For years I've been flabbergasted by the decision to use The Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" for-- as far as I can tell-- the official anthem of the Seattle Seahawks.
Today is supposed to be a day of celebration. The Virginia Mason Athletic Center is packed to capacity with jubilant Seahawks fans excited to catch the first glimpse of the highly touted 2013 Seattle Seahawks. Having experienced no issues in purchasing tickets for my daughter and I for the previous training camps-- I assumed this year would be no different. Alas, I underestimated the passion of the 12th Man for this season and camp was sold out before I knew it.
So I drove to work flipping between the two local sports radio stations trying to absorb as much Seahawk-goodness as I could when, all of the sudden, one station returned from the commercial break to the listless, lackadaisical melody of "Bittersweet Symphony".
I went from happy-go-lucky to pissed off within the first few notes of the song.I tried searching for answers on the internet-- why is this song used as the Seahawks anthem? Is it the official Seahawks anthem? All I could find was other bloggers sharing my disdain. From local favorite Hawkblogger to a perplexed Steelers fan questioning why the Seahawks came out of the tunnel to that song in Super Bowl XL-- all I could uncover was people confused, upset and angry over this terrible song choice.
For all of those people and all of my personal frustrations I have decided to start a petition to request that the Seahawks discontinue the use of this song in all forms.
Click here to sign our petition to discontinue all use of "Bittersweet Symphony" with regard to the Seahawks
An anthem is supposed to invoke specific emotions in the fans, players and opponents alike. For the fans, those emotions should be prideful and uplifting. For the players, it should fire them up to head into battle. For the opponents, it should at least be unsettling and intimidating.
If you're unfamiliar with the song, watch the video below. Does this song fire you up? Do you think it motivates our players as they come racing out of the tunnel? Could you possibly fathom an opponent being intimidated by this song?
We are so lucky to live in a region rich in musical history. Wouldn't it be so much cooler to hear the team run onto the field to Jimi Hendrix' "Voodoo Chile"? What about Mackelmore and Ryan Lewis' "Can't Hold Us"? Hell, even The Presidents of The United States of America's "Kick Out the Jams" would be far and away a better choice than this hum-drum tune.
Spread the word on this-- if the Seahawks take the field to BS Symphony Sunday night against the 49ers it would be a travesty.
The Verve
Bittersweet Symphony Lyrics
'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, this life
Trying to make ends meet
You're a slave to money then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places
where all the veins meet yeah
No change, I can't change
I can't change, I can't change
But I'm here in my mind
I am here in my mind
But I'm a million different people
from one day to the next
I can't change my mind
No, no, no, no, no, no, no,no,no,no,no,no(fading away)
Well I never pray
But tonight I'm on my knees yeah
I need to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me, yeah
I let the melody shine, let it cleanse my mind, I feel free now
But the airways are clean and there's nobody singing to me now
No change, I can't change
I can't change, I can't change
But I'm here in my mind
I am here in my mind
And I'm a million different people
from one day to the next
I can't change my mind
No, no, no, no, no, no, no
I can't change
I can't change it
'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, this life
Trying to make ends meet
Trying to find some money then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places
where all the veins meet yeah
You know I can't change, I can't change
I can't change, I can't change
But I'm here in my mind
I am here in my mind
And I'm a million different people
from one day to the next
I can't change my mind
No, no, no, no, no
I can't change my mind
no, no, no, no, no,
I can't change
Can't change my body,
no, no, no
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
Been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
Ever been down
That you've ever been down
That you've ever been down
Am watching the Hawks victory celebration and decided to google their use of Bittersweet Symphony and I don't understand all the hating. It's a great song, but why is everyone interpreting the lyrics as having anything to do with the team? the song has a very 'hooky' intro with a very NFL Films Music-like quality, and that's all they use in an endless loop. As far as i can tell you never hear the 'it's a bittersweet symphony this life' part at all. I'm glad they use it. It's a song that reminds me of my 12 wonderful years living in Western Washington.
ReplyDeleteEven if you completely remove the lyrics from the argument and focus solely on the rhythm and Melodee-- the argument remains the same. It's lackadaisical and bumbling. It's completely non-threatening. Would you put this song on your iPod for working out? I can't imagine anyone would be bumping this in the gym to motivate themselves to give their best. I'm not necessarily trying to say it's fundamentally a bad song. I just think that its a poor choice for this particular application.
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