Yea I thought it was pretty bad too--even before she screwed up the lyrics it was way over the top about her...Ive seen some good ones, some bad ones, most are like a good ritual of remembrance, some are really heartfelt but it is pretty atrocious when it becomes about the performer.... even the Hendrix version at Woodstock had a real heartfelt artistic expression of america of the time embedded in its rhythms to me that I still appreciate.
I was at a Red Sox game a few years back that was Disability Awareness Day and they had a boy with Downs Syndrome sing. He was NOT a professional singer by any stretch of the imagination, was offkey, nervous and faltered but he was genuine. It eventually turned into one of the better and more memorable versions that I have heard due to the spontaneous gesture of support that it evoked.
LOVED those cactus cuties! There was more embellishment there than that band director might would have liked but I don't think many would mind. But Christina's rendition just wasn't that good and wasn't enjoyable... despite that she flubbed some words. I was hoping she would just make it through without really massacring the song.
Call me Old Skool - the Anthem should be sung straight, end to end, as is, with no adjustment to the original melody. All the singers who fool with it only make fools of themselves. Maybe the people who plan these Sports events will wake up and smell the expresso - they need to get an agreement up front, sing it straight and sing it right. I mean - come on - a player got penalized for what was it - over celebrating - after making a touchdown....?....and they stand for yet another Anthem mauling when she can't even keep it together enough to get the words out correctly? It deserved an "F" for fa-fa-fa-failed regardless of the ya-ya's she threw in to successfully generate enough hot air to float a boat. That deserves at least a couple laps around the track after practice..
We'll all live to swaller some more Pepsi but...that was nasty.
Shoot, MStar, that brought tears to my eyes when I realized the audience started singing with him to help him with the words! And how cool was that that he just laughed when he forgot the words? Before tens of thousands, he didn't seem to have any sense of fear or shame, just "happy smiles"! Maybe we all need a dose of what he's got. Yeah, that was truly beautiful man, beautiful. And you were there for that huh? Very nice... :)
Oh, and Geisha and Sudo. After the Game on Sunday, I googled "three part harmony National Anthem" and came up with those Cactus Cuties and I too have become totally enamored with them. They really are quite something, aren't they? I am a huge fan of harmony vocals, and they really do it for me fore shore...
In case anyone wonders why the Star Spangled Banner gets sung before every sporting event...HERE is a little synopsis
On the night of September 13, 1814, Francis Scott Key, an American lawyer and amateur poet, accompanied American Prisoner Exchange Agent Colonel John Stuart Skinner to negotiate a prisoner release with several officers of the British Navy. During the negotiations, Key and Skinner learned of the British intention to attack the city of Baltimore, as well as strength and positions of British forces. They were held captive for the duration of the battle and witnessed the bombardment of Baltimore’s Fort McHenry. Inspired by the American victory and the sight of the American flag flying high in the morning, Key wrote a poem titled “The Defence of Fort McHenry.”
Upon his return to Baltimore, Key gave the poem to his brother-in-law, who noted that the words fit melody to the popular drinking song, “The Anacreontic Song.” Key’s brother-in-law took the poem to a printer, who made broadside copies of it. A few days later, the Baltimore Patriot and The American printed the poem with the note “Tune: Anacreon in Heaven.” Later, the Carr Music Store in Baltimore published the words and music together as “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The song gained popularity over the course of the nineteenth century and was often played at public events like parades and Independence Day celebrations (and, on occasion, sporting events). In 1889, the Secretary of the Navy ordered it the official tune to be played during the raising of the flag. In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson ordered that it be played at all military ceremonies and other appropriate occasions, making it something of an unofficial national anthem.
After America’s entrance into World War I, Major League Baseball games often featured patriotic rituals, such as players marching in formation during pregame military drills and bands playing patriotic songs. During the seventh-inning stretch of game one of the 1918 World Series, the band erupted into “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The Cubs and Red Sox players faced the centerfield flag pole and stood at attention. The crowd, already on their feet, began to sing along and applauded at the end of the song.
