Rate-O-Rama: The Scientist
Songmania Edition #13: Coldplay, Willie Nelson, Corinne Bailey Rae
Welcome to Rate-O-Rama
If you wish to receive a notice when the next Rate-O-Rama post is published please mention that you would like a notification in the comments section.
Rate-O-Rama : Songmania is a reader participation game.
Every Sunday I will publish a Rate-O-Rama article which will feature three versions of a popular song.
The object is to listen to each of the music videos provided within the post.
After listening to each video you can rate each song in the comments section below.
(You must be a member to comment. If you are not a member you can join Vocal Media for FREE. You don’t ever have to pay for membership unless you choose to upgrade your membership)
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The rating method is easy. Simply give each song a rating of 1 to 100.
(The more you like the song the higher the rating).
If possible, please provide a brief comment explaining the reasoning behind your ratings for each song.
After a week (Saturday evening) I will tally the ratings and in the next Rate-O-Rama post I will announce the winner from the previous post.
The winners will be determined on a scale of averages.
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The Raffle!!!
I am taking the Rate-O-Rama series to the next level. At the end of each month I will do a raffle in which the winner will win a $5.00 tip.
To enter all you have to do is participate in playing the Rate-O-Rama game. Since R-O-R is updated every Sunday night in order to qualify you must play the game during it's initial seven day period with Sunday evening being the cutoff period.
For each game you play you will receive a ticket for the raffle. Therefore if you play all four games in the month you will have four chances to win.
The winner will not only win the $5 prize but I will feature your Vocal Profile on Vocal + Assist on both Facebook and Discord and you will be featured in the first R-O-R game of the month after your win.
The October 2023 Rate-O-Rama Raffle Winner:
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Last week we featured the Spiritual Folk Rock classic: "Hallelujah" as recorded by Leonard Cohen (1984), Jeff Buckley (1994), and Alexandra Burke (2008).
The following are the average ratings for each song as resulted from the votes:
🥇 Jeff Buckley: 96.5
🥈 Leonard Cohen: 82.9
🥉 Alexandra Burke: 80.9
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The Thirteenth Edition of Rate-O-Rama features three renditions of the iconic Modern Rock classic: "The Scientist."
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Coldplay (2002)
“The Scientist” was a huge hit worldwide for Coldplay. It was certified platinum in Denmark, 3x platinum in Italy and the UK, and 4x platinum in Portugal and the US.
The liner notes credit all four members of Coldplay as writers; however, ultimately, the song was written by lead singer Chris Martin. Critics praise Chris Martin's vocal performance for effectively utilizing both his mid-range and falsetto voices.
The music video won three MTV video music awards.
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Willie Nelson (2011)
At the young age of 78 Nelson recorded the song for a Chipotle Mexican Grill short film titled Back to the Start, highlighting the problems of concentrated animal feeding operations and the importance of developing ethical farming practices. It also appears as the final track on his 2012 album Heroes. Nelson's version plays during the closing credits of the 2014 film The Judge.
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Corinne Bailey Rae (2017)
The British singer/songwriter covered the song for the soundtrack to the film Fifty Shades Darker.
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My Thoughts
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Coldplay: I’ll make no secret of it from 2001 to 2009 Coldplay was my favorite band of the current time. Chris Martin’s voice and the band’s ethereal songs get me everytime. I have collected all nine of their studio albums on CD plus downloads of other rare recordings.
“The Scientist” is easily one of my favorite Coldplay songs. I give it 100.
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Willie Nelson: while I am a huge fan of Willie Nelson I'm not particularly fond of his vocal performance on this song. It is a bit rough and raw, and usually I like rough and raw, but in this case his performance is a bit spotty. Plus the arrangement drags. However, I give him kudos for recording the song for a good purpose. I give Willie 88 mostly because of the reason he recorded the song. Good deeds should be rewarded.
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Corinne Bailey Rae: Corinne is one of my major favorites. I love her voice and her songs. Her rendition of “The Scientist” is no exception. I love how Corinne takes the time to emote each word she sings and add that extra feeling that reaches into the heart. She puts her heart and soul into the song and I love it. I must give Corinne 100.
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I will be back next week with the results of this Rate-O-Rama Edition.
