Karaoke Forums

If these singers were half as 'professional' as they think they are, then it should be no sweat to jump from a Sweet Georgia Brown to a Chartbuster to a Pop Hits version of a song.

I mean, as a general rule, most karaoke versions of songs are not that drastically different in arrangement.

Like the difference between Hunts and Heinz ketchup.

C'mon man! That is YOUR opinion. You give an air of "it's all about me" perception. Sorry, but it's true. Some here will find this funny since I don't play discs but I don't give a " mine is as good or better than yours'" reasoning.

There is a big difference between versions and manus. First time I ripped and played some sunfly discs, I nearly became nauseous.



One other thing, I don't think we can put "serious singers' and "fun singers" 100% on two different sides of the debate when it comes to moving late arrivals up. There are plenty of "fun singers' that are not going to be happy with that treatment either.

In the end, as said, everybody runs their shows differently to different degrees. I can tell you this, I consider myself a "fun singer" and If I knew for a fact that I was bumped down for late arrivals after being there for hours and spending lots of money, I wouldn't be happy.

_________________
KingBing Entertainment C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!! [font=MS Sans Serif][/font]

It is my opinion. As both a guitarist and a vocalist.

But it's also been several months since anyone asked me about playing their discs, so for me, anyway, its not much of an issue.

If you can't hang with the differences between different karaoke track mfg's, then you're not much of a vocalist.. and probably would be lost having to sit in with a 'live' band.

Again.. most .. maybe I shouldn't say 'fun' singers.. maybe I should say casual singers.. most casual singers don't have disks of their own in the first place.

If you're a person who actually goes out and buys tracks to sing along with you're already a far more serious karaoke singer than 99.75% of my regular crowd.

Most of the differences i've seen between versions of the same song are slightly different on screen lyrics, the occasional 'abbreviated' version of a song (because 10 minute karaoke songs suck) and subtle differences.. like the guitar sounds slightly different, or the mix on a particular track might sound 'thinner' than another.

Certainly nothing that should prohibit a competent singer familiar with the original recording from singing the song in a bar on a Wednesday night.

Again.. if they were going on Star Search or competing for money.. or someones life were at stake.. ok.. but dude.. it's karaoke in a bar with maybe 200 people.. and maybe a dozen of them even paying any attention to what you're singing.

Besides, like a wise man once said, "It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools."

Again.. just my opinion. Feel free to disagree.

Note.... I have NOT ONCE said a single thing about how you run your show. All I have said was that you have an attitude problem. Even when you say that you don't have a problem with someone bringing up their own disc to use, you present it with an attitude.... I labored over this hot stove all day long cooking this big Honey Glazed Ham, and now you tell me you want Turkey???!!! And I still take MAJOR INSULT to your reference of people (like me) who bring our own discs to shows with us as being "Anal Retentive."

As for your statement that there isn't much of a difference between the different Manu versions of songs, you are mistaken. In some cases (maybe not a large percentage), there are very noticeable differences in the versions. I'll give you 3 examples:
"Dentist" from "Little Shop of Horrors" - Pocket Songs is good, Karaoke Classics is OK, and Sound Choice is just plain off in the timing (the timing was so far off, I couldn't sing it from that version).
"Can't Help Falling in Love With You" (Elvis Presley) - Music Maestro is a fast tempo and Just Tracks is a slow tempo. BIG DIFFERENCE
"Total Eclispse of the Heart" by Bonnie Raitt - Sound Choice version is very good, All Hits version is passable/decent, DK is pretty good too, AND (I am almost positive of this) the only version that has the extra stanza.

You certainly have a pretty strong brand of hubris if you think that you can know how good all the versions of all the different songs are. Or that you know what "reasonably decent" is.

I support the right of anyone to run their show how they want to. But thank goodness shows run like yours don't last where I live. I guess if you have a large supply of anonymous suckers to rotate through, you can get away with anything. Around here, you have to build a following or the show goes under.

I don't expect a show to be perfect -- my favorite show doesn't play disks and it has crappy material. They don't cater to super-serious singers at all in that way. But the sound is outstanding and it has a rotation that is consistent. Those have become my "gotta haves". If they put one-time customers up before me, a supporter for years, I would be gone, gone, gone.

