STUDIO Vs. LIVE PERFORMANCES: Why Are The KEYS/Arrangements Often Different?

[Kraig Diesel]

STUDIO Vs. LIVE PERFORMANCES: Why Are The KEYS/Arrangements Often Different?

[reese]

There could be any number of reasons. Sometimes a key might be difficult for a singer during the recording, but the end result is great. But doing the same song in that same key night after night could be difficult, so they will lower it. Of course, voices lower with age and that affects keys as well.

[ralpht]

Great response, reese. And true.

[midnightman]

Reese basically nails it. Also note some artists go on stage and rearrange the song to see how they think a live audience will take it. Listen to Whitney Houston's different versions of "Saving All My Love" onstage during the '80s, she changed the keys to them up a notch but slowed down the tempo almost dramatically to make it jazzy and more soulful...

[soulster]

All that, and also, the recordings are a carefully designed product, which I have always liked.

[imnokid]

Yes on the comfort level. Producers in the 60s would generally have the singer perform ina key that was at the high end of their reach, supposedly for soulfulness. And Reese nailed it for night after night. As for arrangements, many artists feel the songs a certain way after they have recorded them and put that forth in concert.

Ever been to a Dylan concert? If not youtube Dylan and a song of his you like. I bet that every one is different. lol

Happy New Year from me & B everybody!

[Jerry Oz]

I haven't been to a traditional concert in 20 years. I used to wonder why it seemed that the songs were sped up in concert as compared to the record. After listening and singing them to myself for months, it was hard to keep up with some of the concert performances. If anything, I'd have thought the tempo in concert would be slower but more often than not [[in my experience), the opposite was true.

[ralpht]

HDH always jacked up the key a bit for Levi Stubbs. You could hear that he is most definitely at the very top of his range on Four Tops records.

[soulster]

Yes on the comfort level. Producers in the 60s would generally have the singer perform ina key that was at the high end of their reach, supposedly for soulfulness. And Reese nailed it for night after night. As for arrangements, many artists feel the songs a certain way after they have recorded them and put that forth in concert.

HDH always jacked up the key a bit for Levi Stubbs. You could hear that he is most definitely at the very top of his range on Four Tops records.

I read a long time ago somewhere that songs recorded in higher keys are more appealing to the pop audience, which is why producers like to record in higher keys. It just seems peppier. It's also a reason many pop records are mixed with the bass lower in the mix, or almost non-existence, so the song will seem snappier. If you have a lot of bass, it seems to slow the song down a bit. Lower bass and tweaked midrange also sounds better on the radio.

[edafan]

wonderful discussion; I also didn't liked the speeded up tempos, so they could get more songs in; once at a concert; spinners sang their songs way too fast and I love the spinners
edafan