New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Can you recall any songs with fishing as a theme? In the world of rock and pop, they seldom appear. Yet there are many analogies between fishing, life and love itself. So, when these tracks rear their head, they make a lot of sense. Below, we have picked out three great fishing-themed songs from the charts of yesteryear.
Gone Fishin - Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong
Fishing has never been as popular as it is today. Dramatic television shows on extreme fishing, combined with a desire to get away from screens and into the great outdoors have seen the pursuit flourish. Even new formats, such as the online casino world, are getting into the theme with popular franchises such as Fishing Frenzy. These slot games use the graphics and iconography of fishing to provide games that win real cash prizes. But back in 1951 when this song hit the airwaves, fishing was a more niche pursuit.
The song had already been recorded three times before but had failed to chart. When jazz legend Louis Armstrong joined easy listening god Bing Crosby on his radio show, they recorded the track before the show aired in case the live versions did not go to plan. So well received was the track, that Decca Records then decided they would issue it as a single. It has since been recorded by The Manhattan Transfer, Pat Boone and Gene Autry.
Fisherman Blues - The Waterboys
The accolade of being defined as a cult band could have been made for The Waterboys. If you ever have any doubt about their influence, check out their first few albums and see how Brandon Flowers and The Killers came to be. A vehicle for the talent of Mike Scott, the band has evolved around him through the years as they have delved from a new wave indie outfit into a Celtic and world music behemoth.
Fisherman's Blues is from their fourth album, the first in which they took a folk route with their music. It had been influenced by new band member Steve Wickham and a move to Dublin. Inspired by a W H Auden poem named "The Night Mail" it charted at number three as a single on the Billboard Rock chart. Though the album had a polarized reception, it has since become a cult classic.
Gone Fishing - Chris Rea
Gone Fishing was the second song from Chris Rea's eleventh studio album, Auberge. The album has a strong theme of leisure pursuits within it, mainly focused on driving his Caterham Super Seven car which features on the front of the album rendered as an oil painting. While Gone Fishing was never a single, the album reached the number one spot in the UK and number one in Germany. It also gave him a number-one hit with the title track.
Many saw the album as a return to form for Rea, who kept his classic yacht rock style but blended it with new angles that looked back to his homeland. Oddly, he would turn up on the British television series Gone Fishing with Mortimer and Whitehouse in later years, discussing his love for the pursuit.
Do you have a favorite fishing-themed song? There are plenty out there, though many are well hidden. Do some research and you may just find your new favorite track.
