12 June 2010
U-S-A: songs for the cup
The biggest disadvantage the US has heading into the world cup is the lack of a rousing chant. "U-S-A! U-S-A!" is as moronic and uninspiring as it is tedious. It's not that US sports fans lack an affinity for music. Students at fall football games chant ("this is our school fight song/and we don't know the words"). University pep bands feed the manic energy inside packed basketball fieldhouses. NBA and NHL arena sound systems have blasted snippets from Gary Glitter to The Fratellis. None of these quite work for soccer, though. For that, we have to turn to baseball. Were the late 70s the golden era of singing in baseball stadiums? The alka-seltzer jingle might not work, but "kiss him good bye" definitely would (yes, Steam's "na na na na/na na na na/hey hey hey/goodbye").
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3 comments:
Spiderman done by the Ramones has been suggested elsewhere:
http://pourmecoffee.posterous.com/dear-england-we-invented-spider-man-and-the-r
ummm... does a tie count? so sad, i didn't even get to watch the match.
JJ: I think the spiderman song would be a bit tough to sing for a goal. :)
I do agree about the U-S-A... crap. And, it needs to go away for all sporting events.
In the bars where I've watched USA matches alongside some pretty hard-core USA MNT supporters (and Americans who are very knowledgeable about the game, in general), the preferred chant has been, "America! F**k yeah!"
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