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Random Thought Re: School Fight Songs

J

JBinPeoria

New member
Hello Folks,

I am sitting here watching the Georgia-Hawaii game. It is halftime and the Hawaii band just came on the field and played their fight song. It sounds a lot like the Bradley fight song. Is it the same song except they say Hawaii where we say Bradley? I'd much rather be watching Bradley basketball, but I need something to entertain me during the off days.

Which leads me to this random question...how do schools come up with their fight songs anyways? I just assumed that some famous music alumnus from each college probably wrote their school's fight song and it stuck for years and years. Do schools just write the lyrics based on some old famous marching band song? How does this whole process work?

Don't mind me...just my random thoughts as I wait for our team to take the court again...
 
I haven't found a reference yet to who authored the Bradley Fight song, but here is something interesting--

The Bradley website lists these lyrics--
http://www.bubraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&KEY=&ATCLID=188171

Charge On!​
​
???Charge on, Charge on Bradley,​
March right down the field,​
Foes may press you,​
Foes may even stress you,​
But we??™ll never yield.​
​
Fight for Alma Mater,​
Plunge right thru to victory.​
Fight on , Fight on Bradley,​
And fight for varsity!???​

Here is the Band version--
http://www.bubraves.com/downloads1/4506.wma?ATCLID=188171&SPSID=19446&SPID=1510&DB_OEM_ID=3400

But there are more lyrics than this.
In another source, I found these lyrics--

"Bradley Loyalty Song" ("Charge on Bradley")

Here's our pledge to Bradley,
Loyal hearts and hands,
Loudly sing your praises,
In a mighty band,
Ever forward Bradley,
We'll praise you to the sky,
Ever keep your banners flying while you hear our cry!
Charge on, Charge on, Bradley,
March right down the field,
Foes may press you,
Foes may even stress you,
But we'll never yield,
Fight for Alma Mater,
Plunge right thru to victory,
Fight on, Fight on, Bradley, And fight for varsity!
 
This is an interesting question JB. . .there a few substantial musical differences between the two, but you are right in that the first part is fundamentally the same tune, while the second phrase is different.

The history of fight songs is almost as quirky as the beginnings of sports and schools such as Bradley.

Typically fight songs and cheers emerged at football games and were typically adopted, borrowed, or gifted.

The songs and tunes were often out of established songbooks compiled by the academic institutions, glee clubs, fraternities, and/or other organizations.

Many of the early marching band leaders were established composers/band leaders such as John Philip Sousa that wrote a wealth of music for institutions based on common cheers and chants.

I'll have to verify this, but I believe the tune is roughly "Don't Send My Boy to Harvard" which was a common glee club song and rally that originated at Cornell and was often ad libbed to get in swipes at respective rival schools. A version I am familiar with common at the University of Illinois:


"Don't send my boy to Harvard, a dying mother said
Don't send my boy to Michigan, I'd rather he were dead
But send my boy to Illinois, 'tis better than Cornell
and rather than Chicago, I would see my boy in hell."

My guess is either Bradley and Hawai'i borrowed the tune from that song as the basis for a new fight song, made a few musical adjustments so as not to steal, put some loyalty lyrics on it and voila.

It is possible I suppose that one school gifted it to another, or a student or teacher transported it from one institution to another. Sounds like a good question for special collections at the library.
 
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