Where Does James Taylor Rank Among National Anthem Fails?
To be fair to the singer, at his performance last night, at least he recovered from his “America the Beautiful”/”Star-Spangled Banner” mashup.
Photo: Ron Vesely/ Getty Images| Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2013
“The Star Spangled Banner” is a notoriously tough song to sing, whatever the circumstances. For every Marvin Gaye or Whitney Houston, there are handfuls of overmatched belters – whether professional or not – who crack under the pressure of tackling the National Anthem before a big crowd. In light of all this, James Taylor’s performance before game two of the World Series at Fenway Park last night wasn’t really that bad; he merely seemed to forget what song he was singing, launching into “America the Beautiful” before deftly transitioning into the “Star-Spangled Banner.”
Nice recovery, Jimbo! Of course, there are a number of ways a singer can botch the song, so we’ve broken them down into several categories. Enjoy! (Just kidding – these are almost impossible to enjoy).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F92uhXVsVWk
PROFESSIONAL SINGERS FORGETTING THE WORDS
Jesse McCartney
Michael Bolton
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZrK_kOk8Lw
Eli Young Band
AMATEURS FORGETTING THE WORDS, FORGETTING THEM AGAIN, AND THEN FALLING ON THEIR ASS:
AMATEURS FORGETTING THE WORDS, BUT BEING HEART-WARMINGLY RESCUED BY MO CHEEKS:
SINGERS GETTING THE WORDS RIGHT BUT ABSOLUTELY BUTCHERING THE PERFORMANCE:
Harper Gruzin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWnP4li8pZI
This cop committing police brutality
Roseanne Bar
AND, FINALLY, THE PERFECT STORM:
Carl Lewis
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