Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops

notownlikethemotown

Does anyone have thoughts on Levi Stubbs's voice, e.g. range, power, fach, tessitura, etc.? To me he sounds like a baritenor singing slightly too high for his voice type, but he maintained his voice fairly well until his later years. His belts up to B4, C5, and C#5 on some of the Tops' songs are ridiculously powerful and beefy. He never actually sings very low, but his tone is smooth and rich in the mid and lower range. Some of my favorite songs that I think showcase his voice really well are Ask the Lonely, Bernadette, Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got), and Keeper of the Castle. For those unfamiliar, he's the lead singer of the group.

Here's the links to those songs for those interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITh1Pn8u3u8 (Ask the Lonely)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQ4eRsEjIFY (Bernadette)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGNEYd7eClE (Ain't No Woman)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfF6eLUNuyw (Keeper of the Castle)

HuduVudu

His vocal fach is irrelevant, he can get any of the notes he needs through practice. His tessitura is also irrelevant, he can through practice make any note he wants to sing as easy as speaking. His range seems adequate for what he is singing, and he has solid control over that range. I am not really sure what beyond that would be important about his range. I am not really sure what is meant by power, he does have some well developed undertones that gives his voice a stronger sound if that is what you are referring too.

I think one of the unique things about his voice is his remarkable control on big intonation jumps. He shows great control in this and it sounds very good with the music. He moves seamlessly in and out of his head voice. This is very difficult and in context of the songs sung compliments the music very well.

Singing isn't just about the singers voice and the "technical" aspects of it. There is a lot going on for a song to sound good and singer to showcase their voice. A good singer combines all of these soft elements together to express themselves artistically. Clearly the Four Tops as group had this and they did well for themselves because of it.