I missed President Obama’s inaugural address yesterday, but I caught the last part of the event and was excited and uplifted.
Indulge me in a few reflections and observations, if you will:
:: One of my foremost impressions of the inauguration was that it probably will be a long, long time before the nation sees a couple as handsome and appealing (appealing from the standpoint of vigor and well being) as Barack and Michelle Obama.
The day’s events were a photographer’s dream.
And how about Michelle? Wow, that woman knows how to dress! A fashion critic was quoted by CNN as saying her style is “ladylike with a twist.” The twist is that she always adds her own distinctive touch to her outfits.
My favorite photo, which appeared on the front page of Tuesday’s New York Times, was this one by Times photographer Doug Mills…
It perfectly captured the joy and celebration of the day.
…I know. You Republican readers are probably curling your upper lips and muttering uncharitable things about now. But how could anyone say that the first couple and their daughters Malia and Sasha did not emanate vigor and electricity?
:: Unfortunately, the inauguration wasn’t authentic from start to finish. I was shocked and appalled to learn Tuesday that a performing artist committed felony fraud.
I can almost always tell when a performer is lip-syncing, but I’ll be damned if Beyonce (accent aigu over the final “e”) didn’t slip one by me. And by almost all other viewers, I’m willing to bet.
At the end of her stirring rendition of the National Anthem, I was on my feet singing with her, just not quite as beautifully.
And then I learned today that she did, indeed, lip-sync.
What a chicken shit!
Kudos, however, to Kelly Clarkson, “American Idol” star, for her outstanding rendition — SUNG LIVE — of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.” Her performance prompted Sen. Chuck Schumer, master of ceremonies, to say, “WOW!”
(Also, who can forget Aretha Franklin’s rendition of the same song four years ago at Obama’s first inauguration? And, yes, she sang it LIVE.)
As for Beyonce (accent aigu over the final “e”), I never heard her sing and never paid any attention to her before yesterday, and she’s now won a spot in my personal trash bin of overhyped musical artists.
:: I’ve got to give credit to our hometown Kansas City Star, too, for the way it played the inauguration. A photo of a smiling and ramrod straight President Obama taking the oath of office, with Michelle holding two historic Bibles in her gloved hands, swept across the front page, down to the fold.
Good call at 18th and Grand. Surely, a lot of Democrats who don’t subscribe bought copies when they saw it in the newspaper stands.
:: A couple of weeks ago, a commenter to my blog predicted that Obama would go down as “the most hated President ever.”
I replied, “More hated than Nixon???”
And now, as the nation embarks on four more years under Barack Obama, I’m going to predict that he will be long remembered for, among other things, his achievements, his even temperament, his judicious choice of words, his humanness and, finally, for bringing us the finest first lady we could possibly ask for.
JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC 
Fitz,
I will give him credit for smooth temperment and Michelle’s new hairstyle looks nice. I wish they would cut back on the costs and events (not completely), because he was sworn 01/20/13.That is a nice shot of The First Couple strolling and they do have energy.
I wish we see energy used by all in DC to explain how the Affordable Healthcare Plan is to be budget neutral.
I wish we would get the real answers of the Diplomat and soldiers’ slaughter in Benghzi.
I wish The GOP would realize they need to work with President Obama. Nobody wants to unveil the only way to cut the deficit in a reasonable amount of time.
It is the Presidetial milestone of it’s kind – historically the two elections of President Obama – of course makig history that we all should be proud, no where and who you are in life.
I support the President, disagree with the President (and I do not always vote Republican or Democrat). I lean alittle more to the right, but I have to be careful or the Northern and Southern Hemispheres will trade places.
Were you equally upset the Marine band wasn’t playing, that the music was recorded?
Were the same people overly-grousing the same ones who go see Trans Siberian Orchestra but fail to notice there are instruments in the music coming from the speakers which are not on the stage/in the building?
With auto-tune and such, not many real voices anymore. That’s today’s music BUSINESS.
Yo Ma didn’t play live in ’08 and no one rushed to call FRAUD.
I would have been more shocked if she had actually sang.
The Marine Band did play live. They played to a pre-recorded track of the singer’s rendition…
Consider this from the website HollywoodLife.com…
HollywoodLife.com spoke to Kristin DuBois, the Public Affairs Chief for the Marine Band, who confirmed that Beyonce lip synced.
“We don’t at all we know why she decided to go with the pre-recorded music,” Kristin told us. “All music [for the Inauguration] is pre-recorded as a matter of course. The Marine Band performed live and we received word at the last minute. Colonel Colborne and Officer Perry were standing right there, and I’m not sure who they were in contact with, but Perry gave the word to go with the pre-recorded track at the last minute.”
As for today’s pop music business, most of it is a sham, largely because of the overuse of technology.
Give me performers like George Strait and Martina McBride — always giving their best live, with their God-given and self-honed talents.
I refer you to this statement from SLATE.COM.
Marine Corps spokesman Capt. Gregory Wolf said that because there was no opportunity for Beyonce to rehearse with the Marine Band, it was determined that a live performance by the band was ill advised. Instead they used a pre-recorded track for the band’s portion of the song. “Regarding Ms. Knowles-Carter’s vocal performance,” Wolf’s statement continued, “no one in the Marine Band is in a position to assess whether it was live or pre-recorded.”
