Lead Singer, Let's get started

[Timmer]

Sorry, Harry Hess, and he is who again.

[I'm Late]

Corey Brown of Magnitude Nine. US prog band. Hasn't put out any new material since 2004. Great Voice!

[sadlercrew]

John Wetton , formally of Asia. He should be the new lead singer. Hands down!!!

[Tailgunner]

I've said it before and I'll say it again...Harry Hess ffs!!

Harry is a fantastic singer and frontman !!!

HAREM SCAREM is one of the really best Rockbands ever . So sad that the will break after next CD ...

Tailgunner

[Timmer]

And they are Canadian?

[Social Orphan]

I'm sorry but I see all this as just a piss take.
Yes there are great yet undiscovered singers out there I'm sure but I can't see SAGA taking that chance.

I could not disagree more. The new singer will have to be someone pretty much undiscovered. Out there somewhere is the next lead singer of Saga and I doubt it is someone we heard of.

By the way, the videos are getting better.

[Timmer]

So far from the vids submitted Andy Skuse looks pretty good. Plays guitar, bass and keys. From the video his range seemed good, but a little soft. That may have just been the recording. With a little bit more power in the vocal he'd sound great. With all he's got going other than that he's number 1 so far. IMHO

[sagalady]

One thing that impresses me with all these videos is how fantastically well the applicants have mixed their voice with the backtrack.

If you guys are reading this - WELL DONE!

[Timmer]

I never listened to just the music without the singers. I've notice that when the girl says "no luck today?" it is done well. Everyones timming seems to be right on for that.
My pick so far is the chap from London Ontario but the girl does a good job too.

[dr_raven1]

One thing that impresses me with all these videos is how fantastically well the applicants have mixed their voice with the backtrack.

If you guys are reading this - WELL DONE!

Hi sagalady,

I am certainly reading the comments, so thank-you for the kind words!

So far from the vids submitted Andy Skuse looks pretty good. Plays guitar, bass and keys. From the video his range seemed good, but a little soft. That may have just been the recording. With a little bit more power in the vocal he'd sound great. With all he's got going other than that he's number 1 so far. IMHO,

Thanks for the positive feedback Timmer! I wrote up some notes on my YouTube page that explains why I made a video, but here's the abridged version. Like you and others have rightly pointed out my voice is not that strong. Some of the other auditioners have very strong voices, and Michael certainly has a very powerful voice, but I thought it interesting that none of the other auditioners were trying to sing in a similar style to Michael's, and that they all had such different voices compared to Michael's. IMHO, I think the band might be interested in having a singer who has their own voice but can still sing the current list of songs using Michael's phrasing so that it might still seem familiar enough. I don't think anyone can replace Michael, but there may be someone out there who can keep the original vocal phrasing alive for the old songs while providing a slightly different vocal flavour for the new material.

I also made my video because I noticed that the keyboards that Michael plays in both songs were left out. I think by doing this the band is asking a "trick question", so I added most of the keyboard parts for Wind Him Up back in. I think the band could get by with a lead singer that doesn't play keyboards using technology like sequencers and triggered samples, but if you watch Michael in any of the videos he plays a fair amount of keyboards and is their main piano guy, and Saga has always prided themselves on playing everything themselves. Also, visually it's always been exciting to see all 5 players playing in songs like Wind Him Up or On The Loose, and even more so in songs like Careful Where You Step (the big ending).

As I mention at my YouTube site, I have no illusions about becoming the next singer of Saga. If offered a chance to audition I'd give it my best shot, but I don't think I have the whole package, so to speak. But I love to challenge myself and I had a lot of fun learning to sing both tunes. I hope that whoever does get the job will have the whole package of a strong voice that can "remind" us of Michael's phrasing style a bit while providing their own voice for new material, and have some keyboard and bass guitar abilities to keep the "everything played by humans" tradition alive.

BTW: For the "no luck today" part, that's actually me singing that line. I used an effect in my recording software to change the pitch up to sound like a woman's voice and recorded it on a separate track.


Andy Skuse

[Timmer]

Hi Andy:
Nice response. Well done with the girls voice and knowledge of computer work. Also well done on the added keyboards. You seem to know your way around music pretty well.
I'm not sure if the whole process is really to find a singer or not. If you read the the article in the Barrie paper I posted Ian says they knew this was comming for over a year and already might have found someone before the last tour. So it might just be a fun thing for the band and fans to keep amused before the next CD comes about. Either way you did a great job and I think you'd do well with the talent you have.
But then I'm really nobody so what do I know

[dr_raven1]

