"The Star-Spangled Banner" [View all]

I was in another chat room (non-political) this morning and the conversation turned to art as a means of self-expression over many millenia and how performing artists, such as singers, often take someone else’s material and put their own personality into it. Cover bands come to mind.

Then a thought hit me: the often cringy performances of “The Star-Spangled Banner” that we are subjected to in many sporting events. I’ve heard so many deliveries of it that are basically just words, sung either a capella or to music, but which totally miss the point. The song, as written, is a story, in the form of a poem, told in real time by FS Key to the listener: the flag was there, it lived through a bombardment, and survived till the next morning. That’s as much a story as how a QB passed the ball, someone caught it, was chased, and made it to the end zone.

But some of these performances, yikes. I can just imagine a sportscaster calling a play the way the anthem is often sung.

Anyone else find this irritating?