My wife, Wendy, and I often enjoy taking part in a night of karaoke.
We’ve done it at multiple venues in several states.
At times we even sound good; like when Wendy did “Mariners Apartment Complex” by Lana Del Rey a few years ago at The Paddlewheel in Branson. I’m telling you, the place was full of good singers practicing for their shows or hoping to be drafted by a producer or other entertainment head honcho, and after a few bars of her performance, all heads were pointed toward the stage and everyone was taking notice. When she finished, there was literally a big ovation and cheering.
Anyway, we and a few friends went to Big Rock Candy Mountain Resort in Jadwin for some karaoke last Saturday night. For some reason, I had a feeling beforehand that the outing was going to be more memorable than some (and even said so to one of our friends).
That feeling was spot-on.
The weather was perfect that night, and the soon-to-be singers occupied several tables on the sizable deck outside Big Rock’s Big Chill Bar & Grill. When it was time for the music to start, the cowboy hat-wearing host, Ed, a kind and sort of jolly man from Salem, Missouri, introduced himself and quickly made sure everyone knew how things were going to work that night.
You see, Ed didn’t use an online source featuring a karaoke versions of almost every song ever recorded. No, Ed was “old school” and used CDs, and had somewhere north of 600 songs available. He had two sets of lists of those songs organized alphabetically and numbered in binders he called his “Books,” and he outlined the rules of how people had to submit their name and the song number to him at the table he would be working at in front of all the patrons’ tables.
At first, it was a bit disappointing knowing there was a pretty limited selection of choices. When we looked at one of Ed’s Books, it became clear that I wasn’t going to be singing my favorite karaoke song – “In Color” by Jamey Johnson – nor the one I hadn’t done before but wanted to try – Glen Campbell’s country rock version of the Foo Fighters “Times Like These.”
A friend who went with us that night came to our house a bit early that evening so we could ponder what we might sing together. Sometimes with karaoke, planning is part of the fun.
By his suggestion, we practiced doing “Tuesday’s Gone” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. We kind of thought we did OK and figured it would be cool to do with a microphone involved.
Nope; not in “The Book.” The reality was, there wasn’t all that much in The Book.
But here’s the thing: What was in The Book totally led to an epic situation.
And the limited selection actually simplified things to a great extent, and everyone there grasped ahold of the circumstances and made it work, big-time.
I picked “The City of New Orleans” (of Arlo Guthrie and Willie Nelson fame) and felt at ease with its middle-range tone that fit my style nicely. I often gravitate toward Eagles songs sung by Glenn Frey, because my voice is so similar to his (for the record, there were Eagles tunes in The Book).
As the night progressed, Wendy absolutely nailed a version of Jefferson Airplane’s 1967 hit “White Rabbit” (which draws imagery from “Alice in Wonderland”). A group of four guys (including Ed, who is a very good singer, me and two of our friends) combined for a version of “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks that had everyone singing out loud and going crazy at the end.
And then there was Manuel, the patriarch of a wonderful group of folks from Mexico – Guadalajara, I believe.
They were staying at Big Rock to visit owners Roger and Lela Franklin, who are related to the group through a marriage to Lela’s sister. Oh man, these people were having a great time and were so much fun to be around.
Manuel was an incredible story. The day was his birthday, and he was turning 85, but he was up there at the mic displaying incredible pipes for a man his age and kicked the daylights out of several songs. By the time he reached the crescendo of “My Way” by Frank Sinatra, people were literally cheering and clapping with appreciation.
There were several other participants (male and female) who launched their voices into the lively affair with great success, some doing duos, others doing solos, but each and every one adding to what was an amazing experience for the 30 or so people on hand. As it turned out, every performance was fun to hear and everyone in attendance had a truly enjoyable few hours.
While I do like the option of choosing almost any song in existence, I now know that’s not a requirement for a great night of karaoke.
The bottom line is, The Book offered opportunity and the people delivered.
