Okay, I listened to ALL FRICKIN 18 MINUTES of the critique. In summary, the boys are saying:
1. Adam missed the mark on some of the notes(not KEYS, boys, if you are gonna make yourselves out to be experts, use the right terminology. Say he was off on certain PITCHES or NOTES, not KEYS, which refers to the musical structure, not the pitch of individual notes).
2. Adam used an unpleasant "goat" vibrato.
3. Adam was not faithful to the phrasing Freddie used originally. He didn't do his homework and study multiple Freddie performances to duplicate Freddie's style with a phrase.
4. Adam was not faithful to Freddie's style of singing. Adam wailed notes, and Freddie never did. His voice might break, it might squawk, it might scream, but he didn't wail. Adam' style of singing and his type of voice does not fit Queen music.
5. Adam is technically the superior singer, and is probably technically the best singer today. He sounds great on his own material, and probably Led Zep stuff, but should not do Queen. It doesn't sound right. It doesn't sound good.
Did I about sum it up? Here's my take.
#1. Adam's performance WAS a bit "pitchy" in places. I ain't gonna lie. I could debate whether he was going for the Eb which didn't fit the key of the song and which he overshot, or whether he was going for the E, which does fit the song but ended up being a little flat. We could do a debate note for note, but in principle, I have to agree that Adam was not pitch perfect in the medley. Particularly on some of the improvised riffs.
This is something I have heard from Adam before. Riffing on a song is very difficult. You have to imagine a distinct, complicated lyrical line before you start, so that you can hit it exactly. If you are not completely sure of where you are going with the line, it will sound muddy. When I have noted this in Adam, it has been on songs he has not performed a lot. He is winging it, and experimenting with the musical lines. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. Once Adam has played with the song enough times, he has a clear image of the riff he wants to execute, and the notes are right on. Of course, the Queen performance was all basically new material for him, and he had very limited practice time. He could have taken the safer route and not gone for the riffs. Sung it with the exact notes originally recorded, but, when has Adam taken the safe route? For better or worse, he makes a song his own.
#2. Goat vibrato: Yes, his vibrato was narrower and faster than usual. But not nearly as wobbly as what I have heard from Freddie in a number of performances I have heard. I was a bit surprised, but figured it was done for the theatrics. For me, it fit the venue and the performance.
#3. Adam was not faithful to Freddie's phrasing. Of course he wasn't. It was not Adam's intent to reproduce Freddie's performance. It was to interpret the music in an homage. Adam rarely duplicates the original phrasing of a song he covers. Most times, I prefer his phrasing, as it is more meaningful and emotional. But, some people want to hear exactly what they have always heard, and do not like someone "messing with" a great song.
#4. Adam was not faithful to Freddie' style. Again, I say, of course. He isn't a Freddie imitator, he is Adam interpreting some great Queen songs. I'd venture to guess that if Adam had done a Freddie imitation, Freddie fans would have been aghast at the sacrilege of it all. But, if he does his own interpretation, the fans still find fault. Reminds me of Ring of Fire. Did Adam wail? Of course. That is Adam's style. I don't think that Freddie had the pipes or the technique to wail. So, he interpreted things differently. Was the wail inappropriate or contrary to Queen's style? Not to me. To these guys, yes. Apples and oranges. I find it interesting that they said they would prefer Elton John singing TSMGO. He lowered the key by several tones and sang the harmony rather than the melody in parts of the chorus. His style was very different from Freddie's. So, them saying Adam's style was incorrect confuses me.
#5. Adam is technically a better singer than Freddie. The guys got that part right. But, why did it sound like a criticism coming from them? It seems they like Adam, the person, respect Adam, the singer, but don't want Adam touching Freddie's music. So be it.
One factor they did not mention: Brian and Roger thought Adam was fantastic and fit seamlessly with them. They want to work with him again. I consider them the greater "experts" on all things Queen and Freddie. Sorry, guys.
And, having written all of this, if ANY of you reading even think about quoting this post on their forum, I will personally hunt you down and tear out each of your finger and toe nails slowly and painfully. Please, don't quote this one. I don't want poop thrown at me.
Thanks.
