Released February 2, 2001 Recorded 2000 Length 2:53 | ||
B-side "Diamonds & Pollen", "Five to One" | ||
"The Fight Song" is a song by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in 2001. It is the second single from their fourth full-length studio album, Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death).
Contents
It was released in two standalone physical formats. The first, titled "The Fight Song Pt.1", was released on January 29, 2001 in the US and on February 19, 2001 in the UK. "The Fight Song Pt.1" was also released as a 12" picture disc vinyl LP on February 19, 2001 in the UK. Both feature a remixed by Joey Jordison of the nu metal band Slipknot. The second, titled "The Fight Song Pt.2", was released on February 2, 2001 in the US and on March 6, 2001 in the UK.
The title is a pun on high school and college football team anthems known as fight songs as the song is partly a post-Columbine statement disparaging mainstream America's own glorification of violence among its youth; football is simultaneously one of the most violent sports and one of America's greatest obsessions.
Music video
The music video for this song, directed by W.I.Z. at an abandoned Los Angeles football field, depicts the band members performing the song at a violent game of high school football between two fictional teams, "Holy Wood" (composed of jocks in white football attire) and "Death Valley" (composed of goths and social outcasts in black football attire). The video also features a few subliminal messages; at approximately 2:12, the video briefly replaces the scuffling football players with people fighting with police riot squads. Before the end of the video it begins to rain.
Controversy
The music video generated minor controversy for its violent depiction of a football game between jocks and goths, which some sources have interpreted to be directly "echoing" Columbine. Manson, for his part, has vehemently denied this, stating, "I'm trying to show that sports as well as music can be seen as violent, so I chose a traditional black vs white, good vs evil theme for the video." He further dismissed the claims to MTV News at the American Music Awards on January 8, 2001, stating, "People will put into it what they want if it helps them sell newspapers or helps them write a headline. They're gonna want to turn it into something it isn't. Flak is my job." More controversy was caused through the lyrics to the chorus: I'm not a slave to a god that doesn't exist/I'm not a slave to a world that doesn't give a shit.
Track listing
UK CD 1
- "The Fight Song"
- "The Fight Song" (Slipknot Remix)
- "Disposable Teens" (CD-Rom Video)
UK CD 2
- "The Fight Song"
- "Disposable Teens" (Remix)
- "The Love Song" (Remix) (Bon Harris & M.W.Gacy)
Japan Special Edition - Rare Tracks CD
- "The Fight Song" (Live)
- "The Love Song" (Remix)
- "Disposable Teens" (Remix)
- "The Fight Song" (Slipknot Remix)
- "Diamonds & Pollen"
- "Working Class Hero" (John Lennon cover)
- "Five to One" (The Doors cover)
- "Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes"(from The Last Tour on Earth/Guns, God and Government)
Accolades
In 2002, Kerrang! ranked "The Fight Song" 77th in their 100 Greatest Singles of All Time.