Happy Memorial Day weekend! While you're sitting around the pool this weekend, barbecuing with friends and drinking beer, wouldn't you like to treat your guests to an interesting rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner? Here are five solid choices, guaranteed to spark your guests' interest.

1) Jose Feliciano

Here's a fun trivia question: Who was the first artist to ever perform a non-traditional version of the national anthem on TV? I'll bet you didn't guess Puerto-Rican Jose Feliciano. You hear Jose Feliciano every Christmas singing "Feliz Navidad," but in 1966 he sang the national anthem for game 5 of the Cardinals/Tigers World Series. It was met with a huge controversy. Furious viewers were calling in to protest the perversion of the national anthem, it was even reported that veterans threw shoes at their TVs. Radio stations stopped playing Feliciano's songs for three years, but to this day Feliciano considers it an honor to have opened the door for reinterpretations of the song. This heart-felt, latin-jazz rendition is my #1.

2) Marvin Gaye

I know nothing else about the 1983 NBA All-Star game except that Marving Gaye made sweet, sweet love to the national anthem. His effortlessly smooth rendition is potent enough to get my number 2 spot.

3) Jimi

Arguably the most iconic moment from all of Woodstock was Hendrix's rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner. His version, like Feliciano's, was controversial. Hendrix later said in an interview that he did not think his version was unorthodox, he only thought it was beautiful. Unfortunately, Jimi Hendrix and Marvin Gaye would die one year after their memorable performances.

4) Whitney Houston

Before the crack and before she married Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston really was The Voice. VH1 called her version of the national anthem before the 1991 Superbowl the 12th greatest moment in television history.

5) Mormom Tabernacle Choir

Less than six months after the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center, the US hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. During the opening ceremony, the flag that flew at Ground Zero was carried out by police officers, firefighters and olympic athletes as the National Anthem played. It was an endearing moment, where we stood together on the world's largest stage. Unfortunately, this is a tough video to track down. All I've found is a low-quality video on YouTube that won't even let me embed it here. But if you wish, you can see it here.

That's my top five. If you have any arguments or additions, feel free to add them in the comments section.

Happy Memorial Day!