OT: Fight songs (other than The Victors) you like?
Slow day and slow times round these parts. Hump day post-work banter time.
Obviously we all know The Victors is the best fight song ever written (as said by John Phillip Sousa). But what other college fight songs do you admire?
I think one that has always had a good tune was northwestern's. I also am really fond of Montana's-
Watching tons of college football games every Fall, it's easy to realize how spoiled we are with 'The Victors,' because there are a TON of lame college fight songs out there. I don't know the lyrics to the majority of them but I know the melodies and we're talking crap city.
Have you ever watched a Florida State/Miami game? Both of their fight songs are embarrassingly bad. They sound like theme songs to a pre-schooler's TV show. Auburn's fight song sounds like a cute commercial jingle. USC's has always been considered a classic but I always found it very meh. And Rocky Top is GOD awful, nothing more than a country hick tune you would sing on the porch while wearing overalls and playing a banjo.
As much as I despise ND, OSU and MSU, their fight songs are better than the majority of fight songs out there.
Fight songs that I like:
- Wisconsin - On Wisconsin
- Miami (FL)
- Northwestern- Go U. Northwestern
- Alabama- Hey Alabama (I love the abbreviated version after they score a TD)
- Indiana -Indiana, Our Indiana
- Michigan State- Falcone Fight
- California- Big C
- Stanford- All Right Now
- Michigan- Hail ..... O wait you said other than Michigan fight song. Woops. /s
I actually like USC's. And I catch myself humming OSU's every now and then too. Ironically, those are two of the teams I hate most.
The Rains of Castamere is a pretty catchy fight song.
Othwise it's pretty brutal.
They can say "sink the Army grey" without being little brother-ish, too. Just a great song.
I also like BC's "For Boston".
Who cares who 2nd best is? I sing The Victors super slowed down to put my kids to bed and normal speed to wake them up. It's so versatile.
I like Georgia's because it was my high school's fight song
The Victors
Oh wait, never mind. I misread the thread title. I thought it said "worst fight songs."
I like USC's "Fight On!" and Tennessee's "Rocky Top." I can't stand either team and their uniforms are terrible (UT's are the worst in any sport IMO) but I dig their fight songs.
Army's, Tennessee's, & Iowa State's
Nothing equals The Victors; John Philip Sousa called it "the greatest college fight song ever written," and that's all anyone needs to say about that.
But as a musician I'd vote ND's as a clear #2. Much like The Victors, it has a great, catchy melody, and some terrific lyrics -- "wake up the echoes," "shake down the thunder from the sky," all that stuff. And I say this as someone who, though a Catholic, has despised all things ND since I was young. I'd punch that damn leprechaun if I could. Doesn't change the fact it's a great fight song, though.
Having grown up in Texas among a family full of Aggies, I also have a soft spot for the Aggie War Hymn. If you're ever at Kyle Field or watching an A&M game on TV, notice how everyone sways back and forth during the second verse to mimic a saw blade as they sing "saw Varsity's [i.e., UT's] horns off" -- you can feel the whole stadium literally sway, and it gives you goosebumps, I tell ya. As some noted above, it does have a pronounced "little brother" aspect to it, with all the vitriol toward Univ. of Texas in the lyrics. That said, UT's "Texas Fight" (which I'll also admit is quite catchy) also references A&M specifically ("And it's goodbye to A&M").
Damn shame that rivalry had to end, though I dare say A&M has gotten the better outcome of that split so far.
Boston College has a pretty good one:
EDIT: I can't post videos or pictures anymore. I had that knowledge once upon a time but it went out of my head somehow.
Besides some of the ones mentioned already (Wisconsin, OSU, USC), a couple others I like are Cal's and Colorado's:
...other school's fight songs. That's probably part of the appeal for me, how annoying it can be to hear the USC or ND bands blaring out their distinctive sounds...and how good it feels when we can shut them up.
Now, in terms of music that I like, I'd have to start with Ravel's Bolero...
sorry, 2x post
fight song..solid
The best fight songs are ones that immediately conjure up images of a guy breaking tackles and running down the field. You can almost see the slow-mo replay run to the endzone as they break to commercial with the fight song playing in the background. For me, fight songs that do that are
Notre Dame -- just an iconic fight song
Penn State -- more fight songs should heavily feature trombone; this song just makes me smile, except when it's happening against Michigan
Wisconsin -- shame that most people just think of the cheese commercials
there are other fight songs that are good, but just don't conjure the same imagery for me that those do
The Bells Must Ring is Rutgers fight song and a classic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSBYNU9ZM6w
Army's "On Brave old Army Team" is another favorite.
I'll plug UCLA and Minnesota as underappreciated