Layne Staley (43,664 views)

[onemorelight17]

Nov 17, 2021 18:57:39 GMT Kreuger said:

youtu.be/rvLi_daCnHU

This came up on my feed today. He claims G#6 and D7?!?!

Edit: The D7 has been covered.

G#5 (already in thead) C#6 (already in questionable notes) 

[halloweenjack95]

Along with Chris Cornell the most powerful Voice I have ever heard in Rock and modern Music.
D7 is a reach tho.

Edit: I see. It got covered a while ago.

[motorist]

Looks like he lost a lot of range early in his career, even more than Chris Cornell lost in his entire life, not counting the falsetto and harsh notes.

[halloweenjack95]

Feb 18, 2022 23:45:34 GMT motorist said:

Looks like he lost a lot of range early in his career, even more than Chris Cornell lost in his entire life, not counting the falsetto and harsh notes.

How so?
He even killed it in his last performance with Alice in Chain's in 1996.

[motorist]

Feb 19, 2022 9:03:07 GMT halloweenjack95 said:

Feb 18, 2022 23:45:34 GMT motorist said:

Looks like he lost a lot of range early in his career, even more than Chris Cornell lost in his entire life, not counting the falsetto and harsh notes.

How so?
He even killed it in his last performance with Alice in Chain's in 1996.

He could hit F#5s in the earliest part of his career but only went up to C5 by the end of his career. It's possible he could have went higher but it looks like he never even went there once after 1990. Admittedly he didn't need it, he had amazing vocals throughout his entire career.

[halloweenjack95]

Feb 19, 2022 18:29:47 GMT motorist said:

Feb 19, 2022 9:03:07 GMT halloweenjack95 said:

How so?
He even killed it in his last performance with Alice in Chain's in 1996.

He could hit F#5s in the earliest part of his career but only went up to C5 by the end of his career. It's possible he could have went higher but it looks like he never even went there once after 1990. Admittedly he didn't need it, he had amazing vocals throughout his entire career.

There wasnt really much difference later. Especially not live.
But one reason may be his overall pretty worse state. He was physically just pretty damaged from his heavy drug use.
He may have lacked a bit vocal power after 94 but his voice was overall still intact. Even his belting.

[Zedd Squared]

I do wish he'd have explored his 5th octave more later on since he had a lot of potential there, but I think it was a stylistic choice to eschew that side of his voice to better suit AiC's music. If I wasn't a notewatcher I can't imagine I'd listen to those classic albums and think "hmm this dude could probably go higher" since compositionally his vocals always worked great for the song.

[motorist]

There's a G#2 and I think an F2 in "Heaven Beside You", both faint but easily noticeable in this vocals only track:

G#2: youtu.be/_FV5fBFlglA?t=87
F2: youtu.be/_FV5fBFlglA?t=190

Also as Baronessa mentioned there's still a D3 in the thread labeled "Am I Right", it should be "Am I Inside", correct?

[fella]

He didnt loose any range, he doesnt sound like he got any serious vocal issues throughout his career, one of the most (vocally speaking) healthy vocalists in rock history. Keeping the songs in the upper fourth octave is an intentional signature sound of AiC, going up to the fifth octave would really change the vibe of their sound.

[motorist]

Mar 14, 2022 3:14:42 GMT fella said:

He didnt loose any range, he doesnt sound like he got any serious vocal issues throughout his career, one of the most (vocally speaking) healthy vocalists in rock history. Keeping the songs in the upper fourth octave is an intentional signature sound of AiC, going up to the fifth octave would really change the vibe of their sound.

He definitely kept his range up to C5 better than almost any other vocalist because of good technique.
But above that? Those notes were less stable, I think he did lose some of that range because he did hit harsh notes high up there later but never a black note. 
Yes they weren't necessary in the music, I get that, but that doesn't mean he was still able to do them.
Unfortunately, I don't think it can be necessarily disproven or proven, but that's my view.

Also everyone - any opinions on the Heaven Beside You lows?

[motorist]

There's also:

Bb4 in Right Turn youtu.be/gBCTEM2Hga4?t=170

E3&D3 in “Nearly Lost You” live with Screaming Trees 1992 www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeIX60rEsO0

Bb4 (I think?) in Head Creeps: youtu.be/vkddh6pfmg8?t=255

G#4 in Frogs: youtu.be/9ZOiEa7BJO0?t=59

Bb4 in Them Bones Demo: youtu.be/6K_ZaI5HC90?t=133

E5? in Sweet Leaf 1991 youtu.be/jP5-FTBuxt0?t=475

[halloweenjack95]

Mar 14, 2022 3:32:07 GMT motorist said:

Mar 14, 2022 3:14:42 GMT fella said:

He didnt loose any range, he doesnt sound like he got any serious vocal issues throughout his career, one of the most (vocally speaking) healthy vocalists in rock history. Keeping the songs in the upper fourth octave is an intentional signature sound of AiC, going up to the fifth octave would really change the vibe of their sound.

