LOW bass singers, the lowest notes recorded

[wa2436]

what about richard sturban?

[wa2436]

what about richard sturban?

[Shmecklecka]

Don't forget Johnny Hartman!

[thebassmanadam]

@Shmecklecka

Who is that? have never heard of him but will look him up for sure!

[BeatBuster]

It's very hard to tell if it's vocal fry or not (for example david hester), because it's so few vibrations in the vocal chords.. I can sing below low C (B, Bb).. Someone people thinks it sounds awesome, other thinks it sounds like vocal fry..

[thebassmanadam]

@BeatBuster

Fry or not, bass is bass is the way I see it. I can fry down to A#0 and it sounds fine when blended with a group.My full voice stops on a good day at F#1. Vocal fry is just an extention to ones range and I think others should loosen up about it!

[angryjalapeno]

@thebassmanadam, I agree, bass is bass and doesn't matter which voice register you use. The only distinction I would make is if a note can be projected with or without amplification.

[Lava91point0]

Hopefully none of these were performed near busstops, a lot of people would be upset lol

[Lava91point0]

I'm terrified to try this at full volume, but here i go...beyond the rim, I'll bring back nails for everyone to swallow

[MusikTilraunirTV]

What song is Christian Davis singing?

[thebassmanadam]

@MusikTilraunirTV

"Everybody Will Be Happy Over There" Its from a bass off him and Tim Riley had in the early 2000s. The song the clip is from is called "The Dream" Its Old Time Gospel Hour Quartets first album called "The Lamb Is King"

[MusikTilraunirTV]

@thebassmanadam Can I find it on YouTube? If not, please upload it bro!

[thebassmanadam]

@MusikTilraunirTV

If you type in, The Old Time Gospel Hour quartet, the dream the one result that comes up is a music video they did of that song. Its pretty entertaining. Let me know if you can't find it!

[80dKeys]

Fantastic...fry or not! Adam, you da man!

[libertatus]

David Hester shook the windows! Dang! Then J.D. Sumner says, "O.K., not bad. Try THIS!"

[HapBrindle]

When I played this through the Bose at 2:00 am David Hester and JD Sumner dusted my whole house and woke the neighbors. Real men with real men’s voices singing real songs the right way.

[sarafalkner]

1:00 the grudge...

[MoonPhysical]

3:20 Hit me with that drop man. Wickedness. My kind of Dubstep XD.

[hackroute]

прекрасная подборка :)

[thenappfamily]

Sounds like they burping

[robinenlennard]

Sounds like pigs eating

[Quiller50]

these guys sound alot like the russian basso profoundo singers

[24HertzMan]

I'm going to have to agree with what's already been said . . . most of these clips are of the vocal fry variety . . . It's just how well you use it. Being able to be smooth and project with it to where it blends with the full voice is a tricky thing. It's like saying tenors shouldn't use falsetto, ever, when they sing. lol Granted, some basses are better at it than others and have a talent for finding the right color to the note, (Tim Storms or even JD) and some are too burpy.

[yamahonkawazuki]

wow, and i thought richard sterban could hit low. these guys vibrated my neighbours car windows ( were all gospel music fans. and he has this video as well. we battle sometimes lol. great postings. am going to check your video out now " real low singing"

[MrKyledude18]

Alot of these use quite a bit of Fry Especially Gary Evans on "Roll Jordan" and Paul David Kennemer uses A LOT of fry on his notes BUT I don't necessarily view singing in fry or mixed voice as such a bad thing when these guys are so good at it that you really wouldn't know it was fry unless you're really paying attention to it.

[thebassmanadam]

@MrKyledude18

I have no problem with fry when done well! If it sounds good and blends then I say,"who cares". I am not sure what the big objection is with so many people on here. I am glad you are not one of them. I use it and am proud of it as I am sure many good basses out there are as well!! Thanks for listening!

