I think it's time to start rehearsing in small groups. Three songs here, with .wav files, at the JohnnyRev website. http://home.comcast.net/~jlw28129/
If you are every trying to find Monty in a crowd, all you have to do is get out a camera and start snapping pictures. He'll appear soon enough! So here's a song that's simple enough even people like us can remember the lyrics and tune. OK, so it's another Dropkick Murphys ripoff, but it works... Join us in a song We shall rise and sing Stand up and be counted Sing a song for New England Join us in a song Together we shall sing Rise up and be counted Sing it loud Sing it proud This can be sung in injury time of a game we are about to win, and directed at the other fans to join in for a couple of minutes. After the last line, go into something simple and accessable for the masses, like Rev-o-Louuu-shun Tom
* In all honesty I am NOT trying to stir sh!t up with this post * I'm one of those it's a field not a pitch, cleats not boots, uniform not a kit etc types I personally don't understand the scarf waving and song singing So I'd like to ask -what is it about singing songs that you feel is needed at a soccer game ? Is it because it's what's done in the rest of the world ? Is it that when you stand in the Fort your need to croon just comes flying out ? I'd really like to know 'cause for me - I just don't get it
I would guess it's because the people that have been in, or even heard on tv, a stadium full of fans, singing for their team have found that it can be a beautiful thing. I mean it really can be moving. So in the hopes of having a similar experience in their stadium some day, a few intrepid fans are trying to cultivate a similar tradition here. It also provides the fans something fun to do during the game. Like the wave, but different (and I would say better). And just as a point of interest, I was shocked that the game I was lucky enough to see in Barcelona, had 80,000 people at it and very little singing outside of the section just behind the goal. The stadium was almost sureally quiet, as most people were concentrating intently on the game. Of course when Barca scored, the place went nuts.
Point is, what passes for atmosphere in stadiums and arenas across the US that host all sports is usually nothing more than Television at the game, along with it's crass commercialism. It's the worst kind of television, too. The kind intended for prepubescents with half-second attention spans. MTV-in-the-afternoon kind of crap. It's weak. I don't want to be European--I've never sang at a match--but I can admit the "European" way is better. Really, anywhere outside the USA promises more excitement from fans at a match--see Azteca, Bombonera, et al. George, you'd rather listen to the McDonald's commercial they repeat through the loudspeakers? Do you keep one eye on the JumboTron watching the noise-meter? Can't get enough Gary Glitter? Please, give me the alternative!
Watch the game cheer when good things happen, boo when bad things happen Also to state that somehow those who don't sing and chant are somehow mindless fools who are spoon fed by the arena is one of the most arrogant statements I've read in ages. But then again this is BigSoccer......
George, The best explanation I can give you is this - singing, chanting, the display of club scarves and more are as much a part of the cultural fabric of the game (soccer, football, futbol... whatever it's called or however it's described) as the seventh inning stretch, the peanut guy, and scorecards are to our natural past-time of baseball. No matter the difference between the two sports, fans of each can lay claim to a common intangible trait or dynamic that defines who they are as fans. You could take a long-time supporter of Liverpool who can talk for hours about The Kop and Shankley's history with the club, and he/she could probably relate to a Brooklyn Dodgers fan who recalls moments at Ebbet's Field and the play of Pee-Wee Reese; there's a measure of common identity there. Thing is, soccer isn't Europe's game, not any more than it's South America's game, Africa's game, Asia's game, etc. It's the world's game, and the United States has every right to lay claim to it, not only in terms of the sport, but its associated rituals, its history, and its culture. But in many ways the stamp we put on it will be as different as that which a country or group of fans in Europe might, or in Asia, South America, or elsewhere. For example, take a look at the following photo taken at a recent match between Brondby of Denmark and Barcelona of Spain: Now look at a photo featuring supporters of F.C. Tokyo in Japan: In many ways these fans couldn't be any more different. That being said, the common rituals to the game in terms of demonstrating the sport, showing for their passion for the game can transcend these differences. That being said, not every fan of these clubs or frmo these countries may desire to show their support in this fashion, perhaps they enjoy being a more passive than active supporter. That's fine. In the case of New England there's a (small) number of us who chose to be proactive in our support in a fashion similar to other supporters from around the world, not as a means of necessairly immitating, but we "get" (for lack of a better word) the nature of fandom as expressed in many ways around the world. Doesn't mean everyone needs to wear a scarf, bother or be interested in learning songs, or stand for the course of a game - everyone shows support in their own way. Personally, Id like nothing more than to see a good number of people learning songs, coming up with songs, rallying the group in such a way as to be an active supporters presence in the stands, even if it's confined to The Fort or other pockets around the stadium. That make any sense? The Magpie
When I wrote these three "songs," I was thinking back to the songs and cheers that are heard at college football games. I went to Illinois as an undergrad, and Big Ten football features huge and colorful marching bands, half time singing, cheerleaders, and lots of cheers. At Illinois in particular, the half time show was highlighted by a performance from (the now politically incorrect) Chief Illiniwek, accompanied by tens of thousands of fans singing the school song. About ten years ago, my older son and I flew to Chicago to see the last home series at Old Comiskey Park (White Sox beat Red Sox in all four games). The old park rocked with cheers and songs, mostly aimed at the Red Sox pitching corps. My point is, singing and cheering at sporting events is not "foreign" to American sports fans.