Hi Andy:
Nice response. Well done with the girls voice and knowledge of computer work. Also well done on the added keyboards. You seem to know your way around music pretty well.
I'm not sure if the whole process is really to find a singer or not. If you read the the article in the Barrie paper I posted Ian says they knew this was comming for over a year and already might have found someone before the last tour. So it might just be a fun thing for the band and fans to keep amused before the next CD comes about. Either way you did a great job and I think you'd do well with the talent you have.
But then I'm really nobody so what do I know

Hey Timmer,

There's an article I read online that said the same thing. Just did a Google search and found it:

http://www.simcoe.com/article/48753

Ian said; QUOTE - "We’re in a strange position. Mike’s been the singer for the whole time – 30 years. And he is the voice of the band. So it’s not just a case of getting a great singer or something. It’s a case of finding the right guy. I think I might have found him, and it’s taken a year,” he said. “But I’m still not sure. We have to get into a room with him, and play some old stuff.”

“He’s got a hell of a set of pipes on him. And we’re going to give it a shot, let’s put it that way. We’ll know if it’s working or not. The fans will give us one shot and that’ll be it, that’s about the size of it,” Crichton continued. END QUOTE.

Heres the part though that I found interesting. I think it echoes what I wrote about the new singer being able to respect the past and sing in a way that can just remind us of Michael's phrasing style;

QUOTE - “If this were to work, we’re concerned about whether he can cut about 10 cool Saga songs (for a new album). I imagine we’d do a new album, go out and play it, but we’d also want to play 10, 12 from our catalogue. And that’s really the clincher there. Because the new stuff is going to be the new stuff. He’s not going to be expected to be a Mike Sadler, or whatever. But on the old stuff, that’s the kind of tricky part.” END QUOTE.

I see the video audition as a fun thing too, but I think if someone really good were to poke their head up the band might consider asking them to audition, but as good as some of the auditions are IMHO I don't think that person has shown up to the party yet.

We'll just have to wait and see. The band has been pretty quiet since the video auditions have started. With Christmas out of the way now we should be hearing something from them pretty soon about their plans.

Andy

[dr_raven1]

BTW: Looks like Doug Varty has thrown his hat back into the ring. He's clearly a talented guy, though I don't know why he chose to play Daryl's synth parts for On The Loose and Ian's guitar parts for Wind Him Up, and then left out the piano parts that Michael plays for both songs.

http://ca.youtube.com/profile?user=dougvarty

Andy

[Carl1]

Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum and this is my first post. I've followed the music of Saga since 1978 and have every album they've ever done. To me they are simply one of the greatest bands of all time. Unfortunately, I've never been in the right place at the right time and have never seen them live. Luckily I have all the dvd's and I know they put on a great show when they perform.
I was gutted when I heard Michael had decided to leave but I hoped the band would stay together and find someone to take them onward and upward. My first thoughts for a replacement were for Denton Young who some of you will know from another (sadly long since split up) great Canadian band Zon who released 3 albums in the late 70's and early 80's inldued the pomp classic "Astral Projector". Now Denton Young has a voice that at times is very close to Michael but different enough to bring something new. Now this is just a personal dream as I could imagine this guy in Saga quite easily but after Zon broke up I never heard of Denton Young again so I have no idea if he still performs and even if he did would he be interested, capable etc etc.
I think something that is of paramount importance is that the band get someone who has a lot of qualities to bring. Whoever it is needs to be able to sing, write, play and has to be a charismatic performer. Also, the new singer will have to fit with the band on a personal level and that will be a big challenge for both the band and the new person.
Regarding the idea of Harry Hess being the man for the Job, I can't imagine him in the role at all. He's a good singer but has a pretty gruff voice and is more of a hard rocker. Definitely not a choice I'd go for personally.
Regarding the youtube video's whilst some of them do a passable vocal performance I don't see any of them fitting the bill at all. I appreciate it must be pretty nerve racking doing those songs whilst being filmed but where is the charisma and showmanship ?
No one is selling themselves and if I was Ian Crichton or any of the others I'd be hoping for a lot more. However, maybe a couple have the potential to give more and could prove to be much better than the clips.
Anyway, time will tell and whatever happens I'm sure Saga will produce a great album.

[sagalady]

BTW: Looks like Doug Varty has thrown his hat back into the ring. He's clearly a talented guy, though I don't know why he chose to play Daryl's synth parts for On The Loose and Ian's guitar parts for Wind Him Up, and then left out the piano parts that Michael plays for both songs.

http://ca.youtube.com/profile?user=dougvarty

Andy

I was wondering where he took off.

This isn't bad at all. I see your point about keyboards and guitars. I guess he's showing his versatility. Vocal performance - I've heard his own stuff and like his voice a lot. He isn't trying to emulate Mike in the videos. Just being himself. Which I think is a the whole point.

On a different note, that is a NICE solo Ian is doing on the Wind Him Up track.