[MrKyledude18]

@thebassmanadam Well it would be pretty silly for me criticize the pros for using fry since I am a bass and I use it every once in awhile to hit the lower notes like the A on the bottom line of the bass clef staff (keep in mind I'm 17 haha) But I've listened to a lot of your videos of you singing and I enjoy them, and I really appreciate your bass singer videos! (like this one) Keep up the good work :)

[thebassmanadam]

@MrKyledude18

Thank you very much for the compliment! I love singing and love putting those videos together and always make sure they are of the highest quality. being a low bass at 17 is always impressive and that means you have lots of years ahead of you where your voice will only get lower and better! Do you have any recordings posted of you singing?

I am not too good with knowing what notes are what so how low is your lowest fry note. My comfortable lowest fry is D#1

[MrKyledude18]

@thebassmanadam nothing recorded yet unfortunately, and I haven't really tested my range in fry yet, all I know is my full voice on a normal day (not counting morning voice or colds and such) is about the second A below middle C on the piano hopefully someday soon I can figure out my full range using fry and full voice and we're planning on putting together a quartet at my church with me on the bass part, hopefully we will put a CD together and if/when we do, I will put some music up on YT!

[zinpgh]

@MrKyledude18 What does fry mean?

[MrKyledude18]

@zinpgh Sort of hard to explain.. but think of fry as an extention (somehow the spelling of that is incorrect and I can't seem to find the correct one 0_0) of your voice. when you sing bass you can usually use fry to hit a note that is a little bit lower. basically you could relate it to Falsetto that a tenor singer uses to sing a higher note than his rage normally allows. hope that makes sense.

[zinpgh]

@MrKyledude18 Ah ok that makes sense. Thanks. It's sort of like cheating. I guess when one sings fry notes they cannot sustain them very long or quickly change to another note and back to that lower note.

[MrKyledude18]

@zinpgh Well, I wouldn't quite classify it as 'cheating' since many of the Pros (the really really good ones) use Fry and they are able to control it very well. Most of the time you will never even notice they are using fry. But in most cases, as you said it is very difficult to sustain a fry note and changing pitch can be tough as well, but if you're a pro like the guys in this video, you can do it without too much of an issue.

[fortheloveoftunes]

1:08 low-down and groovy .-)

[LacrimaLunaMortua]

Sumner lml

[BenBistro004]

Vocal fry is a legitimate way to sing. Everyone needs to stop saying otherwise.

[thebassmanadam]

@BenBistro004

Bout time someone said that! I use it all the time and for those that think its not look it up on Wikipedia. Its been recently accepted as a legitimate part to ones range and singing just like falsetto has. Its an extension of ones natural range and some can do it musically. Well said sir!! I wish i knew it was frowned upon by so many unless those many are jealous?!

[BenBistro004]

@thebassmanadam Good points! I wouldn't say they're jealous, but vocal fry is sort of like cheating to hit those lower notes, yet, still singing. It may not sound as good, but you're still hitting those notes Using vocal fry, I can hit four to five tones lower than normal, which ends me a F1 (the first F on the piano at the lowest.)

[thebassmanadam]

@BenBistro004

Good points as well!! My normal range before I got sick back in the fall ended at F#1 but with fry I could sing it down to 7hz. I believe that song is on my page somewhere. Not too musical just doing it to do it. My most comfortable note to fry with sustainability and tone is C#1-D#1. I have practiced it for almost 20 years. any clips of you singing with fry?

[BenBistro004]

@thebassmanadam No, no. No clips of me, as I'm not a singer by any means. I'm fifteen hehe. So, I'm lucky to be getting this low at this age. But 7hz? That's crazy! I just like to practice hitting low tones, and like hearing the different voices of bass singers. That's where the talent comes in: hitting notes that usually require fry without it.

[thebassmanadam]

@BenBistro004

I probably can't get that low anymore since a bad bout of a serious cough for 2 months. I like hearing different basses and how low than go as well. I started practicing with fry around your age I just always was able to use it very low. I can still hit the D#1 with it but probably not much lower. I just recently posted a medley where I use it a lot, check it out and see what ya think. Its called, real low singing by the bassmanadam.

[Littlebocco]

is it just me or do they all sound the same? haha

[DJRanchIncorperated]

The only one I know for sure that is using fry is Glenn Dustin. He admittedly can only sing in chest voice down to a B1 sometimes a Bb1. Then he switches over to fry. Still sounds great though.

[thebassmanadam]

@DJRanchIncorperated

I heard Glenn in concert a few times as they perform here in MI right down the street from me every spring and if he uses vocal fry a lot which I have no problem because its just an extension of ones range like falsetto then he uses it like a true pro. He sounds awesome live!!! Its super tough sometimes to tell who is and isn't using it so I just take my best guess as someone who uses both types of singing.

[DJRanchIncorperated]

@thebassmanadam Adam, I just found out a couple weeks ago about Glenn. I have seen L5 live several times live and you cannot tell he is. I found out watching the L5 vlog on youtube. There is a 3 part interview with Glenn. He truly is a nice guy. I'm with you, I have no problem with fry if a person can make it sound musical. BTW, you IMHO have the best bass video's on youtube. Thanks for your passion brother.

[EmmonsLL3]

What was song was tim singing at 1:45?

[Mdudeman13]

J.D. Sumner is the best.

[russellbearbassman]

Bill Lawrence rivals Tim Riely in low range.

[thebassmanadam]

@russellbearbassman

i agree! Bill has a great voice and depth! I have enjoyed his singing for a long long time.

[daoping]

1:09 =D

[fingerboy18]

I play bass guitar and some of those notes were extremely low and still full sounding! Anyone can grunt or rattle out a frog-like sound, but not many can produce these notes with control.

[StoneageDinosaurs]

If you want to hear a true basso profondo then listen to Vladimir Miller from Russia.

[Djidja91Le]

@StoneageDinosaurs these can compare easy with both Miller and Winchakov. they're amazing

[StoneageDinosaurs]

Non-vocal fry my backside. I'm a trained and active tenor so I know "vocal fry" when I hear it. And what Gene McDonald does on that last note at 1.02 is definitely "vocal fry" what in europe we call "head singing"

[DimitrisPrasakis]

Fuck yeah :D

I can hit C2 :D

[kostantine1000]

@DimitrisPrasakis no you cant you liar!

[DimitrisPrasakis]

@kostantine1000 Γινεσαι σπαστικος ...

[kostantine1000]

@kostantine1000 thumps thelw na parw vlaka.. arakse

[tigerfan167]

@DimitrisPrasakis anybody can hit a C2. I'm a tenor and i can hit a C2

[MinersCraftTube]

03:36

Did somebody say "He's breaking the speakers now"?

[castlemarie08]

1:10 sound like a fucking motor cycle.

[12abcdx]

can someone tell me the song that paul david kennamer is singing in?

[Jouwl]

Video description says that these are all chest voice and not vocal fry.

... but turns out 90 % is vocal fry. At least to my ears. What is causing the misunderstanding?

[thebassmanadam]

@Jouwl

Not sure. Vocal fry is easy to detect and this isn't it. Unless you are an expert at doing vocal fry the notes will sound shaky, wobbly without good pitch or control and I don't hear any of that here. The notes here sound pure and solid but to each their own opinion.

[Jouwl]

@thebassmanadam

Vocal fry is not always easy to detect in my opinion. Paul David Kennamer for example has a very rare kind of voice, and I'm still at a loss when it comes to him using fry or chest voice.

I agree that fried notes often sound rather weak and shaky. Most of the singers in this video are to some degree included under those adjectives, if you ask me.

Tim Riley, Bill Lawrence and Gene McDonald are definitely chesting, but couldn't guarantee the rest. Oh well.

[StoneageDinosaurs]

@Jouwl

Totally agree, the vibration of the vocal folds to that extent is a dead giveaway. 

[happy543210]

There is clearly a point where a note stops being musical and turns into just "sound".

[thebassmanadam]

@happy543210

C#1 is usually that point. JD Sumner was the master at making that hard to hit note sound musical. These other singers that come close to that note don't do too bad either.

[Arnubhlav]

Mother of All that is Bass.

THIS IS REAL SINGING.

