Aww, Dave,
I wanted to read your comment.

Well, I admit I am not a big Beyonce fan. Not because she isn't talented, she can sing well. Unfortunately, I half expected to see a stripper pole come down. Too much flash and noise, not enough music and voice. I would rather see her showcase her voice more than her legs.

I think her song styles for things like this are too manic.

Dave T2

Janet Jackson's were great. Can't wait to see Beyonce's .

geoff

Sorry, but I thought it was the most one dimensional Super Bowl half time i've ever seen. Probably an age thing as the other 7 people at the party were similarly unimpressed.

Besides the voice, I admired the dance production and energy. She worked the floor with a live mic for 13 minutes with no stops. That's got to be a Super Bowl first.

Very few people realize how difficult that is for any human being. Only woman I ever saw do that was Tina Turner back in the day (maybe Annie Lennox). We unfortunately put girls in the hospital training for the eight minute Superstar closer. Roughly the equivalent of running a mile sprint.

Jeez I had the exact opposite opinion. And can see why she comped her performance from a few weeks ago and lip synced it. A vocalist she is not. Nor a song writer.

Prince? U2? The Beatles? The Rolling Stones? Let's see they write their own music, play their own instruments, wrote songs that have survived the test of time.

Mentioning them in the same sentence with her is like comparing a paper glider to the Saturn V rocket. Yeah, they're both supposed to fly...

Has everyone forgotten Brian Wilson?

Musicvid,

yes, I found her energy impressive and the ability to sing without sound out of breath, I just don't care for her songs. I don't think they showcase her voice. I like tunes that stay in my head and I find myself humming on the way to work. I have not found myself humming "put a ring on it".

What I have noticed is this step toward "big production" with hundreds of people on stage and lots of stops and starts in the music. No real flow of tune to tune and nothing I can sing along with. Just my opinion of course. I was not a big fan of Madonna either and I put her in this class, except she is a better singer than Madonna.

Dave T2

Dave,
I've had a tough time adapting to the new "sound," heavy on electronica and lacking melody, dynamics, or real lyrics (I thought songs were supposed to tell a story?). Seems anyone with a four note range and a producer can get a song on the charts these days.

Still, certain talent rises above the medium and gets my juices flowing. Certain new music is good music and I'm continually being made aware of that. Certain singers are musical and have good technique even if they push my comfort levels a bit.

I agree with you about Madonna not being in those categories, and there are several others right down there with her, including some who young people find inspiring because of their stage appearance or message ((Gaga comes to mind). It's most disheartening to me when aspiring young entertainers on Youtube try to emulate bad pop vocalists, because their underlying talent may never be seen. They acquire unhealthy technique at a young age that is going to cripple their careers and can never be trained out of them, believe me I've tried.

Christo,
Did Brian Wilson do the Super Bowl?
I'm sure I would have remembered.
(Conjures up a bad joke, but I won't . . .)

Brain snap (Brian snap?) - if he didn't, he should've!

With the sound off, definitely the best halftime show ever. Wonderful eye candy physically and technologically. And I do think she's talented, but a lip-synched show provides a much better TV mix. The mix was, to me, virtually unlistenable.

Interesting that musicvid's list of best shows matches mine exactly. U2 was the best musical "performance."

DaveT2, many silent prayers were being said for the stripper pole at the TV I was watching.

And not to forget, I thought the kids from Sandy Hook were wonderful, and their being a bit unpolished added even more to the humanity of the moment.

> I half expected to see a stripper pole come down.

Yea, I could not agree more. Not my cup of tea.

I decided to watch the Walking Dead marathon during halftime!

--Rob

Atom12,

Yeah, the sound on my system was weak as well. When the Destiny Child partners sang, you could not hear them. I was listening on a 5.1 system.

I was sitting with my wife so a stripper pole, although it would have added more interest, would not have gone over well in my viewing area. ;)

Dave T2

The audio mix for the whole event was all over the place. The 5.1 delivery was especially revealing of the incompetence of the CBS audio booth, both during the game and halftime.

Just a heads up, I will be repeating my infamous "Super Bowl vs. US Calm Act" tests, now that there is mandatory compliance (Dec. 2012). Preliminary samples indicate they're pretty bad. I'll post my results in the Audio forum this time so as not to disrupt the normal flow of activity here ;?)

Was it just me or did anyone else think the flames part way through her act looked fake?

Mike

was this at a game or something? maybe it's up on Youtube now...

hey, save me some time.... is any of it NOT lip synced? I'd rather watch actual talent

Mike, the high shutter speeds (probably the game cams) made everything look fake to me.

It's hard to tell due to the poor quality of this clip, starting around 8:45, but it looks like I was mistaken.

Mike

Totally-F Awesome!!!

Luvvved it "Shoudve Put a Ring on it!"

oh yeah, I still wanna be a drummer....

G

I loved it. Best part of the game... (Running and ducking for cover...)