Anthem at Super Bowl

[AlanN]

Why, o why couldn't these fellers have done it?

[Scott Tichenor]

Because talent isn't one of the criteria. CA obviously has some talent but she botched the words badly. She did a much better job when she was 11. Skip ahead on the video unless you just dig hockey talk.

[45ACP-GDLF5]

Why, o why couldn't these fellers have done it?

Hear Hear!!!!

[George R. Lane]

<inappropriate remark removed>

[albeham]

Yes why o why.. Sad.

AL

[John Flynn]

I thought even without messing up the lyrics, I didn't like the way she did it. I think The Anthem is one of those tunes you should not "over-stylize." It should be done pretty much straight up, both out of respect and so people can sing along. If you are doing vocal gymnastics, the audience can't sing with you. I really liked the gal that was on before CA who did "America the Beautiful." She did a fine job. I kept thinking, "Why didn't you have her do The Anthem?"

[journeybear]

I actually like Ms Aguilera's voice, style, and even choice of material, especially in recent years. She has gotten into R & B and does a pretty good job with it, with her powerful voice. This may be faint praise, but out of the flock of former Mouseketeers flooding pop music, she seems to have some real talent and longevity.

That said, I can do without the histrionics and showboating that is such the rage among pop singers these days. It is as if they think they are still competing on American Idol. I call this the Star Search approach, as I have been annoyed by it going back that far. My general opinion is, just sing the song, don't go over the top with showing off your vocal chops. That is why, even with her matured voice, I still prefer her version as an 11-year-old - there is much less of that there. Thanks for finding that, Scott. (IOW, I agree with John; we were posting closely.)

And that said, I can do without people taking her or anyone else to task for flubbing the words (archaic as some of them are). My goodness - this is an enormous event to be performing at, a worldwide audience, and even a seasoned pro can be nervous and get thrown. The post-game news reports were zazzing her pretty harshly. I dunno - must have been a slow news day, nothing much else going on or something ...

[KristinEliza]

I'm old school...don't mess with the National Anthem. It's a beautiful song as is. And as John Flynn mentioned...you mess with it, then the audience cannot sing along.

Has anyone every heard another country's national anthem played around with as much as ours?

I think flubbing the lyrics is unexcuseable. Maybe CA was worried about how many notes she could fit into a phrase that it made her forget the lyrics.

[AlanN]

I think the current trend of stylizing the National Anthem started with Whitney Houston at another Super Bowl, maybe 15 years ago. It was over-the-top then, too.

[George R. Lane]

I apolgize for my post. I just wish the NFL would get someone who can actually sing our National Anthem the way is is supposerd to be sung. Not some jazzed up version with lyrics missing. Again I aplogize for my post.

[Pete Summers]

I'm with John Flynn on this one. CA has a nice voice, but just sing the darn thing and leave out all the Motown stylizing. It's the daggum national anthem, for pity's sake, not a pop recording.

[journeybear]

Well, at least she didn't do it Rosanne-Barr-style!

I agree with all y'all - I don't see why everyone feels some need to overdo the "interpretation." This is one song that should probably be left alone. I recall Martina McBride doing it not long ago, and noticed how little of that she put in, and it was pretty tastefully done. This kind of vocalizing strikes me as self-serving or calling attention to the singer, rather than the song. And John's point is a good one - the singer is supposed to be leading the crowd in singing along. I had forgotten that.

I still think she's a good singer, just her rendition had some inappropriate aspects. Is that a diplomatic assessment?


PS: Thanks for correcting your spelling, Pete. Now I know how to spell "daggum!" And I've been spelling it "dadgum" all along ...

[Dale Ludewig]

Amen to that! And yes, the Star Search type approach drives me nuts also in any kind of music. When it becomes more about the performer than the music, I acknowledge readily that I must be an old fuddyduddy.

[woodwizard]

Well, at least she didn't do it Rosanne-Barr-style!

Agreed!!!! Thank God for that! That one has got to go down as the most disrepectful version that has ever been done.

[Ted Eschliman]

A performance of our national anthem should always be about the song, not the singer.
Anything else distracts the audience, and in some cases, the performer.

[journeybear]

Well, not exactly sure what distracted her. This is what she had to say:


Singer Christina Aguilera has issued a public apology after she botched the national anthem at the Super Bowl.

The Grammy winner took to the field ahead of the big game on Sunday to belt out the patriotic tune, but she was left red-faced after singing the wrong lyrics just three lines into her rendition.

Critics and bloggers flocked online to point out Aguilera's blunder, while footage of the mistake has already become a popular video on YouTube.com.

Now the singer has apologized for the incident, releasing a statement which reads: "I got so caught up in the moment of the song that I lost my place. I can only hope that everyone could feel my love for this country and that the true spirit of its anthem still came through."


There's more here. If you go there, note how this was "reported" on E! News. Not holding them up as a paragon of journalism (please!) but it is indicative of the condescending, smarmy sniping that ensued from news outlets of all kinds - even more offensive than her gaffe. Which she feels just terrible about, I'm sure.

[chasray]

remember Jimi Hendrix' version? But that was a different venue...

[journeybear]

Yep. Different time, different context. That is, part of the show, not the pre-game opening. BUT if I ever get the honor of doing this, that is how I'll be doing it - though I will stick more closely to the melody.

[KristinEliza]

How about his version???

Bleeding Gums Murphy

It's funnier when you can actually see the video...but I guess copyright and all....

[GRW3]

I suspect she fell victim to 'I know that song' syndrome. She 'knew' it because she used to sing it all the time, so why do a run through? I've done it myself. Not to such an audience though.

Reminds me of a special national anthem approach in college. In the pre-SWC 70s one Saturday game we, the U of Houston band, did an acapella version. After the normal instrumental lead in we pulled down our instruments and just sang. Unlike normally, the crowd just fell silent and listened. We figured that we wouldn't get the same response a second time.

[HddnKat]

I happened to be at the Hays High School football game the first week after 9/11, and for perhaps the first time in my life, I heard the whole crowd singing along, loud enough to rock the outdoor stadium. Remembering it still gives me goosebumps.

[mandocrucian]

Could have been much worse (better?) if an ischemic brain fart would have led to a shift into the original lyrics to the tune melody. (Though I really can't imagine Aguilera having that sort of traditional music background and knowledge for that to occur).

"The Anacreontic Song", also known by its incipit "To Anacreon in Heaven", was the official song of the Anacreontic Society, an 18th-century gentlemen's club of amateur musicians in London. Attributed to the composer John Stafford Smith, the tune later had Francis Scott Key's poem "Defence of Fort McHenry" set to it. The combination became known as "The Star Spangled Banner" and was adopted as the national anthem of the United States in 1931.


The tune was probably composed[1] by a member of the Society, John Stafford Smith from Gloucester, to lyrics by the Society's president, Ralph Tomlinson. Smith wrote the tune in the mid-1760s, while still a teenager. It was first published by The Vocal Magazine (London) in 1778.[2]

These barristers, doctors, and other professional men named their club after the Greek court poet Anacreon (6th century BC), whose poems, "anacreontics", were used to entertain patrons in Teos and Athens. His songs often celebrated women, wine, and entertainment.

The connection with Anacreon, along with the "drinking" nature of the lyrics, have caused many people to label "The Anacreontic Song" a drinking song. The chorus certainly suggests Bacchanalia with its lyrics "And long may the sons of Anacreon intwine the myrtle of Venus with Bacchus' vine." The song was commonly used as a sobriety test: If you could sing a stanza of the notoriously difficult melody and stay on key, you were sober enough for another round.[



The ANACREONTIC SONG
as Sung at the Crown and Anchor Tavern in the Strand

the Words by
RALPH TOMLINSON ESQ, late President of that SOCIETY.

