# "That was a guy singing?!" wrong calls on singers' genders thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 27, 2007, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808 "2007-04-27T00:43:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/61 "2007-04-27T23:53:17Z")
[QUOTE=dwc1970] The first few times I heard “I’d Like To Get To Know You” by Spanky & Our Gang I thought a woman was singing in the middle of the song. A distinctly male voice appears at the beginning of the song but when he switches to a higher vocal register it sounds more feminine. [/QUOTE] I don’t remember the song well enough to tell you if any of the male members of the band sing lead during any part of it, but lead singer [Spanky McFarlane](http://cdbaby.com/cd/spanky) is a woman. ---
**Author:** ![Chum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@Chum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chum)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/62 "2007-04-28T00:10:02Z")
I put Jason Mraz’s “You and I Both” on a mix CD for my mom, and she thought it was a woman singing. I can definitely see that. ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/63 "2007-04-28T00:48:15Z")
[QUOTE=Hunter Hawk] Tom Brosseau on the _Grand Forks_ album. [/QUOTE] I saw Tom Brosseau perform live and was all like “huh, Tom is a really weird name for a woman.” I seriously couldn’t tell. Very, very androgynous. Lovely voice and great stage presence though. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/64 "2007-04-28T02:46:20Z")
Peter Bronski of Bronski Beat fooled me good with “Smalltown Boy”. I swear he sounds like Annie Lennox. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/65 "2007-04-28T10:53:45Z")
[QUOTE=monstro] Peter Bronski of Bronski Beat fooled me good with “Smalltown Boy”. I swear he sounds like Annie Lennox. [/QUOTE] He’s called Jimmy Somerville. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/66 "2007-04-28T12:42:25Z")
Music by the 70s band The Raspberries (Go all the Way) and/or their lead singer Eric Carmen (Never Gonna Fall in Love Again) fooled me for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/67 "2007-04-28T18:41:18Z")
[QUOTE=Winston Bongo] We’re on the second page and still no one has mentioned “I Can See Clearly Now” by Johnny Nash?..it was not a woman singing that song. [/QUOTE] :eek: Ignorance has been fought. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/68 "2007-04-28T18:56:20Z")
[QUOTE=dwc1970] I always thought Supertramp’s lead singer was female, which is why “Breakfast in America” confused me with the opening line, “Take a look at my _girl_friend” (the notion of a female being a lesbian and thus having a girlfriend did not enter my innocent nine-year-old mind at the time). [/QUOTE] I came in to mentin that one, how only in the last few years did I find out “The Logical Song” is sung by a guy. Also, I would have sworn Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’ was a gal, sine I didn’t know Journey too well and didn’t make the connection. ---
**Author:** ![Swede\_Hollow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3bc359/32.png) [@Swede\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swede_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/69 "2007-04-29T01:21:54Z")
There’s also **Jon Anderson**. I hadn’t heard of the group **Yes** until later, I first heard him on a **Vangelis** ’ _Heaven and Hell_ album and thought it was a woman singing. He actually sounds (to me) kinda like the singer on the above mentioned **Supertramp** ’s _The Logical Song_. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/70 "2007-04-29T02:49:07Z")
Am I really the first to mention Christopher Cross? ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/71 "2007-04-29T03:14:36Z")
I even watched the video of Karma Chameleon several times and wasn’t sure if Boy George was a chic or a dude. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/72 "2007-04-29T03:44:46Z")
I’m used to men that sing high, so I laugh at y’all. Of course, I’m so used to it that I do remember hearing an early Melissa Etheridge song that sounded like a rock guy singing high. “I Want to Come Over,” maybe. But hey, that’s how she sings. The one that actually surprised me: When I was getting into Cassandra Wilson, I was listening to one of her albums (New Moon Daughter, I think) & thought that some of the songs in the middle had a male singer accompanying her. Looked at the booklet. Nope. She’s a baritone, more or less, & when she goes low, it just sounds too low to be a woman. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/73 "2007-04-29T04:02:56Z")
Geddy Lee. Weird, androgynous name. Weird, only slightly less androgynous voice. I just made the wrong choice. You know how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/74 "2007-04-29T04:07:35Z")
[QUOTE=Mirror Image egamI rorriM] Geddy Lee. Weird, androgynous name. [/QUOTE] psst…his mail comes to Gary Lee Weinrib. No ambiguity there. I never thought he sounded like a girl, though. Just a guy with an obscenely high voice. You couldn’t mistake Brad Delp for a girl, either, but he could sing full on for notes only a dog could hear. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/75 "2007-04-29T04:46:19Z")
Queensryche did a concept album called Operation Mindcrime and there is a sort of duet in on one track that I swear to this day HAS to be a chick on vocals…no mention no one on the album not in the band, evidently Geoff Tate (who does have an amazing range) just altered his voice for that part and sounds 100% female. Oh and “I can see clearly now” was a dude? dude, you have got to be kidding me?!?!?!? ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/76 "2007-04-29T11:29:20Z")
Leo Sayer. “When I need love… I hold out my hand and I touch love…” ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/77 "2007-04-29T12:50:15Z")
On the Pointer Sisters Automatic, that deep bass voice singing the word ‘automatic’ is June Pointer. I didn’t believe it until my husband made me watch a video of it. ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/78 "2007-04-29T13:29:49Z")
[QUOTE=Biggirl] On the Pointer Sisters Automatic, that deep bass voice singing the word ‘automatic’ is June Pointer. I didn’t believe it until my husband made me watch a video of it. [/QUOTE] I recall at the time that Kasey Kasem pointed out her voice had been altered to make her sound like that. Big novelty thing. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/79 "2007-04-29T14:15:44Z")
[QUOTE=Critical1] Queensryche did a concept album called Operation Mindcrime and there is a sort of duet in on one track that I swear to this day HAS to be a chick on vocals…no mention no one on the album not in the band, evidently Geoff Tate (who does have an amazing range) just altered his voice for that part and sounds 100% female. [/QUOTE] You mean [Pamela Moore?](http://www.queensryche.com/band/index.html) Not a dude. Geoff Tate has an amazing range but does not sound like a woman. The [YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3gTXUDIBiU) clip. ---
**Author:** ![mikeargo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/858c86/32.png) [@mikeargo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikeargo)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2007, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808/80 "2007-04-29T15:42:59Z")
For years, I thought that Carol Channing did that awful, cheezy '70s hit, “Oh, Babe, What Would You Say?” Turns out that it was a guy, Norman Smith, who once worked as a recording engineer on early Beatles albums. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-a-guy-singing-wrong-calls-on-singers-genders-thread/401808.md?page=5)