Billy Gibbons (9,332 views)

[Platypus]

William Frederick Gibbons (16.12.1949 - )
Years Active: (1967 - )
Associated Acts: ZZ Top, Moving Sidewalks
Vocal Range: E1 - B♭5


Significant High Notes:
B♭5 ("She's Just Killing Me", "She's on Fire")
G5 ("99th Floor" demo version, "Fearless Boogie")
F5 ("What Are You Going to Do?")
E5 ("99th Floor", "Bad Girl", "Dirty Dog", "Every Night a New Surprise" Alternate version, "Got Me Under Pressure" live Manchester Iowa 16/07/2021, "Have You Heard?", "Legs" Music video version)
E♭5 ("Lizard Life", "Stop Breakin' Down Blues", "What Are You Going to Do?")
D5 ("Backdoor Love Affair", "Crimson Witch", "Every Night a New Surprise", "Got Me Under Pressure" demo version, "I Want To Hold Your Hand", "Ninja Shack", "Ten Foot Pole", "Velcro Fly")
C♯5 ("Need Me", "Stackin' Paper")
C5 ("Bad Girl", "Goin' So Good", "No Good to Cry", "Penthouse Eyes", "Reverberation (Doubt)", "Que Lastima", "Second Line", "Sleeping Bag", "Stop Breakin' Down Blues", "Zipper Job")
B4 ("2000 Blues", "Fearless Boogie", "If I Could Only Flag Her Down", "Legs", "Ninja Shack", "She's Just Killing Me", "Stackin' Paper", "Ten Foot Pole")
B♭4 ("Breakaway", "Bring It To Jerome", "I Got the Message", "Penthouse Eyes", "Poke Chop Sandwich", "Second Line", "Sinpusher", "Sleeping Bag", "Stackin' Paper", "Stop Breakin' Down Blues", "Tramp", "Tush" live Brandon MS 2021)
A4 ("36-22-36", "Certified Blues" RAW - That Little Ol' Band From Texas, "Cover Your Rig", "Dirty Dog", "Dust My Broom", "Fearless Boogie", "Fool For Your Stockings", "Hillbilly Stomp", "I Got the Message", "I Need You Tonight", "It's Only Love", "It's So Hard", "Ko Ko Blue", "Nightrider", "Over You", "PCH", "Pickin' Up Chicks on Dowling Street", "Reverberation (Doubt)", "Stackin' Bones", "Two Ways to Play", "Waitin' for the Bus" Billy Gibbons and Sammy Hagar Play the Blues, "What is it Kid", "Zipper Job")
G♯4 ("Belt Buckle", "Flyin' High", "A Fool for Your Stockings", "Hairdresser", "Have a Little Mercy", "Legs", "Leila", "Let The Left Hand Know", "Lovething")
G4 ("2000 Blues", "Arrested for Driving While Blind" live Germany 1980, "Backdoor Love Affair", "Backdoor Medley", "Bang Bang", "Bar-B-Q", "Beatbox", "Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers", "Big Shiny Nine", "Black Fly", "Brown Sugar", "Buck Nekkid", "Burger Man", "Cheap Sunglasses", "Concrete and Steel", "Consumption", "Crimson Witch", "Crucifixx-A-Flatt", "Dipping Low (In the Lap of Luxury)", "Dirty Dog", "Doubleback", "Dreadmonboogaloo", "Dusted", "Everything", "Fool For Your Stockings", "Foxy Lady" several live performances, "Francine", "Fuzzbox Voodoo", "Gimme All Your Lovin'", "Give It Up", "Got Me Under Pressure", "Hairdresser", "Heartache In Blue", "Hey Joe" Live Sydney 2011, "Hot Rod", "I Gotsa Get Paid", "I Need You Tonight", "I Thank You", "I Wanna Drive You Home", "I Was a Highway", "I'm Yours And I'm Hers", "It'll Be OK", "Jesus Just Left Chicago", "Joe Blues", "Just Got Back from Baby's", "Just Got Paid", "Let The Left Hand Know", "Lizard Life", "Lowdown in the Street", "Made Into a Movie", "Me So Stupid", "Missin' Yo' Kissin'", "Mushmouth Shoutin'", "My Lucky Card", "My Mind is Gone", "Nasty Dogs and Funky Kings", "Perfectamundo", "Penthouse Eyes", "Pincushion", "Planet of Women", "Prettyhead", "Punk Ass Boyfriend", "Revolution", "Rhythmeen", "Rollin' And Tumblin'", "Salt Lick", "Sanctify", "Second Line", "Sharp Dressed Man", "She Loves My Automobile", "She's Just Killing Me", "Sinpusher", "Sleeping Bag", "Squank", "Stackin' Bones", "Stages", "Statesboro Blues" live Roxy Theater 2015, "Tell It", "Ten Foot Pole", "Tramp", "Treat Her Right", "Tush" live Brandon MS 2021, "TV Dinners", "Velcro Fly", "Vincent Price Blues", "Wear You Out", "What's Up with That", "You Don't Know the Life", "Zipper Job")
F♯4 ("Bad Case Of Lovin' You", "Belt Buckle", "Blue Jean Blues" RAW - That Little Ol' Band From Texas, "Bring It To Jerome", "Chevrolet", "Cover Your Rig", "Flyin' High", "Girl In a T-Shirt", "Gun Love", "Have You Heard?", "Hey Mr. Millionaire", "Hot Rod", "Hot, Blue and Righteous", "Hummbucking, Pt. 2", "It's So Hard", "Move Together", "Ninja Shack", "Over You", "Pan Am Highway Blues", "Pickin' Up Chicks on Dowling Street", "Piedras Negras", "Quiero Mas Dinero", "Rough Boy", "(Somebody Else Been) Shaking Your Tree")
F4 ("Bad Case Of Lovin' You", "Breakaway", "Buck Nekkid", "Burger Man", "Cherry Red", "Consumption", "Dust My Broom", "Dusted", "Enjoy and Get It On", "Francine", "Have a Little Mercy", "Hombre Sin Nombre", "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide" RAW - That Little Ol' Band From Texas, "It'll Be OK", "Liquor", "Mary's", "Me So Stupid", "Miller's Farm", "More More More", "Move Me on Down the Line", "My Lucky Card", "PCH", "Q-Vo", "Sanctify", "She's on Fire", "Sheik", "Shuffle, Step & Slide", "(Somebody Else Been) Shaking Your Tree", "Stackin' Bones", "Statesboro Blues" live Roxy Theater 2015, "Thug", "TV Dinners", "Two Ways to Play", "Velcro Fly", "What is it Kid", "Whiskey'n Mama")
E4 ("Bedroom Thang", "Big Shiny Nine", "Blue Jean Blues", "Brown Sugar", "Certified Blues", "Crackin' Up", "Crucifixx-A-Flatt", "Decision or Collision", "Doctor Brown" Live from The London Palladium 2020, "Down Brownie", "Fearless Boogie", "Flashback", "A Fool for Your Stockings", "Fuzzbox Voodoo", "Goin' So Good", "Got Love If You Want It", "Groovy Little Hippie Pad", "Have You Heard?", "Heartache In Blue", "Hollywood 151", "I Gotsa Get Paid", "I Want To Hold Your Hand", "If I Could Only Flag Her Down", "It's Too Easy Mañana", "Ko Ko Blue", "Leila", "Master of Sparks", "Missin' Yo' Kissin'", "My Baby She Rocks", "My Head's in Mississippi", "Need Me", "No Good to Cry", "Old Man", "Pluto Sept. 31st", "Punk Ass Boyfriend", "Quiero Mas Dinero", "Revolution", "Salt Lick", "Scoun Da Be", "Standing Around Crying", "Sure Got Cold Adter the Rain Fell", "Threshold of a Breakdown", "Tired of Your Jive", "Waitin' for the Bus", "You're What's Happenin', Baby")

Significant Low Notes:
D3 ("Arrested for Driving While Blind", "Backdoor Medley", "Bad Case Of Lovin' You", "Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers", "Certified Blues" RAW - That Little Ol' Band From Texas, "Crucifixx-A-Flatt", "Enjoy and Get It On", "Ester Be the One", "Every Night a New Surprise", "Hey Baby Que Paso", "Honky Tonk Stomp", "I'm Yours And I'm Hers", "Just Got Paid" RAW - That Little Ol' Band From Texas, "Oh Well", "Miller's Farm", "Mo' Slower Blues", "Ninja Shack", "She's a Heartbreaker", "Shuffle, Step & Slide", "Stackin' Bones", "Treat Her Right", "Vagabond Man", "Vincent Price Blues", "What is it Kid", "What's Up with That", "Whiskey'n Mama")
C♯3 ("Bring It To Jerome", "Doctor Brown" Live from The London Palladium 2020, "Hollywood 151", "Old Man")
C3 ("Chartreuse", "Consumption", "Fool For Your Stockings", "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide", "More More More", "Oh Well (Pt. 1)" Live from The London Palladium 2020, "Rhythmeen", "Sal Y Pimiento", "Tired of Your Jive", "Trippin'")
B2 ("As Time Goes By", "Folsom Prison Blues" live Houston 2017, "Got Love If You Want It", "Hollywood 151", "Hummbucking, Pt. 2", "It Seemed a Better Way", "Jesus Just Left Chicago", "Tube Snake Boogie", "Vagabond Man")
B♭2 ("Buck Nekkid", "Have a Little Mercy", "Heartache In Blue", "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide", "I'm Yours And I'm Hers", "More More More", "Que Lastima", "Tramp", "Trippin'")
A2 ("Bar-B-Q", "Fearless Boogie", "Hillbilly Stomp", "I Wanna Drive You Home", "Mexican Blackbird", "Missin' Yo' Kissin'", "My Head's in Mississippi", "Revolution", "These Boots Are Made For Walking" Live New York 2013, "West Coast Junkie", "What Would You Do?", "Zipper Job")
G2 ("El Diablo", "Follow You Home", "I Thank You" live at the US Congress 2014, "Jesus Just Left Chicago" Billy Gibbons and Sammy Hagar Play the Blues, "La Grange", "Liquor", "My Head's in Mississippi", "She's on Fire", "Ten Foot Pole")
F♯2 ("It Seemed a Better Way", "Sixteen Tons" Greatest Hits Live)
F2 ("Liquor")
E2 ("Baby Please Don't Go", "Beatbox", "Folsom Prison Blues" live Houston 2017, "Hi-Fi Mama", "I Was a Highway", "Life In The Fast Lane" live, "Standing Around Crying", "Tube Snake Boogie", "West Coast Junkie")
E♭2 ("Tube Snake Boogie" live in Mannheim 2009)
D2 ("Beatbox", "Desert High", "Mexican Blackbird", "Stackin' Bones", "Ten Foot Pole", "Vagabond Man")
C♯2 ("It Seemed a Better Way", "Manic Mechanic" live New Jersey 2003)
C2 ("Hillbilly Stomp", "La Grange" Several live performances, "Spanish Fly")
B1 ("Crunchy", "It Seemed a Better Way", "Rockstar", "Standing Around Crying")
B♭1 ("Fool For Your Stockings" live Germany 1980, "Lovething", "Me So Stupid")
A1 ("As Time Goes By", "Baby Please Don't Go" live at the US Congress 2014, "Desert High", "Dreadmonboogaloo", "La Grange" Live From Daryl's House 2014, "Liquor", "My Mind is Gone", "Tramp")
G1 ("Beatbox", "Everything", "Foxy Lady" Several live performances)
F1 ("Blue Jean Blues" live Texas 2007)
E1 ("Catfish Blues" live @ the Greek Theater 2014)


.......................................................
Blue marks falsetto or whistle notes.
Underlines mark notes that are obscured in the song mix.
Italics mark non-melodic notes.
Boldface marks notes that are considered to be particularly notable examples of this person's vocal capabilities.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Questionable Notes}B6 ("Prettyhead" ^[1])
B♭6 ("Lizard Life" ^[1], "Sanctify" ^[1])
G6 ("Tell It" ^[1])
F♯6 ("Dusted" ^[1])
F6 ("Breakaway" ^[1])
E6 ("Sinpusher" ^[5])
E♭6 ("Poke Chop Sandwich" ^[1])
C♯6 ("Two Ways to Play" ^[5])
C6 ("My Head's in Mississippi" ^[2])
B5 ("Bring It To Jerome" ^[5], "Decision or Collision" ^[1], "Pickin' Up Chicks on Dowling Street" ^[5])
B♭5 ("Breakaway" ^[5], "Groovy Little Hippie Pad" ^[5], "Hombre Sin Nombre" ^[5])
A5 ("Treat Her Right" ^[5])
G♯5 ("Belt Buckle" ^[1], "Girl In a T-Shirt" ^[5], "Lovething" ^[5])
F♯5 ("Thug" ^[5])
E♭5 ("Bring It To Jerome" ^[5])
D5 ("Dust My Broom" ^[5], "Got Me Under Pressure" ^[5], "If I Could Only Flag Her Down" ^[5])
C5("Gimme All Your Lovin'" ^[5]

B♭2 ("Hombre Sin Nombre" ^[1])
C2 ("La Grange" ^[5])
B1 ("It Seemed a Better Way" ^[5])
B♭1 ("Burger Man" ^[3], "Girl In a T-Shirt" ^[1], "Sharp Dressed Man" ^[3])
G♯1 ("Lizard Life" ^[3], "Me So Stupid" ^[1])
G1 ("Crunchy" ^[4], "Goin' So Good" ^[3])
F1 ("Stackin' Bones" ^[3])
E1 ("Foxy Lady" live Luxemburg 2017 ^[3], "My Mind is Gone" ^[3])


.......................................................
[1] marks yelps and short trills in high range or anacrusis and short dips in low range.
[2] marks notes of questionable identity that cannot be confirmed to be the singer in question.
[3] marks non-melodic notes that don't have a significant enough pitch to warrant inclusion.
[4] marks notes that possess uncertain pitch or have been pitch-shifted.
[5] marks notes that do not fit the previous criteria but are not of a substantial enough quality to warrant counting towards the singer's range.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Album Ranges}with ZZ Top:
ZZ Top's First Album (1971): C♯3 - D5
Rio Grande Mud (1972): A2 - A4
Tres Hombres (1973): G2 - G4 - E5
Fandango! (1975): D2 - B♭2 - A4
Tejas (1976): G2 - A4
Degüello (1979): E2 - A2 - A4
El Loco (1981): D2 - A4 - D5
Eliminator (1983): A3 - E5
Afterburner (1985): F♯3 - D5
Recycler (1990): B♭1 - G2 - C5
Antenna (1994): G1 - E3 - A4 - E♭5
Rhythmeen (1996): A1 - A2 - C5 - B♭5
XXX (1999): G1 - B4 - G5
Mescalero (2003): A1 - A4 - C♯5
La Futura (2012): B♭2 - A4

with The Moving Sidewalks:
The Complete Collection (1968): D3 - G5

Solo:
Perfectamundo (2015): E2 - A4
The Big Bad Blues (2018): B1 - E2 - B♭4 - C5
Hardware (2021): A1 - D2 - G4 - B♭5 [notewatched by Henny Macc ]

[Henny Macc]

Damn, GREAT find with those lows from "There Seemed a Better Way" - easily some of the best low singing I've ever heard by him, and probably one of his best vocal performances too! That live E1 was also a good find - much stronger and easier to hear than the previous one we had linked in his old thread.

