Mi primer intento en karaoke

Thanks Google Translation for the wonderful title.

Music has always been a passion for me, though i dont think i sing very well. A kick-ass bathroom-singer, i can sing decently as long as the melody doesnt span many octaves.

I was always facinated by the concept of Karaoke. Karaoke is a Japanese abbreviated compound word: "kara" comes from "karappo" meaning empty, and "oke" is the abbreviation of "okesutura," or orchestra. Usually, a recorded popular song consists of vocals and accompaniment. Music tapes in which only the accompaniment is recorded were named "karaoke." It is now widely recognized that the use of karaoke started at a snack bar in Kobe City. It is said that when a strolling guitarist could not come to perform at the bar due to illness or other reasons, the owner of the bar prepared tapes of accompaniment recordings, and vocalists enjoyed singing to the tapes. Even though it is only legend, this might have been the beginning of karaoke, and since then, karaoke has been commercialized and has become popular all over Japan.

Last week, I came across this software called KaraFun, a Free MIDI and MP3 karaoke player. Downloaded some .kar files and was trying to sync myself to it... when an idea struck me. I decided to try a hand at singing and then blogging it, so that the whole world can share the misery that my roommates have been enduringfor the past 2 days...

I decided to play the .kar file in KaraFun, add my voice and record using CoolEditPro and convert from .wav to .mp3 in Adobe Audition (had to use our software somewhere). So here it is

1. Imagine by John Lennon
Chose this song for 2 reasons. Numero Uno, it suits my voice, no much pitch variations and aural tantrums. Secondly, Imagine is as lush and melodic as anything John Lennon (R.I.P) has created since the break-up of the Beatles. The benign, low-key aura that suffuses Imagine fills us with hope and promise of "a tensionless, defence-free life"

If you havent heard the original, check it out here...


Song: Imagine
Originally sung by: John Lennon
Album: Imagine
Sung by: Raghu


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2. Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton
I heard this for the first time, in a Manipal Video where a guy named Shanky was playing the chords for the song. I loved it. Here's the video from my repository...



I found it so amazing that i started searching for the original and found that it was sung by Eric Clapton, who has given us songs like "Cocaine" and "Layla". On investigation on why he decided to sing such a song, i found that the song is as touching as it is amazing.

"Tears in Heaven" was written by Clapton as a tribute to his son Conor, who tragically died by falling from the 53rd stage of a building in New York, he was only four and half, on March 20, 1991.

Quoting Clapton on the song
"In writing Tears in heaven, my mind was : Will I see him again one day ? It wasn't : I can't anymore, I feel ravaged; there are no these words in my song, there is not a word which involves the sadness. I ask the question : Will I see you again one day ? I think it is the question that everybody has when they lost loved people. It translates the anguish I had to never see my son again. But there is no sadness because I am sure one day I will see it again."

If you havent heard the original, check it out here...

Song: Tears in Heaven
Originally sung by: Eric Clapton
Album: Eric Clapton Unplugged
Sung by: Raghu


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3. Winds of Change by The Scorpions
This song did not come out well, but neverthless, I'm uploading it. Might put up a better version later. One of my Scorpion favourites...

"Wind of Change" is a 1990 Power ballad song by the German band Scorpions. Its lyrics celebrate the political changes in Eastern Europe at that time - such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, the increasing freedom in the communist bloc (which would soon lead to the fall of the USSR), and the clearly imminent end of the Cold War.

Many listeners of the song who are not acquainted with Moscow are often confused by the meaning of the opening line of the song, which is:

I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change...

The Moskva is the name of the river that runs through Moscow, and Gorky Park is the name of an amusement park in Moscow. Although the Scorpions are German, they were inspired to write this song on a visit to Moscow in 1989, and therefore included references to the aforementioned landmarks.

If you havent heard the original, check it out here...

Song: Wind of Change
Originally sung by: Scorpions
Album: Crazy World
Sung by: Raghu
FYI... I didnt whistle in the song, it was too hard. What you hear was a part of the Karaoke :)


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If any of you are not acquainted with the originals, I have put them up on my media blog. You can see them here... Hope you like them... Please leave your comments. Appreciation and "creative" critcism greatfully accepted...