Given the positive reaction, the band played the song during the next two games, and when the Series moved to Boston, the Red Sox owner brought in a band and had the song played before the start of each remaining contest. After the war (and after the song was made the national anthem by a congressional resolution in 1931), the song continued to be played, but only on special occasions like opening day, national holidays and World Series games.
During World War II, baseball games again became venues for large-scale displays of patriotism, and technological advances in public address systems allowed songs to be played without a band. “The Star-Spangled Banner” was played before games throughout the course of the war, and by the time the war was over, the pregame singing of the national anthem had become cemented as a baseball ritual, after which it spread to other sports.
Nice. I knew the rudiments of that history, but didn't know the details as to how it morphed along. I didn't know the baseball connection either. Cool...
Funny how these children can remember the words to our national anthem yet a professional can't? Notice crowd reaction.. I think most folks would prefer to hear the kids, you think? Here's another one of the Cactus Cuties with better acoustics.
I am 61 years old and I have never watched a football, baseball or basketball game on TV. Never have, never will.
The national anthem?
Falls into three categories with people:
1. Those who say, "How's it go?"
2. Those who think the last two words are: "Play ball!"
3. And those who revere it and wouldn't even think of replacing it with America the Beautiful
When I was going to the university, I had a telecomm class taught by one of the people from the local tv stations. I was telling him I noticed now tv stations go straight to snow--there's no national anthem at the end of the broadcast day.
He explained to me that its because most tv stations are 24 hours and when they go to snow they're still broadcasting, its just they're being maintained.
I told him about how I was a kid and I used to always stay up to watch the national anthem. That was my signal to go to bed. "Don't you think we lost something?" I asked.
Needless to say, I was up a few weeks later and just happened to catch that tv station going down for maintanance. Yes, the broadcast the national anthem
My mother held down a job, went to night school, then nursing school, and raised four children--yours truly being the eldest. The only time she could get her housework done was late at night. My father had to go to work the next morning. So, I was usually the one that stayed up with her and kept her company.
Back then stations used to sign-off in Cleveland at 1 am. Then it went to 3 am. Now they run 24 hours.
Recommended Posts
mstar1
Yea I thought it was pretty bad too--even before she screwed up the lyrics it was way over the top about her...Ive seen some good ones, some bad ones, most are like a good ritual of remembrance, some are really heartfelt but it is pretty atrocious when it becomes about the performer.... even the Hendrix version at Woodstock had a real heartfelt artistic expression of america of the time embedded in its rhythms to me that I still appreciate.
I was at a Red Sox game a few years back that was Disability Awareness Day and they had a boy with Downs Syndrome sing. He was NOT a professional singer by any stretch of the imagination, was offkey, nervous and faltered but he was genuine. It eventually turned into one of the better and more memorable versions that I have heard due to the spontaneous gesture of support that it evoked.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NhcZRFcjbhw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Link to comment
Share on other sites
geisha779
I got caught up watching their videos on you tube...and then their younger siblings....they are so cute! Thanks for sharing that!!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sudo
LOVED those cactus cuties! There was more embellishment there than that band director might would have liked but I don't think many would mind. But Christina's rendition just wasn't that good and wasn't enjoyable... despite that she flubbed some words. I was hoping she would just make it through without really massacring the song.
sudo
Link to comment
Share on other sites
socks
Sad.
Bad.
Can anyone say "teleprompter"?
Call me Old Skool - the Anthem should be sung straight, end to end, as is, with no adjustment to the original melody. All the singers who fool with it only make fools of themselves. Maybe the people who plan these Sports events will wake up and smell the expresso - they need to get an agreement up front, sing it straight and sing it right. I mean - come on - a player got penalized for what was it - over celebrating - after making a touchdown....?....and they stand for yet another Anthem mauling when she can't even keep it together enough to get the words out correctly? It deserved an "F" for fa-fa-fa-failed regardless of the ya-ya's she threw in to successfully generate enough hot air to float a boat. That deserves at least a couple laps around the track after practice..
We'll all live to swaller some more Pepsi but...that was nasty.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ClayJay
Shoot, MStar, that brought tears to my eyes when I realized the audience started singing with him to help him with the words! And how cool was that that he just laughed when he forgot the words? Before tens of thousands, he didn't seem to have any sense of fear or shame, just "happy smiles"! Maybe we all need a dose of what he's got. Yeah, that was truly beautiful man, beautiful. And you were there for that huh? Very nice... :)
Oh, and Geisha and Sudo. After the Game on Sunday, I googled "three part harmony National Anthem" and came up with those Cactus Cuties and I too have become totally enamored with them. They really are quite something, aren't they? I am a huge fan of harmony vocals, and they really do it for me fore shore...
Edited by ClayJayLink to comment
Share on other sites
Al Poole
You'd think they MIGHT just LOOK over the lyrics.... BUT NOOoooooooooooooooo
"I'm a STAR I KNOW what I'm doing" They're such arrogant ------- s
Link to comment
Share on other sites
mstar1
In case anyone wonders why the Star Spangled Banner gets sung before every sporting event...HERE is a little synopsis
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ClayJay
Nice. I knew the rudiments of that history, but didn't know the details as to how it morphed along. I didn't know the baseball connection either. Cool...
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Ron G.
Here's a 6 year old singing the National Anthem for the Houston Astro's.
She got the words right.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/X3XpiRPWXNA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sudo
Funny how these children can remember the words to our national anthem yet a professional can't? Notice crowd reaction.. I think most folks would prefer to hear the kids, you think? Here's another one of the Cactus Cuties with better acoustics.
<P>
<object width="480" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCVS57j284?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCVS57j284?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCVS57j284?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="390"></embed></object>
sudo
Link to comment
Share on other sites
rascal
Loved that.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
OnionEater
I am 61 years old and I have never watched a football, baseball or basketball game on TV. Never have, never will.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
So_crates
The national anthem?
Falls into three categories with people:
1. Those who say, "How's it go?"
2. Those who think the last two words are: "Play ball!"
3. And those who revere it and wouldn't even think of replacing it with America the Beautiful
When I was going to the university, I had a telecomm class taught by one of the people from the local tv stations. I was telling him I noticed now tv stations go straight to snow--there's no national anthem at the end of the broadcast day.
He explained to me that its because most tv stations are 24 hours and when they go to snow they're still broadcasting, its just they're being maintained.
I told him about how I was a kid and I used to always stay up to watch the national anthem. That was my signal to go to bed. "Don't you think we lost something?" I asked.
Needless to say, I was up a few weeks later and just happened to catch that tv station going down for maintanance. Yes, the broadcast the national anthem
SoCrates
Link to comment
Share on other sites
mstar1
You stayed up pretty late!
I remember a kids show on in Boston in the late 50's.
Everyday at 12 O'clock "Big Brother Bob" had all the kids in the audience toast a glass of milk to the President while they played Hail to the Chief.
I remember that just about every day when I was 3 and 4, I'd say
Here's to you President Eisenhower!,and drink my milk standing at attention in front of the TV,
It was a good and very wholesome show for kids.
What a horrorshow it would be if anyone tried to do that today, they'd be a civil war
Link to comment
Share on other sites
So_crates
My mother held down a job, went to night school, then nursing school, and raised four children--yours truly being the eldest. The only time she could get her housework done was late at night. My father had to go to work the next morning. So, I was usually the one that stayed up with her and kept her company.
Back then stations used to sign-off in Cleveland at 1 am. Then it went to 3 am. Now they run 24 hours.
SoCrates
Edited by So_cratesLink to comment
Share on other sites
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.