Every era has a style of singing that captures the popularity of the public. Back in the day, you had to sound like Bing Crosby, a “high” Bing Crosby, or a “low” Bing Crosby. Then Frank Sinatra came along and created a paradigm shift, as did Elvis Presley and a score of others.
During the various eras, other singers would cash in on various listening trends by trying to sound like the most popular crooner, thus giving us artists like Bob Eberley, Tony Martin, Perry Como and even Fabian.
The difficulty with all of this is what to do if you don’t sound like what every expects. Do you take up the saxophone, or create your own niche? At one time both Nat Cole (and brother Freddie) and Philip Bailey were unique voices in the singing field, but they created their own unique style and taste to fit in with whatever genre the chose, and the both created a sound that eventually defined their times.
Here is a list of male singers that had unique voices and didn’t try to sound like anyone else but themselves. I’m sure you’ve heard of some, but not all, and this list will create a fun time if you do a “blindfold test” with your friends.
- Pha Terrell (1910-45)-This Midwestern vocalist for swing era band The Twelve Clouds of Joy had a wonderful ranged that could reach falsetto on hits like “Until The Real Thing Comes Along.”
- Trummy Young (1912-84) Better known as a trombone player associated with
Louis Armstrong and Jimmie Lunceford, Young also had a clever way of singing that sounded like a corner watch salesman in Times Square, jiving through hits like “Four Or Five Times,” “Margie” and “Tain’t What You Do”
- Jimmy Scott (1925-2014)-with his unique voice do to having Kallmann
Syndrome, Scott’s distinctly high voice gave haunting renditions to “Why Was I Born” and standards like “Embraceable You.”
- George “Bon Bon” Tunnell (1912-75)-besides being the first black singer in an all white band (led by Jan
Savitt), “Bon Bon” had a hip sound that didn’t catch on until the bebop era, crooning with joy through “It’s A Wonderful World” and “Rose of the Rio Grande.” - Herb Jeffries (1913-2014)-Jeffries was arguably the first vocalist to stop singing the high operatic style of vocals and take it down to a more manly baritone level with songs like “There Shall Be No Night” and “Flamingo,” both popularized during his
iconic stint with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. - Jackie Paris (1924-2004)-His rendition of “Skylark” is still the one to which all others are compared, and this one time Top Singer vocalist for Downbeat had a
swinging style that has never been attempted since, though Mark Murphy came close.
- Arthur Prysock (1924-97)-Although many tried, no one ever brought a swinging bass vocals any lower than Arthur Prysock.
His albums with Count Basie a delicious seductive treats. - Jack Teagarden (1905-64)-Besides being one of the best trombonists in the history of jazz, “Tea” also had a warm avuncular tone that sounded like he was sitting on your back porch on pieces like “I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues” and with his famed duets with Louis
Armstrong as on “Rockin’ Chair.” - Clark Terry (1920-2015)-OK, so he’s not technically a “vocalist,” but his collection of “Mumbles” with various artists like Oscar Peterson were knee
slapping hoots, and always a gas to see in concert. - Joe Pesci (1943-) Yes, THAT Joe Pesci! Before he became a famed actor, he was a singing waiter, and his 2003 album with Joey DeFrancesco (Falling In Love With Love) is guaranteed to stump every jazz
fan.