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CHICAGO — January 2, 2007 — With the
Chicago Bears clinching home field advantage throughout the NFL playoffs,
Bears fans are making plans to see the “Monsters of the Midway” at
Super Bowl XXXXI. To add fuel to the already blazing fire, “Bear
Fight Songs” a new CD, hit stores December 26th!
“Bear Fight Songs” is the brainchild of Chicago music producer
John Steele. “We really have to thank Arizona Cardinals Head Coach,
Denny Green for planting the seed and giving us the title to the lead
track on the CD. Green’s rant ‘The Bears are who we thought
they were,’ after the Bears beat his Cardinals in an incredible
come-from-behind victory on Monday Night Football was all we needed.
All Bears fans and, it now appears, all football fans, are still laughing.
I thought to myself; hummmm, what a great title for a song,” Steele said,
adding, “taking Green’s negative comments and making them a positive
‘Chicago Bears’ statement was the goal of this entire project. Yea,
the Bears are who ya thought they were; they beat you on national TV Denny
Green!”
Once Steele had the music written, he turned to his childhood friend,
Joe Cantafio for lyrics. Steele and Cantafio have been working
together as artist-producer for over 10 years. Cantafio said, “when
I heard the music, and being a huge Bears fan, I knew immediately John had
something huge going on. Before I came up with lyric lines, I
watched Green’s tirade again and then penned the line; ‘Go ahead and
crown their ass,’ another one of Green’s now famous comments.
The recording sessions were the most fun I have had in the studio in
years. We laughed until we cried, and we were all amazed at how well it
came together!”
The original idea was to release the one song, “We Are Who You Thought
We Were,” then it grew to three versions of the same song and after a
brainstorming session, Cantafio suggested they contact his old friend,
Bill Archer of the “Big Bear Band,” and create an entire
music-filled CD filled with Bears football songs. That has never
been done before. Archer’s version of the 1941 classic, “Bear
Down, Chicago Bears,” is the song that is most identified with The
Chicago Bears. Once Archer agreed to add his famous arrangement of
“Bear Down, Chicago Bears” to the CD, the title of the CD was
changed to Bear Fight Songs. Now, for the first time, the
only ultimate Chicago Bears fan music-CD is available; Bear Fight Songs.
Bill Archer said; “In the beginning of the season, the sports media picked
the Bears to go 9 - 7 at best! They all had it wrong and now The
Chicago Bears are who WE thought they were!”
Archer, Cantafio and Steele are the Executives Producers of this project
and rounded up some of the greatest talent in Chicago to perform on the
recordings. Cantafio enlisted members of his band
“The 101st Rock
Division” to perform with him disguised as the “Polar Bear Singers”
and as “Sugar Bear.” They also sang background vocals on
“All Aboard.” Chicago “Jazz King,”
Ron Hawking, added
his cool rendition of “We Are Who You Thought We Were” to the CD
accompanied by guitarist Chris Siebold, bassist Larry Kohut
and famed trumpeter Mike Cichowicz.
“The Handcuffs” Chloe
F. Orwell and Brad Elvis, (formerly of the Elvis Brothers)
helped produce the cut "All Aboard", as Orwell added a fun and
fresh wall of vocalization. They recorded under the name "The
Tailgaters." Henry Salgado played trombones and David
Suycott played drums throughout the entire CD.
The CD has already sold 50,000 copies and counting. With the legion
of Bears fans growing throughout the country, sales are coming in from
every state in the Union. Bear Fight Songs
is now on sale
in retail
stores everywhere.
The CD is also
available online through Amazon at
www.BearFightSongs.com.
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