Do pro singers ever freeze?
March 15, 2012 8:56 PM Subscribe
A question that came up in a conversation with a musical friend today: Do professional singers (who sing frequently in front of live audiences) ever freeze? I can see if a singer was under great stress or drugs, say, that they would put in a poor performance but they would still be able to open their mouths and sing something right? They wouldn't stand there and not be able to make a sound would they?
Once when it happened, I pretended to choke. Clever move, awkward consequences.
posted by chara at 9:05 PM on March 15, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by chara at 9:05 PM on March 15, 2012 [3 favorites]
I've had it happen to me, and I've seen it happen. For me, it's been "Fuck! what are the words!?!".
I once had to stop my pianist and ask him what the first few words of the song were. I just couldn't remember, even though I had sung it a million times. I'm fairly sure I looked like I was having a stroke - I stood there, speechless and in wide eyed terror, for several seconds.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:29 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
I once had to stop my pianist and ask him what the first few words of the song were. I just couldn't remember, even though I had sung it a million times. I'm fairly sure I looked like I was having a stroke - I stood there, speechless and in wide eyed terror, for several seconds.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:29 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
Barbra Streisand suffers from crippling stage fright. She forgot the words to a song one night and had to leave the stage. From then on she had debilitating anxiety that she would forget the words again and stopped performing live for 27 years. She was able to resume live performances only with the help of a monitor displaying lyrics.
posted by QuakerMel at 9:58 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by QuakerMel at 9:58 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
When Wilco played in Toronto a few months ago, Jeff Tweedy completely blanked on the second verse of "She's A Jar". After some prompting from audience members, he said something like "this is the worst moment of my life." That was halfway through the show, and I think it was the first time he had spoken all evening. That sort of broke the ice and he was a lot more gregarious for the rest of the show.
posted by Crane Shot at 10:27 PM on March 15, 2012
posted by Crane Shot at 10:27 PM on March 15, 2012
Dave Grohl forgot the words to the second verse of I'll Stick Around after scolding some dudes for being rowdy. The funny part was, so did everyone who went to see the show. Also, this show happened to be on Pay-per-View.
posted by XhaustedProphet at 10:49 PM on March 15, 2012
posted by XhaustedProphet at 10:49 PM on March 15, 2012
Idina Menzel forgets the words to "For Good" - one of the big hitters from Wicked, which she starred in on Broadway.
posted by Addlepated at 10:51 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Addlepated at 10:51 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
Nina Simone was famous for ad-libbing her way through songs that she'd suddenly forgotten all the words to. Sometimes she'd just switch to a different song. Here's a great clip of her singing "Stars" by Janis Ian at the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival. (Song starts around 4:00.) She is shaky with they lyrics throughout, but then at the end totally forgets them, and sort of makes up a little song of her own, and then segues into another song altogether.
Embarrassing to telegraph the mistake, but still impressive recovery, and MUCH better than just stopping or freezing.
posted by hermitosis at 11:04 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
Embarrassing to telegraph the mistake, but still impressive recovery, and MUCH better than just stopping or freezing.
posted by hermitosis at 11:04 PM on March 15, 2012 [1 favorite]
I've seen Fiona Apple burst into tears in the middle of a show. She ended up singing the next few songs through the tears, crouching on the stage hiding behind a piano. Seemed like she couldn't handle doing an outdoor show in the daylight because being able to see the whole giant crowd scared her.
posted by w0mbat at 12:16 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by w0mbat at 12:16 AM on March 16, 2012
On the less dramatic end of the spectrum, I've seen a jet-lagged professional singer completely crack up during the chorus of a very very sad Irish traditional ballad, struggle through a few lines, then laugh so hard she was unable to continue, had to start the whole song over again. All because her accompanist made a lewd interpretation of the lyrics while they were introducing the song, and they were just punchy enough from travel that she couldn't get through it. All in all, one of my favorite shows ever, I've got to confess.
posted by aimedwander at 6:29 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by aimedwander at 6:29 AM on March 16, 2012
So far, every time it has happened to me I have been able to pull it off (what? I just want the band to vamp for a while before I started, that's a great riff!) - but oh yes, it does happen. Your mind goes blank and you can't remember a thing. Sometimes it's nerves, sometimes it's lack of rehearsal.
