Should rockers who can’t sing anymore still be touring?

[Rogifan]

This is footage of a recent Bon Jovi show in Raleigh, NC. Jon clearly can’t sing anymore, even with the songs tuned down considerably. I think it’s embarrassing and sad that he’s charging decent money for this. But as long as people keep buying tickets I suppose legacy artists will keep doing it. It’s a shame though. You’d think Jon would be embarrassed at how bad he sounds.

Here’s another example. Vince Neil at a 2022 Mötley show. 😳

 

[KaliYoni]

"Should rockers who can’t sing anymore still be touring?"

No. If I want to hear Tom Waits-style vocals, I'll go see Tom Waits. But if fans are still willing to shell out $$$ for tix, well, I can't blame these performers for cashing in.

Also add Elton John and Chrissie Hynde to the list (this thread would make a great wiki).

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ETA: Roger Daltrey

 

[elvisimprsntr]

Autotune can do amazing things these days. Problem is fans would object when they get caught when it goes haywire. So they can't win either way.

I'm actually more inclined to see tribute bands performing in my neighborhood than original artists. I can walk to from event, no parking and concession extortion fees, better sounding, smaller crowds, mostly locals.

 

[Rogifan]

Autotune can do amazing things these days. Problem is fans would object when they get caught when it goes haywire. So they can't win either way.

I'm actually more inclined to see tribute bands performing in my neighborhood than original artists. I can walk to from event, no parking and concession extortion fees, better sounding, smaller crowds, mostly locals.

A lot of bands use backing tracks. I’d probably hate that as much as crappy live singing. Here’s an example from Def Leppard.

 

[Rogifan]

"Should rockers who can’t sing anymore still be touring?"

No. If I want to hear Tom Waits-style vocals, I'll go see Tom Waits. But if fans are still willing to shell out $$$ for tix, well, I can't blame these performers for cashing in.

Also add Elton John and Chrissie Hynde to the list (this thread would make a great wiki).

I think Paul McCartney still sings in the original key but struggles a bit. There’s are probably some songs where he should tune down a half step. Of course you can’t tune down too much otherwise it totally changes the song.

 

[eyoungren]

I think the better question is, "Should fans of rockers still expect the same performance/voice from an artist as 20/30/40/50 years ago?" This was a question on my local radio station the other day (with Bon Jovi) as the example.

My opinion is that you can't expect that. However, there is so much money involved in the industry that those who can't offer even a decent performance still go on because people will pay. Why do we have farewll tours that last for years?

People crave that same thing they got the first time that artist ever moved them. That's possible, but if you go in expecting the same voice you heard so long ago you're almost certainly going to be disappointed.

 

[Rogifan]

I think the better question is, "Should fans of rockers still expect the same performance/voice from an artist as 20/30/40/50 years ago?" This was a question on my local radio station the other day (with Bon Jovi) as the example.

My opinion is that you can't expect that. However, there is so much money involved in the industry that those who can't offer even a decent performance still go on because people will pay. Why do we have farewll tours that last for years?

People crave that same thing they got the first time that artist ever moved them. That's possible, but if you go in expecting the same voice you heard so long ago you're almost certainly going to be disappointed.

Oh I don’t expect that at all but Bon Jovi right now is just embarrassing. Here’s a recent performance of “It’s My Life”. Aside from the vocals being absolute crap they’ve tuned and slowed down the song so much it’s hard to tell what song it even is. At that point you gotta hang it up. Jon doesn’t need the money and it doesn’t seem like he’s enjoying himself.

And here’s another example. It’s not even about not being able to hit the high notes. Even way tuned down Jon struggles and is way out of tune. Maybe he has hearing issues but then he shouldn’t be on stage embarrassing himself like this.

Contrast that to a band like Foo Fighters who were still kicking it on stage. Sure none of their songs require amazing vocals but they gave off a vibe as a band who wanted to be on stage and put on a great show not some money making machine just going through the motions.

 

[Silencio]

Touring is the only way most musicians can earn significant money nowadays. I know Bon Jovi doesn't need the money, but many other bands do. Still, it's sad to see a musician obviously going through the motions for a paycheck.

Even if he can't hit all the high notes of his youth, I'm looking forward to seeing Paul McCartney in a couple of months. He was always someone I neglected to see live, and even if it doesn't happen to be an amazing show, I"m glad to actually have the chance to hear him play. There are so many other artists I wish I could see, or see again, but they've retired from music or passed away.