Last Week's Rate-O-Rama:
With Love, RHC ❤️
About the Creator
Rick Henry Christopher
Writing is a distraction for me. It takes me to places unknown that fulfill my need for intellectual stimulus, emotional release, and a soothing of the breaks and bruises of the day.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/vocalplusassist
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Comments (10)
Yes coldplay were so iconic of that time period. There music is still super modern I think 20+ yrs later. Glad they were one of your favs. I didn’t have every cd like you though. I’d never thought of their music at ethereal. Maybe I was a bit younger to know what that word meant back then but they definitely are in some of their best works! 😊 So, Coldplay, 100 haunting, iconic, love the texture in his voice plus a brilliant if slightly nauseating video! 😉 🌀 Willie Nelson, 50, Corinne 55.. Sorry I missed this one last week!
What a line-up! I LOVE this song but having heard all three versions, here are the results of the Deeming panel: Coldplay - this song makes me cry. That sounds so affected but it's true. When I hear it it gets under my skin: the simple slow start, the way it builds, Chris Martin's voice reaching for those high notes, barely making it - I LOVE IT. An all-time favourite that I never tire of - 100/100 for me, every day of the week. Willie - Again, I've surprised myself by liking this but it's no a patch on Coldplay's. I like the slowness of it and I like the fact that Willie goes low in the chorus so that he's not straining on the high notes. But I don't like the cadence of his voice as much as Chris Martin;s or the stresses on the words and so Willie gets 85/100 from me. Corinne Bailey Rae - too fast. Beautiful clear vocal and haunting in that but it lacks something for me. It doesn't have the power of Coldplay's version although I recognise it as beautiful but it does not stir me. Thanks, Rick again for putting these together. I like the way they get me thinking!
It was nice to hear 3 versions of a song I’ve never heard before. Which makes the playing field clear from the start. I agree with Randy about cold play’s video. AMAZING!!! I think the singer for cold play could have added more dynamics to his voice but yet again he is probably expressing the shock of a man who just experienced what he did. I love Willy Nelson. His tone and approach has always wowed us! However, in this song he probably should have had a couple cups of coffee first, lol. Never heard of Corinne Rae. Her first impression for me was well received. I loved the clean, quirky style she presented in this song. Coldplay 90 Willy Nelson 75 Corinne 88
I had never seen the Coldplay video before. As much as I love the song, the video itself was astonishing technically, but absolutely gut wrenching when we finally get back to the start for the story we just realize we've witnessed. 100 for the song. I'd go higher if it was allowed for the video. On Willie Nelson's rendition, I agree with you as to it's not one of his finest moments musically (though still amazing at 78 years of age), & kudos for the cause. 90 Corrine Bailey Ray does a nice, soulful job with this but to me doesn't measure up to the original. And in contrast to Willie, singing it for the soundtrack of Fifty Shades Darker actually detracts from her performance for me. (I know it's not fair as I never saw the movie--I just couldn't put myself through it having disliked the first at its very premise so much--& knowing that some of my best friends are so into the entire Fifty Shades thing, but still....) 85
Cold Play - 90. A fan and enjoy Chris Martin and like the song, but feel the melody line repeats so much that it's all I remember of the song. Willie - 80 Love me some Willie, but I agree this is not his best cover. The song does drag in places, and while I love his raw voice, his cover is rough. Corrina - 70 I find this song not well mixed. Her voice was overshadowed by the music, and I found her difficult to understand. Did like the arrangement but wish her voice was stronger against the music.
Cold Play 100, of course Willie, 100 I love Willie, sorry Corrine 80,
Coldplay: 50 Its alright Willie Nelson: 30 Feels to chirpy Corrine Bailey Rae: 90 Never heard it before but loved her voice. I wish Radiohead would cover it!
Outstanding! Keep it up I 💖it
Coldplay 20: The heart of the song is not really felt because the singer does not know what love really is. It's like his voice was just singing. not heartfelt. Willie Nelson 70: I felt it in his voice and the true meaning of the Lyrics Corrine Bailey Rae 72: her voice is so soothing.
Coldplay: 50 Willie Nelson: 30 Corrine Bailey Rae: 70