John Boehner and I are “rolling” our eyes.
Newsweek has a deified picture of Obama on the cover.
The press has rolled over for this guy from day one.
Even Pat Caddell thinks it is a disgrace.
http://www.therightscoop.com/emotional-pat-caddell-on-the-msm-ignoring-benghazi-these-people-have-no-honor/
While his apotheosis here is complete, Mr. Obma’s “Legacy” is still in play.
I love John…He’s the picture of a long-suffering employee stuck between employees he can’t control and a supervisor who drives him crazy…All he can do is press on and take lots of smoke breaks.
I enjoy reading your blog very much and I usually let your experts’ comments suffice–BUT–as a long time band director who often had to coordinate sound, I will comment that probably the Marine Band had something to do with the prerecording, etc.
Sound does not travel at the speed of light (obviously) as do radio waves. For a soloist to coordinate with the band separated by 40 yards or so, is an impossible task. I suspect the synchronizing of the band and the soloist mandated the need for the recording.
The only way to be sure of no echo or confusion is to perform a capella, which she probably wishes she had done. thanks to the all-knowing Internet.
Thanks for shedding some light on the situation, John. Your theory sounds very plausible. Moreover, the Marine Corps has now waffled on its earlier statement, with a spokesman saying today, “No one in the Marine Band is in a position to assess whether it was live or pre-recorded.”
I don’t know how that could be; sounds as if the Marine Corps just doesn’t like being in the finger-pointing position. Also, you’ve got to remember that Kelly Clarkson did a live performance, minutes before Beyonce, of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” so it was clear that band and singer perform in tandem, even at a distance.
Regardless, my point is that if an artist accepts an invitation to sing or perform at an event of that stature, I think they owe it to the public to give the performance their best shot on the spot. Again, Aretha Franklin did her 2008 version of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” live, and her voice waffled a little bit at times. She said later that she wasn’t happy with her performance. I thought it was great, though, mainly because real notes were coming out of her mouth and she went with the flow. It sounded to me like she actually improvised a few notes. She demonstrated courage and class in a high-pressure situation.
Fitz:
You are right on about Michelle Obama as First Lady. We haven’t seen such style and fashion sense since Jackie Kennedy. And Michelle and the President radiate love and communication with each other and with their children. It is good to see such family togetherness in the White House.
Laura
I’m still waiting for someone to break into a stirring rendition of “Happy Days Are Here Again.” But that’s a little premature, of course – sorry FDR. It’s too bad all the pomp and grandeur of the occasion doesn’t automatically translate into progress on the legislative front, and while it’s nice to be able to feel good about ourselves as Americans for a few fleeting hours once every four years, what about the rest of the year and the years that will follow? The economy is still very much in the doldrums, and I see that the aforementioned Star has announced another round of furloughs for the first half of 2013. Many of our major metropolitan dailies are struggling to stay alive and are being delivered to fewer and fewer homes, but by golly there must be an average of at least four or five handguns/rifles in each man’s “castle.” Is this a great country or what?
At least it’s just furloughs at The Star, not more layoffs…yet.
Bollocks!!! An in ear monitor would have allowed Beyonce to sing live. I suspect she and hubby smoked a little herb in the morning and she didn’t want to risk embarrassing herself. That’s why the inaugural brunch chimed in at 3000 calories. Everybody had the munchies.
So it is that the scandal of the inauguration is lip syncing and not the @ss raping we will all suffer under dear leader. And so it goes with POTUS that the Hegelian Dialectic shall reign supreme. Keep repeating those lies to the low-information voters, welfare kings and queens and other takers. They’ll suck em up and in faster than a hit off the old crack pipe.
We have become a nation of godless morons. No honor, code, integrity, morals or manners. Each night I pray that The Lord will provide Old Testament path, motive and opportunity for the forces of good to rise up and water the tree of liberty with the blood of tyrants and patriots. My trigger finger is itching. My intended targets already chosen, my crimes of murder excused by an Act of War and sins forgiven by a God who sees the goodness in my heart.
This is a great nation. No longer led by the likes of Harry S. Truman but the clone of Alfred E. Newman. Barack Obama intends to destroy every moral fiber that built this country. Social justice vis-a-vis taxation and income redistribution. More access to on demand-abortion, less access to guns. More spending on education…..indoctrination really….with poorer results. Plato has been replaced by Play Dough.
Barack Obama is making Marx and Mao jealous. Let’s just lift that debt ceiling to TWENTY TRILLION! Paul Krugman says it’s OK. No correlation between debt and economic viability or growth.
Barack Obama is a born and bred communist. He is at best a fraud and charlatan propped up by a media and citizenry focused on intentions not results. The best to be said about him is that he is not Al Gore…..yet.
SHAME ON YOU that you support this man and his agenda. Actions always have consequences. Be prepared to accept yours.
You’re right, Smartman: This is a great nation, and we will survive this scandal. I’d just like to see an administrative regulation prohibiting lip-syncing at future inaugurals.