_________________
[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I don't think I said i've heard every version of every song made for karaoke.. but of the hundreds of different versions i've heard, no major difference.

But please feel free to post any tracks you've noticed that are so completely different from the original track as to make them impossible to sing.

Cueball.. I think what you may be noticing with the Elvis tune 'I can't help falling in love with you' is the standard version vs. the aloha from hawaii version (which is way faster).

On "Dentist" from LSOH.. i'll have to give that a listen.

Bonnie Raitt sings Total Eclipse of the Heart? Maybe on some bootleg import CDG. That's a Bonnie Tyler tune.. and I hardly think an extra stanza is so big a difference that a person would be unable to sing along with it.

Sorry I hurt your feelings, Cue.. i'm sure you're a nice guy and all.. but if you're going to nit pick different versions of a song, that's exactly what you are. Anal Retentive. At least according to the definition of the term.

The term anal retentive (also anally retentive), commonly abbreviated to anal, is used conversationally to describe a person with such attention to detail that the obsession becomes an annoyance to others, and can be carried out to the detriment of the anal-retentive person.

Cue would be welcome at our show. It is such a small thing to play a disc for a singer vs the pleasure and peace of mind it brings them, we don't think anything of it.

We've got a guy that searches out obscure Mavericks tunes and does a great job singing them. We had a (late) singer who's mission in life was to find every Beatles song there is on karaoke. He was not a real good singer and had no attitude or even the slightest anal retentiveness. He just loved the Beatles and it gave him happiness to sing their songs. I encourage that sort of thing. It doesn't offend me at all. I'd rather not spend the money on songs only one person sings but I love it when a person sings a song no one else sings.

The most anal retentive person in this thread has been Cheesy himself. He has to CONTROL EVERYTHING about his show. The thought of a fair rotation is so objectionable to him because something other than his ego is controlling who sings next. The thought of someone bringing their own version of a song is enough to set him off as if the person bringing in the disc has the problem and not Cheesy himself. . I wonder what would happen if those 4 HOT drunk chicks showed up at the end of the night with their own "special" version of "I will Survive"? I'm guessing that the girls being drunk and hot allows them to do whatever they want but if Cueball shows up and wants to sing a show tune; Cheesy would probably have him tossed out of the bar for being too difficult for insisting on singing from his own Pocket Songs disc. I wish Cheesy would post a link to his show schedule so people could avoid wasting their time going there if they like to sing from their own CD's. I make a lot of my own CDG tracks of songs that aren't available in karaoke format. I guess that makes me too serious of a singer to be singing at the Cheesy show. The most recent one that I made is called "JUMPING OFF THE WAGON". I put it up on the Singers Showcase earlier today if anyone wants to listen to it. It is in no way a serious song but Cheesy would think that I was being anal for wanting to sing it at one of his shows because he doesn't have the song on his computer. The FUN part of karaoke is being able to sing songs that are FUN to sing for that particular singer and not being limited to what one anal retentive KJ decides is appropriate for an entire karaoke show.

I could give you more songs that are noticebly different, but I think I made my point, and that's not what this thread is about anyway. YOU are the one who made the blanket statement that there's no real difference between one Manu version of a song and another. I just wanted to POLITELY point out that you are mistaken in that assumption.

Oops... I had a brain fart with regard to Bonnie Raitt/Bonnie Tyler, but at least you knew which song I was referring to. I guess I'm not as ANAL as you think, since I made a mistake with regard to that detail. I guess YOU are the one that's being ANAL... since you took the time to give a DETAILED DEFINITION.

Oh, and BTW... Screw you and your apology!!!!! Our conversation (and future ones) is now at an end.

I take total offense at you insinuating Bonnie Raitt had anything to do with that vile and repetitious doggerel foisted on an unsuspecting public by Bonnie Tyler. That frog may have been kissed into a princess, but she still croaks like a frog.

_________________
Dave's not here.

It's even worse when someone decides to sing that song in the style of THE DAN BAND...just so they can drop the F BOMB to get their jollies. The Dan Band version is only about 2 minutes long but these people who are just out to be offensive have to do the Loooooongest version they can find.

I guess that is what some people consider "FUN"

Now we see the problem. You have no ear.


There are tons. And there are a lot that simply sound crappy, and that I don't want to sing to. It's not that I can't, it's that I don't enjoy singing to crappy accompaniment.