He definitely kept his range up to C5 better than almost any other vocalist because of good technique.
But above that? Those notes were less stable, I think he did lose some of that range because he did hit harsh notes high up there later but never a black note. 
Yes they weren't necessary in the music, I get that, but that doesn't mean he was still able to do them.
Unfortunately, I don't think it can be necessarily disproven or proven, but that's my view.

Also everyone - any opinions on the Heaven Beside You lows?

Check out his last performance he did with Alice in Chains in 1996. I was actually surprised that he still managed to sing the songs so well. You can clearly hear he hadn't any vocal damage. But like I said. His overall health was declining since 93 and especially from 94 on.

[motorist]

Mar 27, 2022 16:03:17 GMT halloweenjack95 said:

Check out his last performance he did with Alice in Chains in 1996. I was actually surprised that he still managed to sing the songs so well. You can clearly hear he hadn't any vocal damage. But like I said. His overall health was declining since 93 and especially from 94 on.

Me too, but it's not really a point against what I'm talking about. I'm referring to his songs with his screams up to F#5 that didn't seem as controlled, like "I Can't Have You Blues" and "Queen of the Rodeo". However great he kept his range up to C5 (better than almost any other vocalist, for certain), his range above that was an entirely different thing - that's undeniable looking at the distribution of the top half of the thread.

He did go for notes above C5 later in his career - but they were harsh notes, like the live ones from Hate to Feel, or falsetto. I think if he could have gone up there using the same techniques he did in the late 80s, some of those notes would have been black. This has nothing to do with how well he sang all of those Alice in Chains and Mad Season songs that usually topped out at Bb4 into 1996. I am a huge fan of his vocals, this is just something I noticed from this thread.

[onemorelight17]

 lower than G#2?

WTF ?? 
Questionable note

[motorist]

Not the most notable note because there's an E2 in the thread already, but I also hear a quiet C#3 in the chorus of "Grind":

Let the sun never blind your EYES
Hear a sound from a voice in-SIDE
It's mostly Cantrell in the chorus, but the lowest part is almost definitely Staley

Also all of the verse backing E3s in "Rain When I Die" are Cantrell. Don't hear any other backing E3s in the song either.

You have a the official live version of Bleed the Freak linked, it should probably be the studio version since the Bb2 is held out for a bit longer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCZPWTfw5OI&t=30s

Eb5 from Real Thing: youtu.be/iy_oKAOMveU?t=58
D5 from Dirt: youtu.be/kfmatjm2NdU?t=199 (Maybe melodic, that's always a matter of opinion though - in my opinion. It's off-key and shaky, but also repeated twice and somewhat musical, idk)

[Rodney Blazershorts]

[onemorelight17]

It seems like that B5 in the spoiler section is Layne and not an instrument.

[motorist]

Jan 20, 2023 22:34:26 GMT onemorelight17 said:

SPOILER: Click to show

{spoiler}

It seems like that B5 in the spoiler section is Layne and not an instrument.

While that's not the official vocal track (couldn't tell if you realized or not), I agree.
Some others thought it was an instrument when I asked about it on discord so I put it in questionable notes. I'm confused about how that's possible though.. it sounds unlike the guitar tones of the song and much like Staley's vocals in the rest of the song, and there are no other instruments it could be really.

Also if this G#5 (code exactly as written) I missed could be added to the thread, that would be great: "Killing Yourself" live Central Tavern, Seattle 1989

There's also a G#4 I missed in "Get Born Again": youtu.be/xKHUwfFb2lw?t=156

[secondplatypus]

Excellent thread.
Layne is my favorite vocalist of the grunge era, and probably my favorite vocalist of them all.
I have a tremendous amount of respect and admiration for Chris Cornell,
but Layne is the one who gets me where I live.

There are some solid highs in his performance in “Father Rock” (0:38, 1:16).
m.youtube.com/watch?v=r3KQ5MBMcdI

Is the falsetto C#5 from the MTV unplugged version of “Would” bold-worthy?
It’s one of my favorite fifth-octave notes from any vocalist, and one of the go-to examples of his voice that I play for people who aren’t familiar with Layne.

