Karaoke RULES & Info

I know that most of THIS page will be (OK, IS) kind of boring, but there is information here that is really important. If you are someplace where I am running Karaoke and you DON'T follow some of these, you may not hear your name called to sing.

Please be sure that you write down the song name, song Original Artist and your name on the sign up sheet. (Yes, ALL THREE, in the proper places) I have gone to mostly digital, so you no longer need to find or remember any kind of number! I am just starting to convert the Video type karaoke songs, but I have so many that are basic CDG that I probably will NOT convert all the video Karaoke to run on the new system unless they are the ONLY version of a song I have.

Please make sure that "I" can read your writing. Print CLEARLY so I can read what I need to in order to get you ready to entertain the room. :-) NOTICE That the line reads "PRINT" AND "CLEARLY".

Print CLEARLY - Print CLEARLY - Print CLEARLY And yet AGAIN... NOTICE That the line reads "PRINT" AND "CLEARLY".

If I can't read your writing, I'll just skip you. Even drunk printing is more legible than some folks writing.

*** = A rule that MUST be taken seriously.

*** Unless you have specific permission to "HELP" someone sing a song, or there are two or more names on the sign up sheet, do NOT expect me to give you a Mic, OR turn on / up the one you may have. Some people are VERY annoyed are being "helped" with a song when they think they are doing quite well. :-) You can also upset singers by singing so loudly with out a mic that they get messed up. DON'T DO IT! Never try to out sing the one with the mic.

*** Do not OUT SING the person that has the Mic even if you don’t have one. If they can hear you, it can throw them off (OR make things worse). I actually have a "10 Commandments of Karaoke" that I will start passing out again and posted here. It is more in fun than anything else, but parts of it really need to be taken to heart.

*** If you sign up for someone else and (a) they don't know that you did it, or (b) I call them and they don't want to sing because you are "making them", YOU have to sing the song. In other words, don't be "pulling pranks" on people that might back fire. The OTHER reason for this is that there are times when there is a BIG stack of songs / singers and the time it takes to remove them and call the next singer after calling YOUR target could have had another singer up and finished. If they ASKED you to fill it out for them, then they should have come to me earlier and asked me to remove them from the list of singers. If you use this rule to get to sing more than the normal rotation, you won't sing at all.

*** Do not YELL or scream in, or pound on the Mic's. You can damage the mic, the amp or the speakers. These things did not come cheap and I'm SURE that you don't want to pay to replace something that you broke. Do not blow in the mic's or "thump" on them to see if they are on. Just SAY "TEST" and you'll hear yourself. If/When there are corded mic's, do not swing them By the cords.

*** You can only sign up, or put your name on the list ONCE at a time. Since the Song list / books are available when you are there, you may well have 3, 5 or 20 songs you'd like to sing. I usually have note pads and always have pens, so write your list for you and write down ONE at a time on the sigh up sheet. When I call you to sing, AND you finish THAT song, you can put yourself back on the list immediately with one more. If you DO have your name on the list more than once, even if one is for a duet, I Will cross off the 2nd line . No one gets to sing two or more songs in a row unless there are really special circumstances or you are paying for the private party. The occasional DUET 'will' get "A" singer up twice in a row once in awhile, with another IF WE ARE SLOW AND YOU ASK ME AHEAD OF TIME, but a duet does put your name on the list twice, so CHECK WITH ME FIRST. The normal rule is No.

*** My books are NOT coasters for your drink(s)! If I see one of my books on your table or the bar sitting in a puddle of something or under your glass, I WILL pick it up, note YOU, and you won't be singing. The books take me HOURS to print and assemble and I don't appreciate people messing them up because they aren't paying attention. Every time some one bends a book clear back on itself, it breaks a few clips, screws up a page or just breaks the bindings. Don't do it... When I had Kinko's print my books, they cost me a MINIMUM of $100.00 PER BOOK. Their last quote was $147.00 per book. If I visited your house and used any book there as a coaster, you'd be ticked...

*** When I call "Last Call Sign Up's" that's exactly what I mean. When I say "LAST SONG", that's ALSO exactly what I mean. If you come back up and try to sign up one more song, or get testy because you want to do one more, all it's going to do is tick me off and your chances NEXT TIME just went WAY DOWN. There are also times when I HAVE to have things closed down in time for the bar itself to close up and get everyone out as well as doing what THEY want, on the schedule they want me to do it. Remember that there are laws that the bars HAVE to abide by if they want to keep their licenses.

