# Worse ever rendition of the National Anthem. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 18, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733 "2007-02-18T20:22:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/1 "2007-02-18T20:22:02Z")
At the opening ceremonies of a sporting event. Roseanne, of course, doesn’t count. My nomination, and the awful singing which inspired me to ask this: **Big and Rich** , at today’s Daytona 500. :eek: Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2007, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/2 "2007-02-18T20:27:18Z")
I think Carl Lewis has this prize locked up for life. ---
**Author:** ![Scruloose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@Scruloose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scruloose)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2007, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/3 "2007-02-18T20:28:20Z")
Carl Lewis singing the National Anthem at a Bulls game comes to mind. [Have a listen.](http://www.frenchboxing.com/leftovers/munchie/anthem.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2007, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/4 "2007-02-18T23:31:49Z")
Can we give an honorable mention to Ozzy performing the 7th-inning stretch at a Cubs game a couple years ago? Frankly, almost all (American) National Anthem singers are horrible. They all seem to think they’re Aaron Neville or something and try to work their entire ranges into each word in the song… ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/5 "2007-02-19T01:23:59Z")
[QUOTE=Really Not All That Bright] Can we give an honorable mention to Ozzy performing the 7th-inning stretch at a Cubs game a couple years ago? Frankly, almost all (American) National Anthem singers are horrible. They all seem to think they’re Aaron Neville or something and try to work their entire ranges into each word in the song… [/QUOTE] There ya go! Aaron Neville. That’s how it should sound. We should tape his beautiful rendering of The Anthem, then pass an an Act of Congress banning all others. 😉 Dang. It’s not on youtube. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/6 "2007-02-19T01:57:35Z")
Props to Roseanne and her crotch-grabbing rendition. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/7 "2007-02-19T02:13:48Z")
Ten or fifteen years ago, Florence Henderson sang it at the Indianpolis 500. Now, she’s performed on Broadway, so it wasn’t a lack of talent, but probably because she couldn’t hear herself properly, but she went a half step flatter with every line or two, and ended the song about three or four keys below where she started. It was truly amazing, in a rather horrifying way. I may have it on videotape, but I don’t know if or when I’ll have a chance to look for it. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/8 "2007-02-19T02:16:30Z")
Here’s my dream babe, doin’ her [very best](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfZ_gXCHaMw). Ozzie? In Chi? Cool! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/9 "2007-02-19T02:29:36Z")
[QUOTE=commasense] Ten or fifteen years ago, Florence Henderson sang it at the Indianpolis 500. Now, she’s performed on Broadway, so it wasn’t a lack of talent, but probably because she couldn’t hear herself properly, but she went a half step flatter with every line or two, and ended the song about three or four keys below where she started. It was truly amazing, in a rather horrifying way. I may have it on videotape, but I don’t know if or when I’ll have a chance to look for it. [/QUOTE] To be fair, most say it’s not an easy thing to do. I believe it. I want to swap it for _America the Beautiful_. Better yet, _This Land is Your Land_, but Sean Hannity would croak. Don’t want that. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worse-ever-rendition-of-the-national-anthem/392733/10 "2007-02-19T15:15:10Z")
[QUOTE=mangeorge] To be fair, most say it’s not an easy thing to do. I believe it. [/QUOTE] Steve Perry, formerly of Journey, who has an incredible vocal range, said this: Q: Have you ever been approached to sing the National Anthem for a baseball game? I mean, you do have a World Series voice. A: Thanks for that but that song is really a serious, demanding song. Everyone plays around with the melody because the original melody, if sung as it was written, is demanding. They make it easy on themselves by changing it. If I ever do sing it, I would want to sing it with all it original melody and majesty that it deserves. If Steve Perry thinks it’s a tough song to sing, honey, I believe it.