Best harmony singers

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,Peter Grey
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 04:56 AM

English tapestry are very good. In 1972 they were guests at the KenilworthFolk Club held at the Virgin and Castle. and sang threre sessions which I recorded, even a version of the inkspots whispering grass before it had been recorded for the charts by "lofty".
What has happened to then now?? are they still singing??

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: John Hardly
Date: 16 Jan 05 - 12:45 PM

Nashville Bluegrass Band
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
IIIrd Tyme Out
Pied Piers
The Meltones (Mel Torme's vocal band)
James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt combined together and as backup vocals on everything from Heart of Gold (Neil Young) to Ike&Tina Turner remakes -- they blended as well as those "blood harmonies".

So many gospel quartets, too numerous to mention - harmony is their stock in trade.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,Koala Lou
Date: 16 Jan 05 - 03:04 PM

The list, so far, has been great on exemplars but I have two additions. In the English tradition I'd suggest Pageant and in the bluegrass tradition I'd suggest the Sensitive New Age Cowpersons. Both are/were Australian.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Cluin
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 05:40 AM

Who sang harmony with Ray Price on "Crazy Arms"?

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: alanabit
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 07:18 AM

I think part of the art is changing your voice so that it fits the people you are singing with. I have been listening to Crosby, Stills and Nash recently and I notice how you can hardly tell which part David Crosby is singing most of the time. Graham Nash also changes the timbre of his voice from when he is singing lead.
It is well off the folk music track, but I was also very impressed by the Temptations and Bob Marley and the Wailers as harmony singers. The Temptations jazz and gospel based sound was a bit too smooth for some tastes (including mine at times), but they could sing jazz chords with stunning accuracy. The near telepathic interplay of Bob Marley's band is what strikes most listeners, but his harmonies are worth noting too. The early version of "Stir It Up" combines excellent harmony with uncanny dynamics. That is good harmony singing in my book too.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: John Hardly
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 01:45 PM

You know something interesting, Alanabit? I love CSN. I think that Deja Vu is arguably the best pop album ever produced -- certainly a top ten contender. I think the moment at which the song "Carry On" breaks into that full harmony, "Ca-a-a-a-rry on, love is coming, love is coming...." bit, is one of the most striking moments of harmony singing EVER.

But when I hear "Wasted On The Way" Oh my god.... IT's horrid!! I think (I've tried to listen to it over and over to analyze it -- at no small cost to my aural health, mind you) and I think it's Nash who is off. It is the most off-pitch recording since April and Nino Tempo recorded "Deep Purple". ug.

I recently got the three DVD CSN in concert set. It seems to reconfirm that Nash is the off voice -- and that it happened as the rule, not the exception, in concert.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Once Famous
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 06:42 PM

Cluin, could the harmony on Crazy Arms by Ray Price have been just an over-dub?

I do know that Marty Robbins used Tompall and the Glaser Brothers for a lot of his stuff.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,auggie (cookieless)
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 07:04 PM

John Hardy
I hate to think of all the money I've spent over the years seeing CSN (and sometimesY) in concert. Most nights they were good, some nights they sucked, but when they were dead on, you are absolutely right, they were just bleeping awesome. The nights they weren't so good, it was always Steve Stills who was off. Tho he's my least favorite of the 3, I don't think I ever heard Nash miss a note.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Cluin
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 07:05 PM

Possibly, Martin, but I was watching "Lost Highway" last night and there was a bit of Ray singing Crazy Arms and another guy, taller and with dark hair, stepped in to sing harmony on the chorus. He looked a bit familiar so I just wondered if he had a career outside of RP's band.

Great series, that "Lost Highway", by the way...

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Once Famous
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 07:27 PM

Cluin

Check out this link for an old Cherokke Cowboys picture.

http://www.buddyemmons.com/cherokee1.htm

Was it one of these guys? Check out the yound Johnny Paycheck who I believe played bass.

The Lost Highway series is a complete treasure. The film clips are priceless. I have a book that the series is based on that has some great photos.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: bobcat
Date: 17 Jan 05 - 07:31 PM

Enlish Tapestry were superb.I saw them many times in Kent and Yorkshire in the 1970s and early 80s. They are not currently singing but are alive and well in Cambridgeshire.I would be very keen to have a copy of the tapes you made. The only recording of them is one track on a trailer LP- and with Ralph McTell singing Kew Gardens (which he wrote especially for them ) on his Streets of London LP now CD. In 1980 they came at my husband's invitation to sing at the middle school where he taught.I can hear them in my mind as I write!!!

