Singers Take Wing Red Chariot

At Delta Dan’s Red Chariot, a nondescript neighborhood bar in a Van Nuys strip mall, the regulars are the main attraction. On Wednesday through Saturday nights, usually from 8 till closing, locals pour in to pour out their hearts and souls--with the aid of a karaoke machine.

Here you might find a down-on-his-luck type closing his eyes tightly, gripping the mike and crooning Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were” with all the emotion he can muster. And most likely, the crowd will be singing just as enthusiastically along with him. No one’s hung up on appearances of cool here. In fact, the goofier the better.

On Saturday nights, when the club is hosted by Rockin’ Ron, who strums along on a fake guitar, the Red Chariot becomes a refuge for those lost in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.

During a two-hour period on a recent Saturday, not one song came in from later than the mid-’80s. The thirtysomething crowd went back in time to the days when Heart and Meat Loaf ruled the airwaves. One woman gave her all to Pat Benatar’s “Love Is a Battlefield,” with nearly every other lady in the Chariot egging her on. Meat Loaf’s “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” done as a duet, was the evening’s highlight.

You see, at the Red Chariot, the folks take their karaoke seriously. Along with at least one other Red Chariot regular, Stella Singer, who hosts Wednesday’s karaoke night and is married to club owner Delta Dan Singer, made it into this year’s district karaoke finals. The Red Chariot’s even chartered a bus to the event, which takes place at the Hollywood Palladium on Oct. 20.

The atmosphere at the Red Chariot, with its old-school red vinyl booths and sports-bar motif, is so karaoke-friendly that even a novice is encouraged to pick up the mike. Look out, though, because it appears to be addictive.

* Delta Dan’s Red Chariot, 14431 Burbank Blvd., Van Nuys. 21 and over, no cover. (818) 785-5200.