Would Geddy Lee have made it to the top 100 on IDOL??

[techristian]

Or Sonny Bono or other lousy vocalists who sold millions of records??? If IDOL was here since the 60's , much of our favorite music would never have been recorded.

 

Dan

[Guitzilla]

I like Geddy's voice, at least the material he did from about Signals era on.

[Sonic Jedi]

No, Geddy would not have made it on Idol.

But having said that, American Idol isn't the end-all of music today. THere have been more artists in the past few years then just Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken and Carrie Underwood. (thanks to wikipedia for the info and spellings)

[blue2blue]

A tip of the had to Sonic Jedi for looking up the spelling on those. I suspect I might not have bothered -- but then I'm not sure I could have pulled out more than Clarkson's name and wouldn't have associated Aiken or Underwood's names with AI in some other context -- but they are familiar sounding names, which really does say something, since I work overtime trying to ignore mainstream pop culture. (I was once a fan of pop culture. But like so many relationships... we grew apart.)

 

 

Anyhow, as Jedi implies, AI is not really the sole gatekeeper of the pop music audience.

 

It's still possible for a heavily packaged, young, beautiful girl with a sculptured body or a none-too-stealthily guerilla marketed, heavily packaged, surly but cute bunch of adorable young tatted and pierced young men to make it in the biz...

 

 

With re Sonny and Cher: frankly, I was utterly stunned that what was clearly a camp joke, a la the horrorifically bad Mrs Miller, could actually sell records to my fellow teens. (Of course, Tiny Tim would follow on in a couple of years and go so far past Sonny and Cher as to make them look almost competent by contrast.)

 

I don't know if their sub-Laugh In fake hippie attire ever fooled anyone but it sure didn't fool me at 14 and I was still a long way from the wised-up hipster I'd effect in college. It had only been a year or so since I'd hung out with the Young Americans for Freedom. (A group so conservative they thought of Barry Goldwater as a little on the pink side. A group so conservative my dad -- a lifelong Republican -- lobbied me hard to stop going to. Probably a disservice to real conservatives to call YAF conservative.) But -- even to an aggressively, perversely square little kid like me, Sonny and Cher looked like a really bad joke.

[MrKnobs]

Or Sonny Bono or other lousy vocalists who sold millions of records??? If IDOL was here since the 60's , much of our favorite music would never have been recorded. Dan

 

Geddy Lee is an excellent vocalist. Whether you like him or not is a matter of taste.

 

Terry D.

[Lancaster]

Or Sonny Bono or other lousy vocalists who sold millions of records???

 

I guess it would depend on how good he was at singing old songs from the Sixties and pretending he could stand to be in the same room with Simon Cowell.

 

Hmm, I wonder who could sell out more stadiums this summer? Rush or every Idol winner put together?

[Frantag]

A & R really meant Artists and Repertoire when Geddy Lee and Rush got signed. Now it seems to mean Ass showing Repetition.

[cooterbrown]

When any American Idol has had a 40-year music career, played in front of the number of people, released as many gold and platinum-certified albums, and influenced untold respected musicians, as Geddy Lee has...then maybe that kind of back-handed analogy might be warranted.

 

I really get sick of people ripping on Geddy Lee and Rush, in general.

 

Ever seen Geddy Lee in concert?

To have that kind of uncanny, innate facility on an instrument, have singing ability, plus playing keyboards with your foot....and people want to rip on the guy?

 

{censored} that.

Give the guy some props.

I wouldn't call him a lousy vocalist, or put him in a category with Sonny Bono.

Whether you like his style, or not...that's simply asinine.

 

And I'm not one of those dreaded "Rush Nazis" who lives and breathes Rush, and takes offense atany slight tossed the band's way...far from it.

 

But to see any musician who's had as long and influential a career, as that, get slagged for no reason really chaps my ass.

[lsits]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned this yet: Geddy Lee is Canadian, eh.

[cooterbrown]

 

I'm surprised no one has mentioned this yet: Geddy Lee is Canadian, eh.

 

 

What does that have to do with anything?

 

Idol had an Irish and an Australian contestant, this year.

[Magpel]

Hey did you hear that Geddy Lee is guesting on the new What The...? album? Yeah, but only on Taurus bass pedals, I think.

 

For me AI is...off the radar, undetectable and irrelevant even if it is influencing every person and thing around me in ways I can not appreciate because I don't watch it . As much, and as long, as Geddy Lee has been irrelevant to me, he can never approach the irrelevance of American Idol, if only because of this brilliant verse from the band Pavement in their song "Stereo:"

 

What about the voice of Geddy Lee?

How did it get so high?

I wonder if he

Speaks like an ordinary guy.

I know him, and he does.

Then you're my fact checking cuz.

[deanmass]

When any American Idol has had a 40-year music career, played in front of the number of people, released as many gold and platinum-certified albums, and influenced untold respected musicians, as Geddy Lee has...then maybe that kind of back-handed analogy might be warranted. I really get sick of people ripping on Geddy Lee and Rush, in general. Ever seen Geddy Lee in concert? To have that kind of uncanny, innate facility on an instrument, have singing ability, plus playing keyboards with your foot....and people want to rip on the guy? {censored} that. Give the guy some props. I wouldn't call him a lousy vocalist, or put him in a category with Sonny Bono. Whether you like his style, or not...that's simply asinine. And I'm not one of those dreaded "Rush Nazis" who lives and breathes Rush, and takes offense atany slight tossed the band's way...far from it. But to see any musician who's had as long and influential a career, as that, get slagged for no reason really chaps my ass.

