A radio-ballad about boxers by Ewan MacColl, Charles Parker & Peggy Seeger
Part documentary, part allegory, The Fight Game takes the listener into the gladiatorial arena of professional boxing.
“In The Big Hewer, about coal mining and The Fight Game, about boxing, the radio-ballads find men titanic enough to live up to their pretensions. Listening to these two, you can really believe that there were giants in those days.” The Independent
1 ‘Twas in Tierra del Fuego in South Amerikay…
2 There’s a game some call The Fight Game …
3 Boxing, to me, is the greatest character-builder in the world …
4 Come all you gallant fighting men …
5 Come on Johnny, and put ’em up Johnny…
6 When you’re a fighter, you’re different…
7 Then come on, strip off young Johnny Boy…
8 I like all my boxers to he perfect skippers…
9 When you’re training…
10 There’s such a helluva lot of work to he done…
11 The programme is set up…
12 Who would have a boxer for a husband…
13 You get to the hall…
14 On my right, the champion, Johnny Boy…
15 What’ll we do with the man in the ring…
16 Johnny, Johnny, you failed us…
17 I don’t think you can call boxing a sport…
Script, song lyrics and music: Ewan MacColl with Peggy Seeger
Orchestration and musical direction: Peggy Seeger
Actuality recording: Ewan MacColl and Charles Parker
Production: Charles Parker
Singers:
Bob Davenport, Gordon McCulloch, Ewan MacColl, John Reavey, Peggy Seeger
Instrumentalists:
Jim Bray double bass Brian Daly acoustic and electric guitars – Alf Edwards English concertina, trombone – Ronnie Hughes trumpet – Alfie Kahn harmonica, clarinet, piccolo, flute – Johnny Lambe trumpet – Colin Ross Northumbrian pipes, fiddle – Peggy Seeger guitar, 5-string banjo, Appalachian dulcimer Dave Swarbrick fiddle
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