Paul Potts
Aaron
I did promise you I would "bring on the music"...
I must admit, I'm not nearly as critical of his singing as some of you
are. I have his CD, and he's definitely better than Bocelli or any of
Il Divo except for the American. You really can't judge someone too
harshly when they're still nervous and in disbelief, and performing
live on a stage for the first time. At least that's my opinion.
At any rate, he has a lovely voice, in timbre it reminds me of early
Pavarotti, before he went south, back when he was the "Man with the
Golden Voice". I suppose time will tell, but do any of the Potts-
detractors have the cd? Or have any of you listened to it? I admit
that with 2 kids, long hours, and other priorities, I haven't given it
a critical analysis. But it certainly was easy on the ears, even on
the high notes. And they sounded efforless to me.
I read someone criticizing him in a blog, saying that opera singers
must perform unamplified when at the opera houses, and a small voice
like his would stand no chance... Is that true, Mickey? I thought
that, in these days, all the singers who had solos were amplified. I
mean, they sing right into each other's face! Being a singer myself,
like you, I find it hard to believe they are having to project to an
entire house, unamplified, right into someone else's face...that would
make the other person deaf! And covered with spit, more than I even
imagined!
-Aaron
Mickey
> Well, Mickey, I see you've already chimed in on this, months ago, but
> I did promise you I would "bring on the music"...
>
> I must admit, I'm not nearly as critical of his singing as some of you
> are. I have his CD, and he's definitely better than Bocelli or any of
> Il Divo except for the American. You really can't judge someone too
> harshly when they're still nervous and in disbelief, and performing
> live on a stage for the first time. At least that's my opinion.
I recently heard him sing "God Save the Queen." (I think it was before
the NFL game in London.) It was better than the butchery our National
Anthem (a much tougher song) typically gets or most of the renderings of
"God Bless America" we heard during the 7th inning stretches of the
World Series. That said, was it impressive or did it suggest a first or
second tier professional opera career? No.
>
> At any rate, he has a lovely voice, in timbre it reminds me of early
> Pavarotti, before he went south, back when he was the "Man with the
> Golden Voice". I suppose time will tell, but do any of the Potts-
> detractors have the cd? Or have any of you listened to it? I admit
> that with 2 kids, long hours, and other priorities, I haven't given it
> a critical analysis. But it certainly was easy on the ears, even on
> the high notes. And they sounded efforless to me.
>
> I read someone criticizing him in a blog, saying that opera singers
> must perform unamplified when at the opera houses, and a small voice
> like his would stand no chance... Is that true, Mickey?
Not hearing him in the flesh, I would be hard pressed to answer. Size is
not everything. (We keep coming back to that, don't we.) A well
structured voice will carry in most venues if singing the proper
literature. Repertoire may be his biggest problem. He's certainly not a
Tristan and might even find Rudolfo too big for his dance belt. It's
also probably too late for him to learn the florid style required to do
the bel canto specialty roles. With a repertoire limited by a small
instrument, he will be forced to compete with too many younger,
stronger, better trained, and better looking singers vying for the same
gateway roles.
> I thought
> that, in these days, all the singers who had solos were amplified.
In the opera house (or symphony hall), it so rare for a voice to be
amplified that I would not fault someone for saying never. (The LARES
systems installed in some venues does not really amplify the voices, but
provides a controlled, artificial but convincing ambiance in otherwise
dead or dry halls. This is a long, complicated topic not quite germane
to your question, but which might be source of confusion to some.)
> I
> mean, they sing right into each other's face! Being a singer myself,
> like you, I find it hard to believe they are having to project to an
> entire house, unamplified, right into someone else's face...that would
> make the other person deaf! And covered with spit, more than I even
> imagined!
You do get nailed with spittle, but very rarely. Opera singers "cheat"
or "cheat out," that is, turn out toward the audience when they actually
are singing, but return direct attention to the other singer when they
are silent. In a duet, this not only helps audibility, it also helps the
audience to know who has the ball. When both singers are singing, the
both cheat. This is the old school stage technique which requires not
only good singers, but sensible stage directors, as well.
