Swing low, sweet chariot (rugby)

[Brin]

So can we have De Camptown Races in G flat minor?

Like this Grist? Brilliant film and it didn't hurt Cleavon Little receiving a big fat pay cheque for making it!

[Brin]

Watch this classic film while you can....it will surely be bannedsoon.

[Brin]

Made in 1974, there were no racists complaints made and this became a classic comedy film. No racists over tones at the time but just wait and see what happens.

[Brin]

If you're up for this take the time to watch it, great viewing.

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

If you're up for this take the time to watch it, great viewing.

Some classic clips there Brin.

Interesting to see that there weren’t many (any) white faces in the the Count Basie Orchestra

[CTMilller]

Yes I first came across it in the early 70s

(1970s that is before you start)

We were singing this (with actions) in the late 60s when I was playing school rugby. In terms of the rudeness factor, It was probably one of the milder post match songs. (Compared, say, to ‘Eskimo Nel’, ‘The Good Ship Venus’ and ‘The Engineer’s Song’.) It’s a shame that, because it gets appropriated as a Twickenham ‘anthem’ it comes in for special scrutiny. Until that happened, nobody would have given it a second thought in terms of it’s questionable origins...

For me one of life’s interesting ironies is that a group of us Brits used to belt out these songs in the downstairs bar of the Village Bell, a haunt of the liberal students of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor in the mid-seventies and they absolutely loved them. Times change.