Christina Aguilera National Anthem – Did She Do A Roseanne Barr?

Superbowl 45, brand new $1.2 billion stadium in Dallas, and as part of the pregame, up steps Christina Aguilera to sing the national anthem.
Well, it got some attention that’s for sure, and some people say it was the worst performance of the national anthem since Roseanne Barr’s back in 1990.
Here’s what I think…

I’ve watched the Superbowl for many, many years, and enjoy the typically American build up to the game. That includes the singing of the national anthem.
I’ll be honest, I don’t think a national anthem should be interpreted, I think it should just be sung straight.
Christina fell right into the trap of ruining it by giving an interpretation that was way too personalised.

She even forgot the words, which didn’t help – maybe she should have spent more time rehearsing the words instead of the vocal gymnastics.
Now let’s not forget, Christina Aguilera is a 5 time Grammy winner, and the girl can sing. Fair enough, but her mistake is summed up best by Jerry Wexler, who produced Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin. He said that people tend to ‘oversoul’ songs, artificially putting in too many different notes and draining the soul out of the song.

I think that’s what Christina did, but was it as bad as Roseanne Barr? No, I don’t think so.

Roseanne Barr sang the anthem at a baseball game in 1990, and deliberately went out of her way to be bad. She was shrieking out of tune, supposedly being ‘satirical’. Yeah, right Roseanne.

In my view she was rightly vilified for it, but I think the outcry over Aguilera’s performance is not so justified.
As I said, I didn’t like it at all, in my view she was most definitely guilty of ‘oversouling’. However, I don’t believe she went out of her way to be disrespectful, and that’s why her performance is many levels above the Barr effort.

Winning 5 Grammys is no mean feat, and that’s what Christina Aguilera has done. If you’re a fan, why not check out signed Christina photos?
They make great collector items, and even better presents! Just click on the picture to find out more!