Songs with Chess?

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 16 Oct 02 - 08:51 AM

Couldn't find an explicit chess song on my mother's Donovan albums, but it was nice listening. "Guinevere" in white is the closest, and might make a nice counterpoint to "Children of Darkness." My mother's fantasy novel The Warlock of Night (available now only from used book dealers at websites such as www.bookfinder.com) is unique in featuring the black forces as the protagonists.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST,gelfling
Date: 15 Oct 02 - 10:03 AM

the musical chess has one song entirely about the history of the game...

Blyth Power use chess as a metaphor a few times i think.
"Knight takes pawn, bishop looks on", springs to mind, from the song about George and the Dragon

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST,Fred Miller
Date: 15 Oct 02 - 09:20 AM

The song I've Seen All Good People is by Yes, and the chess part of it with the line Move me on to any black square is called Your Move. I think.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 14 Oct 02 - 05:11 PM

Mother was musing about some early Donovan recording that had a chess song on it. Anyone have a clue which one she's thinking of, besides her?

Always thought Richard Farina's "Children of Darkness" would work well as a chess song.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 14 Oct 02 - 07:13 AM

Thanks for that Wolfgang - I've just listened to the featured song on that link, Deeper Blues. Classic!

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Wolfgang
Date: 14 Oct 02 - 05:24 AM

Click here for a CD full of chess songs.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Cllr
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 05:44 PM

Chess the musical was written by Tim rice and the two guys from Abba One night in bangkok was released by Murry Head, Cllr

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 05:11 PM

Grace Slick's White Rabbit, which I mentioned above, uses Alice (both books).

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 02:09 PM

Charley Noble: Make that "Through The Looking Glass": "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" is fixated on playing cards, it's the sequel you want

Nigel

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 02:08 PM

I thought I'd try Google with this, so I typed in "chess + songs" - and up came this: "does anyone here know any great chess songs that you can sing around the camp fire? " - it comes from this site, http://gameknot.com/fcgi/ - but I couldn't find the thread.

It was quite interesting looking at it, because it's got a lot in common with Mudcat. People who are primarily there because of a shared interest/obsession with a cultural sub-world -and a tension between those who want to use this as a platform on which to stand while talking about other things, and those who don't approve of that.

It appears that the same kind of feuding goes on, about the same kind of things. (I note they've got a separate "Flame Wars /Trash Bin" section, equivalent to the kind of sin bin some people would like for BS threads. But I imagine with Chess it's easier to draw a line between what is off-topic and what isn't than it ever can be with folk music and song. I mean, you can't have a Chess game about political issues.)

But I still couldn't find that thread about songs to see if it got anywhere.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 01:45 PM

This one is from a fantasy novel my mother wrote based on a chess game. It's more of a chant than a song:

CORBIE'S SONG

(By Dahlov Ipcar in THE WARLOCK OF NIGHT © 1969)

Rooks, rooks, fellow crooks!
Total the score of all your lore:
Honesty is the worst policy!
A penny stolen is a penny gained!
Rob from the rich, don't give to the poor!
Wages are sin! Thieves fall in!
The White King draws nigh!
Darken the sky!
Pluck out his eyes!
Rob the crown jewels!
Steal the King's crown!
Bring the King down!
Arise, arise!
Aroon, aroon!

I would also think Alice in Wonderland would be fertile ground.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST,Nick
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 01:16 PM

Not folk tunes but YES has the tune.. is it Roundabout? "Move me on to any black square....etc" ANd was it Thomas Dolby who had the Musical and song Chess?..."Bancok, oriental city, but the city dosnt know what the city is getting, a show with everything save Yul Brenner.."

Ok your move
nick

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: voyager
Date: 13 Oct 02 - 12:51 AM

"In ceremonies of the horseman
Even a pawn must hold a grudge"

Love Minus Zero/No Limit

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST,Level Head
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 08:17 PM

The song "I've Seen All Good People" by Styx is about a game of chess, metaphorically linked to a love relationship.

