It's time to learn the national anthem (2/3 of Americans don't know it)

[deadparrot]

The National Anthem Project may have a small problem with its plan to get all U.S. residents to sing The Star Spangled Banner in unison this week.

A Harris poll says two out of every three people in the land of the free and the home of the brave don't know the words to Francis Scott Key's complicated composition.

Nonetheless, the National Association for Music Education is urging everyone to sing the song in unison at 9 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday -- the 191st anniversary of the day Key penned the lyrics to what would become the national anthem in 1931.

Our goal is to have millions of patriotic voices rising in unison around the country, organization executive director John Mahlmann said in a news release.

http://news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.asp?id=115805&cat=World

[Der Blaue Engel]

1. They want me to get up at 6:00 am and start singing???

Sigh. Do people not know there's a West Coast or something?

And I know the anthem, too.

:shrug:

[petronius]

24. Yeah - what are they thinking?

If any anthem-eers wake me up a 6 am, then national spirit is going to be the least of their worries...:nuke:

[MisterP]

26. California isn't really America, only Nebraska and Mobile

and maybe Indiana--Illinois and Maryland are right out

[KamaAina]

48. They want me to get up at *3:00* and start singing?

Or are they still flying their old 48-star flags? :shrug:

[Amonester]

89. LOL !! (Good one!!) ... Maybe they want you to

go to bed at 03:03 (after silence is back)! ;)

[WhiteTara]

50. What? You don't see those bombs in the early monring

light? Why DO you hate Amurika? :rofl:

[enki23]

2. maybe if they had something that wasn't such a shitty song

i know, i know. international law pretty much requires national anthems to be shitty songs. and if a nation here or there is in violation of international law... that's nothing new either.

anyway, i'm serious. it's a shitty song. the only thing worse than listening to a trained singer belt it out is listening to the fat republican barking it next to you at a baseball game. i'm as partial to my country's real estate as much as the next person, but the song's gotta go.

[Der Blaue Engel]

28. Why does everyone hate it?

I love it. Always have. It's about the actual battle for independence, not some crappy "we're all wonderful here in America and have the best land, plus God-blah-blah-blah-God."

[RoyGBiv]

31. Well, no ...

It's about the War of 1812, or more specifically the bombing of Ft. McHenry, which wasn't really about Independence (big "I") as much as conquest, solidifying land claims, establishing a national presence on the seas, etc.

[Der Blaue Engel]

33. Do you have a link for this?

Not challenging, just curious. Regardless, my main contention is that all other songs suggested are about God in some way or other, and have no business being our national anthem.

[RoyGBiv]

36. Shouldn't be a problem ...

...

http://www.nps.gov/fomc/tguide/Lesson9a.htm

There's one about Key and the poem used in the song.

Regarding the War of 1812 itself, no. There are some out there, but they're inadequate. I have tons of books, though, if you'd like a recommendation. :-)

I don't like it for the same reason mentioned in Post #4. That is, I don't like National Anthems in general. As far as they go, the one we have is okay.

[RaleighNCDUer]

41. So are all the other verses -- the ones that nobody knows.

I would just as soon go back to the anthemless days before the fascist 30s.

The first 'national anthem' in this country wasn't even for this country - it was 'Dixie', for the confederate rebels, and was yet another indefensible nationalistic bit of jingoism.

[Blue_In_AK]

61. Thank you. That's what I was going to say. n/t

[Ms. Toad]

34. Because it glorifies war.

I refuse to sing it. Although I try not to be disrespectful of those who choose to sing it, I do find it very annoying that it is sung at far too many events I attend. I have to pay attention to my surroundings and find just the right time to duck into a restroom or anywhere else the speakers don't blare in order to avoid being assaulted by it. Avoiding a song I find offensive should not be so hard.

I have the same problem with the pledge of allegiance...

[FreedomAngel82]

64. To me

the pledge and the anthem are apart of the country with our without God mentioned. I think people politicize it too much. All the "hoo rah" ordeal. If it's an all the time thing it won't mean quite as much to someone personally.

