Karaoke really is a great leveller – everyone, no matter what your persuasion, has their favourite karaoke song.
This writer, for example, has a particular fondness for belting out the iconic Boyz II Men hit, “End of the Road.” It’s a huge tune, to be sure. But if timed correctly it seldom fails to bring the house down.
Turns out former Prime Minister Tony Abbott‘s preferred hit is the Elvis Presley classic, “Suspicious Minds.” A more apt choice of song there nary was.
At the National Party‘s Christmas piss-up on Tuesday night, the now-deposed leader of the Liberal Party let off a bit of steam during a speech to the room by dropping an impromptu a cappella version of the tune to the congregation.
And some utterly clever and/or devious bastard managed to sneak an audio recording of Abbott’s warbly, vocal vibrato-heavy rendition out of the party, with Fairfax Media releasing it unto the world this morning.
Leaked audio reveals @TonyAbbottMHR singing ‘Suspicious Minds’ at Christmas party https://t.co/XlmbHBcy5Z #auspol
https://t.co/MsGG1pXsZD
— smh.com.au (@smh) December 1, 2015
There’s no mis-identifying it. That is, indeed, a karaoke performance.
Abbott reportedly got up to belt the song out again later in the evening after someone punched the tune into the party’s karaoke machine – yes, the National Party‘s Christmas break-up drinks featured an actual goddamned karaoke machine.
‘Course this isn’t the first time Abbott’s belted the song out in public before – as a 2013 radio appearance with Fitzy & Wippa (in which the at-the-time Opposition Leader referred to himself as a “grog monster.”)
Still, all this is clear evidence of a politician blowing off a little steam.
And after the year he’s had, you know what? Fair enough.
Photo: Michael Ocs Archives/Stefan Postles via Getty Images.
via SMH.