I've been doing a decent bit of revision to my old notewatching for Gibbons as well actually, so I can give you pointers about a few notes it looks like you missed...plus I have a number of questions about certain other notes that I see listed, so buckle in, cause we might be here a while.

[Henny Macc]

Okay so let's see. For questions/suggested corrections:
- Are you 100% sure about that "Fearless Boogie" note being a G5? I feel like it's so low in the mix that it could be overtones or something.
- Where is there an A2 in "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide"? I've never been able to hear that one going below B♭2.
- Similarly, I'm having trouble hearing A1s in "Liquor". That one bottoms at B♭1 as far as I can tell.
- Personally, I wouldn't consider the "Seemed a Better Way" B1 a questionable note. Sounds solid enough to me, though admittedly not quite as good as the F♯2s and C♯2. Though I think there may be another short B1 just before the C♯2.
- Are you counting the G♯1 from "Me So Stupid" as the last note ("that's so wrONG")? I think I'm hearing that as more of a B♭1 myself, but I'm not completely sure.
- I would say the "Blue Jeans Blues" live E♭1 doesn't need to be listed in the spoiler, as that was just a nanonote that I mispitched back in 2011. That clip does have an impressively resonant G♯1 however!
- I'm hearing the "Hillbilly Stomp" D2s as C2s personally.
- Under the album ranges, you have Antenna listed as topping at a B♭5, but there's nothing in the thread to reflect that. Might want to correct it.

As for note additions:
- B2s in "She's a Heartbreaker"
- Some really clean B♭4s during the choruses of "I Got the Message"
- A2s in "Zipper Job"
- There's a good D5 during the first guitar solo of "She's Just Killing Me" that we missed before.
- I'm not 100% sure of the pitch of the lows in "Hombe Sin Nombre" (around C2 I think?), but I'd say those are worth an inclusion too

Lastly, I really don't think it's necessary to have his note thresholds expanded quite as far as they currently are - I'd say F♯4 for highs and C3 for lows at most, but D3 and E4 are some very average notes for him that really aren't particularly noteworthy in my opinion. Just my two cents.

I'll give you a while to reply to all that, since I Know it was a lot.

[Platypus]

Apr 25, 2020 18:52:52 GMT Henny Macc said:

Okay so let's see. For questions/suggested corrections:
- Are you 100% sure about that "Fearless Boogie" note being a G5? I feel like it's so low in the mix that it could be overtones or something.
- Where is there an A2 in "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide"? I've never been able to hear that one going below B♭2.
- Similarly, I'm having trouble hearing A1s in "Liquor". That one bottoms at B♭1 as far as I can tell.
- Personally, I wouldn't consider the "Seemed a Better Way" B1 a questionable note. Sounds solid enough to me, though admittedly not quite as good as the F♯2s and C♯2. Though I think there may be another short B1 just before the C♯2.
- Are you counting the G♯1 from "Me So Stupid" as the last note ("that's so wrONG")? I think I'm hearing that as more of a B♭1 myself, but I'm not completely sure.
- I would say the "Blue Jeans Blues" live E♭1 doesn't need to be listed in the spoiler, as that was just a nanonote that I mispitched back in 2011. That clip does have an impressively resonant G♯1 however!
- I'm hearing the "Hillbilly Stomp" D2s as C2s personally.
- Under the album ranges, you have Antenna listed as topping at a B♭5, but there's nothing in the thread to reflect that. Might want to correct it.

As for note additions:
- B2s in "She's a Heartbreaker"
- Some really clean B♭4s during the choruses of "I Got the Message"
- A2s in "Zipper Job"
- There's a good D5 during the first guitar solo of "She's Just Killing Me" that we missed before.
- I'm not 100% sure of the pitch of the lows in "Hombe Sin Nombre" (around C2 I think?), but I'd say those are worth an inclusion too

Lastly, I really don't think it's necessary to have his note thresholds expanded quite as far as they currently are - I'd say F♯4 for highs and C3 for lows at most, but D3 and E4 are some very average notes for him that really aren't particularly noteworthy in my opinion. Just my two cents.

I'll give you a while to reply to all that, since I Know it was a lot.

I've counted the C2s from Hillbilly Stomp, the rest we pretty much have to agree to disagree with untill we get some second opinions floating about.

Fearless Boogie - youtu.be/MRMbenfTBpE?t=225 - G5

I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide - youtu.be/mftf9Wealbg?t=38 - A2

Liquor - youtu.be/Dbdu29DAwuE?t=46 - A1

Seemed a Better Way - youtu.be/da3_aZjGL80?t=56 - B1

Me so Stupid - youtu.be/I_ko8yh5xsY?t=208 - G#1


As for the second block of notes, the ones from "I Got the Message" and "Zipper Job" are fine.
I couldn't find the B2 from "She's a Heartbreaker"
That D5 from "She's Just Killing Me" is just a B4 with a yelp at the end
The low notes from "Hombre Sin Nombre" don't really have a solid pitch to them. Also, that song is really awful :D

[Henny Macc]

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Fearless Boogie - youtu.be/MRMbenfTBpE?t=225 - G5

Yeah, I hear where this is, I'm just a little suspicious that it's actually that pitch because of how faint it is. Might be helpful to hear a volume boosted version if possible?

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide - youtu.be/mftf9Wealbg?t=38 - A2

I'm still not hearing an A2 here - the lowest I'm getting is B♭2 on "naTIONwide". Can you point out what word it's on for me?

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Liquor - youtu.be/Dbdu29DAwuE?t=46 - A1

Is this one supposed to be on "left me the can TO crush"? That one I could believe, though I'd consider the B♭1 the main low note of the passage.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Seemed a Better Way - youtu.be/da3_aZjGL80?t=56 - B1

Yes I'm aware of where in the song this one is. My question was pertaining to why it was being considered questionable, as it sounds like a pretty solid note to me.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Me so Stupid - youtu.be/I_ko8yh5xsY?t=208 - G#1

I figured it was during this passage, but I'm still not clear on what word the note is supposed to fall on. I'm guessing "that's so wrONG"? Like I said, I think I'm hearing that as more of a B♭1, but I'm not 100% sure.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

I couldn't find the B2 from "She's a Heartbreaker"

Listening back, this was actually the only spot where I could find one, and admittedly it's barely there, so yeah maybe don't bother with that one.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

That D5 from "She's Just Killing Me" is just a B4 with a yelp at the end

Well it also starts on a D5 as well, which is still countable enough to me.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

The low notes from "Hombre Sin Nombre" don't really have a solid pitch to them. Also, that song is really awful

Ehhh I'd say they're pitchable, but I can certainly understand not wanting to listen to the song enough to figure out that pitch.  Unfortunately that entire album is pretty terrible.

Apr 25, 2020 18:52:52 GMT Henny Macc said:

- Under the album ranges, you have Antenna listed as topping at a B♭5, but there's nothing in the thread to reflect that. Might want to correct it.

Also, don't forget about this part! Bit of a thread inconsistency there.

Glad to see that the nanonote E♭1 got removed, though I would say that song should still be listed under the spoiler for G♯1, as it's a fantastic example of that note. Unfortunately it's not the most musical example of such a note though, otherwise I would advocate for listing it as a bolded note in the main section.

[Henny Macc]

Apr 26, 2020 2:21:04 GMT Henny Macc said:

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Fearless Boogie - youtu.be/MRMbenfTBpE?t=225 - G5

Yeah, I hear where this is, I'm just a little suspicious that it's actually that pitch because of how faint it is. Might be helpful to hear a volume boosted version if possible?

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide - youtu.be/mftf9Wealbg?t=38 - A2

I'm still not hearing an A2 here - the lowest I'm getting is B♭2 on "naTIONwide". Can you point out what word it's on for me?