Broadway shows are a different kettle of carp. Most are amplified these
days, but not entirely for obvious reasons. For example, the stage
hardware for some of the recent mega-musicals (Phantom, et al.) is so
noisy it would seriously distract from the show. So, the sound system is
cranked up to cover the stage noise. Plus few of the folk doing these
shows have either the vocal chops or have learned the stage techniques
required for doing such shows unamplified, even in a Broadway type
theater, which has about half as many seats as most American opera
houses (and consequently nearly one quarter of the cubic footage). Also,
opera orchestras range in size from between twice to five times as big
as a Broadway show's pit band.
Hope this answers your question.
The Other Mickey
Bigolhomo
start selling? It jumped from #115 to #23 on the latest Billboard Top
200 album chart. I'm assuming the AI newsgroup discussion isn't
responsible for the surge.
--
Bigolhomo
Aaron
LOL, good assumption!
I dunno...I told my Brit friend about him, surprised that he hadn't
heard of Potts. But, then again, he's in America now so it's not *as*
shocking. It's not like he watches "Britain's Got Talent" every week.
Doubt that had much to do with it, but...
Maybe word-of-mouth? I mean, he IS better than Bocelli, and I know a
LOT of people who like Bocelli.
*swallows a few times to prevent vomit*
-Aaron
Mickey
Now that was kind of funny.
As for Bocelli v. Potts: given a choice between the two, based on my
limited exposure to both, particularly Potts, I'd rather hear Bocelli.
It may come down to a choice of prefixes. One is unmusical, the other
amusical. Neither voice is hideous enough or handsome enough to sway the
argument for me.
The Other Mickey
Aaron
wrote:
Yeah, for me it comes down to the pitch issues we discussed months
ago. Almost without fail I would rather listen to someone with good
pitch than a good voice. I don't think we are talking about truly bad
voices in either case, here, so I go with Potts. Because Bocelli is
tone-blind.
-Aaron
Bob Rudd
br...@whatever.com says...
He's getting an American push, pre Leona Lewis,.....perhaps to get the
marketing kinks out of how to finesse a foreign reality show winner.
Oprah mentioned that he won the British version of American Idol called
Britain's Got Talent. Now, we can debate this to the cow's come home
but when Lewis hits America, the Brits and Fox have to be ready to both
explain and sell why we also don't have an X-Factor show.
That might get a little dicey....Potts gives them some time, I think, to
message all of British reality being introduced to U.S. audiences.
--
I hope we can all be good neighbors online!
Bob Rudd
He was on Oprah last week and the crowd went wild. Not "British
wild"...jumping up to a standing ovation but one step below.
Bigolhomo
wrote:
That would explain it. Oprah's sheep strike again!
--
Bigolhomo
azurespirit
"Bigolhomo" <br...@whatever.com> wrote in message
news:97dpj3tk9s83tfus2...@4ax.com...
I'm not sure, but I have received a bunch of e-mails from people that had
the You Tube link in it. They acted like it was some big new discovery. Oh
well, not everyone is as much in-the -know as those here!
azurespirit
"Bob Rudd" <bob...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:%84%i.7060$WN2.896@trnddc08...
Well, that makes the timing about right for the e-mails then! The Oprah
Congregation....
Aaron
> >> What happened with Paul Potts in the past week to make his CD suddenly
> >> start selling? It jumped from #115 to #23 on the latest Billboard Top
> >> 200 album chart. I'm assuming the AI newsgroup discussion isn't
> >> responsible for the surge.
>
> >He was on Oprah last week and the crowd went wild. Not "British
> >wild"...jumping up to a standing ovation but one step below.
>
> That would explain it. Oprah's sheep strike again!
As Mickey can probably tell you, such sheep-hatin' wouldn't serve you
well in certain parts of the world, like Scotland for example.
I can only hope that most of those sheeple bought the cd because they
liked him and his voice, and not just because Oprah said to.
After all, she also said to read that "biography" ("A Million Tiny
Pieces"?) that turned out to be fiction, and to never eat beef
again...
But I know I'm hoping against hope here.
> Bigolhomo
-Aaron
akaye...@yahoo.co.uk
>
> Whew. X-Factor fans, did I miss anything? ;-)
Not a lot, except there is a lot of argument in the UK over which
format is better.
Some argue that the judge interaction detracts from the actual talent.
