Members Stackabones Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 I was messing around with a song yesterday. I'd put down a quick sketch of the melody on my Flip cam and figured that I'd add chords later. When later came, I decided to record it without the chords -- just voice, a cappella. So, now I'm wondering. What's out there that's a cappella in the rock/jazz/folk/pop/etc world? At the moment all I can recall is Joplin's Mercedes Benz, which I do in my sets though arranged as a country blues (with guitar and chords, not a cappella). While in Wyoming, I heard someone sing John Brim/VH's Ice Cream Man at an open mic a capella. And once at a Dallas Folk Club meeting, someone stood up and did an a cappella song about a ship sinking. Whatcha know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A Happy Crowd Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 Alanis Morrisette has an a cappella song on her first album. It's a creepy little affair -- in which she sings about breaking into her ex-boyfriend's house, taking a shower when he's not there, and going through his things -- but it gained quite a bit of notoriety. I'm pretty sure Elliott Smith has done an a cappella song or two. I'm not sure if this counts, but eccentric jazzman Moondog had an album (Moondog 2) in which his and his daughter's voices were multi-tracked so that they sound like a small choir of people singing madrigals. Some of the songs had music, but I'm pretty sure a couple of them did not (although I'd need to listen to it again to be sure). Once I was at an open mic night and some girl subjected us to a torturously long a cappella song about "peace, love, and harmony". It was painful to endure, but 10 years later and I still can't get that chorus out of my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted February 26, 2010 Moderators Share Posted February 26, 2010 Ralph Stanley! [YOUTUBE]2xmRWj7gJEU[/YOUTUBE] [YOUTUBE]VoIebIKNS4s[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mark Blackburn Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 The very best a ccapella performance I've heard in the past decade is SILVER BELLS -- by the much-maligned Barry Manilow. He produced three Christmas CDs (one of them for Hallmark). I promise you, Stackabones, you will be amazed by what you hear. Manilow as a "choir" (10 or 12 voices, I'd say) performs ALL the parts -- including bass notes! At first, it's 'straight up' and dignified, then he switches to a doo-wop jazzified bridge -- close your eyes and it's a street group gathered 'round a trash can fire pit at the end of an alley in Brooklyn, then returning to 'traditional' choir for the coda. Best example of the art form in recent years (that I have come across). Prior to that? The best a capella performance (maybe involving additional voices) that I've 'happened upon' -- Randy Travis, with a 'Gospel' tune called "I'm Gonna Have a Little Talk" (with Jesus). Every year or so I put on that track just to see if it's as good as I remember it. And it never fails to give me goosebumps. There is a choir of that name A CAPELLA and apart from the "Singers Unlimited" (the all-time heavyweight champions who retired the trophy in this field, I'd say) --- the recent vintage choir called A CAPELLA is (or was) a male chorus, supplemented by women on some tracks, blacks and whites in perfect harmony performing traditional hymns like IN THE GARDEN. So good they take your breath away. Thanks for starting this thread! Mark B of the frozen North p.s. It Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted February 26, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 Thanks, folks! Keep 'em coming! Of course there are bound to be tons of this in religious/church/praise 'n' worship, and I don't mind recommendations in that vein. Gregorian chant is so vast and rich. I already have a few CDs with that material, and I'm hoping that some of it returns to my parish. I just remembered that Bobby McFerrin is one of the major proponents of this style. Probably one of the few to have a major hit doing it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDR Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 The late Stan Rogers had some memorable ones: "Northwest Passage" and "Barrett's Privateers". These were based on the sea shanty tradition that Rogers admired. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chicken Monkey Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 I can think of a few a capella group efforts, and a few acapella sections of songs with arrangements, but I'm blanking on acapella solos in the pop music world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ido1957 Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 The Nylons were a huge accapella group in Canada back in the 70/80's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A Happy Crowd Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 Never mind, I just listened to that Moondog album again and there's music on every track. Mark B's post mentions doo-wop, a whole genre of a capella. "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was a pretty big hit. And maybe I'm wrong on this one, but what about those vocal harmony groups from the 90s, like Boys II Men? I'd wager some of them ventured into a cappella territory. The Bobby McFerrin reference reminded me of a Bjork album from a few years ago in which, supposedly, her voice is the only instrument utilized. Not necessarily a capella, but along a similar vein. And lastly, I recently acquired a set of records called A Treasury of Gregorian Chants. It's mostly monks, but there are a number of chants sung by nuns. At first, I found it unsettling to hear female voices on a Gregorian chant, but some of those performances are profoundly beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDR Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 The Nylons were a huge accapella group in Canada back in the 70/80's. And now in 2010 we have Chic Gamine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Roosterhead S. Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Roosterhead S. Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 Technically, I guess Kid Beyond is acapella. Everything on this recording is his voice. Drums, synths, everything. Pretty amazing. [YOUTUBE]H4MFE9bfDYg[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChordGirl Posted February 26, 2010 Members Share Posted February 26, 2010 What immediately pops to mind is this Alison Kraus tune, also from O brother where art thou. [YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] I have done a couple verses of this between songs, and many people seem to recognize it. A lot of beautiful, layered harmonies. That whole soundtrack is great!! Sweet Honey in the rock is a good gospel-esque group to check out, also. Lotsa voices working together there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rockinrobby Posted February 27, 2010 Members Share Posted February 27, 2010 Post it! Let's hear it! There was 7 bridges road? GREAT song... Now granted it was only accapella on the intro? But still. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rockinrobby Posted February 27, 2010 Members Share Posted February 27, 2010 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-Y0SMitMpk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rsadasiv Posted February 27, 2010 Members Share Posted February 27, 2010 I'm a sucker for hgh-concept (and Todd Rundgren), so here's a track from his "A Capella" album (all instruments are based on samples for his voice).mDxyCdfyOxw And the mother of the mp3 encoding algorithm, Suzanne Vega:nLedFWpF9EA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted February 28, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 28, 2010 Finally put it up on soundclick. I've been using the Zoom H4n's compressor and it seems to pick up the ambient noise from my Apple. Mockingbird (or here) A mockingbird told me About a silver place I had the map, for it was drawn In the lines of my face I asked her about The lines in my hand She answered with a song That I didn't understand Can I believe what I've heard From the mockingbird? A mockingbird told me About a golden song But when I tried to sing it I had the notes all wrong I asked if she'd sing it Once again for me She answered with my words In perfect mimicry A mockingbird told me About a two-way mirror One side showed joys to come The other all my terrors When I'd seen one side The other would go black And I would be unable To ever change my path. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chicken Monkey Posted February 28, 2010 Members Share Posted February 28, 2010 You should start a new thread to get it reviewed :poke:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members speierg Posted February 28, 2010 Members Share Posted February 28, 2010 didn't see Mockingbird on your soundclick page. Did you take it down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted February 28, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 28, 2010 didn't see Mockingbird on your soundclick page. Did you take it down? Hmmm. The click through worked for me. I just started a Feb Demo account and soundclick probably hasn't approved it yet. Try this for the time being ... http://soundclick.com/share?songid=8824267 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted March 11, 2010 Author Members Share Posted March 11, 2010 "Homeless" from Graceland [YOUTUBE]KT6mlW8NlCU[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted March 11, 2010 Members Share Posted March 11, 2010 I've CSN live maybe half a dozen times. They always do a lot of terrific acapella harmony work on stage. When they're on it's magical. EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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