states

My annual list of Best New Songs I Heard is usually reserved for songs I had never heard before. Sometimes, I throw in songs I had heard before, but never nearly as good that a version I just heard for the first time. This song falls in that second category, though it doesn’t quite have the gap for me to put on my list this year because of how many great versions I have heard in the past. Still, it was good enough that I know, for me, it was the best rendition of this song that I have ever heard among the many I have heard.

The Star Spangled Banner is played at so many events I watch, on television or in person, that I am sure I have heard over 1000 renditions of it over the years. Naturally, there have been some outstanding versions among them, as well as some pretty grotesque ones. To me, though, Colbie Caillat’s version at the opening game of the National Football League season between the Minnesota Vikings and the New Orleans Saints was the best rendition of the song I have ever heard. Sorry, I don’t know the guitarist’s name.

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She sung it quietly and built it, without having to rely on volume power to peak. She didn’t need more drums or instruments to come in, or additional parts, either. She just rocked it gently a tad more each time and achieved the effect. That’s a hard thing to do!

The television footage of the players and crowd were also inspiring, and credits go to the NBC camera crew for capturing all that. Lots of players and coaches with hands over their heart, standing pretty still mostly, too. I also liked the shot of Jared Allen with the helmet held high. The New Orleans fans deserve credit for being in such solemn attention. A little cheer here or there in the right places can have just as good an impact as a roaring crowd all the way through like at some events. But you know, the right rendition will help you be like that to listen and be proud rather than not pay attention for any number of reasons.

All and all, I thought it was just superb. Too bad the online version I have above had the image and sound timing just a tad off to make it look like Colbie badly lip synced it.

I saw some online articles today on the rendition by Colbie Caillat. She’s got the Net talking about it, that’s for sure. There were likes and dislikes, and loves and hates, as to be expected. However, I’ve got to say the reasonings given for those who didn’t like it weren’t very sound. If the reasonings those people generally gave were valid, they should just go plunk it out on an out of tune synthesizer, or just get their computer to mechanically play it. They should appreciate how flexible their national anthem is that they could think so poorly of such a performance and yet, some people like myself think it’s the best rendition they’ve ever heard!

Leave me a comment with some other favourite renditions of the Star Spangled Banner if you care to share. Thanks!

Meanwhile, I’m going to look up some more of Colbie’s music. I had never heard of her till last night, but man, did she impress and got a new fan for that performance!

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 7.5

If an election were called today in Canada or the United States, federally or province/state, or even a Senate Race, would you know for whom all your friends would vote?

Get them to tell you on Facebook with these Facebook picture tagging memes that serve as a survey. It uses the same picture tagging features as your photos, and those memes going around with superheroes and other characters. However, here, your friends tag the party of their choice to indicate for whom they would vote! I bet you might be surprised at some people’s choices!

You won’t have to tell many friends to tag their choice. After a few initial ones tag their choice, notifications will be sent out in Facebook and others will see them. Their curiosity, if they care at all, will do the rest.

Facebook tagging survey is a concept I came up with because there aren’t any Facebook survey tools, at least not applications where everyone would have to sign up for the application to use it. I know those applications are free, but not everyone is keen to giving away their personal info and have all kinds of applications as part of their Facebook navigation.

Please note that these surveys are public to a person’s friends, at least, pending their privacy setting. So don’t declare anything you wouldn’t want the world to know!

I have created four elections Facebook tagging surveys below. Some are less timely than others, like the US elections one which won’t see use for almost 4 years from this posting date, though you can still survey your friends right now if you never got to last election. Others are just waiting to happen, like the Canadian federal election.

Here’s how to get this Facebook survey meme to survey your friends’ political allegiance: