Apr 25, 2007

NHL anthem singers we like

  • Lyndon Slewidge, Ottawa Senators
  • Lauren Hart, Philadelphia Flyers
  • Paul Lorieau, Edmonton Oilers
  • Doug Allen, Buffalo Sabres

Doug gets added to the list after his performance tonight at HSBC Arena, before Game 1 of the Buffalo-New York series. He was accompanied by the arena organist, and sang at a nice, quick tempo. He doesn't mess with the melody, and sings with authority and excitement. And best of all, they always sing both the U.S. and Canadian anthems before every game - regardless of which teams are playing. What a great way to start a game.

BONUS NON-HOCKEY ANTHEM VIDEO: Marvin Gaye sings the anthem at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game.

Apr 24, 2007

Get Ready For This

As a follow-up to our post about Cotton Eye Joe last week, here's 2 Unlimited in a tv performance of Get Ready For This, one of hockey's most popular songs. (via The Popjournalism Blog)

Apr 18, 2007

All about Cotton Eye Joe



How did we miss this?? Last week on eBay, we could have bought the rights to Rednex, the Swedish group behind Cotton Eye Joe. For only $1.5M, we could have owned the rights to one of the greatest/worst sports anthems of all time.

From MTV News:
"Currently up for bid on eBay: a whole bunch of crap you don't need — and sole ownership of one of the greatest novelty acts of the past 20 years, bizarro Swedish popsters Rednex. That's right: If you've got an extra $1.5 million lying around — you know, under the cushions of the couch or whatever — then you can own the group responsible for the version of the classic song "Cotton Eye Joe" that's currently bumping at Yankee Stadium. It's all completely legit, as the post states the buyer inherits 100 percent of Rednex AB, the partnership that oversees all things related to the band. Or, as the posting states in decidedly sexier verbiage, "The buyer gets it all: the music, the trademark, the band, the tour, the record deals [and] the Web site ... [plus] the catalog ... the opportunities, the future."

Things you probably don't know about Cotton Eye Joe:

  1. Who was Cotton Eye Joe? (Part 1): Cotton Eye Joe is a folk tune dating back at least 150 years. There are plenty of theories of who “Joe” was, including: a “hoodoo” man who rolls into town with the travelling medicine show … a slave, a hired hand, or a talented fiddler … even someone who performed abortions. Source: CULTURE & TRADITION: The Canadian Graduate Student Journal of Folklore & Ethnology

  2. Who was Cotton Eye Joe (Part 2): Cotton Eye Joe may have been the seducer of another man’s woman, he may have suffered from trachoma (making his eyes milky-white), and he may have been black or white, but he definitely was an American Southerner. Source: Get Underground

  3. Repeat after me. The chorus of Cotton Eye Joe is repeated over 8 times, which is a a somewhat high repetition rate for a pop song. Source: The Queen anomaly

  4. We're #1 / wir sind Nr. eine. Rednex have spent more weeks at number 1 in Germany than any other artist in the past 25 years. Source: Blender

  5. We suck. Blender ranked Cotton Eye #38 on its list of 50 Worst Songs Ever. That's just behind Gerardo's Rico Suave, and just ahead of Ricky Martin's She Bangs. (#1 was Starship's We Built This City.)

  6. One hit wonder. Cotton Eye Joe was the only hit for Rednex in the United States, but never hit #1 . It did hit #1 in the U.K. in January 1995, and got as high as #8 in Australia. Source: Wikipedia

  7. Last but not least. From Rori Sarig's review on Amazon: "Leave it to the Swedes to feed us back only the best of American kitsch. The gimmick: Techno as made by country bumpkins, bluegrass house music. Utterly dumb, but thoroughly enjoyable. Even a little subversive, perhaps, given the international smash hit "Cotton-Eye Joe," a helplessly catchy disco reworking of an age-old traditional folk tune, slyly coded, and implying what? ... Rednex is all joke, from the banjos and fiddles to the sequencers and drum loops ... Though Rednex fails when it deviates from the formula, it more often works on the knowledge that bluegrass and techno share a fast and steady beat, and can thus stand fusion."


Know any other fun facts about Cotton Eye Joe? Leave them in the comments below!

Philadelphia Flyers dancing guy

Found via Kukla's Korner:

Apr 16, 2007

Houston Rockets Clutch greatest hits

Here's a great "best-of" video of Clutch, the Houston Rockets mascot.



Found via GameOps.com and their great YouTube section.

Lynx Stadium Goes Trans-Fat-Free

From an Ottawa Lynx (AAA baseball) press release:

It just got a little healthier to take me out to the ballgame.

All food prepared at Lynx Stadium, home of the Ottawa Lynx, will be cooked in trans-fat-free oil, the Lynx announced at a press conference at Lynx Stadium today.

"We're very proud to offer our fans a healthier menu at the ballpark," said Lynx General Manager Kyle Bostwick. "We're always trying to make the stadium experience more enjoyable and I think this is a big step in that direction.

