Thursday, September 06, 2007

The Two Sides of Pavarotti

UPDATE (9-8-07): As much as I enjoyed the rendition of "Miss Sarajevo" performed by Pavarotti and Bono (which was posted second below), I found an even better one today that's my new favorite. A surprising combination, but I think it's pulled off pretty well. Who would have thought James Brown could sound so good live, and that Pavarotti could handle R&B this well?

Luciano Pavarotti was the first great tenor that I can remember hearing as a child, and I can the beginnings of my love of opera to watching him and Beverly Sills performing on PBS. We've lost two giants of music in just a few short weeks; here are two perfect examples of how Pavarotti could play both sides of the musical fence.



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad you got a chance to experience Pavarotti, his marvelous voice, and the world of opera. To me it adds so much to life to be exposed to a variety of musical styles, including opera!

Pavarotti was a master of musical styles himself. He sang "My Way" with Frank Sinatra, as well as "It's a Man's World" with James Brown! What a distinct voice - and what a signature song "Nessun Dorma" from Turandot. I remember when he sang that at the Olympic games in Turin - I wept.

Every generation has its star like Pavarotti - when will we see another like him - or like his inspiration, Gigli?

I'm reminded of a Southern gospel song, "When all of God's singers get home!" What a chorus that will be!

kc bob said...

But did you catch the YouTube video of him and Barry White ... not sure he crossed over too well on tha one.