[metalmilitia137]

2:53 is inhuman

[metalmilitia137]

I cracked up at 1:56, sorry that picture and voice was too much

[cacamojonable]

omg this is amazing

[dasenteney]

Is it possible for them to hit these notes without a 5 second slide?

[thebassmanadam]

@dasenteney

it sure is!!! JD Sumner was the master at it. Tim Riley can nail low notes without a slide as can Mike Holecomb. Most of the the low basses here didn't slide into their notes. Paul Kennemer didn't and his note was well into contra bass. Sliding is just more dramatic but no, they don't need to do it to achieve these low notes.

[rockme1337]

I have two 12 inch subs in my room and these singers were making them go crazy XD

[MegaTimebomb098]

death metal

[justtony21]

ok, i get that you included some of the loswet notes recorded but how can you leave out some of the best to ever pick up a mic i.e Barry White, Melvin Franklin from The Temptations and last but certainly not least would be Isaac "Dickie" Freeman? Look these men up and I guarantee that they can stand toe to toe with these men note for note. And for those who like to argue George Younce has sung with Isaac Freeman on several occasions.

[thebassmanadam]

@justtony21

The title of the video should answer that question! Those 3 you named I have heard which is why they are not on here. While those singers are good There is no way they could stand note for note with any of these singers who can get to an F#1 E#1 Double C and in JD Sumners case C#1-4 notes off the piano.

[sdiiro1]

hello thebassmanadam thanks for shareing some of my favorite southern gospel artists bass singers.

[thebassmanadam]

@sdiiro1

You're very welcome! Have you listened to my 19 minute bass singers video! If you liked this video you will love that one!

[sdiiro1]

@thebassmanadam yes i sure have.

[jdogwhisper19]

1:12- 1:20 sounds like a BMW :)

[kingnings]

lowest notes are russin basso profando, not these. look them up

[thebassmanadam]

@kingnings

I get so tired of people saying russian basses are the be all to end all bass singers. Its a different style for starters and I am very familiar with Russian basso Profundo's. Vladamir Miller and Ivan Rebroff come to mind but neither one of them produce a sound lower than F#1. Ivan is the lower of the two but even he can;t hit the notes heard here. Again, its a different style, different type of music and requires two totally different voice types!!

[kingnings]

@thebassmanadam oh so youre saying that the russians sort of croak their notes and amplify them? is that how their style is different?

[thebassmanadam]

@kingnings

Its an operatic and chant style for starters which is a different style of singing than southern gospel or A-Capella music. Some who is as smooth as Ivan Rebroff would never blend with a quartet that has instruments backing them because the notes lack tone but his voice great for A-Capella music. Now Vladimir Miller could probably do it because his low notes have more tone. Its not croaking either. The lower the note the further apart the vibrations get.

[thebassmanadam]

@kingnings

Also, I enjoy listening to the A-Capella hymns style when Russian basses sing with a group. I like Basso Profundo's I just think as far as depth they can't go as low and are not the bass singers that the southern gospel has. Also, notes need amplification when they get really low because they become harder to hear. Just because a note needs amplification doesn't mean the singer is any less.

[thebassmanadam]

@kingnings Its an age old debate that never has a winner so let just say, you have your opinion and I have mine! Neither one of us is wrong because it is just our opinion!!

[kingnings]

@thebassmanadam oh wow

[sergioperezw]

One person doesn't believe in low notes.

[dukes0620]

jd is definetly the best!!!

[clown84700]

WoW

[JeffJohns88]

low, yes, but they all sound the same :/

[LanthanumK]

Try this to see who actually is the best bass singer: take the audio track, open it in an audio editor, and zoom in until you can actually see the waveform. Which ever singer hase a waveform closest to a sine wave has the purest bass voice. I looked at JD's deepest note and it is a pretty good sine wave.

[Devalis]

Way to start off the video with one of my favorites, Buddy Liles. I heard him live and he literally shook the place with his low notes! I don't think he gets the proper credit for his voice. I see a lot of these bass singer videos and this is the first one to have him that I've noticed. Thanks for bringing him out for everyone to hear!

