Football and Music

The weather is closing in, getting a bit nippy outside of a night. Perfect time to post some calypso music…

I’ve previously posted a couple of football and calypso music tracks here and here - this is part one of a two part post that will gather them all together.

Yes that’s right, there are so many footie&calypso songs that I had to split this in half.

In the 50’s there was a craze for the music in Britain and this even spread over to football.

There were some notable and very famous calypso singers… and I’m not talking about Harry Belefonte, he was the commercial populist version who cashed in on the craze. The real stars of the genre were singers like Lord Kitchner and Mighty Sparrow.

It seems with calypso you gave the artist a subject he would then create a song about it. Anything at all. I’ve seen calypso titles about the New York Subway, buying a TV and about not needing glasses to see. (Long story, don’t ask).

So with the beautiful game being such a big obsession with us it was only natural that it would eventually be covered.

  I wanted to post these in order that they were released, but I couldn’t verify what year some of them were done. So taking a best guess… Update: Just found some info about the year each song was released.

So then:

- The very earliest one is from 1953, this one I know because it was entitled as such.
In this one the singer Edmundo Ross is in the pub when some people come up and ask him to settle a bet on who is the better football team:

» Edmundo Ross - Exotic Football Calypso of 1953

- Next up is from 1 year later is Edric Conner with a short one, but a long lasting one. This song has been re-recorded and re-released often since it’s first outing in 1954:

Edric Conner -Manchester United Calypso

- Two years after that and the king of calypso steps up to give us some footballing history about Manchester - United and City.
He tells us in song form about the fortunes of the clubs from the 1940’s to the present (1956) day:

» Lord Kitchner and Fitzroy Coleman Band - The Manchester Football Double

Then there’s a space of 8 years and in 1964 Ronnie Hilton sings about the very successful (at the time) Leeds United…
*WARNING* At the very beginning some blokes remind you - very loudly - of which team the song is about:

» Ronnie Hilton - Leeds United Calypso

- Fast forward another 8 years to 1972 and two tractor fancying/turkey plucking rivals release their calypso’s:

» Johnny Cobnut - Ipswich Football Calypso

» Chic Applin Sound - Norwich City Calypso

There will be more general football calypso’s posted another time, for now if you want to discover more calypso music have a look at Honest Jon’s Records, which has some history about the arrival of some immigrants to London in the late 40’s and the resultant rise and craze for the music.

Also have a visit to Schadenfreudian Therapy which as collected some 50’s & 60’s vintage calypso.

I was saddened to read the following article via Soccernet this morning. Sir Bobby is a battler and I thought he would have won this one too.

Sir Bobby admits defeat in battle against cancer

Former England manager Sir Bobby Robson has admitted he will lose his battle with lung cancer ’sooner rather than later’.

Robson has been battling a fifth bout of the illness and has accepted doctors’ prognosis that he is unlikely to beat it.

Speaking to The Sun, he said: ‘I have accepted what they have told me and I am determined to make the most of what time I have left.

‘I am going to die sooner rather than later. But then everyone has to go some time, and I have enjoyed every minute.

‘I have been fortunate to survive this long. It is thanks to the doctors and their dedication.’

Sir Bobby, who took England to the brink of a World Cup final in Italy in 1990, has enjoyed a football career spanning six decades - from playing days with Fulham and England, to managerial triumphs first with Ipswich and then as national coach at two World Cups, to continental coaching appointments.

He later returned to his native north-east to take over at Newcastle and most recently spent a short time as consultant for the Republic of Ireland.

» Full article

- Here is the legend accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year last December:

- TWTD : An independent website for news and views about Ipswich Town has set up a poll and somebody has started a campaign to get the North Stand named after Sir Bobby.

- You can vote in the poll and sign the petition but what would be a more fitting act right now is to donate to the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation via the Justgiving page