Sinatra Song Often Strikes Deadly Chord

[Brownian Motion]

February 7, 2010

Sinatra Song Often Strikes Deadly Chord

By NORIMITSU ONISHI

GENERAL SANTOS, the Philippines — After a day of barbering, Rodolfo Gregorio went to his neighborhood karaoke bar still smelling of talcum powder. Putting aside his glass of Red Horse Extra Strong beer, he grasped a microphone with a habitué’s self-assuredness and briefly stilled the room with the Platters’ “My Prayer.”

Next, he belted out crowd-pleasers by Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck. But Mr. Gregorio, 63, a witness to countless fistfights and occasional stabbings erupting from disputes over karaoke singing, did not dare choose one beloved classic: Frank Sinatra’s version of “My Way.”

“I used to like ‘My Way,’ but after all the trouble, I stopped singing it,” he said. “You can get killed.”

The authorities do not know exactly how many people have been killed warbling “My Way” in karaoke bars over the years in the Philippines, or how many fatal fights it has fueled. But the news media have recorded at least half a dozen victims in the past decade and includes them in a subcategory of crime dubbed the “My Way Killings.”

More

[gmonahan]

February 7, 2010

Sinatra Song Often Strikes Deadly Chord

By NORIMITSU ONISHI

GENERAL SANTOS, the Philippines — After a day of barbering, Rodolfo Gregorio went to his neighborhood karaoke bar still smelling of talcum powder. Putting aside his glass of Red Horse Extra Strong beer, he grasped a microphone with a habitué’s self-assuredness and briefly stilled the room with the Platters’ “My Prayer.”

Next, he belted out crowd-pleasers by Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck. But Mr. Gregorio, 63, a witness to countless fistfights and occasional stabbings erupting from disputes over karaoke singing, did not dare choose one beloved classic: Frank Sinatra’s version of “My Way.”

“I used to like ‘My Way,’ but after all the trouble, I stopped singing it,” he said. “You can get killed.”

The authorities do not know exactly how many people have been killed warbling “My Way” in karaoke bars over the years in the Philippines, or how many fatal fights it has fueled. But the news media have recorded at least half a dozen victims in the past decade and includes them in a subcategory of crime dubbed the “My Way Killings.”

More

Well, if it makes Philippinos feel any better, Sinatra shared their opinion of the song:

-- "I hate this song -- you sing it for eight years, you would hate it too!" (Caesars Palace, 1978)

-- "And of course, the time comes now for the torturous moment -- not for you, but for me." (L.A. Amphitheater, 1979)

-- "I hate this song. I HATE THIS SONG! I got it up to here [with] this God damned song!" (Atlantic City, 1979)

I share his opinion. When I do a Sinatra show on the radio, it's one I almost never play.

gregmo

[BruceH]

I do too. Always thought it was an obnoxious and crappy song. Not worth killing someone over though.

[ep1str0phy]

We take our karaoke very, very seriously. I've seen some crazy stuff go down over one too many coronas and some lumpia shanghai.

[Jazzmoose]

I dunno about My Way, but I'd kill for a batch of lumpia right now...

[JSngry]

Own your own impressions; let's not project them onto the musicians or "jazz" in general, or certainly onto me.