*** I LOVE talking with people but if I say Hang on a sec., please give me the time to get things done and caught up. I can get frustrated at times when the equipment isn't working exactly the way I want and I tend to show that frustration more than I'd like. If I am more distracted I mess up and the next singer isn't up as soon as they should be then I am MORE frustrated. When I can, I usually take the Mic to the next singer. If a place is packed, I'll just call the next one up. If I call you 3 times and don't get a response, you get skipped and to do THAT song and you get pushed back by one. One MORE call for 3 times and you're crossed off the list as though you did the song. If I get that far, you need to fill out another line on the list. If you are leaving and have a song up, PLEASE let me know so I can pull it out of the rotation, NOT load the song, and get on to the next singer. If you are going to be gone for a FEW minutes, let me know and I'll hold your spot. If you are getting a reading from Christine, let me know AHEAD OF TIME and I'll hold your spot until you are done. There are many times when you are 2 or 3 down the list and the two ahead of you can be gone. Don't run off when you see yourself in the next 2 or 3. :-)

There are a few MORE things but I think that's enough with rules for now. :-)
From here down is just information, but read it anyway.

Multiple song listings in the books mean that a song was on MORE THAN ONE CD or there are more copies of the song. In the new books, a oneletter difference in a song name or the artists name will also get duplicate listings. Styles MAY be different so you ALSO need to verify the ARTIST that did the song THERE ARE MISTAKES, Even on the CD’s, as to who did a version and sometimes the song itself is WRONG on the CD, so the digital version will be as well. We can't check/listen, but with the new system, I can have a few Que'd and ready at once so that if #1 is bad, we just hit #2 etc. When I finally have things set up the way I want, there will be a separate player just for you to listen to a song while someone else is singing.

NO GRAPHICS means NO Video, No words, NOTHING on the screen or Monitors unless I happen to play some OTHER video that has nothing to do with the song you are singing. In this case you have to KNOW the song. PLEASE pay attention to this in the books as well as the artist you THINK did the song you want to sing. It can catch ME sometimes and I typed these things. And yes, I know there ARE mistakes in the book and on the CD's themselves. You can also bring in your own CD's. Karaoke or regular CD's that you want to "sing along with" as long as you realize that standard CD's don't have graphics or words on the screen.

If The "Artist" column has some "? BTHOM" it means: "Beats The Heck Outta Me". :-) If YOU know, tell me.. A Title with (MPX) means there is a singer there already and I have to shut `em off. You must put the YOUR NAME the SONG NAME and SONG's ORIGINAL ARTIST, on your sign up line. Make sure you keep all your information on the same line. When you've finished a song you (and others) can put your name on the list and come back a BIT later to finish the line. The next singer (or you) must be careful to put your name, song info and number on the proper line. If you have ANY questions, feel free to ask me.

There are MANY STYLES of music in my books, the "Country Dan" is because that is what "I" sing, when I sing. If it is busy or crowded and there are a lot of singers lined up, I will not put myself in the rotation. If it is slow and there are 10 or less singers, you will hear me from time to time OR if I get a special request to sing a song (that I KNOW). If it is BUSY, I will also NOT allow LONG songs like "Hotel California". American Pie, etc. In the time it takes to sing that, two other singers could have been up and done.

There are (at least) TWO books that I have printed. One book has all the songs sorted by the SONG TITLE and the second has all of the songs sorted by the original artist, FIRST NAME FIRST AND LAST NAME FIRST. Look for singers listed both ways. Each book will say which it is on the FRONT COVER of the book as well as in this little bit of information. NOTE: For example, you need to check the B's AND the G's for Garth Brooks when looking through the ARTISTS book.

Multiple song listings mean that a song is on MORE THAN ONE CD or there are more copies of the song. Styles MAY be different so you ALSO need to verify the ARTIST that did the song THERE ARE MISTAKES, Even on the CD’s as to who did a version. We (you) can check/listen sometimes. Ask me.

NO GRAPHICS (by the song name) means NO Video, No words, NOTHING on the screen or Monitors unless I happen to play some OTHER video that has nothing to do with the song you are singing. In this case you have to KNOW the song. PLEASE pay attention to this in the books as well as the artist you THINK did the song you want to sing. It can catch ME sometimes and I typed these darn things.

My song lists are printed/created on the date you will find somewhere on every page. As you find mistakes, (And you WILL) please let me know so I can fix `em. Some CD’s can also be (ARE) miss-labeled and cause even more mistakes. (Like I need help THERE...) I've boosted the font size a bit in the books to make things easier to read in the "darker" rooms. I hope it helps a little. As of my last printing (And I'm not DONE yet) There are OVER 30,500 lines / songs here. If The "Artist" column has some "? BTHOM" it means: "Beats The Heck Outta Me". :-) If YOU know, tell me.. A Title with (MPX) means there is a singer there already and I have to shut `em off. (IF YOU WANT ME TO) So if you see (MPX) Next to your name, son't worry. It's a reminder to me. You must put the YOUR NAME, THE SONG NAME and the SONG's ORIGINAL ARTIST on the sign up sheet and PLEASE PRINT So I can read it If you have ANY questions, feel free to ask me.

Remember that you can download the entire list from this web page! (Go to the right link, OK? <grin>) ALL music, whether or not it's made it to the books I have with me, is in the online list. The LIST ONLY, NOT the music.

Note too that I'm an anal retentive Aries, so I do repeat myself a few times... :-)