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Openers & Closers

Theme > Openers & Closers

As Long As I’m Singing

Bobby Darin made this cheery song popular. This tune is just right for opening your shows with lots of happy energy. Anne Bureau has recorded the contest version for SSAA, and Chris Arnold has done the show version for TTBB.

Learning tracks available from:
Chris Arnold
TTBB
Anne Bureau
SSAA

Blue Skies

Written by Irving Berlin, this cheery tune was a last-minute addition to the Rodgers and Hart musical Betsy. The song was an immediate hit, with the audience on opening night demanding an astounding 24 encores from star Belle Baker! Would you settle for just one encore from your listeners?

Broadway on Opening Night

This uptune moves right along and is great for a Broadway show theme. Come to think of it, you could open any of your performancew with this lively number.

Bye Bye Love

Here is one of the Everly Brothers’ finest tunes. The men’s, women’s and mixed versions of this lively tale of lost love are all published by the BHS, so you would order the arrangement from them.

 

Learning tracks available from:
James Estes
TTBB
Jen Cooke
SSAA
Kim Kraut
SSAA

Candle in the Wind

This is Elton John’s moving tribute to Princess Diana. The lyrics of this beautiful song still resonate today.

Curtain Falls, The

Hey, if this heartfelt closer about show biz is good enough for Bobby Darin, it should be a hit for your group too.

Learning tracks available from:
Anne Bureau
SSAA

Do You Hear the People Sing?

This rousing song is from the musical “Les Miserables.” Your audiences’ hearts and guts will be surely be moved by your powerful performance. Although the song itself would fly in contest, this arrangement is intended for shows only.

Learning tracks available from:
Tim Waurick
TTBB
Chris Arnold
TTBB

Do You Remember These?

This Statler Brothers’ tune revives all sorts of ’50s nostalgia. The arrangement could even be redone for contest.

Entertainer, The

A fine show opener, this is the theme song from the movie “The Sting.” Paul Newman and Robert Redford would be proud.b.b.b.

Get Me to the Girl Medley

An ultra-cool combination of Get Me to the Church on Time and The Girl That I Marry, this medley is both hip and loving. No longer exclusive to Alchemy.

Goodbye Medley

An enormously funny and interesting conglomeration, the arrangement is even contestable. This winner has been recorded by SAI queens The BUZZ. The medley bashes the opposite sex, well, just a little bit.

Learning tracks available from:
Anne Bureau
SSAA
Kim Kraut
SSAA

Happy Trails

For Western shows, this is the quintessential Roy Rogers & Dale Evans song. I even had the chance to tell Dale personally about arranging her song in the barbershop style! Use this classic tune to end any performance, Western-themed or not.

Learning tracks available from:
Daniel Gillis
TTBB

Hey, Look Me Over

Lasting just a minute, with appropriate lyrics and a big tag, this tune is just right for opening shows. So, hey . . . look it over and then go ahead and open your shows with this energetic, positive piece!

Learning tracks available from:
Chris Arnold
TTBB

It’s Today

From the musical Mame, this happy, driving song urges you to celebrate the day. It makes a really energetic opener and is great for both men and women.

Learning tracks available from:
James Estes
TTBB

Let’s Do It Again

This uptune about the good old days helped the Grand Tradition win a medal back in the day. It can be sung in a driving way or as an easy-beat. Though it sounds pretty old, this happy piece was actually written in the 1950s.

May You Always

A modernish tempo ballad, this tune is suitable for contest. It conveys a  sweet sentiment with powerful, creative lyrics and images. Have a look and a listen. . . .

Orange Colored Sky

This tune is fun, lively and makes a great opener or closer. Short and to the point, It is available in both contest and show versions. Anne’s tracks go with the contest chart, and Drew’s and Jen’s with the show version. Really, though, either one is fine for competition these days.

Learning tracks available from:
Anne Bureau
SSAA
Drew Wheaton
TTBB
Jen Cooke
SSAA

Pirate Medley

This delightful magilla contains these tunes:
Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me)
A Professional Pirate
Poor Pirates
On the Good Ship Lollipop
Pirates of the Caribbean Theme
So buckle your swashes and shiver your timbers (timbres?) and add this most entertaining piece to your repertoire!

Learning tracks available from:
Drew Wheaton
TTBB
Choral Tracks
TTBB

Smell the Flowers

This country hit tells us to enjoy life right now. Hey, when else is there?

Smile

As sung by The New Tradition, Nightlife, Ringmasters, Weekend Edition, Instant Classic and many other groups, this piece is really powerful. You could close your shows with it or sing it in just about any other position. This arrangement is my all-time favorite. What’s more, it is contestable! Due to the publisher’s restrictions, you need to special-order this song from Janice Bane at the BHS.

Learning tracks available from:
Theo Hicks
TTBB
Donya Metzger
SSAA
Chris Arnold
TTBB

Sound Celebration

I wrote and arranged this energetic song honoring music and other sounds of life around us. The men’s version is published by the BHS. There is now an SATB version for YMIH/YWIH singers, as well one for women’s voices. Some versions have my original tag, while others feature a powerful ending that pal Kirk Young stole—I mean, tastefully borrowed—from a different David Wright chart.

Learning tracks available from:
Tim Brooks
TTBB
Tim Waurick
TTBB
Tim Waurick
SSAA

Taps

The origins of “Taps” date back to American Civil War. This bugle call began as a lights-out signal to soldiers at night but now is played at military funerals and memorials. Though not a cheery song, it can be very powerfully sung when the occasion calls for it.

Thank You for the Music

What could be more inspiring than singing about our music? This uplifting arrangement is no longer exclusive.

Learning tracks available from:
Peter Nugent
TTBB

Thank You Very Much

Looking for a short song to close your shows with? How does one minute of happy thanks sound to you? Lots of fun and energy in this piece, so give it a whirl.

Thank You, World

A great Statler Brothers’ tune honoring music, this song is heavy on old-fashioned values and references.

Thanks for the Memory

Bob Hope’s theme song is just the thing to close your show with. Some of the lyrics have been changed to provide barbershop references. Nice, eh?

That’s Entertainment

A fine show opener in the Broadway tradition, this song offers plenty of clever, energetic fun.

We Are a Gentle, Loving People

Singer and lesbian activist Holly Near wrote this song after the 1978 assassination of Harvey Milk. Milk had been the first openly gay person elected to high office in California. There are many verses to this song, and you can make up your own easily enough. This powerful song is also called “We Are a Gentle, Angry People.”

What Would I Do Without My Music

This powerfully uplifting show song is sung by numerous women’s choruses. But, hey, it works just as well for men’s groups. For everyone, singing about our music is the best!

Learning tracks available from:
Anne Bureau
SSAA

When I Sing

Jazzy, fun, a natural for barbershoppers, this song is a sure winner. Jen Cooke’s tracks are for the show version, which has room for a bunch of improvised scat singing. The contest version is swell, too. Do check out one or the other—or both!

Learning tracks available from:
Jen Cooke
SSAA
Kim Kraut
SSAA

Wind Beneath My Wings, The

Here is the inspirational Bette Midler hit about the man behind the woman, or vice versa. Do give this powerful piece a try. The arrangement is now available for SATB mixed voices, where it also fits very nicely.

With Two Wings

Marvelously energetic 8-parter about men and women working together, as sung by Friends.