National Anthem: Tradition or Style?

[Anybodyhome]

Alicia Keys is performing the anthem for the Super Bowl and claims the song will be completely different. Are you okay with singers taking whatever liberties they want with the National Anthem?

http://music.msn.com/music/article.aspx?news=786266

[Darth Biscuit]

As long as it's respectful I don't mind a little liberty with it... but I generally prefer it sung pretty traditionally.

[teeray]

They should quit hiring people to sing the national anthem and just replay this on the jumbotron every Super Bowl:

It has never been done better than Whitney. Still to this day gives me goosebumps. I love the end when the look on her face tells you that she knows she nailed it.

[Cape Fear Cat]

As an old jarhead, I tend to come down on the side of tradition too.

[rayzor]

as long as it doesn't fall into cliches, i'm cool.

alicia keys seems to have some good musical sensabilities. not a walking vocal cliche like so many singers tend to be from any genre. the girl's got some ray charles in her. i'm anxious to see what she does with it. i don't expect it to come with a ton of over the top vocal flourishes, which happens waaayyy too much.

i've got no problem with people trying to make it their own, as long as they're trying to make it truly their own and not copy someone else who made it their own.

[teeray]

as long as it doesn't fall into cliches, i'm cool.

alicia keys seems to have some good musical sensabilities. not a walking vocal cliche like so many singers tend to be from any genre. the girl's got some ray charles in her. i'm anxious to see what she does with it. i don't expect it to come with a ton of over the top vocal flourishes, which happens waaayyy too much.

i've got no problem with people trying to make it their own, as long as they're trying to make it truly their own and not copy someone else who made it their own.

That is why I always like Whitney's. It had enough of her stamp on it to make it her own without becoming pretentious and overdoing with the vocal acrobats.

I am a huge fan of Alicia Keys so I hope she does a great job and I think she will.

[Guest]

I prefer traditional. Go on American Idol if you want to do all that woaahhwoaahhwoaaah stuff.

[Mr. Scot]

Long as they remember the words...

[thefuzz]

Me personally, tradition.

I didn't like the fact that Brady nor BB had their hands over their hearts yesterday, among many others I'm sure.

[Dpantherman]

I don't mind. It's all done in respect, just a different interpretation.

Now when you can't remember the words or complete fug it up--thats what I'd call disrespectful. It's only the first verse, learn it.

[JJT]

Just what we need. Another over-souled national Anthem.

[chknwing]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcZKkZO7CTI

[Gabeking]

They should quit hiring people to sing the national anthem and just replay this on the jumbotron every Super Bowl:

It has never been done better than Whitney. Still to this day gives me goosebumps. I love the end when the look on her face tells you that she knows she nailed it.

If you can catch my drift... Lol

[Marguide]

As long as it's tasteful, I don't care.

Frankly, my favorite part of any rendition is the very end when fans start to clap and scream for the game to get started. And if it's a big game, that's exactly why they are clapping and screaming. It's not so much because they loved the particular treatment the anthem received.