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: bobcat
Date: 18 Jan 05 - 04:21 PM

Guest, Peter Grey..hope you read my message about English Tapestry and respond

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: alanabit
Date: 19 Jan 05 - 02:44 PM

Just read your post John. I like "Carry On" a lot too. "Deja Vu" was one of my first albums. I heard "Wasted on the Way" (some twenty odd years old now, I believe) for the first time this week. It was on a DVD of a concert in 1982 and it sounds pretty good to me. I don't doubt there is more than one live recording of the song. Nash's songwriting is a bit twee for my tastes at times. "Magical Child" is the sort of naff twaddle we all write when we go through that phase when we believe the audience wants to hear all about our feelings. Unfortunately for Nash, he looked even sillier, because he had to follow a masterful piece of open tuned Delta blues style guitar, with a wickedly ironical lyric by Steve Stills("Treetop Flyer"). Sorry about the thread drift Martin. I only saw CSN&Y once, at Wembely in 1974. They were up for it though and I enjoyed it a lot. Joni Mitchell joining in some of the harmonies didn't make it any worse either!

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Cluin
Date: 20 Jan 05 - 02:35 AM

Hard to tell from that picture, Martin, but I think it was Pete Wade. He stepped in for the chorus and was strumming a J-200 beside Ray and his Martin in the film clip I saw. They were about the same height anyway. Thanks for the pic link.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,John Hardly
Date: 20 Jan 05 - 06:51 AM

auggie,
I'll give another listen. Maybe I'm assuming too much -- that Stills' singing melody had the "easier" task for staying on pitch. Perhaps it is he and that's why I had trouble pinpointing who was off.

Cluin,
Nash's writing is a real mixed bag. He's written some greats, others with a pretty high "cringe factor" for me.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,bradfordian
Date: 20 Jan 05 - 08:12 AM

A local UK male quartet NOTTS ALLIANCE for me produced goosebumbs at times. Seems they've just lost one of their number. Great shame but they have some lovely Cds

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: thespionage
Date: 20 Jan 05 - 03:55 PM

The Weavers
Simon & Garfunkel (And they still have it!)
The Modern Folk Quartet
PP&M
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Hawker
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 10:57 AM

Also what about Thorn & Roses? Fantastic harmonies. Jinks Stack were great too.
Cheers, Lucy

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Dreaded Thumbpick
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 11:19 AM

The folks in Beggar's Velvet did a pretty good job as well.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Auggie
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 03:14 PM

Even an occasionally slightly off Steven Stills is a joy for me to listen to, especially when he goes into the acoustic sets. It's a marvelously expressive voice, and few white boys can play the blues better.It's too bad he's not recorded more songs from that vein.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Jan 05 - 11:01 AM

No-one has mentioned The MacAlmans. They should be very high on the list. I saw them at the Lomond Folk Festival and they were superb. The support act Tagg art and Wright, were very good and should also be included.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: phinque
Date: 24 Jan 05 - 03:01 PM

Robin and Linda Williams and their fine group

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,puck
Date: 24 Jan 05 - 03:13 PM

Dave Webber and Annie Fentiman.......absolutely excellent

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: Once Famous
Date: 24 Jan 05 - 03:30 PM

Have you ever heard the Trio albums by Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Linda Ronstadt?

Can there be any sweeter harmony?

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,NCForestDweller
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 03:22 PM

EmmyLou, of course. Don Williams and EmmyLou sound great together. The Everyly Brothers, TomPall and the Glasers, and I can't believe the Statlers isn't mentioned yet.
Dar Williams and Lucy Kablonsky sound great together, but anything with Dar sounds good I think
There's a song done for a charity benefit of some type that has Celine Dion, Shania Twain, Gloria Estefan and Carole King doing "You've Got a Friend" that sounds great. Hard to bring all those unique and powerful voices together but there is definitely harmony there.
and of course, My all time favorite 'harmony' group..The Bee Gees

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: sharyn
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 01:34 AM

Check out an obscure San Francisco group called Out of the Rain. PM radriano for details. Many of us learned and cribbed harmonies and songs from them.

Also, Gillian Welch and that guy she sings with, Richard and Linda Thompson, a Scottish duo that it is too late at night for me to remember their names -- Christine Kydd -- Janet Russell and Christine Kydd, The Nields.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 07:31 AM

Taggart and Wright

Hear them here www.sky-web.net/taggartandwright/

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,winnie
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 01:43 PM

I didn't see the Persuasions mentioned above- great acapella 4 part harmonies. I especially love their older material- they've been around since the 60's (at least!)

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: GUEST,Ed Cunningham
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 02:08 PM

My Favorites are:


The Blue Sky Boys (The Bolick Brothers)
The Louvin Brothers
The Demore Brothers
The Anglin Brothers
Bill and Charlie Monroe
Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
The Fairfield Four

It's hard to beat the sibling harmony.

Subject: RE: Best harmony singers
From: YorkshireYankee
Date: 20 Feb 05 - 08:57 PM

Agree with those who mentioned Kay Justice & Ginny Hawker – their harmonies give me shivers, they're so good! (Tried to find a link for the two of 'em, but the best I can do is this page of a website for Ginny Hawker and Tracy Schwarz (if you scroll down, you'll get to their CD "Bristol, A Tribute to the Carter Family")

Also forgot to mention John Roberts & Tony Barrand, English ex-pat (I think they live in New England) harmony singers whose voices combine brilliantly.