Top 10: Songs about the pugilistic arts

Boxing and music are a match made in nirvana. From the Rocky soundtrack to the ring walk-ons they have long gone glove in glove.

Here, our resident sports and punk rock correspondent Craig ‘The KO King’ Stephen rings the bell on 10 rounds of boxing and music collaboration. Warning: there are a couple of low blows among them.

Warren Zevon - Boom Boom Mancini (1987)

“So hurry home early, hurry on home/ Boom Boom Mancini's fightin' Bobby Chacon”.

Zevon’s tribute to one of the great Italian-American fighters of the 1980s centres around a much-anticipated world title defence by Ray ‘Boom Boom’ Mancini against a fellow bruiser and ex-world champion Bobby Chacon. But he also takes the opportunity to defend the fighter who was unfairly maligned after the Korean challenger Duk-Koo Kim died of his injuries after being stopped in 14 rounds by Mancini five months earlier. In reality, there were other factors at play, including Kim’s struggle to make weight.

“They made hypocrite judgments after the fact/But the name of the game is be hit and hit back,” sang Zevon and boxing was hit by the tragedy – title fights were subsequently reduced to 12 rounds from 15.

Sun Kil Moon - Duk-Koo Kim (2010)

Ostensibly, this 14-and-a-half-minute epic from the Ghosts of the Great Highway album has a focus of love and life’s ebbs and flows and references Kim’s fight against Mancini to explore these subjects.

“The boy from Seoul was hanging on good/but the pounding took to him/and there in the square he lay alone/without face, without crown/and the angel who looked upon him/she never came down.”

Kozelek, who named this side project after a world super-flyweight champion from South Korea, Sung-Kil Moon, also wrote another ode to a champion boxer, featherweight legend Salvador Sanchez, on the song of the same name. The Mexican was heading for mega bucks fights after a string of incredible wins but a car crash took away his life at the age of 23.

“Mexico City bred so many/But none quite like him/ Sweet warrior, pure magic matador.”

Bob Dylan - Hurricane (1975)

More of a protest song about the racially-motivated stitch-up of an innocent black man than about boxing. For eight-and-half-minutes Dylan goes into extensive detail about the frame-up of Rubin Carter and surmises that: “In Paterson that's just the way things go/If you're black you might as well not show up on the street/Less you wanna draw the heat.”

Carter was a top middleweight at the time of his arrest (but not No.1 contender as Dylan claimed) and his trial and imprisonment killed his career. The murder verdict was overturned in 1985.

Dylan also wrote ‘Who Killed Davey Moore’ (1963) which takes the form of a conversation between the featherweight champion’s manager and his widow, in which they debate who is to blame for Moore’s passing after a title fight.

 Dr Alimantado - The Return of Muhammed Ali (1987)

“I have Joe Frazier running around the ring”. This celebration of The Greatest (who’s name is misspelt for reasons unknown) recalls Ali’s three incredible fights against Smokin’ Joe Frazier – one of which it is forgotten he lost on points – fought between 1971 and 1975 culminating in the famous Thrilla in Manila.

This devotion to Ali – complete with “We Want Ali” background chants hails from the good Doctor’s Born For A Purpose album. With its recollection of Ali’s style, “dancing and prancing and skipping and jumping”, and the famous Ali shuffle, ‘The Return of’ is a highlight from the album as it revels in the pugilistic arts which were personified by these two titans of 1970s boxing.

DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson (1989)

And talking of novelty records … this was a fun single released when Tyson was in his prime.

When the dreamer does take on the heavyweight champion he recalls how “for a second, I looked good out there.” Then the inevitable occurred.

“But then Mike brought to reality my worst nightmare/One punch, that's all it took/He hit me in my ribs and my insides shook/Now, how can I say this and be a little discreet?/Let's just say that my bowels released.”

Miles Davis - Right Off (1971)

Davis’ 1971 album Jack Johnson was a tribute to the first black world heavyweight champion.

There are two tracks, the 27-minute ‘Right Off’ and the slightly shorter ‘Yesternow’. The latter concludes with a voiceover by actor Brock Peters: "I'm Jack Johnson, heavyweight champion of the world. I'm black. They never let me forget it. I'm black all right. I'll never let them forget it.”

Davis was inspired by the political and racial subtext of Johnson's battle against the establishment, and by the hard rock and funk sounds of his own era. It’s as much a work about the prevailing racism of the Jim Crow era as it is about boxing.

 Morrissey - Boxers (1995)

Writing from imagination rather than experience, Boxers deals with a fighter’s crushing disappointment of losing a bout with his own fans in attendance. The opening lines make clear that there is no happy ending: “Losing in front of your home crowd/You wished the ground/Would open up and take you down.”

The video featured British super-middleweight champion Cornelius Carr, who said it made him famous among Smiths fans and gave him more publicity than any fight. 

The NME was sceptical about Morrissey’s dalliance with the sport, with their reviewer declaring the single was "just another example of his tedious obsession with bits of rough who'd give him a kicking given half a chance". 

The Felice Brothers - The Ballad of Lou The Welterweight (2009)

Hardly Green territory these guys … purveyors of Americana and country rock. And I won’t pretend that I like this song just because it’s about a boxer, a mythical one at that.

‘The Ballad of Lou’ revolves around the life of the eponymous would-be hero. It begins with Lou excitedly telling his other half to get ready for his bout.

Lou “had a way like Errol Flynn," the swashbuckling Hollywood actor so we know he has plenty of bravado and showmanship as he enters the ring.

But he is up against Joey from Flushing, a “big dumb kid” who was there to be beaten up. However, Joey hits Lou low, leading to our protagonist fumbling on the ropes and in the eighth it’s all over as “His eyes were cast up to the rafters/And then they slowly sealed/In the silence.”

 Simon & Garfunkel - The Boxer (1969)

This single which was included on their fifth and final album Bridge Over Troubled Water, is a folk-rock ballad that tells the story of a struggling man fighting against the odds.

“In the clearing stands a boxer and a fighter by his trade, and he carries the reminders of every glove that laid him down or cut him till he cried out in his anger and his shame, 'I am leaving, I am leaving,' but the fighter still remains."

As we have learned though in today’s lesson, the song is a far deeper meaning and lyrics were partially inspired by the Bible and reference poverty and loneliness.

The Pogues - Peace and Love (1989)

The Pogues didn’t actually record any songs about boxing on the album but it is famous for the cover. The pugilist is Hugh Cameron a Scotsman who won a bronze medal in flyweight at the 1938 Empire Games.  While he had a promising start to his professional career, going 10-1-1, Cameron suffered a string of defeats to top quality fighters and retired having lost more than he had won.

An interesting aspect of the cover is that the designer did some photoshopping to add an extra finger to Cameron’s right hand, in order to inscribe the words peace on that hand, and love on the other. Cameron had neither tattoo. I imagine his family was none too plussed at the creativity.

Top 10: Songs about sex workers

Who doesn’t love a bit of filth with their harmonies? How can anyone resist the temptations of sexual suggestion and lurid details of carnal activities? Well, Craig Stephen loves a bit of how’s your father, especially if it involves a strumpet or a gigolo. He’s back with another top 10, specifically looking at songs about sex workers. And just to prove he’s still alive, the site’s lazy-arse editor can’t resist adding an 11th in the form of a genuine red light Kiwi ska-punk classic:

Tubeway Army - Are ‘Friends’ Electric? (1979)

Number one in the UK for weeks, and yet few people would have sussed out what it was actually about, so here’s Gary Numan, the Tory-loving pilot, telling all to a journalist … “the lyrics came from short stories I'd written about what London would be like in 30 years. These machines - "friends" - come to the door. They supply services of various kinds, but your neighbours never know what they really are since they look human. The one in the song is a prostitute, hence the inverted commas. It was released in May 1979 and sold a million copies. I had a No 1 single with a song about a robot prostitute and no one knew.”

Cole Porter - Love For Sale (1930)

In the very conservative context of 1930s America, a white singer singing about her life as a prostitute was too much for many. After all, 1930 was the year Hollywood introduced the Hays Code which forbade the use of profanity and obscenity. ‘Love For Sale’ was labelled as "in bad taste" by one newspaper and radio stations kept a wide berth. So, to try to defuse the moral outrage, singer Kathryn Crawford was replaced by Elizabeth Welch, an African-American singer. It was later covered by Shirley Bassey, Boney M, Elvis Costello, and Lady Gaga & Tony Bennett for a duet.

Blondie - Call Me (1980)

The theme song from the film American Gigolo starring Richard Gere is presented from the point of view of a male escort, despite being sung by Debbie Harry. The Blondie star suggestively purrs for the listener to call her anytime and issues an invitation to call "day or night" because "I'll never get enough". ‘Call Me’ was composed by Italian disco producer Giorgio Moroder and contained more than a tinge of electronica. Given Blondie’s huge popularity at the time as they successfully bridged punk, new wave and pop, it was inevitably a worldwide hit and was named in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

 Ramones - 53rd & 3rd (1977)

A gay hustler stands alone on a street corner in New York unsuccessfully trying to earn some cash by turning tricks. When a macho man Vietnam Green Beret challenges him, the hustler slips out his weapon and does the dirty deed. “Then I took out my razor blade/Then I did what God forbade/Now the cops are after me/But I proved that I'm no sissy.” The song references what was once a popular hangout for male prostitution, and where Dee Dee Ramone tried to do business before joining the band. It appears on their much-hailed debut album Ramones.

Queen - Killer Queen (1974)

Queen’s first worldwide hit was about a woman who we learn in the first verse likes the luxuries of life: “She keeps Moët et Chandon/In her pretty cabinet/ ‘Let them eat cake’, she says/Just like Marie Antoinette.” Listening further, you can deduce that the lady in question serves pleasure to the men in high places. “Drop of a hat, she's as willing as/Playful as a pussycat.” 

Sharon O’Neill - Maxine (1983)

It probably said something of New Zealand of the time that there were two versions of the video: one for Kiwi eyes, one for Australians. The New Zealand video is tame and lame, focusing on O’Neill with her Bonnie Tyler-style hair singing along to the song. The one for the Aussie audiences is far more gritty, beginning with ‘Maxine’ out on the streets looking for business. We then see O’Neill pleading with her friend to give it all up, but it’s all in vain. Yes, MOR pop can sometimes tell a good story.

Morrissey - Piccadilly Palare (1990)

He’d later turn to boxing and other working class pursuits but in 1990 Morrissey was singing about male prostitution. “On the rack I was/Easy meat, and a reasonably good buy.” The title is a play on the slang term polari which was first used by male prostitutes in the 19th century and then taken up in the 1960s to disguise activities which were illegal in the UK until 1967. Apparently, Morrissey didn’t particularly like the song and reviewers weren’t entirely sure either. It was the fifth of five singles that were released outside of a studio album, and with ‘November Spawned a Monster’, also issued in 1990, it seemed that a studio album then would’ve been a cruel trick played on his fans.

 The Clash - Janie Jones (1977)

Despite the title, this track from The Clash’s incendiary eponymous debut album is more about an office worker who, having had a gutsful of his tedious job, jumps in his car and heads off to a brothel. Which is where Ms Jones comes in. Janie Jones was a one-time singer, who in the 60s had a minor hit with 'Witches Brew', became infamous for hosting sex parties at her home during the 1970s, and was jailed for ‘controlling prostitutes’.

Goodbye Mr MacKenzie - The Rattler (1989)

I don’t regret giving away records that I felt I didn’t need any more except for one - Good Deeds And Dirty Rags, the debut album by this Edinburgh band. Admittedly it was a mixed bag but it is still worth having for the likes of ‘The Rattler’ and ‘Goodwill City’. The former was released as a single in 1986. It didn’t go anywhere and was reissued three years later. However, it was rarely played on radio then due to it being about a male prostitute and description of what is euphemistically dubbed a sex act.

The Police - Roxanne (1978)

Sting was inspired to write this after seeing working girls operate outside of his hotel room in Paris while on tour. It revolves around a man who falls in love with the eponymous street worker. The narrator attempts to persuade her to give up her work, hence the lyrics: “Roxanne, you don't have to put on the red light/Those days are over/You don't have to sell your body to the night.”

Editor’s Choice: Instigators - Hope She’s Alright (1982)

Not to be confused with the 1980s English anarcho-punk band of the same name, these Instigators won Auckland’s ‘battle of the bands’ title in 1981 before hitting the road and going on to enthrall local pub audiences for the best part of the next two years. Along the way, amongst other great tunes, they released a fine ska cover of ‘The Israelites’, followed by this brilliant slice of urgent punk rock. Released on Ripper Records, ‘Hope She’s Alright’ tells the story of a missing prostitute … check it out here:

10 Great Comebacks

Some artists go under the radar for years after being dumped by a fickle record label or are victims of current trends. Some of the artists listed below also had their own personal battles to deal with, but came out at the other end with these killer comeback albums. Craig Stephen presents ten of the finest comebacks …

Tina Turner - Private Dancer (1984)

How low did she go?

After the breakdown of Ike and Tina - both the act and the marriage - Turner became something of a nostalgia act, playing in small venues and Vegas-style cabaret shows to pay off her debts. She’d released two solo albums under her own name since leaving Ike and that last one was in 1979. Love Explosion was a disco-tinged funk album which was not even released in the United States. There followed five years of dead air.

What happened next?

Turner was in her 40s but in an era of Madonna copyists and other young female artists, a major record label took a chance on her. The end result was Private Dancer. It was a team effort with eight producers including Martyn Ware of Heaven 17 credited, and Mark Knopfler and Jeff Beck also on board. There are several covers but Turner’s vocal talents stand out and several singles from it became mega worldwide hits. Commercial radio continues to pound their listeners with ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It’ to this day.

Morrissey - You Are The Quarry (2004)

How bad was his shit?

Dropped by his record label following 1997′s dismal Maladjusted, Morrissey retreated to the Hollywood Hills, where he would become a bit of a recluse. His devoted fans sat twiddling their thumbs but no one else seemed to be bothered if Morrissey released another record.

What happened?

In 2002 Morrissey went on a world tour parading new songs and a year later signed with Sanctuary. A single, ‘Irish Blood, English Heart’, heralded a beefier sound and the album was along the same lines. Sales of You Are The Quarry on both sides of the Atlantic were excellent and critics generally gave it a thumbs up. The missing years had been dispensed with; Morrissey was a rock star again.

Johnny Cash - American Recordings (1993)

Where are we at?

Like many stars of the 60s and 70s, such as Dylan, Johnny Cash was rejected and neglected in the 1980s. Columbia dropped him and his next label, Mercury, didn’t care much. Health problems, drug issues … yep those too.

Yeah … so?

Cash was offered a deal by producer and American Recordings head Rick Rubin. His label specialised in rap and metal so this was a bizarre sideways move. The recordings were just Cash and a guitar but the critics loved it. The NME said it was "uplifting and life affirming because the message is taught through adversity, ill luck and fighting for survival". In the end of year best album reviews, American Recordings was up there with the best pop, rock, rap and metal albums around, including being rated No.4 in the British monthly Mojo’s annual round-up.

 Elvis Presley - The Comeback Special (1968)

Down the toilet?

By mid-1968, Presley was at a personal and professional low point. He had gained weight, his musical career had been taken over by a series of mediocre movies, and pop music had changed with all the ‘super’ bands like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Doors. He had been left behind.

What did he do next?

Collaborating with NBC Television, and sidelining his conservative and controlling manager, Colonel Tom Parker, The King appeared on his own show, Singer Presents …. Elvis, but more commonly known as The ’68 Comeback Special. It was a one-hour concert that aired in early December. This was the old Elvis, the leather-jacket wearing rocker and he played hits and new songs. The watching public loved it and the following year Presley released singles such as ‘In The Ghetto’ and ‘Suspicious Minds’ and he was back as pop star rather than a bad actor. 

David Bowie - Black Tie/White Noise (1993)

The lowdown:

Bowie’s solo career had slipped with the disappointing Never Let Me Down in 1987. His next move was surprising: a four-piece called Tin Machine was his attempt at being part of a band again. The self-titled debut was reasonably well received but Tin Machine II is generally considered a poor cousin and received some rather abrasive reviews. The band split due to personal issues.

The comeback:

Bowie’s first solo album in six years was presaged by the brilliant single ‘Jump They Say’ about the tragic life of his brother Terry. Bowie was in Los Angeles at the time of the 1992 riots and Black Tie/White Noise is about that and a plea for racial unity. It isn’t one of his best post-80s albums but it kick started a more productive period.

The House of Love - Days Run Away (2005)

Where were they at?

When guitarist Terry Bickers famously spat the dummy mid-tour in 1989, the band was left without its talisman. By 1993 the band had run itself into the ground and Audience With The Mind, was by far the poorest of the four albums they recorded to that point. They split soon after and didn’t lay a glove on the world for more than a decade.

What happened next?

The troubles of the past seemingly resolved and with Bickers back in the gang, the House of Love got its groove back with the result being this excellent collection. The Guardian was happy with the result. “Their sound is back to its subtle best, all Velvet Underground rhythms and guitars swooping over gentle melodies.”

Dexy’s - One Day I’m Going to Soar (2012)

Dexy’s Midnight Runners’ main man Kevin Rowland was suffering from financial problems, drug addiction and depression following the dismal reception to his first solo album The Wanderer in 1988. Over the next few years he was in and out of rehab and signing on the dole.

What happened next?

There was a band reformation in 2003 but little activity until 2012 and the release of One Day I’m Going to Soar. They were now called simply Dexys and featured old hands like Pete Williams, Mick Talbot, Big Jim Paterson and a new, female vocalist, Madeleine Hyland. Mojo wrote of the album: “Intense, painfully frank, hysterically funny, and in the end, exultant... ODIGTS isn't always an easy listen, but it does offer a fearless experience that invests pop with more theatricality than the form can usually tolerate.”

 Wanda Jackson - The Party Ain’t Over (2011)

Jackson was the Queen of Rockabilly, a massive star in the 1950s and early 60s. But once rock’n’roll became passe so did all those great stars, and Jackson then recorded country, blues and gospel albums. She had never retired and her most recent prior record was in 2006. But as numerous as they were, those albums couldn’t release her from the tag of the former Queen of Rockabilly.

What happened next?

White Stripes’ Jack White offered to produce … and who says no to him? White looked to reconnect the 73-year-old Jackson with her teenage style, resulting in frantic horns and White's fuzzed-out guitar. The result was the surprise return of rockabilly in the 2000s with an album that stood on its own.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono - Double Fantasy (1980)

Please explain:

In early 1975 Lennon released an almost forgotten collection of 1950s and 60s standards, and followed it later that year with a compilation, Shaved Fish, which sold moderately. Lennon spent the next few years as a house-husband.

What happened next?

In 1980, Lennon was inspired by the 2-Tone and new wave scenes that spawned the likes of Madness, The Pretenders and the B-52s. The album he and Yoko Ono made, Double Fantasy, was the ideal comeback, a fresh start for a couple ready to greet the world again. Alas, it turned out to a sad farewell as three weeks after its emphatic release, Lennon was killed by a lone gunman.

AC/DC - Back In Black (1980)

Which ditch were the band in?

Scots-born singer Bon Scott died of acute alcohol poisoning in early 1980. The end seemed nigh for the band with the remaining members considering closing this chapter. Instead, they roped in Brian Johnson, ex of British rock band Geordie. 

And then?

Back In Black was recorded over seven weeks in the Bahamas and released in July 1980. It had the signature guitars and hard rock of AC/DC. The album's all-black cover was designed as a "sign of mourning" for Scott. It sold 50 million copies worldwide and is regarded as one of the best heavy metal albums of all time.