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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 20 general entries.
Special Topics
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Sports in Songs
Skiing. We don't get an awful lot of snow in the UK, so the chance to go ski-ing or tobogganing does not happen very often. I expect Wigan's Ovation, whose "Skiing In The Snow" was a number 12 hit, were really just dreaming!
Baseball Game. The Intruders biggest UK hit was "Win, Place Or Show (She's A Winner)" in 1974. "(Love Is Like A) Baseball Game" was a US hit back in 1968. As I am not familer with the game and rules of baseball, I am not able to explain why love should be like it!
Cheech and Chong. Surprisingly, Cheech and Chong have never featured on the UK charts. "Basketball Jones" was a US number 15 hit for the pair whose mothers knew them as Richard Marin and Thomas Chong.
Ping Pong. Not a huge hit for this band, "Ping Pong" just reached number 45 on the UK charts. The song was taken from their "Mars Audiac Quintet" album.
Dire Straits. Fronted by singer and guitarist Mark Knopfler, Dire Straits biggest UK hits were "Private Investigations" and Walk Of Life", both of which hit the number two spot. "Skateaway" reached the more lowly number 37 position.
The WWF Superstars. The World Wrestling Federation changed it's name to World Wrestling Entertainment in 2002, due to the objections of the Worldwide Fund For Nature and the use of the initials "WWF". Wrestlers featured on "Slam Jam" and subsequent hit "Wrestlemania", include Bret Hart, the Big Bossman and the legendary Undertaker.
Ice Hockey. I'm afraid I have no idea what "Ice Hockey Hair" actually is. The Super Furry Animals seem to go in for interesting song titles, as their hits include "Hometown Unicorn", "God! Show Me Magic" and "(Drawing) Rings Around The World".
Manchester United. "Come On You Reds" was a UK number one, the highest placed hit for the team who have reached the charts on many occasions. The football teams of Chelsea, Brighton and Tottenham have all scored on the pop charts as well as on the pitch. The more discerning listener may well advise them to stick to football!
| Which UK based Doo-Wop band hit the charts with "Daddy Cool" and "The Boy From New York City" in the late 1970s? | Songs with a Sporting Theme
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Darts. Other covers performed by the Darts were "Duke Of Earl" and "Reet Petite". There were bands called The Arrows and Racing Cars, but I'm not aware of a band called the Archers!
Snooker. Credited to the Matchroom Mob with Chas and Dave, "Snooker Loopy" climbed to number six in the UK charts. There are many songs about football, but songs about snooker are few and far between!
| "The Boys of Summer" is a popular phrase used to describe baseball players. Who recorded a hit song of the same name? | Sports in Songs
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Don Henley. "The Boys of Summer" is the first cut and a single from Henley's 1984 album "Building the Perfect Beast". He co-wrote the song with Mike Campbell. There is a book of the same name written by Roger Kahn in 1971 about the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers championship team. Henley denies that the song is actually about baseball players. The song reached number 5 on the pop singles chart. Henley won a Grammy Award for "Best Male Rock Vocal Performance" for the song. Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner and Glen Frey were members of the Eagles with Henley. Don once said that he got the inspiration for the line "I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac" from an actual bumper sticker on Joe Walsh's Cadillac.
Barbra Streisand. The song is from the 1979 move of the same name. It was a disco-era hit for Barbra Streisand. She starred with Ryan O'Neal in the movie. After being duped by her accountant and broke, her character finds a boxer among her assets who was purchased as a tax write off. She decides to take the fighter, dubbed "Kid Natural", and use him as her key to becoming wealthy again. The song won a People's Choice Award for "Favorite Theme/Song from a Motion Picture". The song, written by Paul Jabara & Bruce Roberts, was unsuccessfully nominated for a Golden Globe. Donna Summer is another disco-era singer. Gloria Gaynor is known for "I Will Survive". Bette Midler is an actress/singer who has starred in movies such as "The Rose" and "Beaches". "Beaches" produced her hit song "Wind beneath My Wings."
