Patti LaBelle was a disgrace when singing the national anthem at the World Series

Stiles Points checked out some other blogs about Patti LaBelle's rendition of the national anthem at Sunday's World Series...the overwhelming majority had very negative responses to her performance...

By Bob Beecher on October 26, 2008 11:58 PM
She came up with an overlong rendition ... AND ... couldn't remember the correct lyrics!

She sang, "skylight's last gleaming," (instead of twilight's)

She sang, "through the perilous flight," instead of perilous fight.

Don't think so? Well, just like that mistaken "safe" call near third base, go back and check the tape!

By Jason on October 27, 2008 12:26 AM
As a Canadian I was embarassed at that horrible rendition of a beautiful national anthem. It was a travesty and she is not the only one who does it. And for some reason the fans in the stands seemed to have loved it. Go figure!

By MaxCackle on October 27, 2008 12:31 AM
Labelle's anthem performance was one of the worst I've ever seen. She screwed up the lyrics twice & the rest was sliced, diced & pureed. Note to all artists: stop trying to reinvent the wheel & just sing the song with a light touch of your own style. The girl who sang it before game 3 did a great job, however, and hers would be a good reference for all who sing it in the future.

By James on October 27, 2008 2:03 AM
Oh patti...yikes that was so bad! Yes, I agree w/ the above poster the girl (taylor swift) who sang it Sat. nite did so much better!

As a native Philadelphian I was embarassed Sunday night and the group of people I was watching the game with all agreed that her take on the anthem was awful. Just sing it as it is please?

By Michael Crane on October 27, 2008 3:06 AM
I was embarrassed to be an American while listening to that. People were mainly cheering that it was over and the game was finally going to begin. But that was about as bad of a rendition I've ever heard...

By Daniel Barrott on October 27, 2008 3:33 AM
Currently I am living overseas in New Zealand. I am from America. We got game 4 of the World Series on T.V. here and I was embarrassed that the world had to watch a horrible attempt at the National Anthem. Our anthem is beautiful when song the right way with a little change from the artist. I wanted to mute the tv when she was singing.

By SKYYSYKO on October 27, 2008 8:11 AM
DITTO DITTO DITTO.....I CANT AGREE MORE WITH THE FIRST THREE COMMENTS.THERE SHOULD BE GUIDELINES SET FOR THESE PERFORMERS.JANET JACKSON/JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE DEBACLE DOESNT SEEM SO BAD NOW

By steve on October 27, 2008 8:20 AM
LaBelle's National Anthem was extremely hard to bear, painful to the ear, and extremely unpatriotic. Philadelphia should be ashamed of themselves for allowing her to butcher such a sacred song. It's a good thing Citizen's Bank Park doesn't have a roof because they would be repairing a lot of cracks in it this morning. If you're going to sing the National Anthem at America's greatest pastime, baseball's World Series...LEARN THE WORDS AND SING IT RIGHT!!! The National Anthem is a sacred song and should not be altered. Patti LaBelle is a discrace to the United States after what she did.

By James G on October 27, 2008 8:23 AM
I can't believe that someone could actually enjoy that torrid performance. Melodically she was all over the place, the lyrics were slaughtered, and the song clocked in at what felt like 17 minutes. A terribly embarrassing showing.

By Jeff on October 27, 2008 10:00 AM
"Not one (anyone) could have sung along with, but one that almost equalled the power of the accompanying fireworks."

That is the main point of singing the Anthem at a public event - to lead the crowd in the singing. If she wants to sing the Anthem that way, she should do it in her concerts. I feel this way for anyone doing the Anthem at an event – including Taylor Swift and the Backstreet Boys.

I think the vast majority of the people in this country know Patti LaBelle can sing. She has an amazing voice, IF she would just sing. I looked up some older clips of her on YouTube and she was spectacular. The older she gets, however, the more “dressing up” she does with her songs and it becomes difficult to listen.

I thought Los Lonley Boys did a superb job when they sang the Anthem and if Patti would just sing it the correct way, people would be mesmerized. She should realize that being asked is a huge honor and she should perform the song with dignity, not as if she’s auditioning.

By Barry Eynon on October 27, 2008 2:38 PM
The third worst rendition of the National Anthem I have ever heard. Only Carl Lewis and Rosanne Barr did worse. Hopefully tonight we have a singer who wants to respect the anthem and not try to personalize a song that is meant for our nation and not for individual experimenataion.

By Joseph D. Marquis on October 27, 2008 3:16 PM
That was probably the worst rendition of the national anthem I have ever heard. There have been other bad ones. Maybe they should have to audition before being allowed to butcher our national anthem on national T.V. A real embarrassment.

By cindy on October 28, 2008 8:47 AM
It's not a matter of white or black. She butchered the song. Best rendition I ever heard was Whitney Houston's at the Super Bowl, maybe 15+ years ago. I'll never forget that performance!