Our own Greg Veiss: You Tube Hunter, pointed me to this great piece on Obama and his smoking on Slate. It’s a little old, but it’s an intriguing question: If the Democrat’s superstar drops the habit, will he lose his golden voice? From the piece:
Smoking over time transforms a person’s voice by thickening and drying out the vocal chords… David Witsell, who directs Duke University’s Voice Care Center, notes that the nodules on Johnny Cash’s vocal cords that stemmed in part from his smoking habit helped create his unique sound. “Many famous voices in history have pathologies that are part of their vocal signatures,” Witsell says. But Obama’s semisecret weapon amounts to a double-edged sword. After all, what sort of successful Democratic politician smokes nowadays?
Fascinating! The piece goes on to talk about how Obama’s smoothly side-stepped questions about the habit, and how quitting could affect his mellow tone. I’m guessing, though, if he makes a pledge to quit, and gets Americans to join him (Kirstie Allie-style), he could muster even more popularity. In any case, election season is my third favorite sporting event, after March Madness and the World Cup. and I’m ready to see some action. Click here for the Slate piece. Thanks Greg!
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Interesting. I know that a few pop/rock singers have talked about that sort of thing. I saw an interview with Tim Curry recently, for one, who was talking about performing in “Spamalot” on Broadway a couple years back. He remarked how much his singing (and speaking) voice had changed since he quit smoking.
And it’s not always smoking. Bonnie Tyler’s raspy “Total Eclipse of the Heart” voice is due to an accident during surgery. She had nodules on her vocal cords, and they became damaged during the healing process. That’s what still gives her that trademark raspy sound.
Freddie Mercury also suffered from nodules on his vocal cords, but opted for rest instead of surgery. His big fear was his protrudent teeth. He wanted to have them corrected, but was afraid that the procedure would damage his singing ability.
posted by Sandy on 1-26-2007 at 8:46 am
Almost four years ago I was sitting at my computer, had bronchitis, took a drag of a cigarette and it hurt. I saw my reflection in the monitor, hit myself in the head and said “you dummy”
I threw my cigarettes away as well as the ash trays. I have not touched a cigarette since, and truthfully, have NEVER had a craving. I think it was something more powerful than willpower. I think it was “god power”. I couldn’t sing while I was smoking. Today I tried out for a singing part and did very well. Here’s good luck to all who have yet to quit.
posted by myra casey on 7-28-2007 at 7:59 pm