Also, the audition stages are pretty much the same as idol.
They show the same lunatics/morons/delusionals the only difference
being that
British morons are much more moronic than American ones.
If you get a chance, look up Rhydian Roberts on Youtube especially
the
"Phantom of the Opera" performance. He is the stand out character from
this
seasons show. A pseudo Broadway/operatic singer who, I think, puts
Paul Potts to shame.
Leona Lewis's single will be going to radio in the US in December,
it's probably fair to say
that she practically owns the pop music scene in the UK at the moment.
Fastest debut artist ever
and outselling the whole of the other acts combined in both album and
singles charts.
Check out this scan of an article from billboard magazine to see what
is in store for America shortly
http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/4429/billboardscanfa7.jpg
Aaron
> On Nov 16, 5:50 am, zob <zob@ cox.net> wrote:
>
>
>
> > Whew. X-Factor fans, did I miss anything? ;-)
>
> Not a lot, except there is a lot of argument in the UK over which
> format is better.
>
> Some argue that the judge interaction detracts from the actual talent.
>
> Also, the audition stages are pretty much the same as idol.
> They show the same lunatics/morons/delusionals the only difference
> being that
> British morons are much more moronic than American ones.
I refuse to believe this! American morons are the most imbecilic
nitwits on the planet!
> If you get a chance, look up Rhydian Roberts on Youtube especially
> the
> "Phantom of the Opera" performance. He is the stand out character from
> this
> seasons show.
I, for one, will do as you say...Oh, thought he was a stand out moron.
I misunderstood. Darn!
Yeah, he's good.
-Aaron
Aaron
Hmm, I don't like his vibrato, though, as I listen further. It sounds
too forced, and too prominent. Also, he flubbed that falsetto note
near the end. I think Paul Potts is better...he just ain't as purdy.
> -Aaron
-Aaron
Bigolhomo
wrote:
Yeah, we're the equivilent of the kids sitting in the back of the
school bus smoking cigarettes, just too cool for words!
--
Bigolhomo
azurespirit
Is that anything like "legends in our own minds"?
>
daveparks
> In article <97dpj3tk9s83tfus2tf96dbaslvl7cg...@4ax.com>,
> br...@whatever.com says...
>
> > What happened with Paul Potts in the past week to make his CD suddenly
> > start selling? It jumped from #115 to #23 on the latest Billboard Top
> > 200 album chart. I'm assuming the AI newsgroup discussion isn't
> > responsible for the surge.
>
> He was on Oprah last week and the crowd went wild. Not "British
> wild"...jumping up to a standing ovation but one step below.
Were they still trying to sell him as the great undiscovered amateur
talent cell-phone salesman?
Mickey
He released a CD and someone, unfortunately, noticed it. He's not so
much bad as boring, which is, for me, a greater sin. I can at least
laugh at bad (e.g., Florence Foster Jenkins).
The Other Mickey
daveparks
Agreed - for me, he's a 'fantastic' undiscovered amateur singing cell-
phone salesman, but an 'Okay' lessoned and experienced professional
performer.
> The Other Mickey
Aaron
<mickey_and_ed...@sbcnomorephishglobal.net> wrote:
> >>> What happened with Paul Potts in the past week to make his CD suddenly
> >>> start selling? It jumped from #115 to #23 on the latest Billboard Top
> >>> 200 album chart. I'm assuming the AI newsgroup discussion isn't
> >>> responsible for the surge.
> >> He was on Oprah last week and the crowd went wild. Not "British
> >> wild"...jumping up to a standing ovation but one step below.
>
> > Were they still trying to sell him as the great undiscovered amateur
> > talent cell-phone salesman?
>
> He released a CD and someone, unfortunately, noticed it. He's not so
> much bad as boring, which is, for me, a greater sin. I can at least
> laugh at bad (e.g., Florence Foster Jenkins).
You can laugh at boring, too, you know? It's ok, Mickey, we know
you're not a saint. The word is out. So go ahead and mock away!
I'll start: "Paul Potts is so boring, HE falls asleep halfway through
singing an aria!"
> The Other Mickey
-Aaron
Bob Rudd
@s36g2000prg.googlegroups.com>, davepa...@hotmail.com says...
A-yup.
