Idolator

A couple odd choices but very bad ones nonetheless:

Garth Brooks - The Dance


Afroman - Because I Got High

OH Lord. One night I went and some dude did "Unforgiven" by Metallica. And the CD skipped alot. And he somehow got it restarted. I was ready to stab myself in the ears.

Also...That frickin Evanescence song...Umm..Bring Me To Life. UGH. If I never hear that again I'd be ok.

I prefer to do "Stray Cat Strut" or "Tide is High"...Nice low alto/mid range tenor songs.

Theme from New York, New York

Falsetto is hard to do karaoke. I once attempted U2's "Lemon." Won't be trying that again ever.

Most dudes should never attempt Guns'n'Roses. Axl's voice is hard to nail.

@TroubleonWheels: I was just about to come back here and say "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" but you did it for me! Seriously, people -- you can't sing this song. You can't. You're not cute or funny faux duking-it-out with your significant other.

I would do anything for love, but I won't sing that.

I can't think of anything to never do...I'm alover not a hater.

My best ever karaoke experience was singing Laura Branigan's "Gloria" as a duet with a friend. We brought down the house.

Coincidentally her video is just like a karaoke performance!

More Bowie would be good, more Joe Satriani would be better.

Last week witnessed a tiny little white girl absolutely kill on some Danzig "Mother". Astoundingly awesome!

...of course, this was followed by a medley of drunken guys singing Steve Miller and Sabbath songs (5+ mins a pop) horribly.

Here, here for banning: Black Velvet, Paradise by the Dashboard Light, Love Shack, and Grease songs.

May I add anything by Alicia Keys? Even if the singer in question has talent, she'll grossly over-sing. The rest of them? Sheer torture.

what? nobody mentioned "love shack"? especially if there's a college with sororities nearby. ugh.

i've been known to bring it with blondie's "the tide is high".

Stevie Wonder, "I Was Made to Love Her".

Actually, most any Stevie Wonder. It's okay that you're not Whitney or Mariah, but his songs are deceptively challenging.

@spankyjoe: Ah, you make a good point. Perhaps it's for the best that I've never gotten the chance.

Yeah, I hear "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Summer Love" about once a karaoke night. I live in Texas, so we also get a lot of fat white girls singing songs in the keY of "Before He Cheats."

My personal pet peeve is the endless coda. I do "End of the World (as We Know It)" but I have the good grace to get off stage before the second end of that song. "Hey Jude" falls into this too - that's like 3 minutes of going "Naaaa na na nanananana." Just stop.

@El-Zilcho:

I will not be that somebody. I get nervous singing along to those songs in the privacy of my own apartment.

@spankyjoe: Yeah, I know the words to so many Bowie tunes. But I can't even come close to them vocally. I've wanted to get up and do a rousing "Young Americans," but I just can't get it right.

But somebody needs to get up and sing them, cause they're great.

Europe's "The Final Countdown" wears thin really, really fast. For everyone involved.

Groups of closely related women, assembled for a wedding/reunion of some sort, singing "We are Family", and being surprised to find out there's lyrics other than the title of the song.

Here's my list:

1. American Pie.

That is all.

The last time I went out for Karaoke, 4 different women sang Alannah Myles' "Black Velvet" at various times throughout the night. That song sucks so much, but to see four women try to outdo eachother with that song just added to it's suckiness.

Ban "Black Velvet" from Karoake!

"Alabama Song," The Doors. Terrible.

I love that all of you are so good at picking the shit songs that I have nothing to add to this thread other than GREAT WORK!

@slowburn:

The semi-obscure Bowie tracks would be pretty solid, but definitely experts-only. Even stuff that you think would be simple on first examination ("Heroes", "Ashes to Ashes," "Suffragette City") has some non-trivial technical hitch to it. For example, "Ashes to Ashes" has that tricky jump from falsetto/head voice to chest voice (depending on vocal range) in the verse melody.

and by elisive i mean elusive.

young americans is HARD. that song has so many words.

i disagree with the one person who said not to do maps. although you have to be able to sing the same few words over and over and not seem boring. (see also: miss world.)

lately i've been doing mostly george michael, shy guy by diana king, and elisive butterfly.

@El-Zilcho: Every time I go to a Karaoke bar I beg the owners to add David Bowie's "Sorrow" to the list. It's one of my favorites by him and it's the only one I could ever see myself attempting in front of strangers.

Unfortunately, no one has ever heard of it ;-(

Also, I'd like to second whoever called for a ban on "I Will Survive."

@juiceandgin: I've been guilty of doing "Fell in Love with a Squirrel" myself.

I did "sittin' on the dock of the bay" once but changed all the sittin' to shittin'. It was well received.

I liked "Against All Odds" until every broken-up-with-and-sad karaoke goer started trying to do the Mariah Carey version. Ugh.

Also on the "no" list, "We Built This City". It goes on forever and seems to only have choruses. It's also the worst song in the world.

Never "Hotel California"

General karaoke rule to consider: if you are going to do something obscure by a well-known artist, you have to absolutely NAIL it. If you screw up a song everyone knows, they'll just sing over you.

I used to do karaoke competitions (not kidding), so when I go to a new place, I bring out one of my sure things: Ballroom Blitz, Mr. Roboto or Freedom '90.

@spankyjoe: Mother is always a solid choice to sing.

Off topic:

"Bizarre Love Triangle" would totally get the bar hoppin if someone belted it out.