The move has drawn praise from Jim Watson, Ontario Minister for Health Promotion and MPP for Ottawa West Nepean and from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

Read more...

Apr 13, 2007

All about the Buffalo Sabres opening video

From the Buffalo News:
The words on the minds and lips of Buffalo Sabres fans as their team begins the quest for hockey’s greatest prize also are a line from the song “Better Days” by homegrown rockers the Goo Goo Dolls.

The song will serve as a spine-tingling soundtrack to a video that will be shown on the Jumbotron in HSBC Arena and aired as part of MSG Network game broadcasts throughout the Stanley Cup playoff run.

“And you ask me what I want this year,

“And I try to make this kind and clear,

“Just a chance that maybe we’ll find better days,” the Goos sing as a video snapshot of a game-day-in-the-life of Western New York unfolds on the screen.

“The lyrics are a perfect fit,” said Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn, who suggested using the song. “The words embody the dreams and hopes of this team and this community.”

...

As if there weren’t enough excitement among fans already, the video tribute to local residents and the team they love should kick it up another notch.

The video begins at dawn with views of rural landscapes and city skylines. Sabres faithful head to school and work, while HSBC Arena staff and Sabres players go through their gameday rituals. As momentum builds toward game time, fans stream into HSBC Arena, and the team readies to take the ice.

Live concert footage of the Goo Goo Dolls’ March 20 appearance on the St. Bonaventure University campus is interwoven throughout the one-minute, 30-second video, which culminates with a fleeting image of Lord Stanley’s elusive silver cup.

“ ’cause tonight’s the night the world begins again,” sings Johnny Rzeznik.

“We showed it at the team dinner, and the guys loved it,” Quinn said. “It tugs at your heart and gives you goose bumps.”

Sabres broadcast producer Matt Gould masterminded the marriage of game-day postcard and music video. Armed with a camera, he traveled around Western New York capturing images from such diverse locations as Main Street in East Aurora, a downtown coffee shop, construction sites, suburban neighborhoods and even General Motors Corp.’s Tonawanda Engine Plant.

“This team and the community are so tied to each other. We really wanted to celebrate that relationship,” Gould said.

Gould was part of the Goo Goo Dolls production team for the band’s 2004 DVD that featured a Niagara Square concert and video clips around town. He said the band members were “very gracious” about helping out the Sabres.

“They’re Buffalo born and bred and continue to have ties here. They’re fans, too, so they were excited to be a part of what we are doing,” he said.

“Better Days” was released as a single from the Goos’ 2006 CD “Let Love In.”

A 30-second, hard-hitting highlight reel with an orchestral score will follow the opening video, with a Sabres/ Islanders highlight video, set to the Rolling Stones’ “Street Fighting Man” after that.


Watch the video: via Buffalo News or BuffaloSabres.com

Apr 7, 2007

Win a Zambonis CD at HockeyMusic.ca

To celebrate the start of the playoffs, HockeyMusic.ca is giving away TEN copies of "The Zambonis Greatest Hits". To enter, click here.

Also: Check out the HockeyMusic.ca Forum for a FREE Zambonis download.

Spring cleaning / link round-up

A little bit of downtime before the playoffs start ... so that means time to go get caught up & post some game entertainment links from the past few weeks. Send your link suggestions to us here.
  • GameOps.com reviews the Erie Otters (OHL) - First in a series of game entertainment reviews by GameOps.com editor Jon Cudo. Jon does a great job describing what the Erie Otters do to entertain their fans, and then offers his "promotion pills" to make their show even better.
  • Islanders Ice Girls accuse Rangers of bad behaviour (via Newsday)
    "According to the two women, the Rangers should be penalized for slashing, spitting and verbal abuse during television timeouts in the first period of Tuesday night’s game at Nassau Coliseum, won by the Islanders, 3-2, in a shootout.
    During commercial breaks, teams of three Ice Girls clean loose ice known as “snow” in the goal and the blue-painted goaltender’s crease in front of the goal line. But Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist declined to move and used his stick to whack the squeegee Kelli Higgins was using to push the snow into a pile during the first TV timeout, knocking the butt-end of the squeegee stick into her stomach. " See also TSN: NHL reviews ice girls incident
  • Dan Menendez Piano Juggler - Amazing halftime performer ... must be seen to believe! (via GameOps.com)
  • Big Mama Pizza Toss - Video of a halftime pizza promotion (via GameOps.com)
  • Honeybeeys at the Half - A slam dunk competition with a twist - featuring the Hornets dance team (via GameOps.com)
  • Atlanta Thrashers hold a mullet night (via Kukla's Korner)
  • New York Giants set to unveil a giant new scoreboard - Plans for a $3.1-million, hi-def, Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision display, 31.5 feet high x 103 feet wide. 3 million LED lights, 28 tons.