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Barack Obama Sings the Blues, Joins List of Politicians Who Can Carry a Tune

By Alicia Diaz Dennis on

Obama And Biden Host Payroll Tax Cut Event At White House

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks in front of workers during an event about the payroll tax cut extension that Congress passed in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on February 21, 2012 in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)more pics »

Barack Obama (Getty Images) This week, President Barack Obama treated the public to a rare treat when he broke into a few lines of "Sweet Home Chicago" at Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues on Tuesday night.

Obama managed to hold his own on the mic, despite his apparent embarrassment at having to croon in front of an audience that included BB. King, Jeff Beck, Mick Jagger, and Susan Tedeschi, among others. It wasn't his first stab at singing in public, of course: He riffed through a few bars of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" in January 2012.

While the Commander-in-Chief's knowledge of blues standards makes him cooler than most cats, he's most certainly not the first President to break into song in public. Here are a couple of politicians who could easily headline the next Janet Reno dance party.

Bill Clinton sings "Imagine"
In 2003, at Shimon Peres' 80th birthday celebration, a 14-year-old singer named Liel Kolet invited ex-President Clinton to join her for a rendition of John Lennon's peace anthem "Imagine." Though Clinton has a performance background—who could forget him whipping out his saxophone on Arsenio Hall?—he mostly hung back until about 2:30, when his Arkansas drawl can be heard petitioning for peace.

Colin Powell sings "No Woman No Cry"
Wyclef Jean headlined BET's Inaugural Ball in 2009, where Colin Powell sang along in the front row. Jean was inspired to take the mic down into the audience during his cover of Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry," giving former Secretary of State Powell the chance to shine through the last assurances of "everything is gonna be alright."

George W. Bush sings "The Green, Green Grass of Home"
President George W. Bush weathered so much criticism during his eight years in office, it's no wonder he was willing to bid adieu to the Oval Office with a jaunty little country tune at the Gridiron Club. Bush switched up the lyrics of an old country standard to include "Condi and Dick my old compadre" in 2008.

Herman Cain sings "Imagine (There's No Pizza)"
There were a lot of bizarre moments during Herman Cain's failed bid for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, but the shiningest was clearly his substitution of Lennon's heartfelt lyrics about a world without war with his own musings about a world without pizza. From the cheers in the background, it's clear Cain knows his audience.

Hilary Clinton sings "The Star-Spangled Banner"
This 2008 video of then-presidential candidate Hilary Clinton halfheartedly singing along to the "Star Spangled Banner" is relatively uninteresting until the 0:50 mark, when it becomes clear that Hilary lacks her husband's natural groove.

Vladimir Putin singing "Blueberry Hill"
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin revealed himself to be a big ol' softie at a St. Petersburg fundraiser in 2010, when he treated a star-studded crowd that included Goldie Hawn, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Costner, and Sharon Stone to a rendition of "Blueberry Hill." He later confessed to Larry King that he enjoys singing English songs with his language tutor.

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