Friday, April 4, 2008

"Take Me Out to the Ballgame" Turns 100

As far as songs go, "Take me Out to the Ballgame" is kind of like the Star Spangled Banner: really bad if you sit and analyze it dispassionately, but so laden with history and tradition that you sort of don't care. Sure, people with taste may prefer "America the Beautiful" and Mabel Scott's "Baseball Boogie," but that train left the station a long time ago.

3 comments:

Will Osser said...

My son has a CD that plays the chorus from that song a bazillion times while describing the history and giving a spoken version of the original and modified verses. I can only take so much of that version of the song -- I prefer not to hear it unless I am at a ball game.

On the other hand, at opening night, Boston at Oakland, the seventh inning stretch started with "God Bless America", sung live by someone whose name I didn't catch. Only after that did they play "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". That's just wrong.

Am I the only one tired of GBA? Not to harp on the "Politics at Ballgames" topic again, but isn't that song politically charged? I'd rather there wasn't so much jingoism at ball games. I predict that GBA isn't played nearly so much next year if the Democrats with the white house.

Anonymous said...

It's time for the remix, people. "In-a-gadda-da-vida" sung to "Take me out to the ballgame." Or TMOTTB sung to "House of the Rising Sun," performed in every stadium with a real organ, on the same day. Let's do it!

Anonymous said...

Hey, no knocking "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." It's a pretty classic example of turn-of-the-century Tin Pan Alley song. Katie Casey...that's some kinda woman.
And yes, it is past time to show GBA the door. We sing the national anthem at every game, and if that's not enough to show patriotic spirit or whatever then something's wrong with you.