I have had enough experience performing new material that I can fake it pretty well though. Rock music makes it easier, though.
posted by pazazygeek at 6:31 AM on March 16, 2012
I have had enough experience performing new material that I can fake it pretty well though. Rock music makes it easier, though.
posted by pazazygeek at 6:31 AM on March 16, 2012
Chan Marshall (Cat Power) was well-known in the late 90's-2000s for cancelling shows (sometimes after they started), breaking down on stage, and just generally being greatly afflicted by her stage fright/personal demons.
posted by carsonb at 6:43 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by carsonb at 6:43 AM on March 16, 2012
I sang in a band for 8 years. I always had a "cheat book" with the lyrics to all of my songs just in case of a brain freeze or stage fright.
posted by sybarite09 at 6:59 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by sybarite09 at 6:59 AM on March 16, 2012
Nobody forgot any words when my band performed last night, but we still tease the lead singer in our band for flubbing the opening lines of a song we performed live on television last year. Lately we've been using a combination of laptop screens and iPads on stage. I can get away with it pretty easily because I'm behind the keys on a MIDI rig, with my laptop right next to me out of necessity. But I've forgotten words to songs a number of times, and it's never fun.
Happens to the best of them, though.
posted by emelenjr at 7:22 AM on March 16, 2012
Happens to the best of them, though.
posted by emelenjr at 7:22 AM on March 16, 2012
I have been to several rock concerts in which the lead singer had big queue cards that were only visible to the band and to people that were looking down from above for this very reason. In the cases I have seen this, it was more of a preventative than necessary.
posted by Silvertree at 7:26 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by Silvertree at 7:26 AM on March 16, 2012
Judy Garland was giving a Madison Square come-back concert (IIRC) (one of several over her life), when this happened during "You Go to My Head":
You go to my head
And ... I forgot the gosh-darned words
Duh-duh dee-dee-dee
... a sip of sparkling burgundy brew.
Since the music repeats through the verse, the orchestra was able to stay with her "extra" two lines. From the laughter, it's fairly clear that the audience didn't even catch on until the nonsense syllables.
That was a pro.
posted by IAmBroom at 7:39 AM on March 16, 2012 [1 favorite]
You go to my head
And ... I forgot the gosh-darned words
Duh-duh dee-dee-dee
... a sip of sparkling burgundy brew.
Since the music repeats through the verse, the orchestra was able to stay with her "extra" two lines. From the laughter, it's fairly clear that the audience didn't even catch on until the nonsense syllables.
That was a pro.
posted by IAmBroom at 7:39 AM on March 16, 2012 [1 favorite]
I saw Willie Nelson forget the words to Georgia (or some other song he's sung a million times) on TV. He just stopped, said "I forgot the words," chuckled, and jumped ahead to the chorus, I think.
posted by adamrice at 7:54 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by adamrice at 7:54 AM on March 16, 2012
My brother, who is an indie guitar singer-songwriter guy, once forgot the words to one of his songs on stage. He just leaned into the mike and said "I forgot the words to the second verse, so we're just gonna play through all the chord changes and come around at it again." Did so, leaped right into the second verse with no problems. . . but in talking to him later, he said "In that moment, I seriously considered faking a seizure just to get the hell off that state. I might have actually peed a little."
posted by KathrynT at 9:49 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by KathrynT at 9:49 AM on March 16, 2012
A friend sings in a professional cover band. The gigs attract up to a thousand people and they play for up to three hours, doing up to maybe 80 covers. A lot of lyrics. The funny thing is whenever he forgets a line he effortlessly slides into a sort of musical "talking in tongues" (aka glossolalia). The audience loves it.
posted by yoHighness at 10:16 AM on March 16, 2012
posted by yoHighness at 10:16 AM on March 16, 2012
I've seen this happen onstage at the Met. I've been playing in orchestras at smaller venues when it's happened in cantatas. Part of being a pro is learning to recover from freezing and forgetting the words and all that stuff.
I did once see a play that was canceled because one of the second leads just couldn't go on anymore. He stood frozen in place onstage for what seemed like forever, while the other actors tried to cover for him, and then eventually they brought the curtain down and just gave everyone refunds.
posted by Sidhedevil at 12:13 PM on March 16, 2012
I did once see a play that was canceled because one of the second leads just couldn't go on anymore. He stood frozen in place onstage for what seemed like forever, while the other actors tried to cover for him, and then eventually they brought the curtain down and just gave everyone refunds.
posted by Sidhedevil at 12:13 PM on March 16, 2012
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posted by chara at 9:02 PM on March 15, 2012 [2 favorites]