[Ms. Toad]

80. Bingo

I have read the words to each (not just sung them/recited them) and disagree with them. One glorifies war; the other requires that my allegiance belong to a particular geographical/political region, neither of which are acceptable to me.

The problems I have with each individually are compounded when we require our children to begin reciting/singing these daily in a rote manner before they are old enough to have a clue what they mean, making it more difficult for our children to explore and value equally the world beyond the borders of the US.

Although I do not think the schools should be imposing God on our children, as far as I am concerned that is far less dangerous than the jingoism this rote recitation/singing promotes.

[Der Blaue Engel]

66. I guess I was lied to as a child

(Not surprising, since I went to a Christian school.) We were told it was about the Revolutionary War, which is not a war I have a problem with.

But I still have far more problem with the pledge, because of the forced addition of "under God," as with any of the "patriotic" songs that contain God.

[Ms. Toad]

82. Not sure what your "lied to" reference is about.

I didn't specify which war was being glorified - just that it is a song glorifying war, which it is.

For what it's worth, if you have a problem with "under God" or with "patriotic" songs that contain God you should take a more thorough look at the lyrics of the Star Spangled Banner...

[Der Blaue Engel]

92. I was referring to the earlier post in which 1812 was mentioned

Again, I don't have a problem with war when it's warranted, or celebrating our victory in defending our country. Regardless of the fact that it's about the War of 1812, that still appears to be the case.

The commonly used verses are nonreligious, as a national anthem should be. I've just looked up the full lyrics and I can only find fault with the last stanza. But since no one asks me to sing that, I stand by my happening to like the Star Spangled Banner as our national anthem. :)

[tx_dem41]

85. Actually its about the War of 1812....

specifically about the assault by the British on Baltimore.

[Journeyman]

45. It's gibberish sprinkled with question marks. . .

what's to like?

[kath]

52. The tune is awful, it kind of plods along in a lifeless way, and worst of

all, it's pretty much unsingable because the range is so broad.

OTOH, that scene in "Casablanca" where they sing "La Marseillaise" is so awesome - now *that's* a rousing song

[Art_from_Ark]

71. The Marseillaise mentions the raising of a bloody flag

Literally bloody, that is

"L'étendard sanglant est levé "

Also, they are coming to cut the throats of your sons and companions in your arms

"Ils viennent jusque dans vos bras,
égorger vos fils, vos compagnes"

[kath]

75. Whoa, I knew the lyrics were bloody, but didn't realize they were *that*

bad! (It's been awhile since high school and college French)

So, the lyrics *are* definitely a turn-off. But you gotta admit, the tune is a lot more catchy than the whiny "ohhhhh say, can you seeeee" stuff.

And that scene in Casablanca really IS something else...

[question everything]

73. You mean, you did not like the Roseanne Barr's rendition?

Was it the Super Bowl or just a ball game of the garden variety?

[alphafemale]

74. The tune was a Drinking Song...I think.

[progdonkey]

81. my favorites

are La Marseillaise and the Russian national anthem. I know this will sound kind of stupid, but the former sounds so French and the latter so Russian, that neither could ever be for any other country. Most other anthems I've heard are all pretty generic in their style: "rousing march in three."

[Qibing Zero]

70. I agree,

but there are many national anthems out there that have a lot more spirit and feeling than ours.

Also, did anyone else grow to realllly hate the fact they replaced take me out to the ballgame with god bless america at baseball games for so long?

[rurallib]

3. Personally, I'd vote for replacing it with 'America the Beautiful'

Star-Spangled Banner praises war and the music was stolen from a bawdy English bar song. Not what I like to think of the US at its best.

[Free2BMe]

7. best choice

[PurityOfEssence]

30. Except for the god crap

It's appropriate that we have a national anthem that was written by a lawyer who was held captive watching his country defend itself and that the body of the first part ends with a question mark.

There should be no fantasy big daddy god blatherings in an anthem that's to represent us all. Anyone who doesn't inherently understand this doesn't understand what this country is all about.

This is symbolism writ big, and that's fine for me.