Mickey
Better would be something like "Paul Potts is so boring, HE falls asleep
halfway through 'di quella pira'." (More esoteric riffs are certainly
possible.)
The classic for low key was a joke on Perry Como, who wasn't boring so
much as exceedingly easy going. Back in the late '50s or '60s a series
of wind up doll jokes were in vogue. The one for Como was: what happens
when you wind up a Perry Como doll? Answer: it unwinds. Does anyone else
remember these jokes. My favorite was the Lenny Bruce doll.
The Other Mickey
Aaron
wrote:
> > You can laugh at boring, too, you know? It's ok, Mickey, we know
> > you're not a saint. The word is out. So go ahead and mock away!
>
> > I'll start: "Paul Potts is so boring, HE falls asleep halfway through
> > singing an aria!
>
> Better would be something like "Paul Potts is so boring, HE falls asleep
> halfway through 'di quella pira'." (More esoteric riffs are certainly
> possible.)
Or perhaps even better: "Paul Potts is SOOOOOO boring, he fa--*snore*"
> The Other Mickey
-Aaron
Aaron
Was he that comedian who used swearing as a shock factor, what 20-30
years ago?
> The Other Mickey
-Aaron
Mickey
Bruce wasn't disturbing for his use of profanity (which would be judged
mild by today's standards) so much as for the topics he took on.
Routines such as "Hitler and the MCA" and "Religions, Inc" were typical.
He even had a routine about an actual murderer "who blew a plane with 40
people and his mother on it" to collect on her travel insurance. Very
little was out of bounds. I think one of the most disturbing aspect of
his work was how funny most people found it while simultaneously being
shocked right down to their Keds.
The Other Mickey
Vandar
Paul Potts? Was he the leader of the Khmer Rouge?
fmomoon
azurespirit
"fmomoon" <fmo...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:7605bf85-6160-4b0b...@s36g2000prg.googlegroups.com...
I'd like to see that movie again that had Dustin Hoffman in it years ago. I
believe it was just "Lenny"?
fmomoon
> "fmomoon" <fmom...@comcast.net> wrote in message
Yes, that was the name. I remember thinking it was a good movie, but
not a great one. I think Hoffman was trying to go as far away from
"The Graduate" character as he could.
moni
flkofcguls
> I recently heard him sing "God Save the Queen." (I think it was before
> the NFL game in London.) It was better than the butchery our National
> Anthem (a much tougher song) typically gets or most of the renderings of
> "God Bless America" we heard during the 7th inning stretches of the
> World Series.
Or the butchery McPhee gave it yesterday. I hope Nick Cokas is in a
good union because he's not gonna be able to rely on her to bring in
the big bucks.
azurespirit
"flkofcguls" <flkof...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:d7b5e09f-2149-460c...@b40g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
I'm glad it wasn't just me. I actually paused it when she came on so my
husband could watch/listen. He sort of liked her ( at least the visual) when
she was on AI.
Aaron
> "flkofcguls" <flkofcg...@aol.com> wrote in message
You're a good woman!
Or did you glare at him the whole time? That's what I usually get.
But then again, I'm also prone to making comments/having facial
expressions about/in appreciation of my favorite parts of such women's
anatomies while they're onscreen...perhaps that's why I get the glare.
=)
-Aaron
Aaron
To be sure, but didn't he use it as a shock factor as I said?
> so much as for the topics he took on.
> Routines such as "Hitler and the MCA" and "Religions, Inc" were typical.
> He even had a routine about an actual murderer "who blew a plane with 40
> people and his mother on it" to collect on her travel insurance. Very
> little was out of bounds. I think one of the most disturbing aspect of
> his work was how funny most people found it while simultaneously being
> shocked right down to their Keds.
I see. I didn't get to see any of his shows, and the tribute Comedy
Central gave to him in their list of top 20-th century comedians/
iennes largely focused on the "breakthrough" profanity. Perhaps they
missed the point.
I am not one who can laugh while being profoundly shocked/disturbed,
as I noticed when I tried to enjoy "The 40-year-old Virgin." Since
half the jokes (in the first half of the movie) centered around
calling friends/coworkers names like "pussy", the wife and I just
couldn't find the funny. I wasn't aware that simple name-calling was
generally considered humor. =)
> The Other Mickey
-Aaron
Aaron
=)
Only works with the British pronunciation, though. Since I read with
an American accent, I only got that because I watched one of those
clips from Britain's Got Talent.