Also, there’s an Eb3 (I may be off by a half-tone, apologies if that’s the case) at 1:38 in AIC’s live performance of “Man in the Box” at the Moore theater that sounds decent,
and seems relatively free of the nasal quality that shows up in some of his live Facelift-era third octave notes.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=naoSdrzqh-M

I wish Layne received more recognition for his low range, especially as he aged and grew into his voice.
That Bb2 from “Bleed the Freak” is so resonant and powerful, and seems almost superhuman for a tenor, and he has an envious amount of power in that part of his range.

Speaking of his voice type,
I haven’t had much of a chance to talk about voice type classification with people who have experience and the knowledge-set to determine where singers are placed,
and I was hoping to gain some insight about Layne’s voice.
He has a heft and strength throughout his 4th octave range that reminds me of Chris Cornell and David Draiman,
but in his fifth octave, he’s reminiscent of tenors like Rob Halford and Steve Perry, with a touch of Dio (in his early glam days, anyway).
When I think of tenors, there’s an edge/thinner quality to their voices and traits in their lower ranges that don’t seem apparent in Layne.

Does his classification as a tenor come down to his placement and tessitura, or are there other qualities that are deciding factors?

[motorist]

Feb 4, 2023 8:02:09 GMT secondplatypus said:

There are some solid highs in his performance in “Father Rock” (0:38, 1:16).
m.youtube.com/watch?v=r3KQ5MBMcdI

That's Tim Branom of Gypsy Rose singing, Layne just appears in the scene.

As for the "Man in The Box" Eb3, there's already a C#3 from the studio version so I wouldn't bother with it.

I think he's a tenor based on how compressed his low notes sound, even around C#3 he sounds kind of compressed, which is typically not expected of baritones.. but historically voice type discussions on this forum have gone horribly awry so I don't want to say anything more on that.

[halloweenjack95]

Feb 4, 2023 8:02:09 GMT secondplatypus said:

Excellent thread.
Layne is my favorite vocalist of the grunge era, and probably my favorite vocalist of them all.
I have a tremendous amount of respect and admiration for Chris Cornell,
but Layne is the one who gets me where I live.

There are some solid highs in his performance in “Father Rock” (0:38, 1:16).
m.youtube.com/watch?v=r3KQ5MBMcdI

Is the falsetto C#5 from the MTV unplugged version of “Would” bold-worthy?
It’s one of my favorite fifth-octave notes from any vocalist, and one of the go-to examples of his voice that I play for people who aren’t familiar with Layne.

Also, there’s an Eb3 (I may be off by a half-tone, apologies if that’s the case) at 1:38 in AIC’s live performance of “Man in the Box” at the Moore theater that sounds decent,
and seems relatively free of the nasal quality that shows up in some of his live Facelift-era third octave notes.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=naoSdrzqh-M

I wish Layne received more recognition for his low range, especially as he aged and grew into his voice.
That Bb2 from “Bleed the Freak” is so resonant and powerful, and seems almost superhuman for a tenor, and he has an envious amount of power in that part of his range.

Speaking of his voice type,
I haven’t had much of a chance to talk about voice type classification with people who have experience and the knowledge-set to determine where singers are placed,
and I was hoping to gain some insight about Layne’s voice.
He has a heft and strength throughout his 4th octave range that reminds me of Chris Cornell and David Draiman,
but in his fifth octave, he’s reminiscent of tenors like Rob Halford and Steve Perry, with a touch of Dio (in his early glam days, anyway).
When I think of tenors, there’s an edge/thinner quality to their voices and traits in their lower ranges that don’t seem apparent in Layne.

Does his classification as a tenor come down to his placement and tessitura, or are there other qualities that are deciding factors?

Yeah. Layne is one of my absolute favorites as well. And even with his health in decline in 1996 (MTV Unplugged) he still sounded great.
His Voice type? I'd say he is a tenor.

[queenfan11]

I'd personally count the live "Taxi Driver" Eb5 and live "Them Bones" E5 listed in questionable notes, they both sound controlled and deliberate, and the latter in particular is decently sustained. Don't seem any weaker then some of the other live screams listed like the "Sickman" and "Living After Midnight" E5s.

[VocalDudeGuy]

5:22 New highest note???

[Macca]

Dec 29, 2023 17:53:06 GMT VocalDudeGuy said:

5:22 New highest note???

A6 but not really countable.

[Baronessa]

Cue Goober embarking on a mission to find a countable whistle note.