The All-time Greatest Female Rock-n-Roll Singer

[Tuesday Afternoon]

Let the battle begin:

[enigmatic]

1. Patti Smith

[Tuesday Afternoon]

2. I knew I was forgetting someone!!! thanks Good Pick

where was my head :shrug:

got stuck on Chrissie Hynde for some strange reason :D

[RandomThoughts]

33. LOL

Even the clock gets more action then me.

Sheeesh!!!!!

:)

[ghostsofgiants]

75. Good call.

[redqueen]

79. Oh yes...

Now I want to hear Pissing in a River.

[enigmatic]

88. Ha!

I played "Piss Factory" last night on the show after posting this; man, what a great song:

http://recluseshow.blogspot.com/2008/06/piss-factory-patti-smith.html

[redqueen]

94. I just love her voice so much...

Pissing in a River
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9F-VVH9I9o

And I love her authenticity. No face lifts or any bullshit like that...

[jobycom]

3. As I identify with rock and roll, I say Grace Slick.

It doesn't mean I think she's the best singer on the list, but she the best at singing rock and roll.

As for the best singer on the list, I'd say Aretha Franklin.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

6. I think one could pose a pretty good argument for any one of the

top three being the best ROCK-N-ROLL female singer of all time. For me Joplin is rock and roll personified...maybe even more so thant the greatest male singer of all time. The girl could split a note 8 ways from Sunday.

Aretha:thumbsup:

and I give Slick props too...even if she did sell out later in life.

[jobycom]

13. I don't know about Janis. Yeah, she was unbelievable, but not pure rock.

Blues, gospel, rock, even country or folk... That's the only reason I'd pick Grace over her on that list. Grace Slick just personified rock to me. Joplin was a better singer, a better artist, a better interpreter (even better than Aretha at that)... She just wasn't "rock and roll" to me.

Grace did some pop stuff later, but so what? Everyone has to make a living, and she'd paid her dues.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

14. rock and ROLL

you can NOT leave out the ROLL...and yes Janis was rock AND roll....damn right she was!

pure rock :wtf: define that one, please :D

[jobycom]

22. Just shorthand.

Me and Bobbie McGee sounded more country than rock AND ROLL. :) Nothing Jefferson Airplane did sounded country. I don't have the language to describe the difference, but that's how I see it. :P Joplin's music was a mix of influences.

Anyway, if you expanded my definition to include what Janis did, she'd still lose, because then I'd include Aretha.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

43. heehee...

that is why I included Aretha...(to make it hard for people like you)
:bounce:

2 glasses of merlot and I am worthless and shameless :blush:

[jrandom421]

4. Gotta be Gracie!

Nobody had a voice like hers in rock music, before or since. Listening to 'White Rabbit', no one had such a clear, resonant contralto. Many decades since I first heard it, I still have dreams at night every now and then of Gracie and the Jefferson Airplane.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

9. definitely will not argue with you on that...

:thumbsup:

[jobycom]

23. Ohh....

But you'll argue with ME about it? :rofl:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

32. yes,,,and the reason being is because this person praised Slick

without dissing Janis...dude do NOT dis my Janis...hell yes she was country, blues, and all of it. She took it all and made it Rock and Roll and made us like it. The top 3 are the top three...list them in order you like but they are the top three of Rock and Roll ;) :D :hide:

fuck it,,,,I'm drinking and in a fighting mood tonight :bounce:

[jobycom]

35. I did not!

:cry: Meanie! I said she was a better singer. Grace was just more Rock AND ROLL. I meant what I said, and I said what I meant...

[Tuesday Afternoon]

36. awww---

shit. I am such a softie :hug:

but sorry dude...in my book no ONE is more ROCK and ROLL than JJ...except maybe Jimi Hendrix (opening another can of worms, I am :D)

[Connonym]

5. Ann Wilson n/t

[Tuesday Afternoon]

10. hmmm...

I know I should appreciate Heart...I just don't know why I never did...kind of like why I can't figure out why I never cared for Rush :shrug:

[ProfessorGAC]

64. Geez, Different Tastes For Different People

Me, i always liked Heart. I even could take the later stuff when the music wasn't as clever.

Annie is great singer.
The Professor

[Bake]

69. I saw Heart this past August, and Annie still does it.

Seeing them live gives you an even greater appreciation of her voice. She has one POWERFUL set of pipes!

Bake

[ProfessorGAC]

73. Yeah I Agree

The same thing happened to my wife and i when we went to see Cyndi Lauper. She has far more power, range, and style than her records indicate, and we liked the records!

