America The Beautiful - Whitney Houston - MP3 instrumental karaoke

Whitney Houston's rendition of "America the Beautiful," a timeless American patriotic anthem, is considered one of the defining recordings of the much-covered song. The studio cut served as the B-side of her 1991 single, "The Star Spangled Banner," resulting in a patriotic double-header. Taking on a revered piece originally written by Katharine Lee Bates and Samuel A. Ward, Whitney Houston lent her incomparable voice to Ray Charles's soulful rearrangement of the song. "America the Beautiful" started as a poem by Bates titled "Pikes Peak," first published in The Congregationalist's Fourth of July edition in 1895. Ward, a church organist and choirmaster, composed the melody in 1882, initially for the hymn "O Mother Dear, Jerusalem." It wasn't until 1910 that Bates's poem and Ward's melody were combined to form "America the Beautiful," becoming an enduring fixture in American patriotic music. Whitney Houston's version is characterized by a waltz feel and is led by a strong organ line. Backed by a choir, Whitney Houston takes listeners on a musical journey that encapsulates the beauty of America and the ideals it represents. Famously, she performed the song at Super Bowl XXV, on January 27, 1991, accompanied by The Florida Orchestra under Maestro Jahja Ling.