The Greasy Chip Butty Song
Encyclopedia
The Greasy Chip Butty Song is a football chant
originally sung by the supporters of Sheffield United football club to the tune of Annie's Song
, glorifying the dubious delights
of life in Sheffield
, in chief the eponymous Chip butty
but also nightlife
, beer
and tobacco products
. The song with its good-natured humour
has been adopted and adapted by fans of a number of other Association Football teams, other football
codes teams, and by other sport
s teams, both in the UK and internationally.
of the song is unknown but its origin is often claimed by Sheffield United supporters. It has been claimed it was first stolen by the Blades during Sheffield United's first match of the 1985-86 season in Division 2. This was a Blades 3-1 away win at Stoke City's Victoria Ground
on 17 August 1985.
There are claims by near neighbours Rotherham United that they actually sang this during the previous season.
by John Denver
:
' (as it is often called by the announcer on match days), the home of the club, and sporadically throughout away matches.
have their own version of The Greasy Chip Butty Song
Football chant
A football chant or terrace chant, is a song or chant sung at association football matches. They can be historic, dating back to the formation of the club, adaptations of popular songs, or spontaneous reactions to events on the pitch. They are one of the last remaining sources of an oral folk song...
originally sung by the supporters of Sheffield United football club to the tune of Annie's Song
Annie's Song
"Annie's Song" is a rock/country song recorded and written by singer-songwriter John Denver. It was his second number-one song in the United States, occupying that spot for two weeks in July 1974. "Annie's Song" also went to number one on the Easy Listening chart...
, glorifying the dubious delights
Self-deprecation
Self-deprecation, or Self-depreciation, is the act of belittling or undervaluing oneself. It can be used in humor and tension release.-In comedy:...
of life in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, in chief the eponymous Chip butty
Chip butty
A chip sandwich, chip barm, chip roll, chip butty, chip muffin, piece-n-chips or hot chip sandwich is a sandwich made with bread or bread roll and hot chips , often with some sort of sauce such as tomato sauce or brown sauce...
but also nightlife
Nightlife
Nightlife is the collective term for any entertainment that is available and more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning...
, beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
and tobacco products
Tobacco products
After tobacco has been processed, it is used to produce a number of different products.- Chewing tobacco :Chewing is one of the oldest ways of consuming tobacco leaves. Native Americans in both North and South America chewed the fresh leaves of the plant, frequently mixed with lime. Modern chewing...
. The song with its good-natured humour
Humour
Humour or humor is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement...
has been adopted and adapted by fans of a number of other Association Football teams, other football
Football
Football may refer to one of a number of team sports which all involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball with the foot to score a goal. The most popular of these sports worldwide is association football, more commonly known as just "football" or "soccer"...
codes teams, and by other sport
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
s teams, both in the UK and internationally.
Origin
The provenanceProvenance
Provenance, from the French provenir, "to come from", refers to the chronology of the ownership or location of an historical object. The term was originally mostly used for works of art, but is now used in similar senses in a wide range of fields, including science and computing...
of the song is unknown but its origin is often claimed by Sheffield United supporters. It has been claimed it was first stolen by the Blades during Sheffield United's first match of the 1985-86 season in Division 2. This was a Blades 3-1 away win at Stoke City's Victoria Ground
Victoria Ground
Victoria Ground may refer to:*Victoria Ground, the former name of Hartlepool United’s ground Victoria Park.*Victoria Ground, Stoke City’s ground from 1878 to 1997.*Victoria Ground, current home of Bromsgrove Rovers...
on 17 August 1985.
There are claims by near neighbours Rotherham United that they actually sang this during the previous season.
Words and music
The song is to the tune of Annie's SongAnnie's Song
"Annie's Song" is a rock/country song recorded and written by singer-songwriter John Denver. It was his second number-one song in the United States, occupying that spot for two weeks in July 1974. "Annie's Song" also went to number one on the Easy Listening chart...
by John Denver
John Denver
Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
:
Meaning
To a native of Yorkshire the words are probably self explanatory; the words celebrate the many pleasures that can be had in Sheffield, culminating in the target of the fan's adoration, in this instance, Sheffield United.- Magnet refers to John Smith's Magnet Bitter, a bitter brewed and widely available in Yorkshire. Some people claim that the second line is really Like a gallon of maggots. MaggotMaggotIn everyday speech the word maggot means the larva of a fly ; it is applied in particular to the larvae of Brachyceran flies, such as houseflies, cheese flies, and blowflies, rather than larvae of the Nematocera, such as mosquitoes and Crane flies...
s are obtained from fishing tackle outlets in denominations of imperial pints and hence this version would not be unreasonable, as fishing is popular in the region and hence a gallonGallonThe gallon is a measure of volume. Historically it has had many different definitions, but there are three definitions in current use: the imperial gallon which is used in the United Kingdom and semi-officially within Canada, the United States liquid gallon and the lesser used United States dry...
of maggots would mean a good day out fishing. - WoodbinesWoodbine (cigarette)Woodbine is a brand of cigarette made in England by W. D. & H. O. Wills since 1888.In the early 1970s Woodbine Cigarettes were released in Australia as "Wild Woodbine"....
refers nostalgically to a once popular brand of strong cigaretteCigaretteA cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
. - SnuffSnuffSnuff is a product made from ground or pulverised tobacco leaves. It is an example of smokeless tobacco. It originated in the Americas and was in common use in Europe by the 17th century...
is ground tobacco for sniffing up the nose. Snuff produced by Wilson's Snuff Mill is world famous, and produced only a mile away from Bramall Lane. - A Greasy chip buttyChip buttyA chip sandwich, chip barm, chip roll, chip butty, chip muffin, piece-n-chips or hot chip sandwich is a sandwich made with bread or bread roll and hot chips , often with some sort of sauce such as tomato sauce or brown sauce...
can be purchased in any of the many local fish and chip shops. Butty is a slang word for a sandwichSandwichA sandwich is a food item, typically consisting of two or more slices of :bread with one or more fillings between them, or one slice of bread with a topping or toppings, commonly called an open sandwich. Sandwiches are a widely popular type of lunch food, typically taken to work or school, or...
, and a chip butty is simply a sandwich where the filling is chips, ideally greasy and sometimes sprinkled with salt and vinegar. Generally, a white sandwich bap will be used for the bread. In Sheffield, these are simply known as Breadcakes.
Original incidence
The song itself is a plaintive rally-cry by the fans of Sheffield United. It is usually heard on commencement of the home games played at 'Beautiful Downtown Bramall LaneBramall Lane
-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...
' (as it is often called by the announcer on match days), the home of the club, and sporadically throughout away matches.
Burton Albion FC
Burton Albion are another team who use the chant, with slightly different lyrics:- Peddi refers to the local beer brewed in Burton-on-Trent, Marston's PedigreeMarston'sMarston's is the colloquial name for the brewer and pub operator Marston's plc . The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index...
. When it was first used is unknown (at least 01/02 season), however it is highly unlikely it is the original source.
Radcliffe CC
Fans of Radcliffe Cricket ClubRadcliffe C.C.
Radcliffe Cricket Club are an English cricket team currently playing in Radcliffe, Bury, Greater Manchester in the Central Lancashire League. There are also many junior teams from the ages of under 11's to the age of U16's split between 2 leagues. In the Central Lancashire League there are the...
have their own version of The Greasy Chip Butty Song
- The Racecourse ground is the home ground of Radcliffe Cricket Club.