I saw Heart for the first time on the Dreamboat Annie tour in my last year of undergrad. They were really good then, too.

Too bad the Roger Fisher couldn't maintain. He was a most interesting guitar player.
GAC

[A-Schwarzenegger]

7. chrissie hynde is up there

most those I wouldnt call rocknroll

[Tuesday Afternoon]

8. I dropped Chrissie Hynde so that I would have room for OTHER

:shrug:

Rock-n-Roll....is more than just Rock...you gotta roll with it, too. ;)

[A-Schwarzenegger]

12. Likely story.

:hi:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

17. it's true,,,really it did not feel right and as soon as I saw Patti Smith

I knew why it did not feel right. Hynde definitely desreves some props :hi:

[jobycom]

24. You made the right decision.

[LeftyMom]

11. Janis, then Ann Wilson.

Aretha's the most talented on the list, but she's not a rock singer.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

15. rock and ROLL!!!!!

and YES !!!! Aretha is rock and ROLL. Yes, she is.

[LeftyMom]

30. Nah, she's motown or soul.

Rock (and roll, if you insist, but really that's an antiquated subgenre) is more stripped down, less instrumentation, backup singers, etc.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

37. hmmm.......antiquated subgenre...

:rofl:

sounds like you studied something that I have lived. It was Rock n Roll way back when. Yes, I know she is the Queen of Soul but I argue that Soul done right is Rock and Roll

http://www.youtube.com/v/jPB1RW94fDQ&hl=en&fs=1

http://www.youtube.com/v/BWSG-t_ff5A&hl=en&fs=1

to be honest, I am surprised that more people are not arguing about Joan and Joni and Melanie being on the list :shrug"

that's DU for ya though :D

[LeftyMom]

40. I had a good snicker at Melanie, but unless somebody votes for her, I won't fuss.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

45. lest you forget...the chick was at Woodstock

this is not the WoodStock Version
http://www.youtube.com/v/aZUdzr9e2GQ&hl=en&fs=1


and also:
http://www.youtube.com/v/pHF-iApfWis&hl=en&fs=1

[mvd]

16. I wish Joan Jett was there

amazing rock voice.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

18. agreed...

I thought about listing her...but remember the thread title: rock and ROLL. ;)

[mvd]

19. I just thought of her as being both

Wasn't really sure of the difference. :hi:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

20. hmmm...

maybe so. weird. I always consider her rock. I think she came along to late to be Rock and Roll.

we must investigate further :D

[mvd]

21. You have Dolores there, too

While I like her (though not a fave,) I don't think she'd fit "roll." It's a gray area. :hi:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

28. yeah...I really did think hard about listing her...this was really

hard after the top 6 and I know a lot of people will argue that Joan, Joni and Melanie are not Rock and Roll but, I think they are. :hi:

[Jamastiene]

60. Er...

Could you explain that to me? I honestly don't get that. Rock and roll is rock and roll. :confused:

[Jamastiene]

59. She's tied in my first place for great female singers.

She's great!

[Adsos Letter]

25. Gotta loooove me some Annie Lennox...

That lady can wail... :woohoo:

[mvd]

27. Hard to pick among Stevie, Annie, Joan, Janis, and Grace for rock music

:hi:

[Adsos Letter]

34. Amen to that!

:hi:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

42. that is why they call it Rock

;) and that is why you gotta Roll with it :D

[Adsos Letter]

46. ...

:woohoo: :party:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

48. party on Garth

:toast: good gawd it is Monday night! what the hell is wrong with me :wtf:

I am drunk as a lord on Saturday night :bounce:

[peruban]

26. Dido

Her or Amy Mann.

[mvd]

29. Good choices

I'd have to think about #1 - there were good ones left out (Debbie Harry and Susanna Hoffs among others.)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

39. sure...but really,,,the top TWO greatest ALL-TIME Female

Rock and Roll Singers?...I have to ponder that one.

[Fenris]

31. Mia Zapata and Ann Wilson.

[Magrittes Pipe]

67. Homer.

[Iggo]

38. I like Janis.

But you know what? If that girl Pink would pull her head outa her ass and sing some straight rock and roll, she'd rocket up this list.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

41. damn right she could...even for

a late comer upper ;) I am liking this Pink:thumbsup:

[Svengali]

44. Heart.

Dreamboat Annie

[Tuesday Afternoon]

47. Welcome to the DU Lounge

:hi:

[MrSlayer]

49. Wendy O. Williams

Because someone has to say it.

