I'm not sure, but I can't see anyone else singing the songs he sang with Kool and the Gang.

scriptgirl said:

I'm not sure, but I can't see anyone else singing the songs he sang with Kool and the Gang.

I would say that for an Old School bruh, his voice is creamy, steady and has Soul credibility given the track record for the hits which he has sung on (with Kool and the Gang). Additionally, he can go either way: Pop or R&B, which makes him more marketable. When he went solo, nobody seemed to really care, which is often the case for successful lead singers of power bands; hence, Mary Davis (The S.O.S. Band). No one cared except 4 the diehard fans (like myself).

[Edited 3/12/11 12:36pm]

[Edited 3/12/11 12:37pm]

JT was smooth. He had the almighty FM radio voice. As whitechocolate said, as soon as he went solo (anyone remember "Baby I'm Back?...didn't think so) no one cared.

JT to K.&.T.G was like what happened to Journey when Steve Perry joined. Radio hits and a lot of success. And they picked up a whole new audience.

JT Taylor's voice propelled the band into the mainstream. His voice and the band's music defined the 80's. Seperately, they just couldn't make an impression, but together they hit the right alchemy to make musical magic.

As good as they were, though, few in the 80's seemed to survive the 90's. Madonna kept rising, but our boy Prince, Kool and the Gang, Hall & Oates, Run DMC, and even, God forbid, Michael Jackson couldn't match the intensity of their peak popularity when the 90's came around.

scriptgirl said:

I'm not sure, but I can't see anyone else singing the songs he sang with Kool and the Gang.

I've seen K&TG live with Skip Martin on vocals and I remember he did a pretty good job.

great voice, slightly above average singer

Alasseon said:

JT Taylor's voice propelled the band into the mainstream. His voice and the band's music defined the 80's. Seperately, they just couldn't make an impression, but together they hit the right alchemy to make musical magic.

As good as they were, though, few in the 80's seemed to survive the 90's. Madonna kept rising, but our boy Prince, Kool and the Gang, Hall & Oates, Run DMC, and even, God forbid, Michael Jackson couldn't match the intensity of their peak popularity when the 90's came around.

you are correct on mr. taylor... i like that track he did with regina belle ('all i want is forever')... but i don't like his work with kool & the gang at all'... 'too hot' and a couple of tracks are cool, but collectively, i think the band took a major downturn when he joined.

in terms of michael, i agree with you in a way. people collectively weren't willing to hear what he had to offer after 'thriller' or 'bad'. but to me, that's when he IMPROVED! 'thriller' pales in comparison to his work after that. people missed out. he was speaking some powerful stuff, but people always wanted 'billie jean' or whatever.

MJJstudent said:

Alasseon said:

JT Taylor's voice propelled the band into the mainstream. His voice and the band's music defined the 80's. Seperately, they just couldn't make an impression, but together they hit the right alchemy to make musical magic.

As good as they were, though, few in the 80's seemed to survive the 90's. Madonna kept rising, but our boy Prince, Kool and the Gang, Hall & Oates, Run DMC, and even, God forbid, Michael Jackson couldn't match the intensity of their peak popularity when the 90's came around.

you are correct on mr. taylor... i like that track he did with regina belle ('all i want is forever')... but i don't like his work with kool & the gang at all'... 'too hot' and a couple of tracks are cool, but collectively, i think the band took a major downturn when he joined.

in terms of michael, i agree with you in a way. people collectively weren't willing to hear what he had to offer after 'thriller' or 'bad'. but to me, that's when he IMPROVED! 'thriller' pales in comparison to his work after that. people missed out. he was speaking some powerful stuff, but people always wanted 'billie jean' or whatever.

Agreed.

Putting JT Taylor with Kool and the Gang is like putting Barry Manilow in Black Sabbath.

Timmy84 said:

Putting JT Taylor with Kool and the Gang is like putting Barry Manilow in Black Sabbath.

Not only is this funny, but true! The thing is, JT helped the band crossover. All of their biggest hits are with his lead vocals. The general public and pop music likes their music light. MC Hammer over KRS-1. Bon Jovi over Anthrax. Ricky Martin over Marc Antony. Musicians make most of their money in the middle and JT helped KNG occupy that space for almost ten years.

When Mambo No. 5 was talked about as a latin hit, spanish musicians scoffed, but the guy cried all the way to the bank.

The greatest singer ever? No, but his voice was a pretty good fit for the style of music he did. He can definitely sing.