_________________
[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I'm sorry you took offense to my error. LMFAOAPMP!!!!!

For anyone who thinks there is no decernable difference between manufacturers I urge you to borrow ANY nutech product *I had the misfortune of paying full price for the SAVP discs, simply because they had songs that weren't available elsewhere* and compare them to any other version of the same song.

If you can't tell the difference then you're either tone deaf or can't hear at all!

respectfully,

-James

, you guys crack me up. Let's see, we've got Bruce continuing the name calling and insults that he started 2 pages ago, we have Cheese generalizing to a point that others are somehow offended, and then we've got Cue giving us his best version of "You made me mad, I'm not talking to you anymore".

Seriously folks, grow up and lighten up. I mean I've gotten into plenty of heated debates on this forum but seriously this takes the cake. I can't remember when I've seen such childish antics from supposed adult professionals.

Cue and Bruce, you don't like Cheese and his attitude toward Karaoke singers that you identify yourself with, noted for the record, move on. Cheese, you don't like demanding singers, also noted for the record, we get it. Now can we officially call this match of pee-ing on each other's shoes over?

_________________
DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

Cheesy

You now have meet the serious singer welcoming committee !!!

The fact is if you listened to 10 versions of a karaoke song or compared the low end of manufactureres to one of the top 3 you CAN tell the quality improvements.

BUT>>>>>> If you're library is full of MOSTLY the top brands from SC CB ZOOM SBI PHM and the others .... I agree with Cheesy the tracks from the uppper group are ALL VERY GOOD and no need to carry or offer multiple versions.

I agree that all singers that carry their own discs are not anal retentive and attaching a name is not fair. ARE THEIR ANAL RETENTIVE SINGER OUT THEIR ...SURE .... but THE SAME CAN BE SAID FOR KJ'S

If you don't want to play customer cdgs DON'T ...it's your show and your business
the singers that don't care will love your show and the others won't and go somewhere else ....It's OK

I guess I kind of assumed that we were talking about the top tier discs.. SoundChoice, Chartbuster, Music Maestro, lots of Sunfly stuff isn't bad.. heck.. i've yet to hear a real clunker in the Sweet Georgia Brown collection.. which was one of the first 'small disc' collections I bought back in 2002. I've bagged several Legend Series discs to help fill out my 'by artist' selection that can get a little thin sounding, but nothing so far off or awful a person couldn't sing to it.

Sure i've heard some terrible karaoke tracks that sound like they were slapped together in Cakewalk w/ general MIDI.. but i've not experienced that with any of the what i'd call 'leading brand' manufacturers.

And the drunk chicks.. man.. you guys are really hung up on that.. now they're HOT drunk chicks. Hahaha I can just see the steam coming out of your ears when you type.

"I spent $7 tonight at this place and i've been here since 8:45! How DARE you bump me EVEN ONE SONG so a newcomer gets a chance to sing?????*"

I bump up EVERYONE that comes in late so they get a chance to sing. You know.. because I have a big ego like that.. I feel like I need to control everything by giving everyone an opportunity to have some fun, unlike you loose and freewheeling folks who instead tell them to get here earlier next time, and adhere to a strict rotation, and become livid when there is even a slight deviation from the prescribed format.

I don't bring my own water or ketchup to a restaurant. I don't bring my own chair, either.

If I don't have the song, sure i'll play your disc. If you've got some rare out of print or Yugoslavian battle chant you'd like to regale the audience with that I don't have in my catalog, by all means, i'll play the thing.

Or here's an idea.. maybe try singing SOMETHING NEW?

Spin the wheel of Karaoke.. I sometimes do a thing where the current singer gets to pick the song the next singer sings, which usually ends up quite entertaining for the entire crowd.























* See how I used multiple question marks there? That's a sign of a person who should maybe relax a bit.

If you talk about Music Maestro as top tier, I now know for positive you have no ear. Other than perhaps some of their oldies disks, they are awful on balance. In fact, many of their tracks I would call unsingable.

_________________
[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

So name 5 of the 'many' that you consider 'unsingable' from the MM catalog. I'm bound to have at least one so I can see what passes as 'unsingable' to your highly tuned and discriminating ear.

I agree on the MM --like their oldie/doowop stuff