[greendog]

50. Sandy Denny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2xODjbfYw8&feature=related

[old mark]

51. Joan Jett. Never really appreciated, still got it, still singing.

Janis was a blues singer, and a very good one.
Patti Smith is great. and still has the attitude.


mark

[Mad_Dem_X]

52. Gotta go with Annie.

That lady can SING!

[southpaw]

53. Ann Wilson or Pat Benatar

I guess I'd have to give it to Ann, if I could pick just one... but Pat Benatar has an incredible voice.

[qb]

65. My vote goes to Pat Benatar. nt

[Corgigal]

78. another vote for Pat Benatar

and I can't believe she was missed on the poll.

[Bertha Venation]

54. I voted Janis Joplin but I believe Melissa Etheridge belongs on your list.

[DS1]

55. Who gives a goddamn fuck?

"All time" and "musical tastes" never fit. And I'm writing in Strongbad.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

61. excuse me,

I believe you have mistaken me for someone who gives a shit ;)

[MilesColtrane]

56. Ann Wilson

[Jamastiene]

57. Deborah Harry and Joan Jett, tied.

Perfect pitch
Can sing any style of music you throw in front of her
Decades of wonderful music
Nothing beats her voice. Nothing....for the crystal clear quality

Then my other part of the two way tie:
Joan Jett
She's the best live on any singer I've ever heard
Can sing the hardest of the hard
I love her growl.

[kwassa]

58. I saw Janis three times in concert.

almost lost my hearing in one of them.

[livetohike]

62. Janis - she listened to the great female blues artists and let

her own voice wail.....Some of her songs still bring me to tears after 40+ years of hearing them. Her interpretation of "Ball and Chain" caused Mama Cass to say, "Wow!" at the Monterrey Pop Festival. I love Mama Cass' voice too, but Janis had something special and now female singers for decades have tried to imitate her.

[SoxFan]

63. Sinead O'Connor

[Arkansas Granny]

66. I'd have to say Ann Wilson.

[AlCzervik]

68. i don't have an all time favorite singer male or female, there's many different ones i like

i can never pick one.

[Magrittes Pipe]

70. Lydia Lunch

or Yoko Ono

[dolo amber]

72. ...

:eyes:

[southpaw]

91. Might as well add Nina Hagen to that list.

[PeaceNikki]

71. Um hello.... Tina Turner, people!

!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN0Z0QiOBKA

[Lady-Damai]

77. THANK YOU!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-ZBYZZWJbk

[BOSSHOG]

85. DON'T GIVE YOUR LOVE TO SEXY IDA

Great talent listed here but If I could only listen to one the rest of my life it would be Tina. BABY GET IT ON.

[leftofthedial]

74. David Bowie in drag

[KamaAina]

76. Not sure Aretha counts as rock

otherwise it might actually be a contest. Janis all the way!!

edit: spelling

[AlCzervik]

80. she counts as awesome in my book.

love her.

[Systematic Chaos]

81. Annie Haslam eats the rest of those gals for fucking breakfast.

No images available of Annie in her prime, but here she is today (a breast cancer survivor, shown next to one of her paintings) -

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

87. Ashes are burning the W A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A Y Y Y

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

93. Mariah Carey would die of sheer embarrassment

after hearing Annie in her mid 1970s prime. She had amazing power and tonal beauty the likes of which I've never heard, though in that respect the late, great Sandy Denny came close. But as good as Sandy was, she didn't have Annie's sheer technical chops or 4 1/2 octave range.



Pic doesn't do her justice. I met her back in the day after a concert in Minneapolis and she was snap-yer-head-off, drop-dead gorgeous. Though I was never able to quite get my head around the fact that this enormous voice was coming out of a petite and slender woman.

[Epiales]

82. Siouxsie Sioux

Elizabeth Fraser
Lisa Gerrard

[ceile]

83. I'm gonna go with Annie.

But I do love Stevie Nicks and Grace Slick.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

84. Annie

and Joni Mitchell has never sung rock in her life - she is however a fabulous folk singer.

Janis was amazing but Annie is just so good...

[Tommy_Carcetti]

86. Does Tori Amos count?

I guess she is considered "rock and roll" although it's hard to pidgeon hole her into any genre. Regardless, she's great.

[immoderate]

89. Martha Reeves.

--IMM

[Nickster]

90. Umm....Robert Plant? Or Janis Joplin.....

[Tikki]

92. Exene still rocks....

Joan Jett has done it all...play, write, produce and act...
I will also add Suzi Quatro.

Exene Cervenka

Tikki

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

95. I Went With Janice, Of Course. But No Pat Benatar? Joan Jett?

And I'm quite surprised Stevie Nicks isn't faring better.

[Doc_Technical]

96. Lydia Pense.