I've said it before and I'll say it again.

Sam Cooke.

And Connie Dover.

And Ian Tyson

. That SOB is 66 now fer chrissakes and has a sound that is simultaneously mature and frisky as a yearling calf.

All of these folks have both the pipes and just tremendous phrasing--and think about what they're singing about!

As for those of us without a great natural sound, we can still do pretty well if we believe it ourselves (and learn some of that technique). I came to accept that every time I sang for an audience, a lot of people would like it, and some wouldn't, and some of each group were liable to tell me so.

It's what you do with what you've got.

Willie-O