 

 

Can I buy you a case of beer?

 

I love Geddy, but radio is a blessing for Rush, cause Ged looks like he was beat with an Ugly Forest, but I don't wanna date him. I just wanna hear him and the boys rock the place, which theyare still doing 30+ years on.

[Rubber Lizard]

No, Geddy wouldn't make it. Here's a list of others who wouldn't either:

 

Neil Young (also Canadian!)

Joni Mitchell (omigod, eh!)

Craig Anderton

Levon Helm

Paul

John

George

Ringo (well, of course...)

Tiny Tim

Blue2Blue.

 

Actually, I can't believe that any of the above would have tolerated the bull$()*$ that make up that show. I can't watch it.

 

A point of disinterest for Blue2blue: Tiny Tim was an incredibly good uke player and an avid historian of that instrument. Of course, a Uke player could only hope to make it as a novelty act during those times.

[Geoff Grace]

 

With re Sonny and Cher: frankly, I was utterly stunned that what was clearly a camp joke, a la the horrorifically bad Mrs Miller, could actually sell records to my fellow teens. (Of course, Tiny Tim would follow on in a couple of years and go so far past Sonny and Cher as to make them look almost competent by contrast.)

 

 

I liked Sonny and Cher for a year or so; but then, I was a single digit aged kid who also liked the Monkees, Herman's Hermits, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, and Paul Revere and the Raiders. I think the only hip band I liked at that point was the Rolling Stones ... unless you count the Beatles as hip.

 

Strangely enough, I also liked Igor Stravinsky... (still do)

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Geoff Grace]

Speaking of which, I don't think Stravinsky would have made it on American Idol either!

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[tucktronix]

Come to think of it, Ella Fitzgerald probably would have made it through, but would have been voted off around the 2nd or 3rd week. But then again, she is no lousy vocalist.

[Super 8]

I love Geddy, but radio is a blessing for Rush, cause Ged looks like he was beat with an Ugly Forest,

 

Actually I think Geddy has aged well. Same with Ringo Starr. It's ironic that they both end up being better looking than their bandmates.

 

 

And no, Geddy wouldn't make it on AI, but that's okay. Geddy doesn't need AI.

[blue2blue]

It sounds like you're saying 'bad music'. Is this your objective or subjective view?

I only have subjective views.

 

 

 

Seriously, though.

 

And -- judging from the phenomenal success of Sonny and Cher -- I'd say my view was not widely shared. But, yeah, that's how I saw it for sure.

 

If it makes you feel any better, at that point (around 14 years old) I hadn't quite figured out the objectivity/subjectivity thang. I still pretty much felt like my view was obviously the only reasonable view.

 

 

But before I do a possibly somewhat misplaced mea culpa here -- let's take a look at what I actually said:

 

With re Sonny and Cher: frankly, I was utterly stunned that what was clearly a camp joke, a la the horrorifically bad Mrs Miller, could actually sell records to my fellow teens.

 

I was talking about my reaction to what seemed to me to clearly be a camp joke, and I think that's conveyed.

 

The characterization of Mrs Miller as horrifically (spelled it right this time, thank you Firefox spellcheck) bad is pretty much how she was marketed -- she was very good at being very bad in the estimation of most and her conscientiously off-key singing was a feature of a number of variety shows and she put out more than a few albums which were... hard for me to listen to.

 

 

Should you follow my posts in the future, you will probably find a number of opinions expressed without proper qualification -- I have plenty of them and occasionally, caught up in the moment, I blurt them out without my usual seems to me, personally, in my opinion, etc, qualifications.

 

So, please, feel free to call me to task for that, if you wish. I'm sure I'll never get to a place where my comments in an informal arena will be unassailable -- but it's something to shoot for.

 

Maybe I should just tag my signature with a permanent IMHO. It probably wouldn't keep me out of trouble for my sometimes contrarian views but would at least it would make it clear than I only speak for myself, even on those occasions when I forget to say so.

 

[Billster]

 

Come to think of it, Ella Fitzgerald probably would have made it through, but would have been voted off around the 2nd or 3rd week. But then again, she is no lousy vocalist.

 

 

The more things change...

 

She made her singing debut at 17 on November 21, 1934 at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York. She pulled in a weekly audience at the Apollo and she won the opportunity to compete in one of the earliest of its famous "Amateur Nights." She had originally intended to go on stage and dance but, intimidated by the Edwards Sisters, a local dance duo, she opted to sing instead, in the style of Connie Boswell. She sang Hoagy Carmichael's "Judy" and "The Object of My Affection", a song recorded by the Boswell Sisters, and won the first prize of US$25.00.

