Could 2016 be the year that sees the unofficial football anthem make a triumphant comeback? Crystal Palace got the ball rolling before the FA Cup and now, on the eve of Euro 2016, Happy Monday's frontman Shaun Ryder has released a new song for England fans.
Ryder and his former Black Grape bandmate Kermit have teamed up with producers Paul Oakenfold and Goldie under the name Four Lions to record a new song entitled We Are England.
The tune was released on SoundCloud on Tuesday, although it will not officially be released until Friday – the opening day of the tournament.
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The song is not a complex affair. It hinges on the refrain "We're England til we die, til we die, til we die". But in spite of its simplicity it has received largely positive reviews.
"Fans of Black Grape will find the loping piano line and Ryder's laconic drawl extremely familiar," says the BBC. "But we do wonder whether they might have spent a bit longer on the lyrics."
Others say it sounds rather dated. According to UniLad it is "pretty catchy, but it is also so 90s that you’ll be immediately reaching for a bucket hat".
The refrain is the strong point says Metro, which offers rather faint praise by stating that the song has a "nice catchy chorus that you can easily chant over and over again down the pub or at your mate’s house".
It isn't the first football song Ryder has penned. In 1996 Black Grape released England's Irie, seen by many as the left-field alternative to the rather more populist Three Lions by Baddiel and Skinner.
And the singer, who has professed not to care much for football, was in typically enigmatic form when discussing the song.
"Hopefully our song will send out a positive vibe to the England fans and put a smile on their faces," he said. "We made this record for the real heroes of our country, the working men and women of England.
"We have the youngest team in the Euros which is a good thing,” said Ryder in a press release. "When you're young you deal with things in a different way. They have to score goals and that's what they've done since they were 8 years old, so it's just another game for them."
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