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that regulars who sing regular songs aren't really getting anywhere, either from audiences who have to sit through the same songs week in, week out. If you are happy to sing the same song you're comfortable with all the time, you may find that eventually its time to move on and the song you have always sung gets played to death.

As a musician and choral singer, I've often sung at Karaoke events with the main intention to get my personality across rather than what the original artist intended. Amongst many that try to become the same voice from original songs, it's usually the unique styles (good and bad) which most people comment on. I did this in several ways not just by re-enacting the meanings and emotions of the words through my facial expression but also moving, becoming a character which the song may dictate or relay. The first time I won a compeitition I had sung "Maria," by Blondie and "Big Spender," by Shirley Bassey, both of which are songs sung by Female artists and as I had hoped the comment sheet which had been handed back to me showed that I had undertaken a personal style, added in my own improvisations when instrumental passages (such as guitar solos in middle bridges between chorus and verse) would leave me standing feeling very alone without much to sing; that is when I felt most vulnerable. So I added in little notes here and there, repeated the last sentiment from the last verse. You only do this if you know the song through and through but you don't have to do anything other than move with the instrumental parts, make eye contact with the people who are watching you rather than adopting a carefree "thank god that's over, now onto the next bit," laid back approach.

So with the songs I had picked out, I had researched them a little by listening and analysing different examples of versions of the songs. With Blondie's hit, I listened to live versions of the songs, purely for the ad lib, or additional lyrics the original songs don't have as well as inflections such as extra vocal passages of notes I could easily, if listened to a few times, add into my own version when it came to singing.

Another point is that sometimes the use of a CD single may have an instrumental version of the song without the words. Whilst this may well be a good advantage, often the instrumental track has been lengthened which may confuse the singer and does not therefore constitute a good Karaoke track to listen and try to sing along to. In this respect the original song

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