 

In January 1935, Fitzgerald won the chance to perform for a week with the Tiny Bradshaw band at the Harlem Opera House. She met drummer and bandleader Chick Webb here for the first time. Webb had already hired singer Charlie Linton to work with the band, and was, The New York Times later wrote, "reluctant to sign her....because she was gawky and unkempt, a diamond in the rough."

[blue2blue]

I liked Sonny and Cher for a year or so; but then, I was a single digit aged kid who also liked the Monkees, Herman's Hermits, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, and Paul Revere and the Raiders. I think the only hip band I liked at that point was the Rolling Stones ... unless you count the Beatles as hip. Strangely enough, I also liked Igor Stravinsky... (still do) Best, Geoff

 

My guess on the Stravinsky: the Rite of Spring sequences from Fantasia. Dinosaurs. 'Nuff said, I figure.

 

That's what got me into classical music in the first place, that movie and, very much, that sequence (and the Ave Maria mashup).

 

Sadly, it took me to high school to actually track down the right music. I kept dropping the needle on my dad's 78s of Night on Bald Mountain and Ave Maria looking for that cool, violent, dinosaur music... then one day I checked out of the library a two-piano arrangement of Rite of Spring (arranged for ballet rehearsals -- very cool) and I finally started putting it all together.

[blue2blue]

The more things change... She made her singing debut at 17 on November 21, 1934 at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York. She pulled in a weekly audience at the Apollo and she won the opportunity to compete in one of the earliest of its famous "Amateur Nights." She had originally intended to go on stage and dance but, intimidated by the Edwards Sisters, a local dance duo, she opted to sing instead, in the style of Connie Boswell. She sang Hoagy Carmichael's "Judy" and "The Object of My Affection", a song recorded by the Boswell Sisters, and won the first prize of US$25.00. In January 1935, Fitzgerald won the chance to perform for a week with the Tiny Bradshaw band at the Harlem Opera House. She met drummer and bandleader Chick Webb here for the first time. Webb had already hired singer Charlie Linton to work with the band, and was, The New York Times later wrote, "reluctant to sign her....because she was gawky and unkempt, a diamond in the rough."

 

We'll have to see how AI stacks up against the Apollo amateur nights. In addition to Ella, Jimi Hendrix was also the beneficiary of an amateur night win at the Apollo. Among others who got their start or played there:

 

Count Basie

Fats Waller

Bessie Smith

Billie Holiday

Ella Fitzgerald

Sam Cooke

Sarah Vaughn

Jackie Wilson

Tito Puente

Sammy Davis Jr.

Little Richard

James Brown

The Temptations

Gladys Knight and the Pips

The Jackson Five

Nat King Cole

Stevie Wonder - (then known as Little Stevie Wonder)

Bill Cosby

Richard Pryor

 

... and and honorary mention to Buddy Holly and the Crickets, who were 'mistakenly' booked there because the booker assumed from their recordings that they were black.

 

Also, though she's omitted from the list above, it seems to me that I recall Aretha Franklin also had a big boost early on from the Apollo.

[Geoff Grace]

 

That's what got me into classical music in the first place, that movie and, very much, that sequence (and the Ave Maria mashup). Sadly, it took me to high school to actually track down the right music. I kept dropping the needle on my dad's 78s of Night on Bald Mountain and Ave Maria looking for that cool, violent, dinosaur music... then one day I checked out of the library a two-piano arrangement of Rite of Spring (arranged for ballet rehearsals -- very cool) and I finally started putting it all together.

 

 

I like the two piano version. I heard a recital of it while I was a music major, and I was very impressed with how powerful it still was even without Stravinsky's ground-breaking orchestration.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[techristian]

Ok... Let me make it clear. I LIKE Rush music and I like Sonny & Cher music. The creative genius of Rush as a whole and musical facility is what makes that band great. No Geddy is NOT in the same class as Sonny Bono but I feel that he pushes his vocal pitch higher than he should. I only consider myself a mediocre vocalist and I can listen to Rush for hours. My wife, on the other hand commented the other day that his voice GRATES on her nerves and ears.

 

Sonny Bono, on the other hand, became famous because of slick production, good songs and his wife Cher.

 

But neither of them would have had a chance on AMERICAN IDOL, or Canadian Idol !!

 

Dan

[Rudolf von Hagenwil]

Geddy Lee is an excellent vocalist. Whether you like him or not is a matter of taste. Terry D.

 

 

My usual respond to this statement is some folks have taste others not, but then there was this beautiful lady in the record shop who asked for an old Peter Gabriel album, the one with Sledgehammer on it, as seen from the moon basically the same crap as Rush, but mama mia this lady emanated taste like a melancholic goddess and I couldn't help but think what we would do together in Walhalla to the song "In Your Eyes"

[MrKnobs]

My usual respond to this statement is some folks have taste others not, but then there was this beautiful lady in the record shop who asked for an old Peter Gabriel album, the one with Sledgehammer on it, as seen from the moon basically the same crap as Rush, but mama mia this lady emanated taste like a melancholic goddess and I couldn't help but think what we would do together in Walhalla to the song "In Your Eyes"

 

And I think, in a way, this post ties in with that other thread that suggests we can perceive music not just with our ears, but with "other organs."

 

 

Terry D.