 

[Expos of 1969]

This is footage of a recent Bon Jovi show in Raleigh, NC. Jon clearly can’t sing anymore, even with the songs tuned down considerably. I think it’s embarrassing and sad that he’s charging decent money for this. But as long as people keep buying tickets I suppose legacy artists will keep doing it. It’s a shame though. You’d think Jon would be embarrassed at how bad he sounds.

Here’s another example. Vince Neil at a 2022 Mötley show. ?

What a nightmare. Vince Neil could not even be bothered to hire a personal trainer to get in some knd of shape prior to touring. Should he be touring 8 months pregnant?

 

[russell_314]

Should rockers who can’t sing anymore still be touring?​

Why not? No one forces anyone to pay for it? We all get old to include rockers and their fans. Because someone can't do their job like they could when they were 20 they should end it?

I mean seriously the original fans are old as hell too. Some 70 year old is going to that concert wearing a diaper. He's not expecting what it was like when he first went to one...

 

[satcomer]

Years of Drug abuse take the voice and growing up and running out money and finally out of the music contracts their able to keep the ticket sales! I can't blame then trying to make money in their retirement years, the music industry raped these singers with these draconian contacts back in day raped these singers and now they really don't make any money anymore so have go back on stage to get money!

 

[44267547]

I don’t care for rock ‘n’ roll at all, but the reality is, people are willing to pay these prices to see these musicians in person, regardless of their ‘aging performance’. They don’t care. They probably grew up loving these bands for decades, and they would support them even if they sounded like complete garbage singing in a wheelchair, just for the sake of saying ‘I got to see them live!’. That’s really the whole point, as long as the band is having fun and the crowd is, that’s the End-goal, am I right? (That’s rhetorical.)

 

[Rogifan]

What a nightmare. Vince Neil could not even be bothered to hire a personal trainer to get in some knd of shape prior to touring. Should he be touring 8 months pregnant?

On a podcast I was listening to a few weeks ago they were lamenting fans who spend money on legacy bands that are no longer good live vs supporting new bands or younger acts that do put on decent shows. Vince Neil obviously doesn’t give a crap but you’d think Nikki Sixx would have some self respect and no go out there like that.

 

[Euroamerican]

SHOULD...... Seems a bit, um, judgmental.

Vote with your dollars. Go, or don't go..........

I'd much rather go see Robert Plant croak his way through some old folk songs or down-scaled old hits than some auto-tune squeaky pixie grunt and moan through so many "pop hits" these days.

If you're an old fan of an old band, then you'd have to be pretty thick to not realize that a pricey ticket these days is still not going to turn back time.

 

[rhett7660]

We saw Motley Crue on their "final" tour and Vince sounded horrible on that one. Seeing them again this year with Def Leppard... Never seen DL and figured I should see them before they finally call it quits.

I mean, KISS sounded freaking excellent that last time I saw them for the End of the World Tour. Absolutely killed it. Same with Billy Joel.

 

[ArkSingularity]

I love Bon Jovi and respect the effort, but I'm not sure any singer wants to be remembered like this. Bon Jovi has been struggling for about 15 years or so and lost his higher notes a while ago, but now it seems like he's struggling even on his lower notes. It's aging, it happens to us all, but this is going to risk permanently damaging his voice.

People gave Geddy Lee such a hard time on his last tour, but Geddy never really lost his voice like this. You could tell he was 62, but he still had his range and was still hitting the notes in full voice, and was doing a mostly decent job of it. Every rock singer reaches a point at which they can no longer sing the same way they did in their youth, there's always a limit to how much abuse your vocal cords can take. But as the voice gets older, it loses more of its ability to heal and to bounce back. These kinds of tours are dangerous for singers whose voices have taken a lot of abuse over the years.

 

[44267547]

these kinds of tours are dangerous for singers whose voices have taken a lot of abuse over the years.

I’m not seeing the ‘dangers’ for the singers if they’re not giving 110% with their vocals, especially when they are knowingly going half effort. Not to mention, (I.e.)—how often is that vocalist performing, recovery in between time, and I’m sure genetics play a major role in all of this, other than just their overall health.

 

[JBGoode]

Oh my. I hope David has retired.I won't go to these shows any more. I'd be angry if I spent a lot of money to listen to this. I really wanted to go to the recent Genesis tour since it will likely be Phil's last, but after seeing YouTube videos of the shows, I couldn't bring myself to spend the money.

 

[Apple_Robert]

This is footage of a recent Bon Jovi show in Raleigh, NC. Jon clearly can’t sing anymore, even with the songs tuned down considerably. I think it’s embarrassing and sad that he’s charging decent money for this. But as long as people keep buying tickets I suppose legacy artists will keep doing it. It’s a shame though. You’d think Jon would be embarrassed at how bad he sounds.

