Well, it is Boxing Day. I imagine you might have better things to do. But just in case you're at a lose end, here are some Boxers. Who will win this Title Fight?
THE BOXERS #1
Taken from the soundtrack of a 1964 Broadway musical that explored controversial themes for the time (the immigrant experience, mixed race relationships, boxers dying in the ring). The show ran until 1968 with Sammy Davis Jr. in the lead role, by which time his marriage had ended and his voice was seriously damaged. This was the overture...
THE BOXERS #2
In 1983, the geniuses at Gypsy Records had the brainwave of getting a bunch of professional boxers to enter a recording studio. From the image below, I've been able to identify Errol Christie, Terry Spinks and, yes, Frank Bruno. You might recognise some of the others.
THE BOXERS #3
A promo single for the famous South African boxer Arthur ‘The Fighting Prince’ Mayisela, released in 1986... though you could probably work that out just by listening to it.
BOXERS #4
1999 German hiphop "cover" of the Simon & Garfunkel classic... except all they really do is steal the "Li-la-li" bits and then make up the rest on their own time. I like this a lot more than I expected to - it reminds me of the Fun Lovin' Criminals.
BOXERS #5
Eminently forgettable fare from a landfill in Sackville, New Brunswick, released in 2013.
THE BOXERS #6
From 2016, a Chicago band described by one fan on bandcamp as "that filipino psychedelic doo-wop band". I'm not sure I hear any of that, but...
THE BOXERS #7
This, on the other hand, is a punk band who actually do come from the Phillipines.
BOXERS #8
Meandering acoustic singer-songwritery stuff from Asheville, North Carolina in 2019.
THE BOXERS #9
Finally, an Australian band from 2020, with a track called... erm...
Did any of them knock you out... or should we just ban Boxers altogether?
