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  1. When Bob Dylan sings flat and murders his old songs it’s excused as “a radical reinterpretation” or somesuch.

    When Paul Young sings flat and muders his old song it’s a tragedy.

    You know what, both these geezers are trying to do the same thing…earn a living in the age when the projected CD revenues have dried up. Paul just needs to learn to adapt to his aging vocal chords and use it to his advantage. I maintain that the hardest job in the rock heritage/nostalgia industry is the singer…voices age faster than guitar chops and drumming paradiddles.

    • Went to see Bob last year for the first time in over a decade. I had sworn “never again” but do you know what? He was wonderful. A fixed, rehearsed set list, a great band, and songs that now fitted his voice. He was great.

  2. That’s truly awful. However, I’m willing to give him a bit of slack. I spent many a happy hour grinning at Q-Tips gigs in the 80’s. There must surely have been something wrong with the sound and he couldn’t hear himself.

  3. The original was utterly dire. It haunted me as I trudged around Guildford, and that song alone can lay claim to the most utterly hideous backing vocals in the history of popular music, the equivalent of being aurally harangued by a couple of congoing unisex hairdressers pissed up on spritzers.

  5. Is that actually him singing? That is truly dreadful and I can’t believe he wouldn’t know he sounds that bad. The backing band didn’t help, that’s for sure.

  6. Maybe someone should have a word in DLR’s ear – the album (2cd set) is released at the end of this month for masochists everywhere! How are the mighty fallen !

  7. That’s a shame.
    I saw PY many years ago (post Q-Tips, but prior to his big time) opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, in Edinburgh’s Playhouse. He was really good and I was very impressed.
    Q-Tips were a fun band, too.

    Anyway, sad to hear that his voice has gone.

  8. Saw PY a couple of years ago with his hobby band. His voice is lower and he shared the vocal duties but it was in tune and sounded pretty good. Heaven knows what was going on that clip but none of the band I saw were in the above clip.

  9. I couldn’t believe it was him, either.
    I used to love PY. A properly good singer.
    I had to check… So I am sorry to offer Exhibit B:

    Yes, it might be time to knock it on the head.
    🙁

  11. He seems to be in pain, like the effort of trying to get to the right note is a physical struggle. Poor bloke. If you watch the Band Aid documentary he was one of the stand out singers.

  12. I always thought he was a dreadful singer, his hits haunt the memories of my childhood. To me he always sounded like he was straining to sing above his range, and sounded like he was singing from this throat – which ain’t good. Maybe someone who knows about these things might tell me if I have a point or not.

  13. Oh dear. I am glad it wasn’t a clip of “Love of the Common People” because I really like his voice on that one.

    I know this is an horrific comparison, but I recall the Gary Glitter gang shows of the 90s featured a fat GG striking poses and singing very very badly. The shows still sold well, though. I think a refreshed nostalgia circuit crowd can be quite forgiving.

  16. Oh dear, on a par with the late great Paul Shane there. So sad that a man loses the tools of his trade and can’t get them back.{ i’m assuming this is the case} very sad. How does this happen. I read in Keith Richards book that Mick still practises in scales before going on, so maybe he never done his vocal warm ups .

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