Karaoke at The Dawg House Bar and Grill

Every Friday night (sometimes on Thursday and Saturday) The Dawg House Bar and Grill on 157 East Main St., Frostburg, Maryland has Karaoke around 9 pm with Music Express DJ Chris Acton. When asked how long he has worked for the organization he stated, “Going on 15 years, although the first two years I didn’t play on my own.” He has performed for karaoke once before, but believes he is better behind the equipment rather than in front. Music Express has also done karaoke for the local college bar FBar located on 180 Bowery St.. Acton enjoys his job, and looks forward to working more often than not. The Dawg House, once named Duncan’s, is a grill with a menu mainly consisting of hot dogs (hence the name Dawg House).

 It seems the establishment is visited regularly by the locals, but every now and then a visitor will stroll in with a few friends. Some of the featured drinks are the Red Dawg (rum, jagermeister, watermelon pucker, strawberry kiwi, and cranberry juice), The Salty Sea Dawg (rum, Sprite, lime, and 151), and the Mad Dawg Shot (vodka, tobasco sauce, and raspberry syrup). The bar has a juke box, a billiard table, and a dart board for more customer entertainment. On some weekends live bands perform. The owner, Wayne P. Conklin, is ex-military, and also the owner of Music Express. The atmosphere is very relaxed and friendly. Upon entering the bar, patrons are met with dim colorful lights, and smiling employees. “It’s a lot cleaner, more welcoming place,” stated Eric Burke. “And the hot dogs are great!”

Karaoke is done in a more classic way at The Dawg House Bar and Grill. Although much of the music used at bars and clubs nowadays are played on computers, CD’s are used for karaoke here. The music selection is large, but it mostly consists of country. Artists such as Reba McEntire and Tim McGuire are heavily featured. There are also many holiday songs (Christmas) and children’s songs. Karaoke isn’t just for adults! Slips of paper are located in the front of the karaoke book in a type of clear pouch. One must write her or his name at the top of the slip, then the name of the song wished to be sung, and finally the song and disc number.

“I had a blast,” said Sammie Stott with a grin. She attended karaoke for the first time at The Dawg House on Friday, November 29, 2013. The young woman does not usually go out for karaoke, but decided to join another student in the spur of the moment (after an hour or two of protesting). She sang “California Gurls” by Katy Perry, “Your Love is My Drug” by Kesha, and “I Kissed a Girl” also by Katy Perry (in that order). “I wanted to sing Here’s to Us by Halestorm,” she said. “I couldn’t find it in the book.” But anyone who saw the smile on her face would know the absence of that one song did not deter her night.