I have spent most of my life believing that even if my life depended on it, I would never be able to sing without sounding horrendously out of tune. Within the privacy of my home, I will sing along to songs I'm familiar with providing that my windows are closed, and that there is absolutely no danger of anyone other than my son hearing me.
Occasionally, I will serenade my son with little ditties I have made up on the spot. There have been occasions in the past when he's thanked me and said something along the lines of, "That's a nice song." I had always assumed that he was just trying to be kind and humour me. A couple of nights ago, my son and I had a conversation about my singing. He had told me that he likes hearing me singing, and after I'd laughed and remarked that he might live to regret saying that, he told me he was being serious and genuinely meant it.
According to my son, whilst I am prone to singing out of tune, it apparently doesn't sound anywhere near as dreadful as I've spent my life believing.
For a bit of a giggle, I had searched on YouTube for a karaoke version of Purple Rain, in the style of Prince. By the time I'd got about a quarter of the way through it, both myself and my son were in fits of laughter. This wasn't intended to be a serious attempt at singing, as I had intentionally opted for a song that I knew I would struggle with (the high notes).
One thing I will say is that I am hopeless at remembering song lyrics off by heart, which probably has a lot to do with the fact that I have always tended to focus more on the music. Prior to my intentionally over-the-top rendition of Purple Rain, I'd had a go at a few other songs by different artistes. With some of the songs, I'd stopped focussing on the lyrics I was meant to be singing and had instead found myself humming along to the music.
