Ranking each Premier League team's walk-on music
Whether it be the club's anthem or more of a cultural reference point, every team in the Premier League has their pre-match home game tradition of walking on to "their" specific song. From hymn's to alternative indie music of the mid-2000's, this article will seek to rank each Premier League sides' walk-on music.
20) NORWICH: Norwich City Hymn
The last on the list was always going to seem harsh but this just doesn't really get you going. Unusually, it is a club anthem used as the pre-match walk out music at Carrow Road. Strong home crowds in terms of numbers, albeit admittedly in a one-team City, have defined the Canaries’ support but it must be said it tends to be a tame and timid backing; this is reflective of that mood. Polite.
19) SOUTHAMPTON: The Saints Are Coming
Another tediously middle-class club enter the fray. The Premier League appears to be littered with Norwich and Southampton-type fan bases. Good turnouts but fairly polite and passive in terms of their support. 1970’s Scottish punk rock is at least a bit of pre-match energy.
18) TOTTENHAM: Duel of the Fates
A composition that recurs in the Star Wars series is what bellows out of the new and impressive Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It’s a bit ‘meh’ and ever so slightly cringey and childish but it does provoke some tension, sort of.
17) LEICESTER: Post Horn Gallop
It's unique and original so gets up above the previous three but still struggles to really get those juices flowing. Band of the Royal Marines; a fitting walk-on music for a club in the city of Leicester, Leicestershire. It gives the feeling of a grand occasion ahead of every home game and, to be fair, that’s pretty much been the case for the last five seasons or so at the King Power.
16) BURNLEY: Wake Up
Arcade Fire are a genuinely decent Indie rock band of Canadian origin. It was probably not an intention of theirs that Wake Up, from the debut album Funeral in 2004, would become Turf Moor’s pre-match music.
15) BRIGHTON: Sussex by the Sea
Bit of culture, albeit unusual. A song that gained popularity during the First World War due to its use by the Royal Sussex Regiment, written by a Lancastrian, and maybe very well potentially inspired by the final stanza of a Rudyard Kipling poem screams “pre-match motivation music for a shiny and modern Premier League stadium”.
14) BRENTFORD: Hey Jude
The Bees are lucky that there are some genuinely poor pre-match walk-on songs already existing in the Premier League. We're sure the remaining members of The Beatles will be bursting with pride to know their classic Hey Jude gets the pre-match walk out treatment at the Brentford Community Stadium. There is no obvious reason, even amongst fans of the West London club, as to why this greets the players.
13) ARSENAL: Lux Aeterna (theme from 'Requiem for a Dream' and several thousand other films)
It is once again a bit 'Rugby Union' in its motivational intent but it isn't horrific - which is generally the barometer for this topic. A montage of Arsenal moments and legends on the ‘big screen’ accompanies the music pre-match at the Emirates. Tony Adams and Martin Keown are seen in passionate rallying cries in order to motivate and focus the home crowd.
12) ASTON VILLA: Escape
Craig Armstrong’s 1999 release “Escape” sets the tone at Villa Park moments before kick-off. It provides a beat that intentionally increases the nerves and tension as the anticipation of the match beginning rises.
11) MAN CITY: Right Here, Right Now
Middle of the road. Decent but overused. Blue Moon remains the anthem of Manchester City and the east Manchester club have at least found some originality with that. Fatboy Slim’s Right Here, Right Now, though, could probably be heard at at least 75% of the 46 Premier League and EFL home crowds each weekend.
10) LEEDS: Marching On Together
You know exactly what you’re going to get with Leeds Utd and the strains of their famous theme song Marching on Together echoing around Elland Road as the Whites players take to the field. They have had a variety of pre-match songs in the past decade or so, but Marching on Together is always likely to remain the most popular and accepted walk-on song.
9) LIVERPOOL: You’ll Never Walk Alone
The fact that this is arguably (but pretty much inarguably) the most famous club anthem and pre-match walk out in football makes it automatically middle-of-the-road. Bored of hearing it. A song and slogan that has almost defined the soul of the club; especially in terms of the marketing, commercialisation and ability to package themselves as a worldwide product. All about the ‘soul’ of the club, though, of course.
7/8) WATFORD: Z-Cars
Surprising for a club formerly owned by one of Britain’s most famous and successful musicians and who have a stand named after said musician that Watford choose Z Cars as their pre-match ritual. Then again, they have a moose on their badge despite being nicknamed the Hornets.
7/8) EVERTON: Z-Cars
Another song that goes hand-in-hand with the club who uses it ahead of a match is Z-Cars at Goodison Park. A siren signals the start and then the drums kick in; as soon as you hear it, you will be reminded of watching Match of the Day and the commentator running through the teams after a brief shot of the players walking out the tunnel.
6) MAN UTD: This Is The One
Bit 'yer da' but it is a good song from a good band so it comes in high in the list. Man Utd DNA is very important to the soul of the club at Old Trafford… (see the Liverpool segment to see how a modern day football club’s soul is defined). Ian Brown and Liam Fray, the lead frontmen of The Stone Roses and The Courteeners respectively, have expressed their love for the Red Devils; therefore, they are used on a matchday. This Is The One by the Stone Roses, an excellent song, is not necessarily reflective or a foreshadowing of the team’s performance in recent seasons.
5) WEST HAM: I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles
This one gets a bit of stick and the thought/memory of Elijah Wood singing this alone in the United States does make the stomach churn but… it’s alright, isn’t it? There are a lot worse and as tedious, and frankly quite odd, is having a bubble machine next to the pitch to celebrate scoring a goal, it does offer some originality.
4) NEWCASTLE: Going Home (theme from 'Local Hero')
As soon as that familiar saxophone blasts through the stadium speakers, the St. James' Park faithful are whipped into a frenzy of pride and passion that allows them to briefly forget the Mike Ashley era. Evoking memories of better times, this Mark Knopfler classic somehow works perfectly as a pre-match anthem despite sounding like it should be enjoyed over a glass of Scotch at a jazz club.
3) WOLVES: Hi-Ho Silver Lining
Now, it is an unusual one for a song that does lack originality to be so commonly associated with one club but the pre-match Hi-Ho Wolverhampton ritual at Molineux has earned their place as the Hi-Ho Silver Lining club. It’s simple and it’s easy but it’s good.
2) CRYSTAL PALACE: Glad All Over
Close to top spot but the best is yet to come... Glad All Over and Crystal Palace have formed a tight bond between each other. The song reminds you of Palace and Palace remind you of the song; that's how it should be. The song is a pre-match ritual as well as having been used as goal celebration music at Selhurst Park.
1) CHELSEA: Liquidator
It is difficult to listen to this song and not end up shouting “CHELSEA” at the appropriate moment, such has been the association it has had with the Blues. Much like Glad All Over and Crystal Palace, this song and club are almost synonymous with each other. It is a partnership that has been strong since the 1970s when the club gave away copies of the song in their matchday programmes. One thing's for certain, it's certainly better than the often mocked "Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea, CHELSEEAAA, Chelsea, Chelsea...Chelseaaaaa" chant often heard mid-match.
