Jerusalem......why?

[Bunkermagnet]

Why has anything sporting England use "Jerusalem"?
Land of hope and glory is by far more rousing, but why we use Jerusalem I just don't get.

Anyone know why?

 

[ScienceBoy]

No idea, don't like it either.

Really not my sort of music.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Why do Liverpool and Celtic sing "You'll Never Walk Alone", Stoke sing Delilah, rugby Swing Low etc. These things just start up randomly and then get a life of their own. I think the cricket singing came from the Balmy Army, it took off and then it became the official pre match tune.

You can't force a crowd to sing a particular song. They have to want to do it and sometimes a particular song just sticks.

 

[Kellfire]

Liverpool sing YNWA because they heard Man Utd sing it, liked it and decided they'd use it, too.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Liverpool sing YNWA because they heard Man Utd sing it, liked it and decided they'd use it, too.

I'm guessing this is tongue in cheek. One for Liverpool fans. Did the crowd sing it before Gerry & the Pacemakers or after?

 

[louise_a]

I think Jerusalem is a great song for an anthem and does actually mention England in the lyrics, Land of Hope and Glory does hark back to the days of the British Empire

Apparently LOHAG was the winners anthem of the England Commonwealth team until it was replaced by Jerusalem in 2010 after a public poll

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Because the words of LoH&G are but the lyrical 'chorus' to orchestral 'verses'. And so singing it would need long gaps not singing...

Jerusalem has at least the merit of being an adaptation of Blake's poem - so has a song structure. Bit of an odd one these days in a secular England singing about the lamb of God - with most folks not having much of a clue what they are singing about. Never mind th eimperialist nature of the words.

For what it's worth I think there is scope for someone taking the tune of Greensleeves and writing new words - with England replacing Greensleeves. Even a straight find and replace and a tweak works with the chorus. And the tune has the value of a very strong opening on each of the first three lines of the chorus and strong finish to the last line - all which could be belted out.

England is all my joy
England is my delight
England is my heart of gold
Nowhere but my country England

 

[Pathetic Shark]

Billy Connolly had it right when he suggested changing the National Anthem to the theme from The Archers

 

[Deleted member 15344]

I'm guessing this is tongue in cheek. One for Liverpool fans. Did the crowd sing it before Gerry & the Pacemakers or after?

They sung it after- same year though then Celtic took it up after playing Liverpool a couple years after

 

[Kellfire]

I'm guessing this is tongue in cheek. One for Liverpool fans. Did the crowd sing it before Gerry & the Pacemakers or after?

Many years before, in the wake of the Munich Air Disaster according to some sources and a good few years before it was adopted at Anfield.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Many years before, in the wake of the Munich Air Disaster according to some sources and a good few years before it was adopted at Anfield.

Probably on the back of the soundtrack of the film Carousel (1956)? I've got a 1956 Carousel EP of selections from the soundtrack. Must have been popular back then.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Many years before, in the wake of the Munich Air Disaster according to some sources and a good few years before it was adopted at Anfield.

What actually happened was after the Munich Disaster a group of Opera singers sung it at a match - it wasn't sung by the fans and it wasn't adopted by the fans after

 

[Fish]

What actually happened was after the Munich Disaster a group of Opera singers sung it at a match - it wasn't sung by the fans and it wasn't adopted by the fans after

So no fans ever sang it before Liverpool fans did?

 

[chrisd]

We have 'glad all over but we rarely are! 🤣

 

[HomerJSimpson]

No idea of the rationale behind Jerusalem but I don't like it and think in today's society with different races and religions it sits well. Just a personal viewpoint of course. I would prefer to see someone do something more modern and in line with a modern England and it get taken to heart

 

[SocketRocket]

No idea of the rationale behind Jerusalem but I don't like it and think in today's society with different races and religions it sits well. Just a personal viewpoint of course. I would prefer to see someone do something more modern and in line with a modern England and it get taken to heart

So all these races and religions are they not English?
How about this:

[video=youtube;PcDVH8DiBnM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcDVH8DiBnM[/video]

 

[davidy233]

They sung it after- same year though then Celtic took it up after playing Liverpool a couple years after

I'm by no means sure that they hadn't sung it before - but I saw Celtic play a lot in the 70s and early 80s and don't recall them singing YNWA at all - they regularly sang Rod Stewart's 'Sailing' with scarves up in the style of YNWA in the 70s - my impression has always been that Celtic started singing YNWA regularly after they played Liverpool in a memorial game after Hillsborough.