Here’s another example. Vince Neil at a 2022 Mötley show. ?

Both of those videos were terrible, with Motley being hideously soul crushingly bad.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Oh my. I hope David has retired.I won't go to these shows any more. I'd be angry if I spent a lot of money to listen to this. I really wanted to go to the recent Genesis tour since it will likely be Phil's last, but after seeing YouTube videos of the shows, I couldn't bring myself to spend the money.

Good thing he finally retired. He was never a good singer to begin with. lol

 

[Apple_Robert]

I love Bon Jovi and respect the effort, but I'm not sure any singer wants to be remembered like this. Bon Jovi has been struggling for about 15 years or so and lost his higher notes a while ago, but now it seems like he's struggling even on his lower notes. It's aging, it happens to us all, but this is going to risk permanently damaging his voice.

People gave Geddy Lee such a hard time on his last tour, but Geddy never really lost his voice like this. You could tell he was 62, but he still had his range and was still hitting the notes in full voice, and was doing a mostly decent job of it. Every rock singer reaches a point at which they can no longer sing the same way they did in their youth, there's always a limit to how much abuse your vocal cords can take. But as the voice gets older, it loses more of its ability to heal and to bounce back. These kinds of tours are dangerous for singers whose voices have taken a lot of abuse over the years.

I think the danger has long past these guys who are trying to recapture their youth. Any nodules on the vocal chord like Elton and so many others got is something that they would have experienced long ago.

The problem with many of these guys (barring Geddy who practiced regularly) is that they haven't been training their vocal muscles much less learned how to breath properly. The training has to be done just like someone who is training for a race. When there hasn't been any consistent training, the singers try the forcing the notes from the chest or worst from the nasal cavity which makes the pitch and tone look and sound like a major earthquake on the Richter scale.

The smaller venues are easy money for the old guys. People who come don't usually hear reality. They hear the past. That is why so many fans say 'he sounded just like he did years ago.'

I don't think it is possible for the singers in the videos to give the fans their money's worth. The singers need to let go and move with life.

 

[PsychoSync]

Oh my. I hope David has retired.I won't go to these shows any more. I'd be angry if I spent a lot of money to listen to this. I really wanted to go to the recent Genesis tour since it will likely be Phil's last, but after seeing YouTube videos of the shows, I couldn't bring myself to spend the money.

When i saw this thread's title i immediately thought of Genesis. I absolutely adore this band, all of it, the Peter Gabriel era, then Phil Collins etc... I saw them in 2007 in Montreal and it was a good show, Phil could still sing, not perfectly but it was alright. He could still play the drums. But to be honest in 2007 i would say the performance was at about 65-70% of how good they were in the 70's - 80's. But this last tour... ho God, that hurts. Even if i won tickets for a show, i would not have gone to see it. I listened to so many of their live recordings and the were so good, so energic, Phil had such a good voice, a unique voice. A lot of people went to see the show, it has been a really succesful tour but that is not how i want to remember my favorite band.

 

[rhett7660]

Oh my. I hope David has retired.I won't go to these shows any more. I'd be angry if I spent a lot of money to listen to this. I really wanted to go to the recent Genesis tour since it will likely be Phil's last, but after seeing YouTube videos of the shows, I couldn't bring myself to spend the money.

Did you see his performance on one of the late shows. EEEEK. Horrible, is putting it nicely.

 

[ucfgrad93]

We saw Motley Crue on their "final" tour and Vince sounded horrible on that one. Seeing them again this year with Def Leppard... Never seen DL and figured I should see them before they finally call it quits.

Saw Def Leppard with Styx back in the early 80s. They were both awesome. I wouldn't go to see them live today, I'd rather listen to a CD and remember how much I enjoyed the show.

 

[Analog Kid]

This is footage of a recent Bon Jovi show in Raleigh, NC. Jon clearly can’t sing anymore, even with the songs tuned down considerably. I think it’s embarrassing and sad that he’s charging decent money for this. But as long as people keep buying tickets I suppose legacy artists will keep doing it. It’s a shame though. You’d think Jon would be embarrassed at how bad he sounds.

Here’s another example. Vince Neil at a 2022 Mötley show. 😳

Bon Jovi and Motley Crue? Should they ever have been allowed to perform in the first place?

For acts like that, it was always more about the hair than the singing…. They still have their hair…


Then there’s the ones who can put on a killer show to the very end: