Post by crack on Dec 31, 2019 21:55:36 GMT
Vocal Range: F2 - E5
Associated Acts: Men at Work (1980-1985), Solo (1987-present)
High Notes:
E5 ("Hold Me", "Nature of the Beast", "Wayfaring Sons")
E♭5 ("Can I Hold You", "Hard Luck Story")
D5 ("Be Good Johnny" live, "Don’t Drink the Water", "Dr Heckyll & Mr Jive", "Man With Two Hearts", "Nature of the Beast", "No Sign of Yesterday", "Not So Lonely", "Small Town Big Hell", "Storm In My Heart", "Upstairs In My House", "Ways of the World")
C♯5 ("Blue for You", "Can I Hold You", "Catch a Star", "Crazy", "Dreamtime In Glasgow", "Fisherman’s Friend", "Freedom Calling", "Hold Me", "I Can See It In Your Eyes", "I Don’t Need You Anymore", "It's a Mistake", "Looking for Jack", "Maria", "Overkill", "These are Our Finest Days", "Underground", "Wash It All Away", "Who Can It Be Now")
C5 ("Against the Tide", "Back In My Loving Arms", "Be Good Johnny", "Broken Love", "Don’t Drink the Water", "Fallin' Down", "Freedom Calling", "No So Lonely", "Upstairs In My House")
B4 ("Blue for You", "Can’t Believe You Anymore", "Children on Parade", "Circles Erratica", "Down By the Sea", "Down Under", "Dream On", "Dreamtime In Glasgow", "Everything I Need", "Going Somewhere", "Helpless Automaton", "Help Me", "High Wire", "I Got Woken Up", "I’ll Leave the Light On", "Into My Life", "Master of Crime", "Overkill", "People Just Love to Play With Words", "Puerto Rico", "Sail to You", "Small Town Big Hell", "Snakes and Ladders", "Still Life", "Storm In My Heart", "To Have and to Hold", "Touching the Untouchables", "Underground", "Waiting for My Real Life to Begin", "Who Can It Be Now")
B♭4 ("Hard Luck Story", "I Don’t Miss You Now", "No Sign of Yesterday", "Secret Love", "Send Somebody", "Settle Down My Boy", "Still Life")
A4 ("Against the Tide", "Are You Lookin' at Me?", "Back In My Loving Arms", "Be Good Johnny", "The Best In Me", "Catch a Star", "Circles Erratica", "Come Tumblin’ Down", "Crazy", "Down Under", "Dr Heckyll & Mr Jive", "Going Somewhere", "Goodbye My Red Rose", "High Wire", "I’m Going to Get You Stoned", "I Can See It In Your Eyes", "If I Had Been a Better Man", "Keep on Walking", "Looking for Jack", "Man With Two Hearts", "Maria", "No Restrictions", "Oh California", "Sail to You", "Secret Love", "Shintaro", "The Longest Night", "Till the Money Runs Out", "Waiting In the Rain", "Wash It All Away", "Wayfaring Sons", "Ways of the World")
G♯4 ("Don't Be Afraid", "Dream On", "Everything I Need", "Fisherman’s Friend", "Freedom Calling", "Goodbye My Red Rose", "I Don’t Miss You Now", "If I Had Been a Better Man", "I Got Woken Up", "Into the Cornfields", "It's a Mistake", "Master of Crime", "Melbourne Song", "No Win Situation", "Pure Love", "Shintaro", "Still Life", "Touching the Untouchables", "Waiting In the Rain", "Ya")
G4 ("A Thousand Million Reasons", "Are You Lookin' at Me?", "Can’t Believe You Anymore", "Children on Parade", "Company of Strangers", "Death Row Conversation", "Fallin' Down", "Far From Home", "Giving Up", "Half a Million Angels", "Hold Onto My Hand", "I’ll Leave the Light On", "Into My Life", "I Want You Back", "The Last to Know", "Lived In Vain", "The Longest Night", "Love Don’t Mean Enough", "Melbourne Song", "My Brilliant Feat", "Pleased to Almost Meet You", "Settle Down My Boy", "Snakes and Ladders", "There's Water Over You", "Trying to Get to You", "Upstairs In My House")
Low Notes:
D3 ("Against the Tide", "Baby Can I See You Tonight?", "Back In My Loving Arms", "Beautiful World", "Boy Boy", "Can’t Believe You Anymore", "Children on Parade" Going Somewhere Version, "Dear Father", "Death Row Conversation", "Don’t Drink the Water", "Don’t Wait Up", "Down Under", "Fallin' Down", "Gather Mercury", "Goodbye My Red Rose", "Half a Million Angels", "Here In My Hometown", "Hold Onto My Hand", "I’ll Leave the Light On", "I Can't Get Up Out of This Bed", "If I Had Been a Better Man", "I Haven't Seen You in a Long Time", "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You", "Invisible", "I Wish I Was Still Drinking", "Lifeline", "Lived In Vain", "Lonely Without You", "Lose to Win", "Love Don’t Mean Enough", "Man With Two Hearts", "My Brilliant Feat", "Nature of the Beast", "No Sign of Yesterday", "No Time", "Not So Lonely", "People Just Love to Play With Words", "Prison Time", "Scattered In the Sand", "Sea Dogs", "Small Town Big Hell", "Sometimes I Wish", "Storm In My Heart", "Two Friends", "Underground", "Walk Amongst His Ruins", "Water Song")
C♯3 ("Blue for You", "Circles Erratica" Going Somewhere Version, "Dreamtime In Glasgow", "Fisherman’s Friend", "Hard Luck Story", "Help Me", "I’m Inside Outside In", "I Got Woken Up", "I Got You", "I Wish I Was Still Drinking", "I’m Doing Fine", "Into the Cornfields", "Lose to Win", "Love Is Innocent", "No Win Situation", "Secret Love", "She Was the Love of Mine", "Touching the Untouchables", "Waiting for My Real Life to Begin", "Ways of the World", "Where the Sky Is Blue", "Who Can It Be Now", "Woman’s Face", "Ya")
C3 ("A Thousand Million Reasons", "Back In My Loving Arms", "Fisherman’s Friend", "Gathering Mercury", "I Don't Know Why", "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You", "My Brilliant Feat", "No Time", "Oh California", "Sea Dogs", "Send Somebody", "Wayfaring Sons")
B2 ("Are You Lookin' at Me?", "Beautiful World", "Blue for You", "Boy Boy", "Catch a Star", "Down By the Sea", "Dream On", "Dreamtime In Glasgow", "Dr Heckyll & Mr Jive", "I Don't Know Why", "Into My Life", "Lonely Without You", "Love Is Innocent", "Maria", "Master of Crime", "Ooh, Ooh, Ooh, Ooh Baby", "Overkill", "Prison Time", "Pure Love", "Small Price to Be Free", "The Longest Night", "Touching the Untouchables", "Up In Smoke", "Waiting for My Real Life to Begin", "Water Song", "Who Can It Be Now?" acoustic, "Woman’s Face")
B♭2 ("Can't Take This Town", "Hard Luck Story", "It's a Mistake")
A2 ("Against the Tide", "Come Tumblin’ Down" acoustic, "Down By the Sea", "Down Under", "I'm Going to Get You Stoned", "Looking for Jack", "Melbourne Song", "Overkill" acoustic, "Sail to You", "Spencer the Rover", "Storm In My Heart")
G♯2 ("I'm Doing Fine", "I Don’t Need You Anymore", "Into the Cornfields", "Pure Love", "Up In Smoke")
G2 ("Be Good Johnny", "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" radio edit, "No Sign of Yesterday")
F♯2 ("I Don’t Need You Anymore")
F2 ("Transcendental Highway")
....................................................................
Italics mark non-melodic notes
Underlines mark obscured notes
{QUESTIONABLE NOTES}
C♯5 ("No Restrictions")
C5 ("Stay at Home")
B4 ("Here In My Town")
A2 ("Into the Cornfields", "Sea Dogs")
G♯2 ("I Don’t Miss You Now")
E2 ("Dream On")
C♯5 ("No Restrictions")
C5 ("Stay at Home")
B4 ("Here In My Town")
A2 ("Into the Cornfields", "Sea Dogs")
G♯2 ("I Don’t Miss You Now")
E2 ("Dream On")
{VOCAL SUMMARY}
Born in Saltcoats, Colin Hay is a Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter, best known for his success with the new wave band, "Men at Work". His reggae-tinged diction and vibrant belting in the upper-fourth/lower-fifth octave with the group have often led to comparisons with Sting, though Hay's voice is noticeably a shade or two darker in timbre, employing an altogether chestier mix than the ex-"Police" frontman. Hay could be argued as an example of a baritenor, his comfort between A4-C♯5 indicative of a tenor's tessitura, though carrying more of a baritone heft in terms of tone.
The ambiguity of his fach has maybe became more pronounced with age, using his mid-range and lower register more frequently in his solo material, all the while still belting out his back catalogue, now well into his sixties. Whilst transposition down a semitone or two has recently become a necessity of touring, in 2016, Hay performed his 80s anthem, "Overkill", on the Tonight Show, in the original key, impressively belting his way up to C♯5. Another interesting trait of his solo era is a step away from the quasi-Caribbean pronunciation that was present on the Men at Work albums, allowing his native-Scottish accent to narrate his esoteric lyrics.
In terms of ornamentation, Hay has tended to favour a more understated approach, though has decorated passages with melismatic flourishes when appropriate, and employed a narrow, almost laughter-like vibrato on occasions too.
Overall, Hay's voice is a warm, pleasant one, and one over which he has excellent and enduring control. I can think of few singers who have continued to display such exceptional breath support more than forty years into their career. Overall, Colin's mid range is very smooth and flexible (Down Under or Be Good Johnny for example), his low range is dark and airy, and his upper range is emotive and powerful. Rich, strong, and soulful voice through and through. Reminds me of a high placed version of Sinatra at times
Born in Saltcoats, Colin Hay is a Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter, best known for his success with the new wave band, "Men at Work". His reggae-tinged diction and vibrant belting in the upper-fourth/lower-fifth octave with the group have often led to comparisons with Sting, though Hay's voice is noticeably a shade or two darker in timbre, employing an altogether chestier mix than the ex-"Police" frontman. Hay could be argued as an example of a baritenor, his comfort between A4-C♯5 indicative of a tenor's tessitura, though carrying more of a baritone heft in terms of tone.
The ambiguity of his fach has maybe became more pronounced with age, using his mid-range and lower register more frequently in his solo material, all the while still belting out his back catalogue, now well into his sixties. Whilst transposition down a semitone or two has recently become a necessity of touring, in 2016, Hay performed his 80s anthem, "Overkill", on the Tonight Show, in the original key, impressively belting his way up to C♯5. Another interesting trait of his solo era is a step away from the quasi-Caribbean pronunciation that was present on the Men at Work albums, allowing his native-Scottish accent to narrate his esoteric lyrics.
In terms of ornamentation, Hay has tended to favour a more understated approach, though has decorated passages with melismatic flourishes when appropriate, and employed a narrow, almost laughter-like vibrato on occasions too.
Overall, Hay's voice is a warm, pleasant one, and one over which he has excellent and enduring control. I can think of few singers who have continued to display such exceptional breath support more than forty years into their career. Overall, Colin's mid range is very smooth and flexible (Down Under or Be Good Johnny for example), his low range is dark and airy, and his upper range is emotive and powerful. Rich, strong, and soulful voice through and through. Reminds me of a high placed version of Sinatra at times
Credit to Clem for the vocal summary