1
To ANACREON in Heav'n, where he sat in full Glee,
A few Sons of Harmony sent a Petition,
That He their Inspirer and Patron wou'd be;
When this Answer arriv'd from the JOLLY OLD GRECIAN
"Voice, Fiddle, and Flute,
"No longer be mute,
"I'll lend you my Name and inspire you to boot,
"And, besides, I'll instruct you like me, to intwine
"The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS's Vine.

2
The news through OLYMPUS immediately flew;
When OLD THUNDER pretended to give himself Airs_
If these Mortals are suffer'd their Scheme to pursue,
The Devil a Goddess will stay above Stairs.
"Hark! already they cry,
"In Transports of Joy
"Away to the Sons of ANACREON we'll fly,
"And there, with good Fellows, we'll learn to intwine
"The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS'S Vine.

3
"The YELLOW-HAIR'D GOD and his nine fusty Maids
"From HELICON'S Banks will incontinent flee,
"IDALIA will boast but of tenantless Shades,
"And the bi-forked Hill a mere Desart will be
"My Thunder, no fear on't,
"Shall soon do it's Errand,
"And, dam'me! I'll swinge the Ringleaders I warrant,
"I'll trim the young Dogs, for thus daring to twine
"The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS'S Vine.

4
APOLLO rose up; and said, "Pr'ythee ne'er quarrel,
"Good King of the Gods with my Vot'ries below:
"Your Thunder is useless_then, shewing his Laurel,
Cry'd. "Sic evitabile fulmen, you know!
"Then over each Head
"My Laurels I'll spread
"So my Sons from your Crackers no Mischief shall dread,
"Whilst snug in their Club-Room, they Jovially twine
"The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS'S Vine.

5
Next MOMUS got up, with his risible Phiz,
And swore with APOLLO he'd cheerfull join_
"The full Tide of Harmony still shall be his,
"But the Song, and the Catch, & the Laugh shall bemine
"Then, JOVE, be not jealous
Of these honest Fellows,
Cry'd JOVE, "We relent, since the Truth you now tell us;
"And swear, by OLD STYX, that they long shall entwine
"The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS'S Vine.

6
Ye Sons of ANACREON, then, join Hand in Hand;
Preserve Unanimity, Friendship, and Love!
'Tis your's to support what's so happily plann'd;
You've the Sanction of Gods, and the FIAT of JOVE.
While thus we agree
Our Toast let it be.
May our Club flourish happy, united and free!
And long may the Sons of ANACREON intwine
The Myrtle of VENUS with BACCHUS'S Vine.

http://www.potw.org/archive/potw234.html

[Willie Poole]

This is exactly why we don`t have "Live" TV any more....This is one time that they should have lipped synced the song......

[Willie Poole]

I also meant to add that they could have posted the words up on the 3 million dollar jumbotron screen that hangs over the fifty yard line and then the whole crowd could have sang along with the correct words.....

[mandolirius]

Once again, I have a view that seems to run counter to the majority. I like this trend of using pop stars to sing the anthem. And I love it best when they screw up or just do a bad job of it.

The music industry, as we're all aware, is going through a major restructuring. There are going to be fewer and fewer mega pop stars in the future, simply because the major labels with have less money to promote them. This means, in the future, popular culture will not be as dominated by whoever a giant, all-powerful music industry wants to promote.

It's easier and cheaper to record now, distribution isn't the obstacle it once was, so hopefully music in the future will be more real and organic than the pre-fab, overproduced, auto-tuned product that is produced today. Heck, there may even come a day when music is no longer referred to as "product".

Watching these (mostly) fatuous pop stars stumble and bumble their way through the national anthem is a good way of undressing them in public. Hey folks, guess what? There so-called mega-stars aren't all that impressive without the machinery behind them. The emperor has no clothes!