Comments on: Singer Appreciation: John Raitt

By: Saya

Saya — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:56:21 +0000

Thus my comment about that only being true when the casting is good =D (in my opinion at least, lol!)

By: Ian

Ian — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:37:43 +0000

You might enjoy this performance of John Raitt singing "Lonely Town":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4OV4gj_ldc

The man sang beautifully through his whole life.

By: Ian

Ian — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:33:12 +0000

Good observations! I've enjoyed Michael Maguire as Enjolras in Les Miserables, and I agree that he has a sound that defies easy categorization.

I'm sure many would agree with you about your preference for a mix. I find that Mr. Raitt lies slightly closer to classical singing than, say, most singers in Les Miserables or current productions of Oklahoma! and Carousel (though that may be splitting hairs), but it's certainly not a full on operatic sound at every moment. He's too interested in the clarity of his words.

By: Jean

Jean — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:35:33 +0000

A Great Performance (I think it was) with his daughter Bonnie was an interesting examination of two disparate singers. I love Bonnie Raitt but when he came out, and he was quite elderly, it was still with that presence and physical vitality you mentioned. He was old but he was not weak and he commanded the stage.

By: Saya

Saya — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:37:24 +0000

Is he a tenor or baritone? – he's one of those voices I'm not positive of where to classify on that, given my lack of experience in classifying voices… tone more of a baritone, but range of a tenor… Michael Maguire is a good example of a modern musical theatre star with the same kind of voice…

Is he primarily classical (operatic) or musical theater? Why? I would say its a blend of the two… which is actually my preferred sound personally – I don't care for too musically-theatre-y voices (or too pop), but I'm not a huge fan of an operatic sound either – a nice blend like this – seen in a lot of older musicals, and also seen in things like Jane Eyre, Les Miserables and the Phantom of the Opera (when they're casted well) is just my prefered “ideal” of singing…