Getty/Win McNamee Herman Cain
Former Godfather’s Pizza CEO and Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain died on Thursday, July 30, after being hospitalized with coronavirus.
The successful businessman and charismatic conservative commentator supplied a number of memorable, viral moments during the 2012 election, due to his unique voice and campaign ads.
However, Cain was also apparently musically inclined, with a country-tinged theme song commissioned for his campaign and a fondness for singing that sometimes came out at his rallies.
One of Cain’s most memorable viral moments however, came back in 1991, when at press event, he re-imagined John Lennon‘s “Imagine” as “Imagine There’s No Pizza.”
At an Omaha Press Club Meeting in 1991, Cain Donned Robes & Sang ‘Imagine There’s No Pizza,’ Joined by a Backup Choir
Cain was the active CEO of Godfather’s Pizza until about 1994, according to Politifact. In 1991, he took the stage, accompanied by a choir of backup singers and a band, and wearing choir robes to deliver a Godfather’s-tinged version of John Lennon’s “Imagine,” Esquire reported.
The “Imagine There’s No Pizza” video was unearthed by the Omaha World-Herald in 2011, during his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.
The lyrics, in part, go:
Imagine there’s no pizza
I couldn’t if I tried
Eating only tacos
Or Kentucky Fried
Imagine only burgers
It’s frightening and sad
Cain appears to get a warm reception from the crowd in the video, which was widely shared on Twitter Thursday, after his death was announced.
Cain Also Sang Mitch Leigh’s Song — Popularized by Frank Sinatra — “The Impossible Dream” at a Campaign Rally
Toward the end of his presidential campaign, in October 2011, Cain also treated his followers to a rendition of Mitch Leigh’s “The Impossible Dream,” from the musical Man of La Mancha.
Frank Sinatra popularized the song on his 1966 album That’s Life, but Cain made it his own at a Tea Party rally in West Tennessee, Fox News reported.
The candidate experienced some song difficulties, then launched into his rendition of the popular song.
“You know, when it’s your rally, you can do what you want to do!” Cain exclaimed before he started singing, the outlet reported.
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