Top 10 Backing Vocalists in Rock and Metal
Some backing vocalists are very good - maybe not better than the lead singers but still.There are backing vocalists who:
1) Released solo albums as lead singers
2) Are lead singers for another band (usually less known)
3) Sang whole songs for the same band as lead singers (studio or live)
4) Sang big parts of songs for the same band as lead singers (studio or live)
5) Provide great backing vocals.
He has the best falsetto ever! He has a very strong voice and it’s impressive how high his voice can go. He has a better falsetto than Barry Gibb does.
He has unique voice and 4 octave vocal range. A lot of Queen songs would not be the same without him. And he is so damn good-looking oh my God!
Why isn't he on the top? I think, that he is number one in singing skills among the others in this list. He has much better voice than p.ex. George Harrison.
I don't have to thinking about that! This man has a 4 octave vocal range, his voice was amazing, his backing vocals are unique and awesome!
Until the point he left Metallica was still a metal at least.
Cliff Burton: Thrash Metal
Jason Newsted: Heavy metal
Rob Trujillo: Happy metal
Made their live concerts 10x better
Long-term Metallica bassist who sang some of their songs live as a lead singer. Not bad at all. YouTube these videos:
Metallica - Seek & Destroy (Jason on vocals);
Metallica - The Four Horsemen (Jason on vocal! ) [HD] (1992.06.16) Jackson, MS, US
Jason was the man!
The Chili's songs with his backing vocals are far superior to those without. Also his solo stuff is amazing, providing backing vocals to himself.
No one can hit high notes like fur isn't especially as a back up vocalist. His singer in desecration smile, under the bridge, and other side are incredible
John has very good backing vocals. Especially in Can't Stop, Sir Psycho Sexy, Venice Queen and Knock me Down.
By the way and snow are two of my favorites, great background vocals - Flea does a good job too but not as good.
How ironic; one of the greatest musicians of all time, but only the third best in his own band.
Whitesnake's guitarist has amazing vocals - he is so good that he could have been a lead singer. He provided lead vox for some songs - Outlaw, Free Flight, and more.
Jack Bruce is up front in most of Cream's songs, with a few notable exceptions..
He's their bassist. I like his vocals more than the lead vocals, especially on "No You Don't" and "Fox On The Run". The song "Restless" was sung by Steve Priest.
Also, his lead vox (shared) on The Ballroom Blitz are fantastic.
A massive jerk, but Crosby essentially invented the concept of "high harmony" that enhanced whatever the lead singer was doing, and making the overall sound much better.
The man could sing. Great voice which enhanced so many songs along with his wonderful lead efforts.
A phenomenal talent!
Rhythm guitarist who sang entire songs for Iced Earth (ex., Stormrider) and provides lead vox for his side project 'Sons Of Liberty'. Not bad.
Check out the song Stormrider, his vocal performance is fantastic!
He was the bassist and backing vocalist during the Coverdale era. Later he started a solo career as a lead singer and bassist.
He was better than David Coverdale in my opinion. Glenn is incredible
Unrivaled voice and huge contribution to all bands involved with.
He did lead vocals on an entire Black Sabbath album (Seventh Star, 1986).
"On The Way Home" and "Do I Have to Come Right Out and Say It" are among Buffalo Springfield's best songs written by Neil, but with Richie Furay as lead singer. When BS has a reunion concert, Richie still sings lead, but you can tell that Neil's backing vocal adds a lot. It is an exceedingly rare treat when Neil performs those numbers himself at one of his own concerts.
Neil was young and still a little shy about singing the amazing songs he was writing even back then, and often let Richie Furay, Stephen Stills, or Jim Messina take the lead vocals, and just contributed to the background.
This man is a rock god in and of himself... There is no other.
Bon Jovi guitarist released solo albums.
As well as lead singer and better singing skills than their regular lead singer.
I put him on low because he's a complicated case - basically he's been a guitarist all the time but he switched several times from lead to backing vox and vice versa:
In Helloween - first lead vox and then backing vox
In Gamma Ray - first backing vox and then lead vox.
Lead vox: Gamma Ray - Rebellion in Dreamland, Land Of The Free, Armageddon
I think people don't realize how much impact had his backing vocals on Maiden's songs
Love his backing vocals on Wasted Years,you can find them isolated on YouTube
He was nearly a better singer than David Lee Roth. When David couldn't sing, Michael did. Watch Chickenfoot perform Highway Star, and he does the high scream.