I feel bad about the title of today’s post. These fine women have their own styles and don’t deserve to be classified by how they stack up to this one guy. However this encompasses a major element i’m looking for in the singer who will voice Jacqueline O’Brien.
I’m never going to get the singer i want. It’s not that i have a specific singer in mind, it’s just… between the limited access i have and the pathetically paltry sum i have to pay them (if you know someone who fits the descriptions i’m about to give who wants to sing on the Dieselpunk Opera as Jacqueline for $300 please send them along) i’m going to have to work with what i can get. That’s life. But we can dream big.
Jacqueline O’Brien in a mature woman. I want her to sound between 40 and 60. The actual age of the singer is irrelevant, she should SOUND between 40 and 60. She should sound weathered. She should be an alto. She should sound cool as hell.
This is why i bring up Tom Waits. He and his music have that sound. Weathered, not young, cool as hell. The fact that he’s a genius in my book and one of my top 5 musical gods of all time probably factors in.
So today we’re going to list a number of women who embody this. Who have that thing i think Jacqueline should have. Who are cool. Who you’d sit with on a rusty fire escape smoking cigarettes passing a bottle of whiskey back and forth with while shooting the shit.
1. Rickie Lee Jones
I LUUUUV Rickie Lee Jones.Cool? The girl OOZes cool. (She also actually dated Tom Waits in the late 70s). Go check out her album Pirates.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNgSb1TGGcQ]
2. Nina Simone
She is a GOD.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDprYZ-tgiA]
3. Marianne Faithful
Here is a gem i’ve plundered repeatedly over the years. Remember the movie City Of Lost Children? That was an awesome movie. Here’s Marianne Faithful singing a song from the soundtrack.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eocYVGAzYHc]
4. Thalia Zedek
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pD8Lxlqmsg]
5. Sandy Dillon
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUHccE7BKpk]
6. Eleni Mandell
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-svXyOa4Nw]
7. PJ Harvey
Yup.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ1HHXpnDV4]
8. Fiona Apple
This might sound surprising, but i’m sticking with it. She is an amazing songwriter with a deep, unique style all her own, an AWEsome alto voice and she’s got soul to spare.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61lQu8YCjVU]
Let's connect! Here is where you can find me:
