Bear down, Chicago Bears !

[RebLem]

Go, Bears!

On January 23, 1986, the last time the Bears were in the Super Bowl, The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, led by Sir Georg Solti and revered Chorus Mistress Margaret Hillis made an historic, stirring, spine tinglingly reverential recording of the Chicago Bears fight song, Bear Down, Chicago Bears !. It was included in one of the annual 2 disc CSO retrospectives, "From the Archives," Vol 13, in 1998.

Now, the CSO has thoughtfully allowed everyone to download this wonderful work, to help fans, and the culturally deprived of other places to get into the spirit of things, at http://www.cso.org/main.taf?p=11,27

Here are the words to this inspiring epic:

Lyrics

Bear down, Chicago Bears,
Make every play clear the way to victory!
Bear down, Chicago Bears,
Put up a fight with a might so fearlessly.
We’ll never forget the way you thrilled the nation
With your “T” formation.
Bear down, Chicago Bears,
And let ’em know why you’re wearing the crown.
You’re the pride and joy of Illinois,
Chicago Bears, bear down!

I must say, I still feel right at home here in Albuquerque. All Burqueans and New Mexicans are Bears fans because Brian Urlacher was born and reared in Lovington, NM and went to UNM. In Saturday's Albuquerque Journal, the headline stories on the front page and the sports page, as well as a separate special Super Bowl supplement are all about Brian Urlacher and the Bears.

So, enjoy !

[jbuck919]

Bear down, Chicago Bears,
Make every play clear the way to victory!
Bear down, Chicago Bears,
Put up a fight with a might so fearlessly.
We’ll never forget the way you thrilled the nation
With your “T” formation.
Bear down, Chicago Bears,
And let ’em know why you’re wearing the crown.
You’re the pride and joy of Illinois,
Chicago Bears, bear down!

This might qualify for the extended double entendre of all time.

David Zinmann was also quick to associate the Baltimore Symphony with first the Colts and then the Ravens, though I doubt that he had anything more than his (admirably) promotional agenda in mind, as opposed to genuine fandom.

You will forgive me for thinking of today as "Black Sunday." I know I am not the only person here who thinks of American football as at best a negative value.

[Haydnseek]

Good luck to the Bears! Although most pundits have picked the Colts to win, Allen St. John who writes the "By the Numbers" column for the Wall Street Journal, which analyzes sports mathematically, picked the Bears. In the past 22 years, 18 Super Bowls “were won by the team that came into the game after allowing fewer regular-season points.” Also figuring the ratio of points scored to points allowed (his measurement is whimsically named "Pythagorean Wins") favors the Bears.

For me though, the big game today is in the other football (I’m tempted to write “real” football) when number one Werder Bremen meets number two Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga. The match can be seen live in the USA on the GolTV channel.

[Barry]

I have no strong rooting interest. I'd be happy for both Manning (whose commercials I love) and Dungie if they win, but I have nothing against the Bears.

What I want most of all is a close game.

[RebLem]

Let me put it this way. I just went to ArkivMusic and checked on their listings.

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Nam ... 4&x=14&y=8

It looks like this:

Chicago Symphony 426
Indianapolis Symphony 10

No comparison.

[Febnyc]

You will forgive me for thinking of today as "Black Sunday." I know I am not the only person here who thinks of American football as at best a negative value.

Now, what is the "negative value" of American football? Pray, enlighten me if you would.

Mind you, I think the Super Bowl game is nothing more than that - another football game which, because of the unending media hype, cannot live up to its advance billing and never fails to bore me silly. I'll probably watch more of the five-hour PBS documentary on the American Musical Theater. Or are there more negative values lurking within the Broadway stage?

[jbuck919]

You will forgive me for thinking of today as "Black Sunday." I know I am not the only person here who thinks of American football as at best a negative value.

Now, what is the "negative value" of American football? Pray, enlighten me if you would.

Before the end of the Cold War I used to joke, except it wasn't really a joke, that if the commies took over the only thing that would be left was organized sports. No, to be more specific, team sports oriented toward getting a ball in a goal. I stand by that assessment of where these activities belong on the wheel of history. They have never meant anything to me except an imbecilic waste of time, and I can still feel my resentment at being forced to participate in them as part of so-called "physical education."

[Febnyc]

You will forgive me for thinking of today as "Black Sunday." I know I am not the only person here who thinks of American football as at best a negative value.

Now, what is the "negative value" of American football? Pray, enlighten me if you would.

Before the end of the Cold War I used to joke, except it wasn't really a joke, that if the commies took over the only thing that would be left was organized sports. No, to be more specific, team sports oriented toward getting a ball in a goal. I stand by that assessment of where these activities belong on the wheel of history. They have never meant anything to me except an imbecilic waste of time, and I can still feel my resentment at being forced to participate in them as part of so-called "physical education."

Sorry I asked.

[Wallingford]

You will forgive me for thinking of today as "Black Sunday." I know I am not the only person here who thinks of American football as at best a negative value.

Ditto.