The Greasy Chip Butty Song

"The Greasy Chip Butty Song" is a football chant originally sung by the supporters of Sheffield United football club to the tune of "Annie's Song", glorifying life in Sheffield, in chief the eponymous chip butty but also nightlife, beer and tobacco products. The song with its good-natured humour has been adopted and adapted by fans of a number of other Association Football teams, other football codes teams, and by other sports teams, both in the UK and internationally.

Origin

The provenance of the song is unknown but its origin is often claimed by Sheffield United supporters.[1] It has been claimed it was first sung by the Blades during Sheffield United's first match of the 1985-86 season in Division 2. This was a Blades 3-1 away win at Stoke City's Victoria Ground on 17 August 1985. Fans of Rotherham United F.C. have also claimed that the song originated with them.[2]

Words and music

The song is to the tune of "Annie's Song" by John Denver:[3]

You Fill Up My Senses,

Like A Gallon Of Magnet,

Like A Packet Of Woodbines,

Like A Good Pinch Of Snuff,

Like A Night Out In Sheffield,

Like A Greasy Chip Butty,

Like Sheffield United,

Come Fill Me Again,

Na Na Na Na Na...OOOOHH!

Meaning

To a native of Yorkshire the words are probably self-explanatory; the words celebrate the many pleasures that can be had in Sheffield, culminating in the target of the fan's adoration, in this instance, Sheffield United.

  • Magnet refers to Magnet Bitter from John Smith's Brewery, widely available in Yorkshire. Some people claim that the second line is really Like a gallon of maggots. Maggots are obtained from fishing tackle outlets in denominations of imperial pints and hence this version would not be unreasonable, as fishing is popular in the region and hence a gallon of maggots would mean a good day out fishing.
  • Woodbines refers nostalgically to a once popular brand of strong cigarette.
  • Snuff is ground tobacco for sniffing up the nose. Snuff produced by Wilson's Snuff Mill is world-famous, and produced only a mile away from Bramall Lane.
  • A greasy chip butty can be purchased in any of the many local fish and chip shops. Butty is a dialect word for a sandwich, and a chip butty is simply a sandwich where the filling is chips, ideally greasy and sometimes sprinkled with salt and vinegar. Generally, a white sandwich bap will be used for the bread. In Sheffield, these are simply known as Breadcakes.

Original incidence

The song itself is a plaintive rally-cry by the fans of Sheffield United. It is usually heard at the start of home games played at 'Beautiful Downtown Bramall Lane' (as it is often called by the announcer on match days), the home of the club, and sporadically throughout away matches.

Modified versions of the song are also sung by supporters of Burton Albion F.C. (where the references to Magnet and Woodbines are replaced with Marston's Pedigree ("Peddi") and Walkers), Grimsby Town F.C. (where Magnet is replaced by Tetley's) and St Helens R.F.C. (in which the lyrics are

You light up my senses,

like a gallon of Greenalls,

like a kebab from Geno's,

Like a good sniff of glue,

Like a night out at Martine's,

Like a split, fish and curry,

Oh St Helens rugby,

Come thrill me again

na na na na naaaah naah...ooooooohh).[2]

The Greasy Chip Butty Song internationally

In January 2007, in tribute to Sheffield United's visiting Chinese sister team, the Chengdu Blades, the Sheffield Star penned the following version - the Greasy Egg Noodle song.[4]

You fill up my senses,
Like a gallon of soy sauce,
Like a packet of chopsticks,
Like a good crispy duck,
Like a night out in Chengdu,
Like a greasy egg noodle,
Like Chengdu 'n' United,
Come thrill me again...

References

  1. ↑
  2. 1 2 "Last orders for Sheffield United's greasy chip butty anthem?". thestar.co.uk. 9 February 2010. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  3. ↑ Hodgson, Guy (1997-11-03). "Terrace hymn sheets fill up the senses". The Independent. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  4. ↑ "Last orders for Sheffield United's greasy chip butty anthem?". Sheffield Star. 2011-02-03. Retrieved 2011-02-12.
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