| What sport is the movie theme "Chariots of Fire" associated with? | Sports in Songs
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Running. The British film "Chariots of Fire" was released in 1981. The movie depicts the actual story of British athletes who compete in the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won four, including "Best Picture". The musical score was written by Greek synthesizer artist Vangelis. He won the Oscar for "Best Original Music Score" for the movie theme. The working title of the song on the soundtrack LP is called "Titles". It was released as a single titled "Chariots of Fire" in 1982 and topped the Billboard chart for a week.
| Simon and Garfunkel have a song title referencing which sports profession? | Sports in Songs
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Boxer. "The Boxer" is a folk ballad composed by Paul Simon in 1968. It was released as a follow up single to "Mrs. Robinson" and appears on their final album as a duo, "Bridge over Troubled Water". The excellent finger-picking guitar in the song is played by guitarist Fred Carter, Jr.. Legendary studio musician Hal Blaine was the drummer and included chains among his percussive instruments. The song took over 100 hours to record. Rolling Stone ranked it at number 105 on their list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Paul related in an interview that the song was a veiled reference that he would quit the music business if the critics didn't cease their harsh comments.
Santana. In 1966 guitarist Tom Frazier joined Santana, Mike Carabello, Rod Harper, Gus Rodriguez and Gregg Rolie to form the Santana Blues Band. Some lineup changes ensued and the band's name eventually changed to simply Santana. Despite not having recorded an album, Bill Graham convinced the Woodstock promoters to include Santana in the concert lineup. The exposure propelled them into the national spotlight. Their premier single, "Evil Ways", went to number nine. Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead and Carlos Santana recorded with Nigerian drummer Babatunde Olatunji. Olatunji conceived one of Santana's famous drum jams titled "Jingo". The Fabulous Thunderbirds were guest artists on Santana's 1983 Havana Moon LP. Greg Rolie left Santana to help form Journey.
| What position did John Fogarty want to play in his 1985 song with the same title? | Sports in Songs
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Centerfield. "Centerfield" is also the title of the 1985 album by John Fogerty. It was his biggest selling post-Creedence solo effort. It also featured the hit singles "The Old Man Down the Road" and "Rock and Roll Girls". Fogerty played all the instruments on the album. The image on the cover depicts an old-fashioned baseball glove. President George W. Bush was affiliated with baseball before becoming President and has stated that "Centerfield" is his favorite song.
| "Eye of the Tiger" is from the film "Rocky III". Who recorded the successful song? | Sports in Songs
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Survivor. "Eye of the Tiger" was from the album of the same name. It was released in January, 1982. It was written specifically at the request of Sylvester Stallone for Rocky III. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks beginning July 24, 1982. For a while it was also the entrance theme for professional wrestler Hulk Hogan who was in Rocky III. "Eye of the Tiger" won a Grammy Award and was nominated for an Oscar. It was also voted "Best New Song" by the People's Choice Awards. Styx had a string of hits including "Babe". Foreigner was so named because two members were from the UK and two were from the US. Bad Company recorded a song by the same name along with other rock hits.
Sweet Georgia Brown. The version used by the Globetrotters is a 1949 instrumental by Brother Bones & His Shadows. It features whistling and bones by Brother Bones. It was adopted by the Globetrotters in 1952. The music for "Sweet Georgia Brown" was written by Maceo Pinkard and Kenneth Casey composed the words. The tune was first recorded by Ben Bernie and his Orchestra. In the 1953 Vincent Minnelli movie "Cabin in the Sky" the woman whom Little Joe has an affair with is named Georgia Brown. "My Little Georgia Rose" was done by Ricky Scaggs. "Rainy night in Georgia" was the last of Brook Benton's hits. "Georgia on My Mind" was written in 1930 by Stuart Gorrell and Hoagy Carmichael. It is the official state song of Georgia.
| Mel and Tim had a popular song in 1969. The title of the song was a football penalty. Which infraction did they sing about? | Sports in Songs
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Backfield in Motion. "Backfield in Motion" was from their 1969 debut album "Good Guys Only Win in the Movies". The duo wrote most of their own material. They also mentioned that the girlfriend was "offside and holding, holding on to someone else" in the lyrics. Mel Hardin and Tim McPherson were cousins from Holly Springs, Mississippi. They gravitated to Chicago where they were discovered by Gene Chandler. Gene had a number one hit with "Duke of Earl" in February, 1962.
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