-Aaron
Mickey
>>> Was he that comedian who used swearing as a shock factor, what 20-30
>>> years ago?
>> Bruce wasn't disturbing for his use of profanity (which would be judged
>> mild by today's standards)
>
> To be sure, but didn't he use it as a shock factor as I said?
As he's dead, we won't be able to ask. I don't think he did it for shock
value as much as it was appropriate for what he was discussing and the
manner (blunt) in which he chose to discuss things. Once he got into
trouble for obscenity, the actual obscenities became topics for
discussion. By then, hiw audiences pretty much expected his routines to
be free of Ed Sullicanesque restraints.
>
>> so much as for the topics he took on.
>> Routines such as "Hitler and the MCA" and "Religions, Inc" were typical.
>> He even had a routine about an actual murderer "who blew a plane with 40
>> people and his mother on it" to collect on her travel insurance. Very
>> little was out of bounds. I think one of the most disturbing aspect of
>> his work was how funny most people found it while simultaneously being
>> shocked right down to their Keds.
>
> I see. I didn't get to see any of his shows, and the tribute Comedy
> Central gave to him in their list of top 20-th century comedians/
> iennes largely focused on the "breakthrough" profanity. Perhaps they
> missed the point.
I'm certain (and not surprised) you're right about them missing the
point. Bruce's significance was in opening up whole new and previously
taboo realms for demystification through comedy. Overly charged words,
such as profanity, was one of them. That he was frequently profane may
have opened the door for profanity qua profanity, but I doubt that was
his goal.
(I don't recommend you rent the recent documentary, "The Aristocrats.")
>
> I am not one who can laugh while being profoundly shocked/disturbed,
> as I noticed when I tried to enjoy "The 40-year-old Virgin." Since
> half the jokes (in the first half of the movie) centered around
> calling friends/coworkers names like "pussy", the wife and I just
> couldn't find the funny. I wasn't aware that simple name-calling was
> generally considered humor. =)
It isn't, unless done artifully, which is not likely to happen on
network TV or in most popular movies. I doubt I would be shocked by
anything about that movie except the willingness of some folk to pay
nine bucks to watch it while eating stale popcorn coated with industrial
waste.
The Other Mickey
azurespirit
"Aaron" <aaro...@msn.com> wrote in message
news:19d62962-3aeb-441e...@t47g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
Aww, you're giving me TOO much credit. I had a feeling she was not going to
be very good and was hoping for a second opinion that would back me up. He
thought she was not good and his comment..."What happened to her?"
Aaron
> >> >> I recently heard him sing "God Save the Queen." (I think it was before
> >> >> the NFL game in London.) It was better than the butchery our National
> >> >> Anthem (a much tougher song) typically gets or most of the renderings
> >> >> of
> >> >> "God Bless America" we heard during the 7th inning stretches of the
> >> >> World Series.
>
> >> > Or the butchery McPhee gave it yesterday. I hope Nick Cokas is in a
> >> > good union because he's not gonna be able to rely on her to bring in
> >> > the big bucks.
>
> >> I'm glad it wasn't just me. I actually paused it when she came on so my
> >> husband could watch/listen. He sort of liked her ( at least the visual)
> >> when
> >> she was on AI.
>
> > You're a good woman!
>
> > Or did you glare at him the whole time? That's what I usually get.
>
> > But then again, I'm also prone to making comments/having facial
> > expressions about/in appreciation of my favorite parts of such women's
> > anatomies while they're onscreen...perhaps that's why I get the glare.
> > =)
>
> > -Aaron
>
> Aww, you're giving me TOO much credit. I had a feeling she was not going to
> be very good and was hoping for a second opinion that would back me up.
But still, you knew your husband thought she was easy on the eyes, yet
you gave him an eyeful even so! Commendable.
> He thought she was not good and his comment..."What happened to her?"
LOL!
Did you hide your elation from him?
-Aaron
azurespirit
Nah, we both sort of agreed. It wasn't like he had the hots for her or
anything.