Slightly misleading title because this is not about that song, but the subject is…

italia 90 logo

We have a rose-tinted memory of 1990, all because of this:

Well all right because of the football too.

When looking back at that tournamant England, if you remember, were lucky not to go out earlier.

Nearly happened in the group stage where they only won one and drew two games, scoring only two goals.

In the round of 16 it took extra time and a last minute pen to beat Belgium, then in the quarter final Cameroon went 2-1 up and it was yet again another extra time penalty which eventually put them out.

The rest after that… you know.

 There’s an excellent article by David Conn in The Guardian about England’s performance at Italia90 

But after saying all that I am going to put on those rose-tinted spectacles to look at and remember the tournament via the medium of football & music – and to illustrate each track, some video.

– The music comes from Italia 90 Trax by Chris Moss Acid vs Mully which you can download (name your price) via Bandcamp:

“You’ve got to hold and give
But do it at the right time
You can be slow or fast
But you must get to the line
They’ll always hit you and hurt you
Defend and attack
Theres only one way to beat them
Get round the back
Catch me if you can
Cos’ I’m the England man
And what you’re looking at
Is the master plan
We ain’t no hooligans
This ain’t a football song
Three lions on my chest
I know we can’t go wrong”
The immortal words of John Barnes sum up Englands journey through the highs and lows of that fateful summer 23 years ago. Chris Moss Acid and Mully take you on an awesome hour long journey through this fantastic tournament, and let you re-live the moments we all remember so well. Epic.

Italia90trax

The album has 22 tracks so I’ll select a few to highlight.

Chris Moss Acid – Travelling to Italia:

Bobby Robson’s Dreaming Of The Cup:

England’s Summer Prelude:

David Platt’s Smile:

World Cup Grandstand (England v Cameroon):

The match after that… well you know… You don’t need reminding so bring on the Barnsey:

EXTRA TIME:
Let’s go out with something which was actually released back then.
The official song for the tournament had two version, one in Italian and one in English:

» Edoardo Bennato and Gianna Nannini – Un’estate italiana

» Giorgio Moroder Project – To Be Number One

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