3 Musicians Who Duped Their Fans With Wildly Different Vocal Styles

Everybody knows different artists for different things. If you’re listening to a rock song with molecular licks and improvisation, there is a good chance that song is by The Grateful Dead. If you’re listening to a song that leans on drum solos, then that could either be Genesis or Rush. You get the point, but what about the musicians who can change their vocal styles and sound unfamiliar to fans? There are ways to go about doing that, but it takes a studied and attuned ear. With that in mind, here are three musicians who have duped audiences with wildly different vocal styles.

Videos by American Songwriter

Paul McCartney

For the most part, Paul McCartney stayed and continues to stay in his pocket. However, every 10 songs or so, he becomes ambitious and changes his vocal inflection. So much so that he surely left fans wondering who in the world was behind the microphone on certain tracks. In a sense, when McCartney does this, he takes on a new character, a character that props up the story and tone of the song.

A few songs in which McCartney sounds unrecognizable include “Monkberry Moon Delight”, “Temporary Secretary”, “Mumbo”, “Smile Away”, and at the very beginning of “Rocky Racoon”. We could list several more in which McCartney does so, but we’ll leave you with these for now.

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan‘s vocal changes over the decades have been both intentional and a result of aging. You might disagree with our take here, as Dylan arguably has the most distinguished voice in music history. That being so, some folks might believe that it is impossible for him to cover up the qualities that make it so distinct, but we beg to differ.

The obvious example is Dylan’s 1969 country album, Nashville Skyline, as he adopted a whole new voice for artistic purposes. Furthermore, the clarity in his voice was also a result that he stopped smoking. Also, if you listen to Dylan’s later stuff, such as his album, Time Out Of Mind, you very well might need to double-check and see if that is actually Dylan singing.

Joni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell‘s vocal switch primarily had to do with age, smoking, and wear and tear on her vocal cords. However, a lot of other people aren’t complaining about that, as Mitchell’s voice in her later career brought her a newfound sense of sophistication and atmospheric wisdom.

Tracks displaying Mitchell’s vocal switch include “Twisted”, “In France The Kiss On Main Street”, and “Love Puts On A New Face”. Mitchell’s switch wasn’t abrupt; instead, it more or less started in the mid-70s and has continued ever since.

Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images