[zxcvbnm12395]

Does anyone know the song that David Hester is singing??

Thanks

[thebassmanadam]

@zxcvbnm12395

Walk That Lonesome Road

[sreejith9876]

yesudas is a highly talented musician from India who can sing in a wide range of pitch. One of his low note performance can be seen at 06:45 in the video titled 'Kapali Karunai- KJ Yesudas - Carnatic Classical - Album Saranam Pukunden'. Please listen to that.

[thebassmanadam]

@sreejith9876

He has an okay voice but I would not put him in a league vocally with anyone in this video.

[Sietsedubois]

There is a lot vocal fry in these videos, and a lot of artificial bass amplification too. I bet that if these men stood in front of you and sang these notes, you would be laughing, because it would be barely audible (I mean the real low notes beyond G1).

[thebassmanadam]

@Sietsedubois

Most is natural pure bass singing. with Vocal fry, pitch is hard to sustain and i don't hear any wavering in the notes. Christian Davis for example, look up the Lords Prayer by him where he does all the vocals and listen to him nail an E#1 at the end. For the record I have heard Glenn Dustin live and Tim Riley and let me tell you, they are the real deal. No one hits a more pure G#1 or F#1 than Tim Riley.

[IronreaverVII]

@thebassmanadam "Pure" as it may be, Dustin and Riley have to actually put their mouth on the microphone because the notes lack enough power to project. The Basso Profundo Vladimir Miller can hit and project a solid F that fills the entire room on songs like "Svete Tihij" without a microphone. His voice is extremely low and devastatingly powerful. Also, the vocal timbre of most American vocalists generally lacks any dramatic tone or power. There's no solidity in the tone, no depth, no richness.

[thebassmanadam]

@IronreaverVII

Fact is, with or without a mic..I really don't care as long as they sound good and I enjoy it. Vladimir records albums with a mic doesn't he?? The only reason he is heard in a room hitting an F#1 is because the audience is very quiet as to where southern gospel concerts aren't and they have music to sing over.

[thebassmanadam]

@IronreaverVII

I have friends who have heard Tim Riley sing an F#1 without a mic or instruments and was heard across the church and sung in a building that lacks natural acoustics like the awesome Russian churches have.

I know Vladimir has amazing power as I am fan of is. Talent is not measured with how you hear it as long as you hear it. trust me, hearing a sing a 2 octave slide live with mics and speakers sounds far more awesome than it would without a mic. It vibrates the floor!

[MrWonnabee]

Tim storms is world's lowest bass singer... Dumb fuck

[thebassmanadam]

@MrWonnabee

Keep the filthy language off my posts or I will mark you as spam and remove your posts. Be civil!

Yes, Tim Is the lowest by the record books but as far as I see it, the man doesn't self promote himself as the worlds lowest Like JD did and many people I know who have heard him live have never heard him prove his record like JD did. JD gave the crowds what they wanted. Do I doubt he can do it? NO but as long as there is no proof other than what a paper says JD is still the lowest!!

[MrWonnabee]

actually, there ARE a video with Tim Storms, where they are recording :)

but what the hell, that was just a comment..

have nice day

[thebassmanadam]

@MrWonnabee

Are you talking about the world records clip with the horrible sound quality? Tim only did this for a record. From all i have heard he never does this live while performing in Branson Missouri with Pierce Arrow. If he has the talent why not showcase it all the time. The lowest song i have heard him do Is Lonesome Road on Rescue Live but its not in his lowest register. I truly believe that if Tim had been next JD at his peak on stage in a bass off JD would of won.

[thebassmanadam]

@MrWonnabee

There is a reason that JD Sumner is still the measuring stick by which all basses are compared too,even Tim Storms. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of Tim and featured him at decent length in my 19 minute bass singers video I just don't think he has anything on JD but that is just my opinion and since JD is dead we will never know for sure.