[NYC Liberal]

88. The SSB does have that in it,

albeit in the fourth verse which nobody sings:

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

[54anickel]

43. I'm partial to the George Carlin version

Oh beautiful for smoggy skies
Insecticided grains
For strip mined mountains majesty
above the asphalt plains
America, America, man sheds his waste on thee
and hides the pines
with billboard signs
from sea to oily sea

[cynatnite]

93. Singing it now...love the lyrics

makes the tune snappier :)

[kath]

53. but "America the Beautiful" has all that God stuff in it. That's about

the only thing that the SSB has going for it - no God stuff, at least in the first verse.

[RaleighNCDUer]

4. National anthems are a product of the nationalistic frenzy of the

10th and 20th centuries, and have no place in a civilized world.

Please note that the US had no national anthem until 1931, at a time when fascism was rising throughout the world. We had to have a way to say "we are more patriotic than you"; the international pissing contest ended in 1945 with 65 million dead.

[RaleighNCDUer]

42. Too late to edit --

that was, of course, the 19th not the 10th century.

[sniffa]

5. i prefer the orignaL, british drinking song it's based off of

i bet more than 2/3 of americans don't know that our anthem was ripped from a drinking song.

:toast:

[sniffa]

17. To Anacreon in Heaven

To Anacreon in heaven where he sat in full glee,
A few sons of harmony sent a petition,
That he their inspirer and patron would be,
When this answer arrived from the jolly old Grecian:
Voice, fiddle aud flute, no longer be mute,
I'll lend you my name and inspire you to boot!
And besides I'll instruct you like me to entwine
The myrtle of Venus and Bacchus's vine.

The news through Olympus immediately flew,
When old Thunder pretended to give himself airs,
If these mortals are suffered their scheme to pursue,
The devil a goddess will stay above stairs,
Hark! already they cry, in transports of joy,
A fig for Parnassus, to Rowley's we'll fly,
And there my good fellows, we'll learn to entwine
The myrtle of Venus and Bacchus's vine.

The yellow-haired god, and his nine fusty maids,
To the hill of old Lud will incontinent flee,
Idalia will boast but of tenantless shades,
And the biforked hill a mere desert will be,
My thunder, no fear on't, will soon do its errand,
And, damn me I'll swinge the ringleaders, I warrant
I'll trim the young dogs, for thus daring to twine
The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine.

Apollo rose up and said, "Prythee ne'er quarrel,
Good king of the gods, with my votaries below
Your thunder is useless - then showing his laurel,
Cried, Sic evitabile fulmen, you know!
Then over each head my laurels I'll spread,
So my sons from your crackers no mischief shall dread
Whilst snug in their club-room, they jovially twine
The myrtle of Venus and Bacchus's vine.


:patriot:

[kineneb]

23. yup, love to sing it every July 4th

I always liked the "The myrtle of Venus and Bacchus's vine" part. Thank you Francis Scott Key for choosing an almost-impossible-to-sing tune. Low B-flat and high F; you need a good voice for that... or to be roaring drunk.

[FreedomAngel82]

65. I knew that!

I remember one year when I was in marching band we were working on the national anthem and our teacher told us about that. I remember being a bit shocked. But now days not so much of course.

[Free2BMe]

6. We never sing it ..or God Bless America either..yuck

we will compromise with America the Beautiful if need be...

[sniffa]

12. why not 'proud to be an american'?

or better yet... 'courtesy of the red, white and bLue'

:rofl:

[deadparrot]

14. Is that the "boot in the ass" one?

I think we should.

[sniffa]

16. it's the american way

cuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrt-esy of da reh-dwiten bLue

you know it. :P

[Oeditpus Rex]

54. The one by The Tubes?

I'm proud
to be an American
I'm proud
of the groovy things we've done
There's television, free religion, rock 'n' roll, Standard Oil,
Times Square, Jimmy Darren, Corey Wells, and Smokey Bear,
price reduction, reconstruction, Peace Corps, and lots more
Culture that we got to lend

I'm proud
to be an American
And I'm proud
Had a great time bein' one
There's your school and my school and both of us in high school,
surfboards, cigarettes, homework, Southern Comfort
Boy's dean was real mean,
Made us keep our lockers clean
Failed nearly every class
Ditchin' was a gas

I'm proud
to be a young American
I'm proud, just think about it
All the far out things that we've begun
There's revolution, constitution, land, sea, and air pollution,
cold wars, hot wars, gas wars, and confrontations,
constipation, consternation, open-hearted palpitations
Muscular Dystrophy

I'm proud to be an American
Because we got department stores full of cheap guitars
But when Sputnik plays 'em, you just go go go go!