Theme From Shaft :-o

Ok, I'm just going to throw this out there, and I want to hear what you guys have to say:

Danzig.

my usual karaoke has been overrun with emos, including the kj. it is no fun for anyone.

my rules of can't miss karaoke glory:


1. its gotta be danceable, you have to own the stage


2. recognizable but not necessarily well known


3. impressive lyrics, you should know it well enough to not rely on the video for words


4. simple vocals with room to move


5. must be an undeniable classic


that said, my picks are "burning down the house," "walk on the wild side," "young americans," "its the end of the world," and "little willy." i'm being modest calling myself a legend

@Whigged: Two questions:

1) Was there a kid in the background throwing firecrackers at the floor?

2) Did the guy eventually start playing Russian Roulette?

The Outfield - Your Love

No you can't hit those notes, stop trying.

@relaxing: The best karaoke performance I've ever seen, by far, was a duet of I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That). It was clear they'd rehearsed, which is pretty heroic if you think about it.

No:

I Want It That Way


Losing My Religion


People trying to sing like John Fogerty

Yes:

Danger (High Voltage)


Psycho Killer


Take My Breath Away (Techno Version)


Holy Diver


Waterfalls

Black Dog - Zep (the "Ah,Ah,Ah,Ah's" are unbearable)

Sister Christian - Night Ranger

I actually witnessed the latter last weekend at a dive near my pad in Boston and couldn't resist:

@borntohula:

@sXenester:

We should probably discuss a moratorium on "O'Malley's Bar," just for sanity's sake. You'd think such things would be self-explanatory, but sometimes, the adults have to step in and take the toys away from the children.

"Rapper's Delight" full length version, done solo. Yes, I've seen it. Well, part of it. I holed up in the bathroom when I couldn't take anymore and my friend up next stood outside the crapper serenading me with "White Wedding" until I returned. Good times.

yeah, the grease songs have got to go. or at least be "lost" for 10 years or so. they're fun, but they seem to be karaoke staples whenever i've gone.

i'd like to hear more "careless whisper." and yes to more nick cave and david bowie.

Let's say you break up "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" by assigning each distinct musical section to a different singer. Is that OK? Because I reeeeaaaally want to do "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" someday.

The "L.A. Woman" ban, while a good idea in general, fails to account for the awesomeness of Tom Scharpling:

http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2008/04/hoof-and-...

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The last time we went karaoke-ing, there was a group of theatre geeks at one table, and all they did were numbers from Wicked, Chicago, and (I think) Grease.

We all wanted to fucking strangle them.

Anything by Yes.

@Mr. Guy: Unless you're a girl with back. I've seen that. It's humorous.

If you're even still doing this shit, Norebang is the way to go, fuck Karaoke . . .

- Anything by the Darkness, unless you've really got the voice for it.

- Anything that's too slow and quiet- "Maps" is one of my favorite songs, but you shouldn't bore people. Karaoke is about the fun vibe... this isn't to say you have to do a "fun" song (for example, a couple of months ago, I did "Message in a Bottle", and everyone loved it), but it can't be a song that will put drunks to sleep.


- I'm with anibundel- no "Bohemian Rhapsody"... though now that i think about it, "We Are the Champions" might be the exception to my above rule. Maybe because it's slow yet not quiet, but regardless, I doubt anyone would be upset at a good rendition of "We Are the Champions".


- Anything that's so obscure that there's no chance anyone around you will know it- again, karaoke's about keeping a good vibe, not proving you're a music snob.


- Emo.

@whoneedslight:

Oh, good lord.

@El-Zilcho:

I once saw a girl publicly work out some very deep-seated issues through a passionate performance of "Zombie," by the Cranberries. Not for the faint of heart.

But for a song that you just shouldn't do: Baby got back

working for the weekend by loverboy is highly underrated as a karaoke song

If I hear anyone diss Bat Out Of Hell on this website again, it's not going to be pretty.

@spankyjoe:

Copacabana has like an 80 measure break in the middle. It is absolute torture.

If I never have to hear "Sweet Child of Mine" again, I'll be a happy dude.

Corollary: Anything with extended instrumental passages.

@sXenester:

I see your Nick Cave, and I raise you some Tom Waits.

Anything from that angsty girl phase back in the mid-90s, like "You Oughta Know," and Meredith Brooks' "Bitch." I think I've seen both those songs done whenever I'm at a bar. And I like "Bitch."

My personal song to bring the house down is Violent Femmes' "Add It Up." I'd also like to hear more people attempt David Bowie tunes. I'd do it myself, but I just don't have the chops to hit the right notes.

Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

Private Dancer - Tina Turner

@Dead Air ummm Dead Air:

moar nick cave

@relaxing: How do you feel about "You're The One That I Want," which seems to go hand in hand with the songs you mentioned?

I would like to see I Will Survive permanently retired.

I saw a doppelganger for Axl Rose at a local bar sing "Round and Round" by Ratt. Honestly, one of my favorite musical moments.

* Meatloaf's Paradise by the Dashboard Light

* Anything by Meatloaf

@Dead Air ummm Dead Air: Astoria is a magical (?) place.

There are karaoke bars which have A Perfect Circle in the catalog?

If I may be the music snob that I am, the following songs should enter a "Really? You want to sing this song like the last 4 people did?" department:

"Don't Stop Believing"

"Summer Loving"


"Never Going to Give you Up"


"Sunday, Bloody Sunday"


"Born to Run"


"Livin on a Prayer"


"Pour Some Sugar on Me"

Still acceptable, despite cliched:

"Just a Friend"

"Bust a Move"

Songs that should get a lot more karaoke love:

"Angry Johnny" by Poe

"This is Hardcore" by Pulp


"Deanna" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds


"East Bound and Down" by Jerry Reed


"I'm Your Man" by Leonard Cohen

"My Way." Ha ha, yeah, we've seen "The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle", too. Funny.