Yesterday the Patriots played the Ravens in the AFC Championship game. I did not watch the game because I hate the Patriots and have since I was a child. Also I was helping my wife become the sexiest Kajiit to walk the face of Skyrim.
Today I come to find that people aren't talking about the Patriots moving on to play in the Super Bowl. No, the biggest news to come from that game is Steven Tyler and his rendition of the National Anthem. Which you can check out here.
Yep, take it in.The flat notes. The out of breath vibrato. And was that a shriek? Yes, yes it was. Is it the worst rendition of the National Anthem. Not by a damn sight. But still pretty bad in my opinion for our National Anthem. So again I ask the question, when did our country stop caring how the Star Spangled Banner should sound?
Here's what's got me so ticked. Regardless of the state of our nation right now, and in case you've been in a coma it's pretty bad, this is supposed to be OUR song. America's song. It should be the most important piece of music as it pertains to our nation. It should be performed well and with pride. Not just handed over to whatever media darling flavor of the week happens to be standing within arms length. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying that a person from the music industry shouldn't sing the National Anthem. Many have done a great job with the song, like this. Considered by many to be the gold standard of how that song should be sung. Use those people, they make a living at singing. But just because they have a record contract or have won a Grammy, that doesn't make them a great singer.
You should try to find the best to sing the National Anthem. I had a friend tell me that it's just a song, and not even the best song about America. And while that may be true in some instances, it doesn't change the fact that this is supposed to be the song that makes people the world over think America. It is supposed to make our chests puff out with pride. Instead it's become as commercialized as the events it precedes. Network execs try to find a cute face or the "next big thing", or as was the case Sunday, the washed up frontman who somehow hasn't OD'd on heroin yet to come out on the 50 yard line or the pitchers mound and belt out a caricature of a song that is supposed to be anything but.
Solution? Well I think it's simple. Have teams or networks or who ever makes these decisions audition singers or bands to be their official Anthem singer. In the case of sports, home team gets to have their singer sing it. And please for the love of all that is good and holy DON'T make it a GD reality show!! Just find someone, famous or unknown, who can sing that song with at least a sliver of pride. Find someone who will make the internet blow up the next day about how great it was, and not how bad it sucked. Maybe, just maybe, if we took some pride and worked hard to make a simple song the very best that it could ever be, we might actually start doing that with our nation as a whole.
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