I'm proud to be an American
(We got two chickens in every garage!)
And I wish every other kid could be one
(In my country, the medium is the massage!)
'Cause it's impossible to give
Equality and justice
to inferior foreigners
too jealous to trust us
(Gimme your weak and your homeless, and also...)
Uh, how 'bout checkin' the oil, ah, fella?

I'm proud to be an American...

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

8. you mean the one sung by the Youngbloods?

Love is but a song I sing
Fear is how we die...
Come on people, now,
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Time to love one another right now.

[Demeter]

9. 8th Grade Music Teacher, Mr. Butler

had us sing three verses of the national anthem every class. It is a good warmup. Since I have the range for it, I don't mind.

[MrSlayer]

10. After attending 8 million sporting events....

I can sing the Star Spangled Banner backwards. I also know "Oh Canada" in both English and French thanks the the NHL.

[laruemtt]

11. i've always much preferred America the Beautiful -

the star spangled banner just seems so war-ish. "bombs bursting in air" just doesn't do it for me :boring:

[Endangered Specie]

13. As long as it doesn't start with "Die Fahne Hoch!"...

count me in :sarcasm:

[geckosfeet]

15. Is this is BushCo program !!! I DON'T sing a**hats !! n/t

[olddad56]

18. I think the 'Bombs Bursting In Air" part is all we need to learn.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

19. All of it? The original? Even the last two verses?

<snip>

17 And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
18 That the havock of war and the battle's confusion
19 A home and a country should leave us no more?
20 Their blood has wash'd out their foul foot-steps' pollution,
21 No refuge could save the hireling and slave,
22 From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave;
23 And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
24 O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.

25 O! thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
26 Between their lov'd home, and the war's desolation,
27 Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
28 Praise the power that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
29 Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
30 And this be our motto -- "In God is our trust!"
31 And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
32 O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.

That ought to go over pretty well.

[expatriate]

63. The "In God is our trust" part finishes it for me.

As an atheist, I have refused to sing any portion of the Star Spangled Banner because of that verse.

Other patriotic American songs also have multiple references to God, including America The Beautiful, and America.

Won't say the pledge for the same reason - along with the fact that America does not now and never has had anything approaching "liberty and justice for all".

[LisaM]

20. Can I "interpet" it, the way Jessica Simpson says she does?

Honestly, she said before she did her crappy version at the Super Bowl that she had to decide on her "interpretation."

JESSICA YOU MORON (and all others who do the same) - it's an ANTHEM. You don't interpret it! It's not a jazz song, a dirge, a rap song, funk, an operatic aria, a fugue, a funeral march, a country music song, or a pop song. It's an ANTHEM.

I personally have my doubts about a national anthem where sports audiences wait with baited breath to see if the singer hits the high note, then applaud when she/he does.

[enki23]

22. baited breath?

are they trying to catch flies?

[sniffa]

38. bated breath

;)

[LisaM]

84. Ya, ya, I know

pick on the typo and ignore the post, LOL! No one ever agrees with me on this anyway.

[GregW]

21. At least it's better than the Aussie anthem

I lived there during the switch from "God Save the Queen" as we flexed our colonial muscles and shed the yoke of imperialism into something uniquely ours.

Of all the songs in contention, they had to pick "Advance Australia Fair" with the phrase, "Our home is girt by sea".

GIRT by sea!?!?!?! What in the heck is that crap?

I'd rather something by the late Peter Allen:

I Still Call Australia Home
I've been to cities that never close down,
from New York to Rio and old London town,
but no matter how far or how wide I roam,
I still call Australia home.

I'm always travelIing, I love being free,
and so I keep leaving the sun and the sea,
but my heart lies waiting over the foam,
I still call Australia home.

All the sons and daughters spinning 'round the world,
away from their family and friends,
but as the world gets older and colder,
it's good to know where your journey ends.
Someday we'll all be together once more,
when all of the ships come back to the shore,
I’ll realise something I've always known,
I still call Australia home.

but no matter how far or wide I roam,
I still call Australia I still call Australia, I still call Australia home.
but no matter how far or wide I roam,
I still call Australia I still call Australia, I still call Australia home.

[FreedomAngel82]

67. What a nice song

I really like that. Very beautiful and mentions all the wonderful things about the country and nothing religious involved.

[Gregorian]

25. The Chinese are laughing at us.

Talk about priorities. What about history, biology, math? We're singing, and they're preparing to steamroll the fnuck right over us.

I like Jimi Hendrix's version.

[kineneb]

27. ooh- where is a copy of the Jimmy Hendrix version...?

now that would get my heart rate going in the early morning!

[RedRocco]

39. the Jimmi Hendrix version

is on the live at woodstock soundtrack, no singing just a blistering rendition of the music by jimmi and his guitar

[kineneb]

76. w/o words is best anyway

so why not Jimmi H? It is a sappy drinking song anyway.

[goddess40]

29. I don't do the anthem or the pledge

I gave that crap up when I was still in school - I even refuse to stand for that propaganda. While I love my country, even though the intensity varies greatly, I don't do the dog and pony show.

[texpatriot2004]

32. Good I got time to get the lyrics. I bet there online now. n/t

[shadowknows69]

35. Its time to write a new anthem

I'm sick of our entire country being defined by the wars we've fought.

[texpatriot2004]

58. Me too. I think we can do so much better than war. I mean

sometimes you have to fight but you should only go to war as the absolute last resort. Violence only begets violence. Wars only cause pain and suffering. You know what Yoda said right? "Fear is the path to the dark side; fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering." I think that's right.

[mediaman007]

59. Let's do a good liberal tune: This Land Is Your Land...

Woody Guthrie's 1930's song probably best describes our America:

http://www.arlo.net/lyrics/this-land.shtml

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
words and music by Woody Guthrie

Chorus:
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me

As I was walking a ribbon of highway
I saw above me an endless skyway
I saw below me a golden valley
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

I've roamed and rambled and I've followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
And all around me a voice was sounding
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

The sun comes shining as I was strolling
The wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
The fog was lifting a voice come chanting
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

As I was walkin' - I saw a sign there
And that sign said - no tress passin'
But on the other side .... it didn't say nothin!
Now that side was made for you and me!

Chorus

In the squares of the city - In the shadow of the steeple
Near the relief office - I see my people
And some are grumblin' and some are wonderin'
If this land's still made for you and me.

Chorus (2x)

©1956 (renewed 1984), 1958 (renewed 1986) and 1970 TRO-Ludlow Music, Inc. (
BMI)

[JohnLocke]

37. My attempt to write it down from memory

O say, can you see?
By the dawn's early light?
What so proudly we hailed
At the starlight's last gleaming
Whose broad strips and bright stars
Through the perilous fight
O'er the ramparts we watched
Were so gallently streaming
And the rockets' red glare
The bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night
That our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

[slay]

46. I'm thinkin it's

twilight's last gleaming, not starlight's. But honestly, who cares? :P

[54anickel]

47. Ramparts - hey, isn't that French? Bwahahahaha...n/t

[mitchum]

40. Terrible terrible song...I prefer "Smokestack Lightnin'", but I don't...

relish the idea of ex-beauty pageant queens butchering that one

[slay]

44. Stupidest. Idea. Ever.

I mean really, with all the REAL problems in the world, who freakin cares. John Mahlamann can kiss my non-national anthem knowing ass.

[FlemingsGhost]

49. I'll start: "Onward Christian sol .... ummmm ... Oooooh, say can ..."

Flem.

