legit prog, shame about the vocals

spock's beard

decemberists

IQ

public image ltd.

pavlov's dog

the jesus lizard

I think IQ's singer is decent

tbh this can be sort of a blessing in disguise. The Tangent for instance is one of those modern prog bands where main guy handles the vocals despite not being too good of a singer. but if he was he'd probably write more vocal sections, which is sort of his weak spot as a songwriter anyway. see also: Refugee (that reformed version of The Nice with Pat Moraz in the Emerson role - people complain about the vocals a lot but there are barely any)

Love IQ and Pavlov's Dog singers, hate every other contemporary prog singer because they all sound like Chris de Burgh

spock's beard: the smooth-guy American vocals are less of an issue than hammering together songs out of Yes, Genesis, Gentle Giant etc. leftovers.

pavlov's dog: Geddy Lee does cabaret is an interesting idea, but their songs are vague.

The singer for The Nice is terrible but so is most of the original material he has to work with.

Said it before but I hate Derek Shulman's voice in Gentle Giant.

I don't think he's a "bad singer", but Trick of the Tail and Wind and Wuthering run aground for me due to the singing of Phil Collins. He hits the notes but the tone is mewling (and the production doesn't help).

Honestly prog vocals are something I endure on the whole rather than enjoy. Other than Gabriel (pre-80s when he went all sensitive) and Dagmar Krause I can't think of many I like, other than Nicholls & Surkamp mentioned above. Maybe Steve Walsh from Kansas too! But GG/KC/VdGG, even Yes, it's pretty bad.

Greg Lake! Fuck that C of E choirboy shite.

No-one ever sounded good (or awake) singing with Camel, not even Richard Sinclair.

Steven Wilson is one of the blandest singers I've ever heard.

I think most of the classic prog vocalists are pretty good, yes even Greg Lake and the Gentle Giant boys (maybe not individually but they harmonized really well). I agree that Camel never really had a good one but again, if they had they wouldn't have done anything like The Snow Goose.

halfway is otm about Steven Wilson, it's kind of why I've always been fairly lukewarm on him. he hits the notes fine and his voice is more pleasant than a lot of prog singers but he just has no range as a singer, all he can do is sing slightly louder. it doesn't quite seem right for the kind of music they do.

*opens thread, beaming with validation*

Annie Haslam is a legitmately great rock singer and the best prog vocalist (though i don't normally see Renaissance mentioned along other prog bands)

RUSH :SSS

You beat me to it

second album by curved air is top ten prog for me and a lot of why i love it is sonja kristina. i love annisette from savage rose too. and jenny haan from babe ruth. and anneke from the gathering. i guess what i'm trying to say is: more prog women please!

i'll have to think of my fave 70s prog vocalists. i never had a problem with most of them. and a lot of them are "serviceable". there were a lot of good british singers. i love the guys in magna carta. justin hayward and greg lake can make me swoon but i also really like lee jackson a lot! he was unique and he had character.

there are italian bands for the hardcore proggers i have heard that have definitely made me go !oof! just way over the top operatic and also just queasy-making. but the music could rule.

I think Collins' vocals on those mid-70s Genesis albums are fine. Dagmar Krause is the one I can't abide, she makes In Praise of Learning and those Art Bears albums pretty much unlistenable for me. On the other hand her vocals on the Slapp Happy reunion album Ça Va are perfect.

Black Midi

Jon Anderson is one of my favorite singers ever, love Peter Hammill, Geddy Lee, Annie Haslam, the Comus singers. I think the Gentle Giant singers have too many good moments to be called bad, I have a lot of fondness for certain songs for the singing.

Have way more trouble with metal singers.

Alan Tecchio from prog metal band Watchtower will never get enough love, just gloriously over the top

thank you Scott for defending Lee Jackson. I don't agree with you, but someone's gotta do it.

that said I do think the way he comes in during the Refugee album is hilarious - no vocals until like 7 minutes in, and he blows his voice out on the very first line..."SOOOME DaAaaAaY you're gonna feel the PAIN"...ooooh Lee I'm feelin it already

i just love those jackson heights records so much.

i could never get into annie haslam or renaissance for some reason. just never dug the records. would rather listen to pentangle or steelye span. they were always a little...boring to me? i should try the early ones again. you can buy their first ten records on vinyl for about 20 bucks. (and i love keith relf and yardbirds and i don't even really like that first renaissance album with him and jane relf.)

I think Ashes Are Burning is the best litmus test for that band, dunno if its their best record but if you don't dig it you won't like the others. if nothing else Carpet of the Sun is one of the greatest prog singles ever. I don't think it was really a hit but it should've been.

Scheherazade is their best and "Ocean Gypsy" is the vocals that really moves me. There's something on Turn Of The Cards that is particularly good, can't recall which track.

I've never felt Jacula were a true prog band but that seems to be where they are usually shelved, Fiamma Dello Spirito was an amazing singer, what on earth happened to her? Where did she go? Certainly not the same person as Doris Norton, as is claimed in their biographies.

I wouldn't say I hate the singing in Yezda Urfa but that kind of plagiarism in singing really gets on my nerves, still pleasant at times

Running Hard is the track on Turn of the Cards I really like, amazing bit in the middle where everything stops but Haslam and the orchestra

Singers I like who would annoy the fuck out of a lot of people: Devil Doll and Cairo

I was thinking of "Cold is Being" by Renaissance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKb2VlcrRn8

The one song I like on Turn of the Cards is "Black Flame". Renaissance is sort of the opposite to this thread question because the lead singing is obviously the highlight of the records.

radiohead

There’s another track on that Refugee album where, after a looooong florid quasi-classical piano intro, Lee Jackson comes in with this gruff “ I belieff, the life you liff you leaff” that always cracked me up.

lol that part always stands out to me because that's the point where you kinda forget the band even has a singer at all