[thebassmanadam]

@MrWonnabee

I have seen the video, the audio quality is horrible at best and if they recorded it its no where to be found as I have searched far and wide for it.Its a shame that if he conducts the rest of his career this way there will be no real proof out there of his talents when he is no longer around unlike with JD Sumner. Tim has 6 octaves at least and yet, no solo album, no super low stuff on recordings other than Old Ship Of Zion at the very end that has to be amplified to be heard.

[thebassmanadam]

@MrWonnabee

Furthermore, JD is by far the lowest in this clip!!

[DJRanchIncorperated]

@MrWonnabee Don't be a tool, Tim Storms could not even come close to JD if they had a contest on who could sing lower in full register aka chest voice. Tim Storms is low, but I only hear him down to around an E1 in chest. JD went down to a double low C and lower every night he performed. When you get guys like JD Sumner and even Casey Moo who are naturally low voiced to an extreme, a lot of times they cannot fry. Tim Storms fry's better than anyone. And Tim lost the record to Roger Menees.

[eapdap]

JD still takes the blue ribbon!!!

[highnote32]

Damn, I could NEVER be a Bass.

[Bryanistunsoffun]

I wish I a singing voice like that :(

[daoping]

At 1:08 my desk started shaking because of my subwoofer

[GamingDrummer89]

What's the song Buddy Liles is heard on here?

[gadkins5]

I heard some good low notes and some were just growls that were not even on tune or have a tone to it. Why not go low enough to keep a tone and keep it firm. Some need to spend more time polishing their highs.

[thebassmanadam]

@gadkins5

please Point out which one's you think were growls.

[earlbob1000]

@thebassmanadam  Gary Evans??

[thehowards6]

@thebassmanadam

Personally I would say Gene McDonald's is vocal fry. Great vocal fry (and a great singer), but I have listened to that song probably 100 times, and I am convinced that is vocal fry that he slides into.

[spiderchocolat3]

@thehowards6 I was just thinking the same thing.

[musicmanJ92]

Can anyone tell me the song Bill Lawrence sings and where to find it?

[thebassmanadam]

@musicmanJ92

Blessed Assurance is the song and its from the album Timeless Hymns and Classics Vol1 by Brian Free and Assurance. You can find it just about anywhere.

[musicmanJ92]

@thebassmanadam thank you

[Teder95]

what is the song that George sings?

[thebassmanadam]

@Teder95

The Love Of The Lord. Its from his first solo album called I Believe.

[GamingDrummer89]

I didn't have enough room on my last 2 posts to say this, but great video! I like the bass boost...it shakes the crap out of my headphones, lol.

A couple I'm surprised that weren't included here were London Parris, Big Chief Wetherington, and Burman Porter. Their lowest full voice notes I've heard are G1, Ab1, and F#1, respectively. All 3 of those can be found on my 3rd bass video. I'd like to hear how they sound with this bass boost and you're free to use those 3 clips if you ever want to.

[thebassmanadam]

@GamingDrummer89

Its funny, my issue with London Parris is his voice quality for one and so many people comparing him to J.D. when in reality he wasn't in JD's league in depth or quality but that is just my opinion. I couldn't find any low stuff by Burman Porter and I don't have much by Big Chief except his solo album. My main goal was at or below F#1s for this video. A friend of mine who was at a Gold City concert told me of the F#1 Tim hit at a church. No music or anything was going on.

[GamingDrummer89]

@thebassmanadam I actually found a full voice F#1 by Burman Porter. Check it out on my video here: watch?v=iQmCd-XULYk He drops down at about 7:46

There's also a sustained F#1 by Tim Duncan right before that. It seems to be mixed voice, though (i.e. a combination of full voice and vocal fry or just extremely strong vocal fry on its own). In addition there is a full voice E1 by Tim Riley at 8:26.

[GamingDrummer89]

@GamingDrummer89 Tim Riley actually seems to do an Eb1 here: watch?v=oDtQ3JYvk2A&feature=re­lated

The 2 octave slide he does from Eb3-Eb1 starts at about 3:12, but you can't really hear any of the tone on the notes below like D2 because the video was taken using a camera. But still, that'd be his lowest note to date. He told me the lowest he's ever gotten was Eb1 and that he doesn't fry, so this might have been the note he was talking about.