Well said, Magpie. Great analogies. Probably the closest American equivalent is big-time college football. Everyone wearing the colors, marching bands, cheerleaders, a rowdy student section, it's all there. It's just a different sport. And like soccer with tons of smaller clubs that have their own organic base, college sports has a similar kind of identity. It doesn't matter that some college with 1,000 students doesn't play to the same level as Notre Dame, it doesn't mean that the fans of that school will no longer support them. And George, have you been to a Bruins game recently? There is actually BOTH of those kinds of atmosphere. The majority of fans tend to wear some sort of Bruins jersey to the game, just like the pix Magpie posted. People sing (yes, sing) "Here we go Bruins, Here we go!" clap-clap as if they were at a soccer game, fer cryin out loud! OK, it's rather tame, even by Revs/Fort standards, but the point is there is spontaneous singing. And there is also the mindless jumbotron crap that also passes for "atmosphere" in almost all modern North American sports events these days. The problem is, once they crank up the PA system, any chance for spontaneous crowd participation is shot to hell. Even if you don't care to participate in the goings-on in the Fort, surely you'd agree that it's better to hear the buzz of inaudible, off-key songs and chants from a distance on the other side of the stadium than it is to be blasted by commercial messages so loud that you can't even talk to the person sitting next to you without shouting. Tom
Sorry I'm too poor to attend a Bruins game I'm not one of the bourgeois Thanks for the input guys. At least now I know where you are coming from For me as a fan who doesn't sit in the Fort those songs seem awful complicated for the casual folk to just pick up and looking at a lyric sheet while the game is on is not for me Now about the scarves............when its 95....in the shade........what's that all about ? Can we agree that scarves started in countries where their teams actually play in the cold and said scarves were adorned to show team pride over layers and layers of clothing when a jersey would be inappropriate ?
Maybe you should ask Krafty for a raise. I mean you would think that after winning the Super Bowl 2 out of the last 3 years and making money hands over fist with the new stadium, he could afford to pay you more than the $5.15 an hour he gives you for washing his new Jag-you-are, cleaning his pool and driving the limo. Besides a Bruins ticket only costs 20 bucks, but where they really get you is the concessions, but anyone who goes to a game at Gillette knows that already.
Concessions are a rip off no matter where you go - movies , theme parks etc. That's why you tailgate so that you don't have to buy things inside What is it that you folks do at that tailgate - besides work on your three part harmonies and the " you suck "
"For me as a fan who doesn't sit in the Fort those songs seem awful complicated for the casual folk to just pick up and looking at a lyric sheet while the game is on is not for me..." Well, for what it's worth, while Rev Army has gone ahead and produced a "hymnal" featuring those songs or chants heard in The Fort, for the most part the process of learning them comes from simple exposure. The most recent chant to be introduced is the Adin Brown "wubba wubba wubba" chant. It was simple and catchy enough that it was readily picked up and I'm sure will be a staple for as long as Brown's with the club. No lyric or cheat sheet needed there, its quite organic in many ways. "Now about the scarves............when its 95....in the shade........what's that all about?" Something to wipe the sweat out of our eyes? To be honest, it's probably a combination including force-of-habit and a visual means of expressing our support. At least in terms of the Midnight Riders scarves, it's a way to show group identity, this while wearing a Rev jersey or some other item. In the case of some places overseas, it's also an easy way of both showing support and concealing it. Some rivalries are intense enough overseas that fans are discouraged, even prohibited from displaying "club colors" whether it's in a pub, on a subway, etc. Can't say there's a similar motivation here, but then, one only has to look at the treatment of Yankees fans in games at Fenway to see why it may be wise not to wear Yankees gear in or near the stadium. "Can we agree that scarves started in countries where their teams actually play in the cold and said scarves were adorned to show team pride over layers and layers of clothing when a jersey would be inappropriate?" Well first off, I can think of plenty of times where I've been well-served in wearing a scarf to an MLS match, especially earlier in the season or for those cooler night matches; plenty of MLS clubs at one point or another "play in the cold." I can certainly agree that there's a historical component to the adornment of scarves that serve a functional purpose both to this end and as a means to identify support. That being understood, you also have to appreciate that the display of said scarves has evolved through the years, taking on something more than simple function (keeping warm, displaying club colors when other means are not entirely feasible), to a point where it's but an extension of other, existing visual means of identifying support. Wearing scarves in exceptionally warm weather is not much different from painting ones chest and going topless in the middle of winter - they're both ways of expressing or identifying support, even if such actions may be questionable for any number of reasons.
"What is it that you folks do at that tailgate?" * Eat well (all of the time)... * Drink well (most of the time)... * Feel well (especially if the Revs win)... We occasionally partake in the merciful and/or symbolic destruction of Metrostars symbols: You can get a nice char, but it doesn't especially go well with steak sauce and a pint of lager ;-). The Magpie
Just so we are clear: That's what I do. I said I don't sing... I didn't say anything of the sort. If you consider that I had previously said I don't sing, it seems rather silly to suggest I even intended to say that... This is an inference you made.
As a Euro-wannabe singer, I have to say, I have never owned and likely will never own a scarf. I understand it as a sign of support, but it's just not my thing. I think that they make a nice addition to a colorful fan, though Dan