January 17, is the birthday of Muhammad Ali, who was born in 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky. Ali’s life has had highlights inside and outside the boxing ring, and some of the highlights inside the ring were his fights with Sonny Liston. Ali and Liston have inspired other boxers and boxing fans, but they have also inspired songwriters, including Greg Trooper, Chuck Prophet, and Mark Knopfler. Below are some of the songs as well as video of one of the matches between the two boxers.
Greg Trooper: “Muhammad Ali (The Meaning of Christmas)”
I really love Greg Trooper’s song “Muhammad Ali (The Meaning of Christmas)” from his Floating (2003) album, as the song captures something special about Ali. It is a shame that the video performance of this beautiful song only has 349 views, because everyone should hear this song.
“I am the greatest,”
he said with a grin;
But he was talking about you,
Not about him;
And was teaching me
The meaning of Christmas.
I remember they called him a clown;
Then Sonny went down,
In no more than six rounds;
And he was teaching us all
A new day was coming.
Johnny Wakelin: “Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)”
I remember Johnny Wakelin’s song when it was released in 1975, and I even had it on a 45 record when I was a kid. It is a catchy tune, using quotes from Ali in the lyrics (“He floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee”).
Wakelin, who was from the UK, had his biggest success in his songwriting career with “Black Superman,” which was a number one song in the UK. He recorded another tribute to Ali called “In Zaire.” Wakelin is still around and has his own website.
Freakwater: “Louisville Lip”
Freakwater’s song “Louisville Lip” focuses on one alleged incident from Muhammad Ali’s life. In 1960, Ali returned home to Louisville, Kentucky from winning the light heavyweight gold medal in the Summer Olympics in Rome. Yet, the 18-year-old faced discrimination in his hometown. Reportedly, after being refused service at a restaurant, Ali threw his gold medal into the Ohio River.
Ali later received a replacement medal, and according to some reports, he had merely lost the first one. But Freakwater knows a good story and builds a song around the incident in “Louisville Lip.”
The song appears on Freakwater’s 1998 album Springtime. (Thanks to @revRecluse for pointing me to “Louisville Lip.”)
Whip the world whip this town;
Whip it into the river and watch ’em all drown;
When the king threw off his golden crown,
Floating down like butterfly wings,
It sank without a sound.
Chuck Prophet: “Sonny Liston’s Blues”
While Ali has become an American icon, few remember much about Sonny Liston except for his connection to Ali. Chuck Prophet reminds us that we should not forget about Liston. Prophet reveals that Liston’s life also has meaning for us with his song “Sonny Liston’s Blues,” the lead-off track on his Let Freedom Ring (2009) album.
In an interview with the Press Democrat, Prophet explained why he chose Liston for a song choice: “To me, he’s the perfect analogy for the American dream. He’s part reality and part myth — always just out of reach. He had to open the record. There was a myth people had that they were going to be able to comfortably retire and they woke up one morning and realized that reality was not quite what was sold to them.”
Mark Knopfler, “Song for Sonny Liston”
Mark Knopfer also performs a song about Sonny Liston, portraying him as a tragic figure and again reminding us that we cannot forget those who fought and lost. “Song for Sonny Liston” is from Shangri-La (2004).
Joe Louis was his hero;
He tried to be the same,
But a criminal child
Wears a ball and chain;
So the civil rights people,
Didn’t want him on the throne,
And the hacks and the cops
Wouldn’t leave him alone.
In Trooper’s “Muhammad Ali (The Meaning of Christmas)” his reference to “no more than six rounds” indicates he is referring to the first of two fights between Liston and Ali held on February 24, 1964. In that fight, Ali (then Cassius Clay) upset Liston to win the heavyweight title. After the sixth round, Liston did not come out of his corner for the seventh round, claiming his left shoulder was injured.
Most had expected Liston to beat the 22-year-old Clay. Some later claimed that Liston did not adequately train for the fight.
The next year there was a rematch that Ali again won and was captured in a famous photo of Ali standing over Liston. Because many did not see Ali hit Liston when Liston went down, some claimed the fight ended with a “Phantom Punch” and that Liston took a dive.
Below is video of the May 25, 1965 fight Between Sonny Liston and Muhammad Ali. Although this rematch, where Liston went down in the first round, is one of the most famous heavyweight fights in history, attendance was low due to the remote location of the fight in Maine.
After the fight, Ali was a star. Liston took a year off from boxing but then started working his way back with some important wins in the ring during the next few years.
Not long after winning a fight in June 1970, Liston was found dead in his home in January 1971. The cause of his death is still a mystery. Some believe that he died from a heroin overdose and others believe he was murdered by some of his underworld contacts.
On Liston’s headstone, the epitaph under his name says simply, “A Man.”
Yes, Liston and Ali are just men. But no matter what you think of boxing as a sport, we can learn a lot from their lives. Their legends will live a long time.
What do you think of these songs and the Ali-Liston fights? Leave your two cents in the comments.
