“Angels” Is Karaoke King
Posted Fri 21 Nov 2008 4:38PM GMT by Johnny Famethrowa in Touching The Void
With Robbie Williams presumably now strapped-up in a Hollywood maximum security stockade, as he attempts to recreate the Roswell incident with only an old "Blue Peter" DVD to guide him, it's easy to forget what a star he once was. A reminder of that very fact arrived this week, with the news that "Angels", perhaps his most famous moment, has been named the most popular karaoke song of 2008 by the Performing Rights Society. He heads a list of drunken bangers so heady that two ABBA tracks are in the Top 10, while all-conquering Chardonnay-shouter "Valerie" comes up short at number two.Speaking recently about the song's neverending appeal, co-writer Guy Chambers explained: "I think 'Angels' has endured because it is a pop anthem and functions as a prayer at the same time. In an increasingly secular world we still need songs that bring people together." Quite where religion fits into this is anyone's guess. The only time Famethrowa has ever taken the mic in his trembling hand was to roar psychotically through Black Sabbath's "Paranoid". Respectfully tip-toeing around "Give Rest O Christ" just wouldn't have cut it.
Anyway, here's the full Top Ten:
01 "Angels" Robbie Williams
02 "Valerie" The Zutons/Amy Winehouse
03 "Dancing Queen" ABBA
04 "Sweet Caroline" Neil Diamond
05 "Kingston Town" UB40
06 'The Wonder Of You" Elvis Presley
07 'Black Velvet" Alannah Myles
08 'My Way" Frank Sinatra
09 "Suspicious Minds" Elvis Presley
10 "Waterloo" ABBA
Clearly, this is a pretty UK-centric list, as pointed out over at NME.com by Spiritross (or should that be Spitroast), who also seemed keen to remind us in just one sentence why it is that America has a slightly dubious reputation abroad these days. "Obviously this is UK only. There is little to nobody in the USA that even knows those two songs at the top, let alone would care to sing that crap", he ranted rather rudely. Well, here's two very different examples of "Angels" getting the treatment on what is essentially the world's greatest karaoke competition, "The X-Factor".
