Karaoke
The Karaoke Superstar
So you’re here to check out the singing sensation, eh? Well, the tradition goes back a long way… Perhaps we better start from the beginning:
I’ve been rockin’ the mic since I was a little kid, as evidenced here… My sister would rather eat her plate, and even mom isn’t so interested, but hey, they had to hear me all the time! I must say, my outfit was the at the pinnacle of style also… :) I’d be singing around the house all the time, as I had my trusty Fisher-Price tape recorder with me at all times, most likely belting out cheezy WHAM! songs off the tape given to me by my next door neighbors, two teenage girls… (pimpin it early too!)
I was in chorus in school from 3rd through 8th grade, got a solo every year, and was complimented for my loud volume… go figure! High school chorus sucked, so I was relegated to singing in the car and in my room along with the growing plethora of CD’s I was accumulating… Then came college… :)
The Karaoke Superstar got his real start at a RIT Apartment party (thrown by my buddy Dave). It was Dave’s birthday, and his brother had come up to “emcee” the party…. with a PA and everything. As the night wore on and people were becoming a little less controlled, someone put on “The Humpty Dance” and started singing into the PA… “started” was as far as they got, because I proceeded to yank the mic from their hands and rip shit up by slayin’ em with a classic rendition of the Digital Underground party favorite… After these initial shades of greatness, there was bound to be something biggger… The RIT karaoke contest!
After the first hockey game of the year, the College Activities Board sponsored a karaoke contest in the student union, with cash prizes of $25, $50 and $100… After some initial reluctance, our hero knocked ‘em dead with a killer take on House of Pain’s “Jump Around”… which propelled me into the finals, where I decided to actually sing, and summoned Eddie Vedder in spirit for a version of Pearl Jam’s “Daughter” that brought down the house only halfway through the song! I won second prize, only because first prize went to a group of 5, $20 apiece as opposed to $50 for myself… :)
Fast Forward to Summer 2000… on one of the many excursions to the Great White North (a.k.a. Canada), we hit the Beer Garden, which is a karaoke establishment. The song this time was Fuel’s “Shimmer”, and we actually got photographic evidence from this one!
 This would be the gratuitous “ass shot”… Our table was behind the “stage” so I had to keep turning around to pander to my “fans”… :) |
 Kickin’ it old-school… The song in question is Fuel’s “Shimmer” (I heard Brett’s fearing for his job…) :) |
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RIT Karaoke Contest #2 – 11/04/00
The second RIT Karaoke contest was held November 4th, 2000 in the Student Union, and the Karaoke Superstar took home FIRST PLACE honors ($100!), belting out STP’s “Plush”, the old favorite “Jump Around”, and a rendition of Creed’s “My Own Prison” that would have made Scott Stapp hang his head in shame… :) Hit the link below for some pretty blurry pictures…
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Karaoke with Tashi – 02/15/02
On this friday evening, we packed three cars and headed down to Six Pockets in Irondequoit… Tashi had been buggin me for ages to do the Toadies Possum Kingdom with him, so I was only too happy to oblige him and check it out. Possum Kingdom, Hemmorrhage (In My Hands), and Jump Around later, the carnage was over… and they documented it again! Hit the link to see Tashi and I, some of our friends, and the “old guy” rockin out!
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Matt and Lisa’s Wedding 07/11/03
Fast-Forward again to the summer of 2003, where I promised Matt I wouldn’t do anything at his reception, espcially anything of the karaoke variety. Well… I promised the wrong person it seems. Lisa, of all people, requested that the DJ play nothing other than Jump Around. Turns out all he had was the remix… which didn’t make a whole hell of a lot of difference. Naturally, this was later in the night, and the bar was open and free all night, and who else but Karl obtained the DJ’s mike and gave it to me. We all know what happened next. Only this time Chip captured it with his camera! So for a brief, shining 30 seconds or so, you can see me, live at Matt and Lisa’s wedding reception, doing Jump Around, much to the chagrin of those still left in attendance. Enjoy!
Rockin’ My Own Wedding Reception – 09/23/06
Oh you better believe it! Much to the chagrin of my new wife, I had to indulge myself at our wedding reception… and as for the song, well, you know…
Jump Around At The Reception
In any event, moral of this story, Eric + Microphone + Good Tunes = Entertainment. There will be future triumphs, you can count on it! :)