Anthem at Super Bowl

[AlanN]

Heh Alan.........I must disagree with the Whitney Houston version........man 'o man that really was a soul-stirring version of the national anthem. I hadn't seen it in years but just went back & watched it and she nailed it IMHO...:-)

Jim, I too went back and gave it a shot. You're right.

Just seems that since then, the flood gates have opened to get to where we are today with some of these renditions.

[Bruce Evans]

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.

AlanN, the Star Spangled Banner was first stylized by Jose Feliciano in 1968.

[AlanN]

Well, Light My Fire!

I'll defer to the erudite historians here, I'm just a manalin picker...

[Josh Kaplan]

From the Chicago Tribune

[fatt-dad]

yeah, she has a nice voice and all, but I don't take to all the warbling.

f-d

[journeybear]

Josh - that link isn't working for me. I think this is what you wanted.

Whitney is just fine, but what is really gaudy there is the band arrangement. And her voice is almost submerged at times by all that cacaphony and counterpoint. This happens every bit as often as the over-the-top singing. The arrangers go nuts to make their mark for these opportunities.

[Josh Kaplan]

Thanks, that's it. My bad typing.

I fixed the link in my post and it should work now.

[CES]

Yeah, it was embarrassing for her, and, yeah, I'm not happy that she blew the words, but at least she had the guts to actually sing it live. For those keeping score, I think she also took a breath during "spangled," which my wife tells me is also a no-no.

As for the Doyle clip, every time I hear them I'm impressed at that tenor's range...dude gets up there!

[Pete Summers]

The singers should sing it with respect for the song and what its meaning. Maybe we should get Susan Boyle to sing it. The song may get more respect than it does from it is own citizens. Did you happen to see how few football players had there hands on there hearts during its singing. I think I will stop here before I get banned.

I believe it is customary to place your hand over your heart (or salute in the military) when reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, or raising of the flag, but I don't think it is commonly done when singing the national anthem. At least I never do.

[John Flynn]

I believe it is customary to place your hand over your heart (or salute in the military) when reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, or raising of the flag, but I don't think it is commonly done when singing the national anthem. At least I never do.

Here's the deal:

United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 3, Sec. 301 Updated 02/01/2010

National anthem

(a) Designation. - The composition consisting of the words and
music known as the Star-Spangled Banner is the national anthem.
(b) Conduct During Playing. - During a rendition of the national
anthem -
(1) when the flag is displayed -
(A) individuals in uniform should give the military salute at
the first note of the anthem and maintain that position until
the last note;
(B) members of the Armed Forces and veterans who are present
but not in uniform may render the military salute in the manner
provided for individuals in uniform; and
(C) all other persons present should face the flag and stand
at attention with their right hand over the heart, and men not
in uniform, if applicable, should remove their headdress with
their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand
being over the heart; and

(2) when the flag is not displayed, all present should face
toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the
flag were displayed.

[Tom C]

Even though CA botched the words (I'm sure Jerry Garcia is not rolling around in his grave), as a singer, she did what she was supposed to. kept going. Half the people did not even notice. If she totally vapor-locked, sang off key, or could not reach notes, those would be more of a cause to criticize her.

[Mandolin Mick]

I'm of the opinion that singing the national anthem is not supposed to be a "performance". It's supposed to honor our country and should be done with the respect that you would handle the American flag.

CA sang at my high school ... but not when I was attending ... She wasn't even born yet!

[journeybear]

You're right - as stated in the code it is a "rendition," not a performance. That is, it is to be played or sung as written, without embellishment, and though not specified, for the purpose of placing a benediction on the following proceedings. Also, from reading the code, there is no mention of the crowd singing along, one way or the other, though I am interpreting this as implying the proper behavior is to stand in silence, much like observing a moment of silence when honoring someone who has died - as a display of respect.

Americans have somehow gotten a reputation for ebullience, conviviality, colloquialism, and, in a manner of speaking, down-home folksiness. I'm sure this is often perceived by people from other countries with older cultures, customs, and traditions as crass. But headstrong Americans are going to do what they want regardless, and I doubt the proper behavior is agreed-upon; again, it is not specified in the code, which isn't common knowledge anyway. So if people sing along with the anthem at public events, that is fine with me. It is still a way of showing respect, to my thinking. I'll still stand in silence. Singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" during the seventh inning stretch is quite another matter, and even if something patriotic such as "God Bless America" or "America" or "America The Beautiful" is sung at that point, by all means sing along - especially if you have had a beer or two. They are not the anthem.

In all this discussion about interpretation, I keep thinking of Fred Astaire, for whose movies the very best songwriters of the era were only too happy to write songs. They were motivated by money and publicity, of course, as the Astaire-Rogers films wee big hits, but also Astaire had a reputation as a very dry singer. That is, he sang songs as written, with very little interpretation, and from a songwriter's viewpoint at the time, this was very desirable. They made a lot of money back then from sheet music sales, and it was important for them for a wide audience to know how their songs went. He was not the most thrilling singer by a long shot, but he was a songwriter's singer, dry as a bone. No warbling for him. Of the examples presented, I prefer the Cactus Cuties. A capella, straight melody (except for that jump to the high octave note on "free" that seems to have become almost standard), and true to their billing, cute.

[Pete Summers]

Here's the deal:

United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 3, Sec. 301 Updated 02/01/2010

National anthem

(a) Designation. - The composition consisting of the words and
music known as the Star-Spangled Banner is the national anthem.
(b) Conduct During Playing. - During a rendition of the national
anthem -
(1) when the flag is displayed -
(A) individuals in uniform should give the military salute at
the first note of the anthem and maintain that position until
the last note;
(B) members of the Armed Forces and veterans who are present
but not in uniform may render the military salute in the manner
provided for individuals in uniform; and
(C) all other persons present should face the flag and stand
at attention with their right hand over the heart, and men not
in uniform, if applicable, should remove their headdress with
their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand
being over the heart; and

(2) when the flag is not displayed, all present should face
toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the
flag were displayed.

Well, I stand corrected.

[journeybear]

Absolutely don't want to rehash the discussion; just wanted to share this really nice version a facebook friend shared today: