Gerry Wolstenholme's Blog - Posts Tagged "tangerines"
What is the connection between bananas and tangerines?
When I was a youngster watching Blackpool from the Spion Kop in the mid to late 1950s, the song ‘Yes, We have no bananas’ was always played over the Tannoy system as the team ran out. This was often not the first rendering of the song that spectators had heard on match days because the marching band, who were ubiquitous in those days at games, had paraded around the pitch pre-game and the tune formed part of their repertoire. Of course, we all sang along heartily and no-one ever thought to question why the song was being sung, it was simply an accepted part of the pre-game entertainment at Bloomfield Road. But why was it so closely associated with Blackpool Football Club? The definitive answer is uncertain but it certainly goes back many years to when the club first began to wear their famous tangerine strip.
The song was inspired by a Long Island fruit seller, who apparently started every sentence he uttered with the word 'Yes', and it was written by Frank Silver, music, and Irving Cohen, lyrics, and was published on 19 July 1923. It immediately became a huge hit and, recorded first by Billy Jones, it was top of the American music charts for five weeks. It was quickly recorded by others such as Billy Murray, Arthur Hall and Irving Kaufman and was used for the Music Box Revue of 1923 that opened in New York on 22 September 1923. It was so famous at the time that Eddie Cantor recorded a comic parody 'I've Got the Yes, We Have No Bananas Blues' that reached number two in the American charts, also in 1923. [Subsequently it has been recorded and performed by a variety of people, including such as Al Jolson (who did a comedy version), Spike Jones and His City Slickers, The Great White Way Orchestra, who took it to number three in the American charts in the year of its issue), Ben Selvin, who also made it a number one hit, husband and wife duop Louis Prima and Keely Smith, Audrey Hepburn, in the film Sabrina, and even Homer Simpson.]
The song immediately caught on in England and was published in the UK by the famous impresario Lawrence Wright of Blackpool. And its publication happened to coincide with the football season of 1923/24, the very season that Blackpool changed to their now famous tangerine strip. So the song and the newly introduced tangerine strip came together nicely at that time.
How it became a feature of the Bloomfield Road scene is uncertain but, being a very popular tune of the day, it was played by the band that marched around the ground before every home game and it quickly became a favourite of the fans. It is just possible that its universal acceptance by the football club and its fans came from the idea 'Yes, we have no bananas but we do have tangerines'. And a view of the sheet music that accompanied the song on its issue (see illustration) could suggest that idea, for the fruit seller obviously has no bananas on his stall but he does have plenty of orange and tangerine coloured fruit! And, interestingly, I have a photograph of Blackpool players of that season at training and they are looking at what appears to be a song sheet; it would be nice to think that it is 'Yes, we have no bananas'!
Anyway, following its introduction Blackpool began to win their home games so fans considered the song to be something of a lucky mascot for the team. But not everybody was impressed. 'When is the absurd ‘bananas’ stunt to cease at Bloomfield Road?' This was the question asked in February 1924 by one critic who added, 'It has long become a hoary chestnut.' However, the fans loved it, so it continued to be part of the pre-match entertainment.
Then, after a 6-1 thrashing of Port Vale on 22 March 1924, the local Gazette & Herald reporter put the victory down to two things. Firstly he cited Frank Buckley’s management style and secondly he stated, “‘Bananas!’ Blackpool’s famous mascot tune was never played so brightly and so convincingly. There was assurance in every note.” And the following week an unusual occurrence took place. The song was played before the away game at Leeds United.
One Blackpool supporter immediately commented, 'Leeds will never beat us today' and sure enough the game ended in a 0-0 draw. It was most unusual for the tune to be played at an away fixture for it was normally the local bandsmen that piped up the tune. But on this occasion Bill Norman the former Blackpool manager, and then manager of Leeds, specifically asked the bandmaster for the tune to be played as a gesture to his former club.
Consequently the song continued to be associated with the team but then mysteriously, and with the advent of a change of strip to light and dark blue stripes in the 1933/34 season, it was dropped. The fans were not too happy at the song's disappearance but presumably they appreciated that the connection between it and the club's strip had disappeared. And with promotion to the top flight of English football being won in the 1936/37 season they were prepared to accept it not being present.
