Incredible performance is remembered to this day.
Super Bowl 25 had the Buffalo Bills vs. the New York Giants in Tampa, Florida. At the time (1991), the Giants were playing their second Super Bowl, and the Bills were playing in the first of four consecutive big-game appearances.
The Giants beat the favored (-7) Bills 20-19, but in this piece, I’ll focus on another important aspect of the game. Whitney Houston sang the National Anthem during a time of exceptional patriotic spirit. The U.S. had entered the Gulf War just ten days earlier.
Houston was 27 years old at the time. Already a star–the first artist in history to have seven consecutive singles go to No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 pop chart–she had experience singing the Anthem at games, most notably before a Nets vs. Lakers game in 1989. But this was different. Houston would be singing in front of a huge international audience.
The crowd was jittery, and stadium security was at an all-time high. A U.S. flag was placed on every seat, and fans waved them proudly. There was a uniformed military with honor guards on the field and children wearing Red, White, and Blue.
The moment Houston began, you could see emotion throughout the stadium. The song, later released as a single, became a Top 20 hit.
Whitney Houston is no longer with us, but her version of the National Anthem lives on.
Definitely a classic! Thanks for reminding us Matthew Paris.