David Coverdale (18,756 views)

{Google Answer Box}
What was David Coverdale's vocal range? David Coverdale has a vocal range of 4 octaves; It spanned from B1 - A5. What voice type was David Coverdale? Was he a tenor, baritone or bass?




David Coverdale is a clear example of a baritone.

{Album Ranges}
Deep Purple:
Burn (1974): A2 - C5
Stormbringer (1974): A2 - G5
Come Taste The Band (1975): A2 - E♭5

Whitesnake:
Trouble (1978): A2 - F♯5
Lovehunter (1979): G2 - F♯5
Ready an’ Willing (1980): G2 - G5
Come an’ Get It (1981): F♯2 - G♯5
Saints and Sinners (1982): G2 - F♯5
Slide It In (1984): F2 - G5
Whitesnake (1987): A2 - G5 - G♯5
Slip of The Tongue (1989): G2 - G5
Restless Heart (1997): E2 - G5
Good to Be Bad (2008): E2 - E5
Forevermore (2011): F♯2 - F♯5
The Purple Album (2015): C♯2 - F♯5
Flesh & Blood (2019): B1 - G5 - A5

Solo:
Whitesnake (1977): F♯2 - G5
Northwinds (1978): G♯2 - D5
Into The Light (2000): C2 - E5

Collab Albums:
Coverdale / Page (1993): F♯2 - G5

{Vocal Summary}
A shining star in the catalog of 80s pop metal, in terms of singing prowess, David Coverdale might be the greatest singer of that whole period. With Plant-esque raspy highs very commonly reaching all the way up to G5 in songs such as Crying in The Rain and Slow an' Easy, Coverdale also pursued a strong, rich vibrato in his low register at points such as the F♯2s in Restless Heart or the G♯2s in Wherever You May Go, which was amplified as he got older. In his early years in Deep Purple, David Coverdale utilized a soulful tone in his high range that he kept developing as he went through the early Whitesnake period from around 1978 to 1983. As the music became more energetic, so did his voice, using less of a sensual vibrato to the point of a howling demon, and he has sustained this technique, even into his 70s. In terms of voice typings go, Coverdale is most certainly a baritone with a very bulky high register, which is further demonstrated with his harmonies with Glenn Hughes in Deep Purple, usually taking lower counterparts to Glenn’s squealing howl and in various songs that he has written in his older age using his lower range. Even if Coverdale doesn’t fit your taste in terms of voices, you can’t deny that he certainly has the chops to sing his heart, soul and vocal cords out however much he pleases.
Written by Bink

{Questionable Notes}
A6 ("Come On" [4] I was convinced this was an actual voice for a moment)
B5 ("Love Will Set You Free" live Japan 2011[1])
B♭5 ("Still of The Night" live Japan 2011[1])
F♯5 ("Black and Blue"[1], "Lady"[1])
D5 ("Trouble is Your Middle Name"[5])
G4 ("Whitesnake Christmas"[2])

G2 ("Easier Said Than Done"[1], "Northwinds"[1])
F♯2 ("Would I Lie to You"[3])
E2 ("Day Tripper"[2] Talk box probably)
E♭2 ("Don’t Fade Away"[1], "Get Up"[1])
D2 ("In My Time of Dying" live Osaka 1993[3])
C♯2 ("Best Years" live Japan 2011[1], "Still of The Night" live Japan 2011[1])
A1 ("For The Love of God"[5])
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[1] marks yelps and short trills in high range or anacrusis and short dips in low range.
[2] marks notes of questionable identity that cannot be confirmed to be the singer in question.
[3] marks non-melodic notes that don't have a significant enough pitch to warrant inclusion.
[4] marks notes that possess uncertain pitch or have been pitch-shifted.
[5] marks notes that do not fit the previous criteria but are not of a substantial enough quality to warrant counting towards the singer's range.