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Liquor - youtu.be/Dbdu29DAwuE?t=46 - A1

Is this one supposed to be on "left me the can TO crush"? That one I could believe, though I'd consider the B♭1 the main low note of the passage.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Seemed a Better Way - youtu.be/da3_aZjGL80?t=56 - B1

Yes I'm aware of where in the song this one is. My question was pertaining to why it was being considered questionable, as it sounds like a pretty solid note to me.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

Me so Stupid - youtu.be/I_ko8yh5xsY?t=208 - G#1

I figured it was during this passage, but I'm still not clear on what word the note is supposed to fall on. I'm guessing "that's so wrONG"? Like I said, I think I'm hearing that as more of a B♭1, but I'm not 100% sure.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

I couldn't find the B2 from "She's a Heartbreaker"

Listening back, this was actually the only spot where I could find one, and admittedly it's barely there, so yeah maybe don't bother with that one.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

That D5 from "She's Just Killing Me" is just a B4 with a yelp at the end

Well it also starts on a D5 as well, which is still countable enough to me.

Apr 25, 2020 21:10:31 GMT Platypus said:

The low notes from "Hombre Sin Nombre" don't really have a solid pitch to them. Also, that song is really awful

Ehhh I'd say they're pitchable, but I can certainly understand not wanting to listen to the song enough to figure out that pitch.  Unfortunately that entire album is pretty terrible.

Apr 25, 2020 18:52:52 GMT Henny Macc said:

- Under the album ranges, you have Antenna listed as topping at a B♭5, but there's nothing in the thread to reflect that. Might want to correct it.

Also, don't forget about this part! Bit of a thread inconsistency there.

Glad to see that the nanonote E♭1 got removed, though I would say that song should still be listed under the spoiler for G♯1, as it's a fantastic example of that note. Unfortunately it's not the most musical example of such a note though, otherwise I would advocate for listing it as a bolded note in the main section.

Bumping this since I still have questions about a lot of it.

[Henny Macc]

Turns out there's a short C5 buried in the fadeout of "Penthouse Eyes":


Also, what are your thoughts on this falsetto D5? Also some weird B4s after it and I think one C5 before it.

[Platypus]

Good finds, young man

[Henny Macc]

Looks like Billy's got a new album out as of a couple weeks ago! :surprised: Platypus if you need someone to notewatch it for you, I'd be down.

[Platypus]

good luck, my friend

[Henny Macc]

• "My Lucky Card" - F4s and a G4
• "She's on Fire" - B♭5, a breathy B♭2 that might be worth making a spoiler note, and a G2
• "More More More" - C3s, B♭2s, a possibly questionable C2, and F4s
  
• "Shuffle, Step & Slide" - F4s and D3s
  
• "Vagabond Man" - D3s, B2s, D2s
  
• "Spanish Fly" - C2
  
• "West Coast Junkie" - A2s and an E2
  
• "Stackin' Bones" - D3s, a G4, a probably questionable F1, F4s, an A4, D2s, and a G♯1 spoken bit without musical context at the end of the song (so another spoiler note)
  
• "I Was a Highway" - G4s and an E2 passage
  
• "S-G-L-M-B-B-R" - nothing significant
• "Hey Baby Que Paso" - D3s
  
• "Desert High" - D2s and A1s
  

Quite a good album overall, glad I gave it a listen! Much better than his last two solo albums, which I was really not a fan of. This one does away with all the autotuned Tex Mex pop/rock crossover stuff that he had been exploring on those, and kicks it back to a really cool old school western rock type of vibe. Pretty good range display on it as well, though it's apparent that Billy's becoming more cautious with his high range usage, considering that there are no belted notes above G4 by him on it, and even those only show up in a handful of songs. However, the range that he's using on it suits the music well, and it doesn't really feel like it's missing much vocally for what it aims to accomplish, so I'm not particularly bothered by that.

[Kreuger]

As if this fuckin cat just dropped a Bb5 in his 70s. What happened to a voice lowering with age?

[Henny Macc]

I mean his voice has still lowered plenty regardless of that lol. The B♭5 was just kind of an awkward falsetto note, though it was more sustained than anything he's recorded in that range before. But it's not exactly an indicator of how high or low his voice is these days; just how well his falsetto is holding up in his old age.

If you want a pointer on where his voice is actually sitting these days, I would much more pay attention to the range that he used for melody singing on that album, which was only up to G4 in mixed voice, with one falsetto A4. Meanwhile he's still got lows for days, with singing down to D2 on the new album and spoken parts down to easy A1s.

[Kreuger]

Oh I know it just really surprised me that he could pull that off.

[Henny Macc]

Well that was unexpected! I thought ZZ Top's fill-in bassist was gonna take over Dusty's vocal parts live from now on, but it seems like Billy's just going ahead and singing them on top of his own songs. Lots of G4s in this rendition of "Tush", as well as probably some of Billy's strongest B♭4s to date!

[Henny Macc]

Cool clip here of Billy and Sammy Hagar jamming to "Waitin' for the Bus", where Billy sings Dusty's harmonies and hits some A4s. They later go into "Jesus Just Left Chicago", and Billy sings a few G2s while imitating the bass part.

[mauno]

Aug 12, 2021 5:17:43 GMT Henny Macc said:

Well that was unexpected! I thought ZZ Top's fill-in bassist was gonna take over Dusty's vocal parts live from now on, but it seems like Billy's just going ahead and singing them on top of his own songs. Lots of G4s in this rendition of "Tush", as well as probably some of Billy's strongest B♭4s to date!

It's lip synced like most of his live vocals. Not even Dusty was singing stuff live anymore his last tour.

[Henny Macc]

That's a shame to hear, though that would at least mean that he recorded his own vocal rendition of that song in the studio at some point to lip-sync it to, which would still render the notes countable in some way.

[Henny Macc]

A2 here, and a couple D3s at 2:05. There are also slides down to E2 at 0:28 and 0:42, though those might not be worthing.


B5 here, up to you if you wanna count it though.

[Bink]

Decently stable A1 here

[senatorsenpai]

I had a great time catching up on this thread! I'm a bit familiar with ZZ Top but didn't expect the impressive range on display from Billy. A lot of the high stuff sounds much brighter than you would expect from someone with that kind of weight in his low register.

Is there something wrong with the B♭5 hyperlink? I'm not hearing a voice there and it seems to start in the middle of a guitar solo.

[Henny Macc]

A classic Reverend Willy G. stage banter monologue from ZZ Top's Double Down Live DVD, starting here and continuing till 5:31, with some of his usual low dips along the way. Mostly gets down to A2s, G2s, and F♯2s, however he starts to dip into some of his mega lows towards the end. Most notably, it sounds like he reaches a B1/A♯1 at 5:24.

It's also interesting to hear this because it's from 1980, which is before I think of him having as much in the ways of first octave notes. He obviously still had a pretty decent low range to begin with, but it was rare to hear him go below ~D2ish until later on (maybe not even until the early '90s, now that I think about it). Granted you can hear that the tone of those first octave notes is a fair bit weaker than it would go on to be later in his career, but it's still cool to hear that he already knew how to tap into that register at this stage, and had that technique figured out to some degree.


Also some G4s here from the same concert.

[Henny Macc]

Jul 14, 2022 6:19:40 GMT Henny Macc said:

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}

A2 here, and a couple D3s at 2:05. There are also slides down to E2 at 0:28 and 0:42, though those might not be worthing.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}

B5 here, up to you if you wanna count it though.

Notewatched the rest of Raw last night/today. Not a whole lot of significant stuff on it, but here are the other additional note finds I made for what they're worth:


D3 here if it matters at all


F4 here, and it sounds like Dusty hits a G4 behind it


F♯4 here, surprisingly not as many lows in this one as usual


A4 here, and D3 at 1:04