Now usually when I'm listening to YouTube, I use headphones and I'm playing air bass/air guitar/air drums, all lefthanded (go figure). I also sing at the same time, and apparently I torture my family members in the process, 'cause no sooner than I starting singing the lyrics, my wife yelled down to ask if I was swearing to someone on the telephone.
Hardy-har-har-har.
I've often gotten very bad comments, some tongue in cheek and some not, about my singing. While I haven't been blessed with a good singing voice, I have been blessed with impossibly anal retentive rhythm and backbeat, courtesy of roughly spending ten years playing a clarinet.
I've also developed, in addition to that anal retentive rhythm and backbeat, impeccable timing of the music persuasion. But I digress.
About my singing.
I basically can't sing any rock song that came out after grunge rock era of the early 90's to save my life. But...apparently for someone who likes rock music (sort of), I can sing most country and folk, as well as country rock. And for some very bizarre reason, on a good day I can do a halfway decent impersonation of this singer's falsetto:
Don't ask me why, I just can.
Anywho, like I was saying, I can sing country. And I'm not talking about the urbane country pop that's been polluting radio since Garth Brooks was a money grubbing somebody. I'm talking about the urban country of this singer:
I can also sing classic folk, like this song for example (one of my faves):
By the way, I have a original copy of what is pictured in the video.
Now I'm sure you're wonderin' why I'm talking about something as personal as singing to songs (fess up, you do this all the time in the privacy of your own home/car/office/outdoors, etc. etc. etc.). I have two reasons for doing this: 1} I enjoy poking fun at myself and what better topic there is for me to bloviate about on a Friday than my singing (serious and parody). 2} Tripping down memory lane a little bit as I found out that earlier this week was the nine year anniversary of my dad passing away from pulmonary fibrosis.
But let us not dwell on the sadness of the moment and instead, dwell on the love of early country and folk music that he managed to pass on to one of his children. We all need a positive memory of a loved one to use as an anchor in the stormy seas from time to time, and what better anchor to have than realizing that your loved one passed onto you the kind of music you swore you would never listen to as an adult.
I leave you with my absolute favorite Buddy Holly song (got a few originals of him as well) that I enjoy singing to as well.
I sang for a little while with a band called Crash in high school. I think I hurt my voice then.
ReplyDeleteI went on a Dwight Yoakam binge last night on YouTube.
ReplyDeleteCharles: I dabbled in music with an ex-friend (guitar whiz extradordinaire but had serious personality/character flaws). I sang and wrote exactly one song with him.
ReplyDeleteDebra: I like Dwight Yoakum as an actor, and if you're really into him, there is an excellent biography that came out last year I believe.
Anniversaries can be tough...hang in.
ReplyDeleteIf you can do a falsetto, you're better than me! Who sings in the office though? :)
M: I have from time to time, sang (in a very soft voice) in my office. Ex-co worker said I had a decent voice, and considering her daughter used to sing professionally for a number of years, I took that compliment to heart.
ReplyDeleteI love that first video! Great song, and the part where the helmet-head was "eating" ice cream was hilarious.
ReplyDeleteKeep on singing! :-)
S.R.: Yeah, the lyric version was pretty good. They actually have two versions out, but I thought that this one would go over a little better than the other.
ReplyDeleteAnd I most definitely will keep on singing. :D
That's funny that your wife thought you were swearing at someone on the phone. :)
ReplyDeleteLynn: It is. My family always complains about my singing voice, but I usually pay them no nevermind.
ReplyDelete