Does Dionne Still smoke?

[HugeDionnefan]

I want to know if Dionne still smokes.

[BachtoBacharach]

Yes.

[HugeDionnefan]

It's pretty hard to believe, her voice is still the same. An other singer that still sounds great is Johnny Mathis.

[maestrofan]

HugeDionnefan:

You say "her voice is still the same"? With careful and appropriate production like that provided by the late Mr. Phil Ramone on Ms. Warwick's NOW cd she can still deliver a pretty good recording. Sadly, this rarely comes through in her live performances which can be painful to watch. It does not require the expertise of a medical professional to detect the deterioration of her singing and speaking voice due to smoking. We all have friends and family members who have experienced the same recognizable negative effects. Despite the wishes of her family, friends and fans to QUIT, Ms.Warwick chooses to continue. In addition to Mr. Johnny Mathis, think of all the other singers who are older than Ms. Warwick and for the most part have maintained their voices such as Mr. Tony Bennett, Mr. Jack Jones. Ms. Shirley Bassey and others.

[face]

Well, we've been over Dionne's smoking again and again, so there's no reason to rehash it now. Just type "Dionne smoking" into the search field, and you should find more than what you need. She's never going to quit. At her age, what would be the point anyway? Her mother smoked and lived to be 85, so Dionne probably feels no urgency to give it up in her twilight years. Heavy smoking, constant touring, marijuana, genes, menopause, bad technique, lack of rest ... we've heard, argued, and analyzed every reason for Dionne's vocal changes through the years. There's no use lamenting what "could be" or "could have been" now because, in all likelihood, Dionne will still be smoking her menthol Virginia Slims up in heaven one day!

However, I'm interested in the secondary issue mentioned: of the "senior singers" still working (Johnny Mathis, Tony Bennett, Gladys Knight, Shirley Bassey, Barbra Streisand, etc.), whose voice has held up the best? I've always thought that Gladys Knight takes the cake. Any changes to her voice over the years are barely detectable.

[HugeDionnefan]

To me Gladys, Dionne, and Johnny still sound amazing. I noticed a rasp in Tony Bennett's voice starting in about 1979. Also, I met Johnny and he's such a nice guy. Here's a vid showing you that Johnny Mathis still is amazing.

[Blair N. Cummings]

Hey, do I get a reprint royalty for the above?

[grooverider]

From the 1982 Donna Summer "State of Independence" recording session, interesting to see who is shown smoking among these giants: Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Dionne Warwick, Christopher Cross, James Ingram, Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins, Lionel Richie and I think that's Brenda Russell (Dyan Cannon at the end of the video):



Read some of the YouTube comments!!

"State of Independence", produced by Quincy Jones, written by Vangelis and Jon Anderson (Yes):

[face]

That clip was fun to watch. As far as Dionne's smoking during the session, I disagree with some of the comments saying that she was out of line. Remember, this was before the research on secondhand smoke. Also, those singers spent most nights singing in smoky venues in those days, so I doubt anyone blinked an eye that there was a little smoke in the air. We shouldn't judge Dionne on the standards of today. No one cared back then. Also, Dionne has always smoked while recording (despite her claim in her book that she doesn't smoke when she's preparing to record) -- plenty of photos prove it -- so we have no reason to expect otherwise here.

What I find most interesting about all of this, however, is that Dionne smoked so often on camera in the 80s, when most heavy smoking celebrities did not. Just think of how many times Dionne smoked in interviews and other appearances in those days. It's unreal. It's like she was never without a cigarette unless she was on stage. Even then, Jenny Jones wrote that, when she opened for Dionne in the 80s, Dionne would be smoking right before walking on stage, and an assistant would be waiting with a lit cigarette when she walked off. That is a level of chain smoking that I have never witnessed in real life, despite growing up around a lot of smokers. Anyway, Dionne, unlike many others, never hid her habit or worried about its effects on her public image, which is admirable in a weird way. She really learned a thing or two from her mentor, Sinatra, about doing things [her] way!