Who Did It Better? Giving It All Away

Who Did It Better?

Giving It All Away

Today's Who Did It Better? selection was written on a dare! One that paid off big time; not only for the person who jokingly suggested one of the writers write him some songs - one of which he would rocket up the charts in the UK, but also for the songwriters themselves, who, thanks to the exposure, launched a long and storied career in the music world.

Yes, Leo Sayer may have been literally 'giving it all  away', but what he gave eventually came back to him tenfold. 

 

Giving It All Away is a song written in 1972 by Leo Sayer and David Courtney.

It came to life as part of a sort of challenge. 

A then still-unknown Sayer was fooling around in the studio of Roger Daltrey, the lead singer of The Who, bemoaning his inability to get signed to a major record company. Daltrey, who was toying with the idea of doing a solo album, suggested that Sayer write some songs, promising he'd give them a listen. 

Sayer returned with David Courtney, former popstar Adam Faith, and ten songs they'd written. Those songs became the basis for Daltrey's 1973 solo debut, Daltrey, which was produced by Courtney and Faith.

Giving It All Away was chosen as the first single. It peaked at #5 in the UK and #45 in US. Its release coincided with news reports of The Who being sued by a hotel they'd stayed at during their last tour. The band was being sued for unpaid damages to their rooms which included a television thrown out a window by drummer Keith Moon. Incidentally, said television ended up in the hotel's pool.

The success of Daltrey's first solo album and single caused significant turmoil behind the scenes in The Who camp. The band's management feared that Daltrey was now in position to challenge Pete Townshend's role as leader of the band. They were also concerned that it might lead to a situation similar to what happened with Rod Stewart and The Faces. The band's management team went so far as to try and derail the release of Daltrey's album; a bit of nasty business that did not endear them to the singer. In the end? That management team's days with the band were numbered - they were history within the year. 

But that was not the only big change the single's success brought about. Thanks to the song's high profile, Faith, who was Sayer's manager, landed Sayer a contract with Chrysalis records. Sayer's first album, Silverbird, proved to be a big hit, establishing Sayer in both the US and the UK markets. When it came time to put together a follow-up, Giving It All Away was tapped to be included. Sayer's version of the song was not released as a single, but it did become a popular concert staple and has been included in a number of Sayer's greatest hits compilations. 

And that's the whole story.

Now? On to the competition!

The Song: Giving It All Away

The Competition: Daltrey vs. Sayer

Giving It All Away - Roger Daltrey

Giving It All Away - Leo Sayer

Roger Daltrey

A lovely shimmer of strings. A strident honkytonk-sounding piano... and some kind of woodwind. Clarinet? Nicely done, utilizing dynamics artfully. 

There's something so muscular about Daltrey's singing. I couldn't even tell you where his sound is coming from. Yes, there's quite a bit of throat involved, but his voice seems to emanate from his entire body. 

Oddly, this sounds like something The Who would could have created. That jangled guitar accent. The oddly tuned piano. There are element that make this sound like a pub ballad. 

Odd harmony vocals on the chorus. That hasn't aged well. And the drums sound a tad dulled.

Still, it's very British and very fitting. 

That instrumental fill into the second verse? A bit much. Return of the clarinet, now with (ick) flute. 

If this had been part of Tommy it would have been right at home. Daltrey sure wasn't moving far from home base with this one. 

He brings a lot of muscle to this, which is, at it's heart, a rather simple song. Cabaret? Folk? A pub song? A combo of all three?

The orchestrated ending? Well, they keep the cap on tight, so I guess it's fine. Daltrey's finely hone sense of drama carries the whole thing to completion. 

It's very well done. I enjoyed how Daltrey remained the focus, despite all the various musical elements presented in the arrangement. 

We never lose sight of our leading man, which is as it should be.

Leo Sayer

A bit of Elton-like piano for the intro. 

Sayer's voice is not what it would become. It cracks and is overly-pointed, lacking polish. 

Dare I say, there is a 'knowing' lacking. He's ghosting certain notes and... I'm not convinced he's living this song.

So far, there's not a lot going on with this arrangement, either. A calculated choice. They don't want to compete with Daltrey's thought-out version, but then that means that Sayer's vocal performance has to carry the day.

And he's not quite on top of the notes. He singing up to them. Constantly. It's annoying. 

That was his schtick at the point in the game, of course... playing 'the boy'; a sort of everyman journeyman. Theatrically? That works. 

But the more I listen, the more I am convinced that vocally, at this stage in his career he is not up to the task this song asks of him. I hear his sort of bleated 'rock' voice breaking in on occasion - it's to toughen up what is a rather sentimental song. It's his breath control and support that bother me more than anything else. Sayer would become an excellent singer. 

But he's not there, yet. He's forcing his head voice through his nasal passages which is why he sounds thin and whiney. Later, as he played more with his falsetto, he would find his actual head voice and the sound would be fuller and much better supported. Here, he's relying more on a theatrical technique than he is actually singing. 

They save the orchestra for the play out. And it's a case of too much, too late. 

The Verdict

I really thought this would be tougher than it was. 

I adore Leo Sayer... believe him to possess one of the finest instruments this side of Art Garfunkel. But this is early Sayer. He's not quite found himself yet. He's still play acting. In fact, it's that presentational nature that's working against him. He and his writing partner may have come up with a very well-constructed tune, full of the sort of nostalgic sentimentality that plays well to the masses. But it's also very clear who they wrote the song for... this was written with Roger Daltrey of The Who (for they knew him as nothing else), so they crib quite a bit from Pete Townshend's musical arsenal.

Which is why it's such a natural fit for Daltrey. He sounds so at home with it. And his vocals are fully-realized and mature. I actually have a lot more respect for him as a vocalist having heard this. 

This is a very theatrical piece. And it plays best in the type of arena Daltrey had made a home of. He sounds at home. His version sounds as natural as breathing.

Sayer's, on the other hand, sounds like someone still struggling to find themselves. Not only is his vocal technique inadequate, the whole affair comes off as terribly immature. 

Sayer had better performances in his future. 

For me, this one... it belongs to Daltrey. 

--- ---

And that's enough of me.

Okay, your turn. Leave your choice and thoughts in the comments section. I love to hear about what you're hearing!

So... this marks the 100th song we've examined as part of the Who Did It Better? series. You know, when I began this series I thought I would be lucky to find 35 or so songs to give a listen to. Well, not only have we made it to #100 - I have an additional 75 songs on a waiting list, a list I am sure will continue to grow. 

I've carried this on, in part, in memory of our beloved Anne Marie. She, like me, grew up listening to 45's in her room. She loved music so much and had such a great library of tunes to draw from... she remains our favorite DJ (although Miss Maddie could sure give her a run for her money.

In honor of that milestone, and in honor of Anne Marie, next week we're going to begin a four-part special edition of Who Did It Better?. 

What song will it be? 

Well, trust me on this - it's one we all love (leave your guess in the comments section!) Here's a hint: turns out, that through the years, there are nine versions of this song which I deemed worthy for consideration. 

Here's how it will work: we'll be examining three at a time. The number of votes a version receives in the comments section, plus mine, will determine if it makes it into the final round. The fourth post in the series will feature the three finalists going head to head. Yes, a bit of a trek, but it should make for a very interesting contest.

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Well, that's all for now. Until next time...

Thanks for reading... and listening!

Giving It All Away - Roger Daltrey

Giving It All Away - Leo Sayer and Roger Daltrey