Tag: bonnie raitt

One of the things I do whenever I’m learning a new song is try to find multiple versions to listen to. In this case, it’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me”. Sometimes this isn’t possible, but generally there are at least two or three versions of a given song out there for general consumption.

The reason I do this is that each artist brings their own spin, which means I can hear different takes — but I can also get a better sense of the completely “neutral” version of the song. The hidden structure/substrate that lies underneath all the interpretations, rather than getting caught up in thinking this one version is the definitive version.

Anyway, over the last week or two I’ve been spending some time with a song I’ve mentioned on my site before.

“I Can’t Make You Love Me”

Version #1: Bonnie Raitt

This is the original, and (in my opinion) probably the best — but that is completely subjective. Have a listen and see what you think.

Listen to how straight she sings it. Raitt is very sparing with her vibrato. It’s in B♭, so the top note is only just departing chest voice. She lets the tone and the melody speak for themselves.

Version #2: George Michael

I am a big fan of George Michael’s voice and style. If you listen to his material, you’ll notice he leaves a lot of space in his arrangements, uses reverb very deliberately, and tends to work with a wide dynamic and tonal range across a single song.

He’ll back right off into a breathy sound multiple times in the first half (including this version), and then gradually thicken the tone and sit into it more by the end — but he never overdoes it.

George Michael certainly does more than Bonnie Raitt stylistically, but it’s only a degree or two more. It’s still tasteful.

Version #3: Adele

Such is the dominance of Adele on the internet that, for a while, if you searched “I can’t make you love me chords” on Google, it would surface as if it were one of her songs.

Here, Adele steps up the riffing and stylistic decoration far more than Raitt or Michael. There are also a fair few flat notes knocking around.

Personally — as great as Adele is as an artist — I’m not a huge fan of this version. I appreciate the space the pianist leaves, and it’s a very sparse track, but I’m not sure this marriage of singer and song does either of them justice. I don’t feel the beauty of the song (as shown by Bonnie Raitt and George Michael) shines through, and I’m not sure Adele’s specific strengths show here either.

But: a) that is completely subjective, and b) that is ENTIRELY the point of listening to multiple versions of a song. You start to understand what mileage there is in the writing, what works, and what doesn’t for different voices.

Which version works best?

So which one do you prefer?

1) Bonnie Raitt
2) George Michael
3) Adele

Learn more: related articles

If you want to learn more about vocal style, you may enjoy these related articles:

Style vs Hyper-style: An analysis of Modern Vocal Style

Developing Style: Expansion and Contraction

Learn to riff: why it’s easier than you think

Why singing is like clothing

Double check your musical diet

Why do singers resort to gimmicks to get noticed?