[GamingDrummer89]

The only ones I'm skeptical of here are PDK's (of course you can't really hear pitch at a C0 other than overtones so it's almost impossible to tell if it's vocal fry or not) and Christian Davis' (I've heard that song quite a few times before and it always sounded too much like a croak or a burp to be anywhere near full voice).

George Younce here sounded like he started off on fry but you can hear his full voice tone come in during the last half of the note

[thebassmanadam]

@GamingDrummer89

PDK is the real deal from what I have heard from people who attended Valor's concerts. It really is hard to tell with Christian Davis but it sounded good. If it is fry he does it well! JD is a good example of what fry is not. I have heard most of JDs recordings and every time he gets way down there its always very smooth. I am gonna post a JD video that is 13 minutes of his lowest stuff. It is bass boosted as well and sounds awesome!

[Gandalf930]

Lol, "no vocal fry"? Most of these were perfect examples of vocal fry and sticking to a microphone. It's actually very impressive and their voices are pleasant, but for truly crushing singing one should listen to the Orthodox Church singing and the oktavists, like Vladimir Miller, Pasjukov, Viktor Wichniakov, Aleksander Ort or Mikhail Kruglov. They never vocal fry and don't even need a microphone to fill a hall with sound.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

I have heard those singers and while Vladimir is good he is not overly impressive nor are any of the others

They don't need mics because they don't have instruments backing them,they would never be heard if they did

Without mics when singing with instrumental tracks all you have is the sound of the instruments.None of these guys fried these notes especially JD who is in a league all by himself.I know how to fry to 2 octaves under the piano so i know the sound. These guys DON"T fry.

[Gandalf930]

@thebassmanadam

How come it's not vocal fry? It lacks the sheer power of low modal voice. Besides, most of these guys(especially Glen Dustin) don't really look like basses, which confuses me.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

JDs voice lacks power? ha..since when does a bass have a certain look? One's looks doesn't translate into how their vocals cords are. I have heard Glenn Dustin live and I can tell you, that man is a real bass. His speaking voice is low when you talk to him face to face. Vocal fry causes the voice to break up the lower you get and you only get the frequency in the beat's. Natural low voice keeps the frequency no matter how low you get as proven in these clips especially in JDs case.

[Gandalf930]

@thebassmanadam

A bass is typically masculine-looking, that's what I meant (like having a beard etc).

As I said, they are literally sticking to a microphone at their lows, besides, gospel vocal frying has a very characteristic soft/warm texture that's clearly heard here. It can't compare to the fully resonant notes of true bassi profondi, after all, gospel is totally differrent from classical singing, duh.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

I know classical bass is different from gospel bass.I have listened to both and I say again.Those basses wouldn't be heard without a mic if they were not singing a-capella style.Most Basses don't have beards that I know of. JD doesn't fry.Didn't have too! No bass profundo or gospel could touch him.These basses are not frying.The pitch doesn't waver and in JD's case, its impossible to slide down the scales note for note in vocal fry. It's to hard to control!

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

Also, JD in one breath did that 28 second slide down the scales then back up them. No way can you do that utilizing vocal fry no matter how good you are.

[Gandalf930]

@thebassmanadam

Actually, singing with other instruments in unison makes your voice even stronger, I've tried that. And I've seen the aforementioned oktavists accompanied by piano for example, also, I've heard from people who have seen them live that these voices can overpower a whole choir. Their style demands high natural volume. I don't know much about JD actually, but it seems that his technique allows him to achieve lower fundamental tones in exchange for lower volume.

[Gandalf930]

I'm not going to argue more about the frying thing, this topic should be rather solved by professional speech therapists, let's just leave it at that for the moment on. So far the fact is that the texture of gospel/classical voices is totally differrent, I suppose this is the key.

That's strange what you're saying... Almost all the oktavists have beards, I am a bass myself(not necessarily profondo, but my voice is yet to mature) and my beard started growing when I was 13.

