What are some interesting/different birthday songs?

February 1, 2006 11:28 AM

What are some impressive birthday songs, or songs that would work for a birthday song? My wife's a soprano with 10 years of voice training, and she's looking for something showy to sing for co-workers' birthdays.

So songs suggested should be:
Showy / impressive
Birthday-related or Birthday-appropriate
Appropriate for a workplace (no Marilyn Monroe sexy bday song)
Workable a cappella

She's capable of pulling off an opera aria, so if you know any arias with celebratory or "it's a special day" themes, that would work too.

posted by agropyron to media & arts (8 comments total)

Where does she work that something like this would be anywhere near appropriate? Are her co-workers also good friends of hers? In most office environments, the fake well-wishing of the break room birthday party is bad enough. Someone trying to show off their talents in an office gathering is uncomfortable for everyone as well. Putting them together sounds awful. Not only do I already have to fake gratitude for the happy birthday, but now I have to fake being impressed by a person who took the attention away from my party? Happy Birthday to me!

I'm being too harsh, but seriously, don't sing a special happy birthday song at work unless you're a waiter at Chotchkie's. Or it really is a close friend's birthday, and you know they'll appreciate it.
posted by team lowkey at 11:49 AM on February 1, 2006

Ok, I hate office birthday parties too, and I never let coworkers know when my birthday is for this reason. But her coworkers seem to enjoy it to the point where she is often asked to perform.
posted by agropyron at 11:57 AM on February 1, 2006

IMHO, the most appropriate thing would be for her to take requests from the coworker whose bday they are celebrating.
posted by necessitas at 12:00 PM on February 1, 2006

I cannot imagine this going over well. I sing myself, also a soprano, same deal with the classical training and everything, and I literally cannot envision a coworker coming up to me and saying "Hey, it's my birthday, would you mind singing something during break?" I certainly can't picture an entire crowd of coworkers gathering around to listen to a classical soprano hold forth on an aria, a cappella, in the middle of the work day.

If she insists, how about good old Italian art songs or chansons? Something fairly up-tempo, and since it'll be in Italian (or French if it's a chanson, obv.), she'll have to worry much less about lyrics. If it has to be English, she oughtta go for something with innocuous in-one-ear-and-out-the-other lyrics -- along the lines of "Sing Me to Heaven" or "Life Has Loveliness to Sell."

But bear in mind that her coworkers may just be extremely polite. Or your wife may just be very pushy (I mean, looking for something purposely "showy" on top of everything else?). Please do think about reconsidering.
posted by booksandlibretti at 12:17 PM on February 1, 2006

Fair enough. If they request a song, perhaps Auld Lang Syne might be appropriate? I know it's usually sung on New Year's, but it's really just a toast to time spent together. A little fancier than happy birthday, but not an over the top aria, and still recognizable so people understand the sentiment.
posted by team lowkey at 12:21 PM on February 1, 2006

Slow and dirge-y:

Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
Sin and sorrow in the air
People dying everywhere
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)

Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
At the age you are
Your demise cannot be far
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)

Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
May the cities in your wake
Burn like candles on your cake
Happy biiiiirthdaaaaay (stomp)
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:48 PM on February 1, 2006

This isn't exactly showy, but it's fun:

Happy happy birthday
From all of us to you
We're so happy for you
That we don't know what to do
HEY!
You're getting bigger everyday
So no more cake for you
Happy happy birthday
From all of us to you
HEY!
posted by divabat at 7:18 PM on February 1, 2006

I have a song she can sing. You can hear it on my website. It's called Happy Birthday. Written in 2001 in think. Don't remember.
posted by kiai at 6:28 PM on August 2, 2006