Residents of Green Bay are walking around with an extra spring in their step today after the Packers won Super Bowl XLV. While the game was good, as the Pittsburgh Steelers and Packers had a nice "back and forth" going, the entertainment factor was lacking.
It all begins with the singing of the National Anthem at the start of the game. With American soldiers in the crowd and passionate NFL players standing by ready to play for the masses, it is important to have an inspiring anthem. Unfortunately, guest singer Christina Aguilera did not deliver any inspiration as she completely butchered the song. She tried way too hard with style and innotation and forgot about the words.
Check out the performance here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjvVon4w-QQ
Usually, I am a big fan of Christina, she has a wonderful, powerful voice but this National Anthem seems to be a challenge for her. In the past she has proven difficulties with missing words or phrases, see here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d33FPKM6gv0. Again, I applaud her range but would like to see a toned down, traditional version, in its entirety, especially at the start of what is considered a great American traditional, the Super Bowl. Two of the best performances of the National Anthem, EVER, I believe are from Whitney Houston circa 1991 and Beyonce circa 2004. Check out these links to see what I am talking about.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHmdu_I_0zI (Whitney)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhrrGu2rcZ4 (Beyonce)
Next on the menu, the halftime show. The Black Eyed Peas were on the mainstage with guest appearances by Sledge of Guns N' Roses and rapper/singer/women swooner Usher. First, the back up dancers were incredible, they were on their A game indeed, however, the audio delivery by the Black Eyed Peas was almost to non-existent at times. While I understand that is not necessarily their fault, the stadium system may be more to blame, the group however must understand that their voices are going to need to be powerful, you are not in a concert arena people. Member Fergie has a great voice and the band as a whole sounds good to me live so I give the performance a B, Usher and Sledge were the saving grace.
The final component of the show, the commercials, were not what I expected. After the massive success of the Betty White Snicker's commercial last year, it seems advertisers remained in the comfort zone this year. Rosanne Barr getting pummeled by a huge log was funny but too similar to White getting tackled in a flag football game. I did like the "Doritos Cheese Dust" commercial simply because it was gross, unexpected and completely relatable. Oh, c'mon you have never tasted something so delicious that losing any excess flavoring could be considered a slight crime? Ever had a Cinnabon Cinnamon Role? Overall, Youtube will not get any traffic from me as I try and re-live a commercial over and over.
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