However, the clamour to return to their favoured strip grew and when Blackpool returned to their tangerine strip for the 1938/39 season the song was revived as the club’s signature tune and it continued to be played at Bloomfield Road right up to the early 1960s when singing on the terraces took on a more raucous atmosphere!
So perhaps there is something in the comment “Yes, We have no bananas but we do have tangerines”! Or is it just coincidence that the song returned concomitant with the return of the tangerine strip?
The song was inspired by a Long Island fruit seller, who apparently started every sentence he uttered with the word 'Yes', and it was written by Frank Silver, music, and Irving Cohen, lyrics, and was published on 19 July 1923. It immediately became a huge hit and, recorded first by Billy Jones, it was top of the American music charts for five weeks. It was quickly recorded by others such as Billy Murray, Arthur Hall and Irving Kaufman and was used for the Music Box Revue of 1923 that opened in New York on 22 September 1923. It was so famous at the time that Eddie Cantor recorded a comic parody 'I've Got the Yes, We Have No Bananas Blues' that reached number two in the American charts, also in 1923. [Subsequently it has been recorded and performed by a variety of people, including such as Al Jolson (who did a comedy version), Spike Jones and His City Slickers, The Great White Way Orchestra, who took it to number three in the American charts in the year of its issue), Ben Selvin, who also made it a number one hit, husband and wife duop Louis Prima and Keely Smith, Audrey Hepburn, in the film Sabrina, and even Homer Simpson.]
The song immediately caught on in England and was published in the UK by the famous impresario Lawrence Wright of Blackpool. And its publication happened to coincide with the football season of 1923/24, the very season that Blackpool changed to their now famous tangerine strip. So the song and the newly introduced tangerine strip came together nicely at that time.
How it became a feature of the Bloomfield Road scene is uncertain but, being a very popular tune of the day, it was played by the band that marched around the ground before every home game and it quickly became a favourite of the fans. It is just possible that its universal acceptance by the football club and its fans came from the idea 'Yes, we have no bananas but we do have tangerines'. And a view of the sheet music that accompanied the song on its issue (see illustration) could suggest that idea, for the fruit seller obviously has no bananas on his stall but he does have plenty of orange and tangerine coloured fruit! And, interestingly, I have a photograph of Blackpool players of that season at training and they are looking at what appears to be a song sheet; it would be nice to think that it is 'Yes, we have no bananas'!
Anyway, following its introduction Blackpool began to win their home games so fans considered the song to be something of a lucky mascot for the team. But not everybody was impressed. 'When is the absurd ‘bananas’ stunt to cease at Bloomfield Road?' This was the question asked in February 1924 by one critic who added, 'It has long become a hoary chestnut.' However, the fans loved it, so it continued to be part of the pre-match entertainment.
Then, after a 6-1 thrashing of Port Vale on 22 March 1924, the local Gazette & Herald reporter put the victory down to two things. Firstly he cited Frank Buckley’s management style and secondly he stated, “‘Bananas!’ Blackpool’s famous mascot tune was never played so brightly and so convincingly. There was assurance in every note.” And the following week an unusual occurrence took place. The song was played before the away game at Leeds United.
One Blackpool supporter immediately commented, 'Leeds will never beat us today' and sure enough the game ended in a 0-0 draw. It was most unusual for the tune to be played at an away fixture for it was normally the local bandsmen that piped up the tune. But on this occasion Bill Norman the former Blackpool manager, and then manager of Leeds, specifically asked the bandmaster for the tune to be played as a gesture to his former club.
Consequently the song continued to be associated with the team but then mysteriously, and with the advent of a change of strip to light and dark blue stripes in the 1933/34 season, it was dropped. The fans were not too happy at the song's disappearance but presumably they appreciated that the connection between it and the club's strip had disappeared. And with promotion to the top flight of English football being won in the 1936/37 season they were prepared to accept it not being present.
However, the clamour to return to their favoured strip grew and when Blackpool returned to their tangerine strip for the 1938/39 season the song was revived as the club’s signature tune and it continued to be played at Bloomfield Road right up to the early 1960s when singing on the terraces took on a more raucous atmosphere!
So perhaps there is something in the comment “Yes, We have no bananas but we do have tangerines”! Or is it just coincidence that the song returned concomitant with the return of the tangerine strip?
