According to a fan-based poll from USA Today, the number one fight song in college football isn't even the school's "Official Fight Song". But that doesn't matter to University of Tennessee Volunteers. The catchy, beloved tune is practically synonymous with their school."Rocky Top" is an American country and bluegrass song written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant in 1967 and first recorded by the Osborne Brothers later that same year. The song, which is a city-dweller's lamentation over the loss of a simpler and freer existence in the hills of Tennessee, is one of Tennessee's ten official state songs.
A marching band version of the song “Rocky Top” has been played by the school's Pride of the Southland Band at Tennessee football games since 1972. When the Band played it for the first time during halftime of the Tennessee-Alabama game that year, the fans went bonkers, and at that point the then band director W.J. Julian knew his pupils were onto something. From then on, he kept “Rocky Top” in the Pride of the Southland’s repertoire.
The Osborne Brothers' 1967 bluegrass version of the song reached No. 33 on the U.S. Country charts, and Lynn Anderson's 1970 version peaked at No. 17 on the U.S. Country charts. In 2005, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ranked "Rocky Top" number seven on its list of 100 Songs of the South.
The poll was published on USA Today's online College Football Fan Index page over the weekend. Read their report.
2 comments:
I play banjo in a Nashville-based Bluegrass band called Grasstime. "Rocky Top" is by far our most requested song onstage. We used to somewhat resist playing it since the song is played so much, but we've finally settled on giving the audience what they want to hear so we now play it at most gigs - and we ALWAYS play it if it is requested.
www.grasstimeband.com
I play banjo in a Nashville-based Bluegrass band called Grasstime. "Rocky Top" is by far our most requested song onstage. We used to somewhat resist playing it since it is played so much... but we've finally settled on giving the audience what they want to hear. We now play it at most gigs and we will always play it if it is requested!
www.grasstimeband.com
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