Singing Guide: David Frizzell
Vocal technique, exercises, tips and relevant resources
David Frizzell is a Country Music artist best known for his 1982 single "I'm Gonna Hire a Wino to Decorate Our Home," which reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Frizzell has a unique style that blends traditional country rhythms, honky-tonk piano sounds, and a smooth, emotive vocal tone. His singing technique is characterized by a big, open sound with seamless blending between his low and high ranges, and a rich vibrato.
If you want to learn how to sing like David Frizzell, there are several things you can do. One of the most important is to work on your breathing technique, as Frizzell's distinctive vocal tone is closely tied to his breath control. You can find helpful tips and exercises to improve your breathing on Singing Carrots article about breathing basics.
Another key element of Frizzell's singing style is his use of dynamic range. Since his songs often express deep emotional sentiment, he varies his volume from piercing highs to low-louds to emphasize his feelings. Learning how to control your dynamism can be done through singing exercises that teach you how to sing fluidly, and time-oriented exercises that practice staying deliberately high and low.
Frizzell is particularly well-known for his skills as a balladeer, and his dynamic vocal technique is showcased in such songs as "You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma" and "Husbands and Wives". Singing along to some of Frizzell's signature ballads can help you develop your own ability to interpret songs with emotion and sensitivity. You can find vocal exercises in Singing Carrots' pitch training section that'll help you improve your pitch and modulation, and in turn, improve your ballad singing.
Lastly, given that Frizzell's music falls under the Country genre, it's important to highlight how important it is to develop a southern accent if it's not part of your natural dialect. Developing a cadence on your speaking voice first plays a huge part in successfully adopting a southern accent. You can use different text sources to practice, or just work with songs with a basic to moderate southern accent. Singing Carrots has a comprehensive list of Pop/Jazz Vs Classical singing and also offers Pop lessons to help you learn the nuances of different styles.
Singing Carrots also has numerous resources and tools that can help you improve your vocal skills, such as the vocal range test, pitch accuracy test, vocal pitch monitor, pitch training game, song search by vocal range, and educational singing course. The site features a community of active singers with which you can connect, as well as articles on relevant topics ranging from breath support and articulation to pop/Jazz vs classical singing and onstage performance.
In conclusion, to master your David Frizzell impression, you'll need to work on improving several fundamental vocal skills, from breathing control to dynamic range to accent and phrasing techniques. Remember also to incorporate Frizzell's signature style preferences into your singing practice, like rich vibrato and emotive storytelling, as well as experiment with diverse songs ranging from soft ballads to country classics. With continued focus and practice enabled with Singing Carrots' helpful tools and tips, surely you'll get to master the great Country sensation, David Frizzell.