===|==============/ Level Head

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: The Pooka
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 07:34 PM

McGrath of Baghdad, yer fulla da Shiites. I have *never* seen you *distracted*. Your postings are the Mudcat's bloody *Antidote* to Distraction. Yer always On Point, you rationalistical git. Would *not* wanna face you in the Endgame. You're tough enough in the Opening. / Neveryoumind aboot th' Divil; he's awa' wi' th' Exciseman. / (Now **misled**, oy, dot's a Punch-the-Horse of a different Colour.:)

There's a meritorious serious thread to be ruined, here; and it's a durty job but somebody's got to do it by God. Accordingly, I submit the following titles and/or lyrics:

Hey Rook Me Over
Knights in White Satin
Haul Away Ye Rolling Kings...
The Castle of Dromore
They had Pawned their gear in Liverpool...
Rosie, the Queen of Corona...
The Wreck of the Ruy Lopez (okok so I made that one up, so sue me, I like it)
Her chess was Bunker Hill... (Smothers Bros. No offense, McG.)

and, in conclusion ("Hear, hear!"), from the Wonderful World of Poetry:

The Bishop Orders His Tomb at St. Praxed's Church.

Sorry Kevin. I'm just on a Roll. (Yokel: "Gol-lee. Wut ever happemed t' the Goat?" W.C. Fields: "He was very good, with Mustard." :)

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 06:39 PM

Depends what you mean by cheating - misleading and distracting the opponent I believe are the keys to winning. (I'm a useless palyer, because I can always be misled and distracted.) The Devil's good at doing that.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Joe_F
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 05:58 PM

I would have thought it was impossible to cheat at chess, but perhaps the devil could manage.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: voyager
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 05:27 PM

"She reminds me of a chess game
With someone I admire
Or a picnic in the rain
After prairie fire"

Christmas in Prison - John Prine

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST,Fred Miller
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 08:36 AM

I remember someone telling me about a band called the Chessmen whose first album was called First Move--which seemed to forcast a long complicated career. Wonder what they're doing now? The English rock band Yes had a song with chess references, I think it was called Your Move. Don't know of any folk songs that fit.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 06:36 AM

I think I heard the Strawbs do that one at a festival. Probably lurking at the back of my mind when I asked the question.

I've got a sort of half memory of some song about prisoners playing chess - the masters of the chess universe, but stuck in a cage in the real world. Or maybe that's just a song I mean to write myself.

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: pavane
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 03:44 AM

The Battle is entirely based on chess


In the early dawn, the bishop's men
shivered in the damp
The shiver came not from the cold
and spread throughout the camp
The trembling horses sensed the fear
Of silent thoughtful men
Who prayed that wives and families
Might see them once again.


That's all I could remember, so I went in search, and came up with this form their web site:

"Just like London buses, which always hunt in packs, close on the heels of the Strawbs Collection, yet another compilation Strawbs CD. "Tears And Pavan" is in Universal's excellent "An Introduction to" series which has already featured Fairport, Sandy Denny, Nick Drake and many others. "

Coincidence eh!

The words to The Battle are on their web site at
http://www.strawbpage.ndirect.co.uk/index8.htm

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: pavane
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 03:35 AM

The Battle (Strawbs)

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: alison
Date: 12 Oct 02 - 03:15 AM

Chris De Burgh - Spanish Train.... back in the days when he was good....

"and far away in some recess
the Lord and the devil are now playing chess
the devil still cheats and wins more souls
and as for the Lord, he's just doing his best."

good song

slaine

alison

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 08:57 PM

Dougie MacLean's "Marching Mystery" was inspired by the Lewis Chessmen.
Article Here
Song Lyrics Here

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: Bobert
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 07:31 PM

Sorry, McGrath, I thought this was gonna be a thread about Chess Recording, which I was gonna say that the "Fathers and Sons" double album with Muddy and friends was pretty darned good...

I'm sure that Dylan has a few songs that deal with the chess pieces. Seems like a lot of folks have used the line "pawn in their game" but I can't think of any right off hand...

Oh well, if I think of any, I'll be back...

Bobert

Subject: RE: Songs with Chess?
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 07:31 PM

Only a Pawn in the Game

Subject: Songs with Chess?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Oct 02 - 07:12 PM

I was setting out some chess pieces this evening, and it occurred to me to wonder about songs involving games of chess. I can think of one or two where a game of chess is mentioned (Tamlin is one such), but I can't think of any where it's a more central element. And yet there are plenty for cards.

I'd think it's a natural, because there are powerful images in a game of chess. Think of Ingmar Bergman's Seventh Seal for example, with the game played with Death.

There's Grace Slick's White Rabbit of course, but I'm thinking more folk. (Though all comers welcome.)