it really is a pleasure hearing the 3 girls in recordings and while M and F mostly only are in backgrounds there are lots of tracks where they still shine. much of More Hits is so enjoyable BECAUSE it's mostly just the 3 of them and HDH were still taking time to develop compelling backing vocals and 3 part harmonies. same with the WDOLG album
yes flo had a large voice and sure it could be overwhelming. but listen to her lead lines on Breathtaking and then listen to her lead on the end of Long Gone Lover. that's the same person singing 2 different ways. on Breathtaking she's beautifully controlled, soft, sensual. on Long Gone she's letting it rip and that booming Ballard voice is on full display. and while i sometimes find faults with her leads on Silent and O Holy, there were sections of both that are spectacular. on one of the Silent versions, at the end when she sings "Christ the savoir... is born" she so perfectly and delicately sings "christ" and then goes to town on "born".
as many others have said, had M and F had more opportunities to sing lead in the studio, they could have experimented more with their voices and developed them. i'd love to hear more of the soft beautiful Flo voice from Breathtaking
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