

only notable on The Beautiful Ones.

Songs like 1999,When Doves Cry,Purple Rain,Baby I'm a Star don't have Prince singing in a falsetto style,only as a back vocal here and there.

realy?

thanks for clearing that up

But his most famous vocal? Probably Kiss.

I didn't want to clear anything up but look at the irony.Prince is so associated with falsetto

yet majority of his hits are sung with a chest voice.

thebanishedone said:

I didn't want to clear anything up but look at the irony.Prince is so associated with falsetto

yet majority of his hits are sung with a chest voice.

amazing

again thankyou

I love his voice be it high or low. The man can sing. Oh and he sexy too.

jonylawson said:

amazing

again thankyou

I'm surprised that you haven't mentioned his sexual lyrics, short height, and questionable sexuality/fashion sense.

purplemonster04 said:

purplemonster04 said:

jonylawson said:

amazing

again thankyou

Really not funny, only condescending.

He's been known for his falsetto since day one. Hell, he used to sing in nothing but his falsetto and when a new song appeared on the radio, that falsetto was recognizeable before the DJ even announced the song.

The falsetto is what got him noticed in the first place. That's what made him stand out, ie: Soft And Wet, Sexy Dancer, I Wanna Be Your Lover, Head.

vainandy said:

He's been known for his falsetto since day one. Hell, he used to sing in nothing but his falsetto and when a new song appeared on the radio, that falsetto was recognizeable before the DJ even announced the song.

Many a great male vocalist has sang in the falsetto because...well...its what sells.

Think about :

Smokey Robinson

Marvin Gaye ( on Got To Give It Up)

Russell Thompkins Jr of the Stylistics

George McCrae (on Rock Your Baby)

Frankie Lymon

Even today's artists:

El Debarge

James Blunt

Men have stronger vocal chords than women anyway so its easy for them to sing in either a high or low register. High voices over sexually strong lyrics attract both male and female audiences so its actually a money maker for a dude who can sing in the falsetto.

Than explain why in every single parody of Prince on T.V has him randomly either singing or talking in falsetto

aardvark15 said:

Than explain why in every single parody of Prince on T.V has him randomly either singing or talking in falsetto

Because that's what is salient to the public and not exactly true. I was scoffing at fiorst to the op's post but actually, he/she has a point.

I love this thread cuz it is so specific. The more breadth one has on Prince's cataloge, the more one can consider whether or not this is a valid point. I don't know if it is about "normal" voice vs. falsetto. His voice is supersonic. It pushes boundaries, just like he always did. I think this is why he stood out vocally. He had the ability to hit the extremes, well.

HotGritz said:

Many a great male vocalist has sang in the falsetto because...well...its what sells.

Think about :

Smokey Robinson

Marvin Gaye ( on Got To Give It Up)

Russell Thompkins Jr of the Stylistics

George McCrae (on Rock Your Baby)

Frankie Lymon

Even today's artists:

El Debarge

James Blunt

Men have stronger vocal chords than women anyway so its easy for them to sing in either a high or low register. High voices over sexually strong lyrics attract both male and female audiences so its actually a money maker for a dude who can sing in the falsetto.

Ain't nothing as great as a male falsetto....Philip Bailey from Earth, Wind, and Fire, Sylvester, Otis Stokes from Lakeside, The Stylistics, Blue Magic, Enchantment.....and Wayne Cooper from Cameo. I would have loved to hear Wayne Cooper and Prince in a falsetto and screaming battle.

Prince was so well known for his falsetto that I can remember when the "Controversy" album first came out and someone from "Right On" magazine did a review of the album. This was the first time we had heard Prince doing some songs that weren't in his falsetto and the reporter described his non falsetto voice on the album as "making the hairs stand up in his neck" because it sounded so completely different, his voice almost sounded "scary". That's kinda the same feeling I got when I first bought the album and heard his non falsetto voice for the first time.

.

.

.

[Edited 11/22/11 19:44pm]

vainandy said:

HotGritz said:

Many a great male vocalist has sang in the falsetto because...well...its what sells.

Think about :

Smokey Robinson

Marvin Gaye ( on Got To Give It Up)

Russell Thompkins Jr of the Stylistics

George McCrae (on Rock Your Baby)

Frankie Lymon

Even today's artists:

El Debarge

James Blunt

Men have stronger vocal chords than women anyway so its easy for them to sing in either a high or low register. High voices over sexually strong lyrics attract both male and female audiences so its actually a money maker for a dude who can sing in the falsetto.

