Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent....

This woman not only has an amazing voice, but she picks some of my all-time favorite songs to sing. I hope she wins!!!!
(Note: she bobbles her notes a bit at the beginning, but I think a few nerves could be excused. LOL)

Memory from CATS

Shes too over rated

these are the ones that should win

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pg3fvanDDc

or

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MamSKGd4y28

I have to half agree with DJ. I've heard Susan Broyles and I wasn't impressed. I get that her voice COMPLETELY doesn't match her looks, but...
Wobbles...pitch (she is flat)
Her high notes are okay...but average singers get high notes worked out...soprano's who can sing like that are a dime a dozen...her mid range is not very clear, and her low notes are the ones that have the worst wobble...

And Foxy....I've listened to MULTIPLE versions of Les Mis...and actually won a music theatre competition back in Bama singing "Empty Chairs and Empty Tables"....My voice now would be more similar to Javert....but back then the baritenor was my role...

She has a voice that many would envy...but it is not performance caliber...even in NY...which focuses more on Dance than London, which focuses more on singing...(or that is what I can tell after watching/listening to performances of Cats, Phantom, and Les Mis on both sides of the pond)

I'm not going to say those guys aren't talented. Very good performances on both, but I think the story behind Susan Boyle's rise to fame outshines them by far. Those kids in the clips you showed will undoubtedly have careers as performers. This woman has spent her entire life, with a beautiful voice that, struggling and basically ignored. To give her a chance to live her dream is amazing and I want her to win. And Fig, her first performance from Les Mis was far better than her Cats performance. She is NOT flat (well, the beginning notes were, but that's nerves and you can hear it). I'm not a noob on this subject either, and I say that as soon as she gets comfortable on that stage you are going to hear her soar. Is she a star caliber singer? No. But is she good enough that after a lifetime of poverty she should have a chance to sing for the queen? Yeah, absolutely.

Sing for the queen...why not....have a career being paid to sing? No.

It's a great story I grant you that. And I will go back and listen to the cats piece once I get home...But I SERIOUSLY doubt it will hold a candle to Betty Buckley or Elaine Paige's renditions..

And Foxy...I was actually talking about her Les Mis performance...I was all hyped up to hear such a great storyline...and was dissappointed. "I Dreamed a Dream" is a not a difficult piece vocally (dramatically it can be..) so much so that it was a consistent part of the repertory in High School music theatre competitions. She compared favorably to many of the high school performances I heard...but is not in the same league as ANY of the college level or professional level singers who sang that...

Understand that I am not dismissing the great story here...but I completely agree that she has been overrated.

She's no Elaine Paige or Sarah Brightman, but she has a lovely voice, especially for an untrained one. The competition is to sing for the queen, not to open on Broadway, so I still say I'm rooting for her.

So who's your favorite professional singer? I'm just curious. Mine has to be Frances Ruffelle. Her version of "On My Own" is fabulous.

Holy shit foxy.


That you actually put Sarah Brightman and Elaine Paige in the same sentence made me throw up a little inside my mouth.

I would listen to Susan Boyle over Sarah Brightman. The only reason she has jobs is because she was married to Andrew Lloyd Webber...

The girl they got to sing Christine in the Phantom movie was SO much better...Every time I hear Sarah Brightman sing, I die a little more inside. She must have been a GREAT actress (in addition so sucking a mean ****) because based on voice....words fail me.

My favorite? Robert Merrill. Classical Operatic Baritone. Listen to his Rigoletto sometime...It will send chills down your spine...in a good way.

Whoa.....Sarah Brightman's "Christine" in Phantom may not have been superb, but have you heard her other pieces? When she stops trying to top the scales and sings in her range, she is the best mezzo soprano I have ever heard doing Messiah.

And I've seen her...she can't act. So must have all been "talent" ya know? But seriously, you have to hear her other stuff. She's brilliant. Most mezzos struggle for clarity, and rely way too much on rounding their tones to hide their pitchiness. She is crystal clear, has perfect pitch, and there is a fullness to her voice that will choke you up.

Haven't seen the Phantom movie. Watching movies made from musicals is against my religion, although I made an exception (help me, seriously, cause it was truly painful) to see Antonia Banderas in Evita. I'll NOT make that mistake again.