[Gandalf930]

From the guys above, only Richard Sterban has the look I am talking about. You know, it's quite awkward to look like Glenn Dustin or Christian Davis and have a bass voice, but maybe that's just my opinion.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

I have never heard that a beard changes ones masculinity. JD Sumner looked like a bass in every sense of the word and all he had was a mustache. As said before, a beard doesn't change how their vocal cords are. Its tradition is Southern Gospel to be presented well by appearance and not look scruffy shall we say. They always dress nice , their hair is done nice and for the most part they don't have scruffy looking beards. Different cultures is the best way to put it I guess.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

Now see to me Richard Sterbans look or shall we say style has always irritated me.

Christian Davis doesn't just sing bass he sings up to tenor as well. search here on youtube for Christian Davis singing The Lords Prayer. He does all the parts A-capella.

[Gandalf930]

@thebassmanadam

A beard was just an example, it's overally about hair(mustache included) as it is easy to be seen, and quite a lot of other things, pretty hard to describe. I definitely wouldn't call a beard scruffy, beards always looked majestic and elegant to me and I am very proud to have one, in the Orthodox Church a beard is also a symbol of being wise.

[Gandalf930]

Many people observe a correlation of somatic masculinity with a low-pitched voice. Maybe it's something about testosterone level, but then again, its' a question for biologists. There's a guy in my school who had to take testosterone pills, his voice dropped a lot.

And yes, probably it's the differrent culture thing. I prefer robes to suits and having a beard to shaving it. A nice mustache is good too.

PS. I really like Sterban's look.

[thebassmanadam]

@Gandalf930

I can't deny that about singing with other instruments in unison. The classical basses or like Vladimir Miller are trained differently from gospel basses. With Gospel its more about being able to sing low but that is not the case for all of them. JD could sing a good lead in his day and other basses like George Younce and Tim Riley focused on being a singer first and a bass second. Tim Riley dropped an F1 in a church with no mic and was heard all the way in the back.

[GamingDrummer89]

When did Tim Riley drop that F1 with no mic? I wish I could hear him do that. I got to meet him a few weeks ago and he sang from a G2 to a G1 with no mic but he wasn't trying to do it even near as loud as he could. He told me the lowest he thinks he could get really good volume off of with no mic is about a Bb1....did he do that F1 just by himself with no other sounds going on?

[lowluvver]

Have to agree with Adam, Gary Evans jr is the real deal.

[red3005]

Hey...another great video...and I found a pretty nice ending note by Buddy Liles on the video clip....The Florida Boys - "This Little Heart of Mine" posted by...gospelvideohub...check it out when you get a chance...

[ChangsUncle]

Buddy Liles is often overlooked but he's right down there. Jeff Pearles has a clarity to his voice almost like a good lead singer.

[thebassmanadam]

@ChangsUncle

I read somewhere that Jeff has perfect pitch which explains why he sounds like he does. I have heard him do many leads and he has the ability to sing leads in any range he likes aside from high tenor. I think he is one of the best around today.

[dabeinman]

Loved it! Although there was one bass that I absolutely can't stand. Gary Evans. Atleast to me, he's off pitch and frying that note. Great video though!

[thebassmanadam]

@dabeinman

Gary Evans doesn't fry. He would not of been put on here if I thought he had. I have talked to him several times and trust me, he is the real deal. Acappella is strict about pure vocal ability so frying is not an option! Mike Holcomb fry's. He does it a lot but Gary Evans doesn't which is why Gary is here and Mike isn't.

[bigmrclean]

@thebassmanadam Gary Evans sounded ridiculous. You throw off on a legion such as Mike Holcomb and say that that kid is the "Real Deal"? Mike Holcomb has more talent in his eye tooth than Gary Evans will ever think about having.

[thebassmanadam]

@bigmrclean

I never put down Mike? I like listening to Mike. I just think Gary Evans is better. Gary has 6 octaves and he does them well so I really don't think Mike is more talented nor do I care really to be honest. JD has them both beat anyway and he's the true measuring stick by which all basses are measured.

[bigmrclean]

@thebassmanadam I would have to agree with you there.....JD was the Man..I'm a big JD fan as well....Touche.