Ain't nothing as great as a male falsetto....Philip Bailey from Earth, Wind, and Fire, Sylvester, Otis Stokes from Lakeside, The Stylistics, Blue Magic, Enchantment.....and Wayne Cooper from Cameo. I would have loved to hear Wayne Cooper and Prince in a falsetto and screaming battle.

EWF wouldn't be as well known and respected were it not for him

aardvark15 said:

vainandy said:

Ain't nothing as great as a male falsetto....Philip Bailey from Earth, Wind, and Fire, Sylvester, Otis Stokes from Lakeside, The Stylistics, Blue Magic, Enchantment.....and Wayne Cooper from Cameo. I would have loved to hear Wayne Cooper and Prince in a falsetto and screaming battle.

EWF wouldn't be as well known and respected were it not for him

They were out for years before Prince and had some huge hits in the 1970s. Hell, "Reasons" is a Quiet Storm staple and has been for years. Even though Prince excelled with his falsetto, falsettos were the in thing when he came out. Heatwave and Switch were big when he came out also. Con Funk Shun, The Barkays, Lakeside....everybody had a band member with a falsetto when he came out.

.

.

.

[Edited 11/22/11 19:51pm]

What the... he first came out singing in falsetto! His falsetto is as much his trademark as it is for Phillip Bailey's and Smokey Robinson's and Curtis Mayfield's! Come on now.

Timmy84 said:

What the... he first came out singing in falsetto! His falsetto is as much his trademark as it is for Phillip Bailey's and Smokey Robinson's and Curtis Mayfield's! Come on now.

Yeah Timmy but we ,fans know it.general public don't know his first 3 albums were sung in falsetto as the lead voice.

before Little Red Corvette Prince had minor hits compared to that song and that song made

Prince crossover .

His next hits like Let's Go Crazy,When Doves Cry were also made with a normal voice.

Beside Kiss and The Most Beautiful Girl i don't know many other big hits with falsetto voice.

Songs on Diamonds and Pearls were sung in male tenor and bariton voices.

Do you find strange that singer so much associated with falsetto voice have so little hits in falsetto?

thebanishedone said:

Timmy84 said:

What the... he first came out singing in falsetto! His falsetto is as much his trademark as it is for Phillip Bailey's and Smokey Robinson's and Curtis Mayfield's! Come on now.

Yeah Timmy but we ,fans know it.general public don't know his first 3 albums were sung in falsetto as the lead voice.

before Little Red Corvette Prince had minor hits compared to that song and that song made

Prince crossover .

His next hits like Let's Go Crazy,When Doves Cry were also made with a normal voice.

Beside Kiss and The Most Beautiful Girl i don't know many other big hits with falsetto voice.

Songs on Diamonds and Pearls were sung in male tenor and bariton voices.

Do you find strange that singer so much associated with falsetto voice have so little hits in falsetto?

Really? Well look at the R&B charts and you'll see how many big hits he had before "Little Red Corvette". And as for the pop charts, "I Wanna Be Your Lover" was a hit on the pop charts during the disco era in 1979 and it was sung in falsetto. The pop world just so clueless that they didn't remember him when he crossed back over with "Little Red Corvette".

I don't consider R&B success as "minor" though and the mindset that only crossover hits count is what eventually killed funk and R&B. As far as I'm concerned, crossing over is the worst thing an artist can do.

vainandy said:

thebanishedone said:

Yeah Timmy but we ,fans know it.general public don't know his first 3 albums were sung in falsetto as the lead voice.

before Little Red Corvette Prince had minor hits compared to that song and that song made

Prince crossover .

His next hits like Let's Go Crazy,When Doves Cry were also made with a normal voice.

Beside Kiss and The Most Beautiful Girl i don't know many other big hits with falsetto voice.

Songs on Diamonds and Pearls were sung in male tenor and bariton voices.

Do you find strange that singer so much associated with falsetto voice have so little hits in falsetto?

Really? Well look at the R&B charts and you'll see how many big hits he had before "Little Red Corvette". And as for the pop charts, "I Wanna Be Your Lover" was a hit on the pop charts during the disco era in 1979 and it was sung in falsetto. The pop world just so clueless that they didn't remember him when he crossed back over with "Little Red Corvette".

I don't consider R&B success as "minor" though and the mindset that only crossover hits count is what eventually killed funk and R&B. As far as I'm concerned, crossing over is the worst thing an artist can do.

Minor in terms of world wide popularity