FUNNY ANTHEMS

Here come the Olympics, when we are reminded of the unquenchable spirit of the athlete, the true fellowship of nations through sport—and the Spam-brained quality of most national anthems.

Andorra. I look forward with great zeal to the day when a 350-pound Andorran shot-putter with phone booths for arms stands on the podium and sings: "I was born a princess, a maiden!" Hey, with today's medical breakthroughs, it's possible.

Algeria. "We have taken the noise of gunpowder as our rhythm and the sound of machine guns as our melody." This is why no one invites your band anywhere.

Waltzing Matilda and Wallabies (recently rejuvenated!)

Australia. Aussies cannot quite decide between the stodgy, government-approved "Advance Australia Fair" or the one they really like, the folk song "Waltzing Matilda," the country's official anthem at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. It'd be like our dumping "The Star-Spangled Banner" for "Old McDonald." "Waltzing Matilda" is all about a swagman who sits under a coolibah watching his billy, then drowns himself in a billabong to avoid a squatter. And who doesn't love a story like that? (Speak in English hehe -mine)

For More Anthems

Hehehe... great article. There are more anthems just click the link.

Watching Rugby I have encountered a lot of beautiful anthems I just don't know the words. I enjoy watching Tri-Nations (esp. Australia vs New Zealand) and the Six Nations (France vs England). Wow sorry I got carried away when I saw the Wallabies.