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

51. Sing: O Canada ... Please annex us ... We don't deserve this plight

:patriot:

[kath]

55. The 191st(!!) anniversary?!?! Yeah, that's one that's usually very

widely celebrated!

Why now? There was no fuss 16 years ago for the 175th anniv.

Oh, wait - Terra, Terra, Terra, Fear, Fear, Fear, Jingoism, Jingoism, Jingoism.

[JoeMemphis]

56. No, Freepers. That Lee Greenwood song is NOT the national anthem!

.

[jayctravis]

57. From memory...

Oh say can you see by the dawn's early light
what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming;
whose broad stripes and bright stars through the
perilous fight (o(v)er the ramparts we watched) were so
gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the bombs
bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh say does that star spangled banner yet wave o(v)er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

There are like five verses though.

I have no idea how to punctuate it. I guess holding off the direct object of the sentence is poetic.

[Blue_In_AK]

60. I hate the national anthem...

It's much too warlike. Our national anthem should be America, the Beautiful.

[nvliberal]

62. If 2/3rds of the public don't know the words,

then 99 percent who do can't sing it, for "The Star-Spangled Banner" is unsingable.

No wonder, since it is a ripoff of an old English drinking song, "To Anacreon in Heaven."

Actually I prefer "Stars and Stripes Forever." John Philip Sousa is "it" in my book.

Although it has lyrics, few people know them. But I'd prefer our anthem not have words.

[Blue_In_AK]

78. Plus it's got tubas. :-)

[fortyfeetunder]

68. I have one fundamental problem with the current anthem

SSB is unsingable by the average person. The range of this piece is actually fit for some professional singers, and I think I am being generous with that.

Instead of promoting SSB, have always advocated a change of the national anthem to "America the Beautiful", a simpler yet just as eloquent hymn as the SSB.

This is another one of these fabricated patriotism nonsense. I can't believe MENC bought into this crap. Who was grabbing music educators by the shorthairs?

I can't sing it and won't sing it. I'd do better teaching a pig to sing.

[TimeChaser]

69. The first verse isn't too bad

Aside from the glorifying of war. However, some of the other verses are really imperialistic, religious... blegh...

[Sapphire Blue]

72. Here's one for Georgie...

Someone's...

[kineneb]

77. How about a good ole' lefty anthem- This Land is Your Land

by Woody Guthrie? Good tune, easy words, good subversive lyrics...what more could one ask? In the mean time, I will continue to sing the original lyrics under my breath. They are so much more fun.

[TankLV]

79. Who cares? There's a whole lot more to be concerned about.

That shouldn't even be on anybody's list.

[sweet_cobun]

83. Um, why?

Hella stupid.

So stupid I described how stupid it was using "hella".

[newspeak]

86. hmmm, the national anthem

okay, I always wondered why Jose couldn't see. You know, Jose can you see by the don suly light. I always thought Jose didn't like get'en up in the morning. Okay, I want to change the national anthem to Joanne Shenandoah's song "America." "And the weapons we carry are buried beneath the tree; beneath the tree of peace, in our hearts and minds, everyone's inside the circle and no one's left behind. America ...a reason to give hope to each other and peace to our brother.........

[newspeak]

87. written by a foreigner?

Written by Sir Francis Scott Key, and wasn't he British? What about a good old or new Amercian anthem written by a real Native American of the Iroquois people. Now that would be an American anthem!!!!

[Solly Mack]

90. Why?

[knitter4democracy]

91. Funny story about that.

When I was studying in Russia with a group of Christian college students, we all decided to do a video treasure hunt one night. There were two cameras, so there were two teams, and we all got to put items on the list, with some worth more points than others. One of the high-points items was to sing the National Anthem on a crowded bus, more points if there were Russian Army soldiers on the bus.

The group that decided to try for it had to start it, get this, five times! They couldn't remember the words after the first phrase. They took a break and then finally remembered the rest, and the Russians just looked away like it was a bad car accident or something.

When we all watched the videos afterwards, it turned out that only two of us in the group of 20 knew all the words to the first verse.

Still makes me giggle to think of good, God-fearing Christian Americans not knowing all the words to the National Anthem.