Music At Speedway

[RobMcCaffery]

Judging by the estimated ages of most spectators (including me), they should play re-runs of 'Have a go' and 'Workers Playtime.'

I don't know which tracks you go to but I've never seen that many over 80.

 

I've had to put up with a lot in speedway, now I have to apologise for my age!

 

Maybe it's best if everyone over 60 just gave up going - will that make you all happy? You'll certainly have more space to wander around in!

[oldtimer]

Clubs need to realise that you can create atmosphere by playing the right music, they do this at Cardiff GP but tracks don't seem to be bothered, can't understand why, perhaps they don't think they are in the entertainment business and 15 minutes of racing is sufficient.

[foamfence]

I don't know which tracks you go to but I've never seen that many over 80.

 

I've had to put up with a lot in speedway, now I have to apologise for my age!

 

Maybe it's best if everyone over 60 just gave up going - will that make you all happy? You'll certainly have more space to wander around in!

I'm a long way past 60.

[topsoil]

In a stop start sport like speedway, it is clear music is a key part of the overall presentation, and doesn't get the thought that it should.

Very true. The best use of music I've witnessed was at Prague a couple of years ago for the World Cup race off and final. Short blasts of up-tempo music right after the heat finished, then a little bit of music between announcements. As long as the music is up-tempo, with a decent sound system, the fans are entertained, the DJ has done his job.

But too often the music at each track is the same, out dated, with poor sound quality.

I know it might cost a little bit more, but I would like to see more tracks employ local radio DJ's to handle the music and even do some interviews. Back in the day it was great exposure to have the likes of David Hamilton announcing at speedway meetings.

[Jonny the spud]

I have three pubs and live music / DJ's play a very important part of what kind / now many clients come in, spend their money, and more importantly come back!

 

If you think that the 15 minutes of racing is enough to keep a crowd entertained throughout 2 hours then you're seriously deluded.

 

Get local bands / DJ's to send in copies of their work and offer them a set throughout the meeting. It won't cost a lot and some would probably do it free just for the exposure.

[Bryn]

I have three pubs and live music / DJ's play a very important part of what kind / now many clients come in, spend their money, and more importantly come back!

 

If you think that the 15 minutes of racing is enough to keep a crowd entertained throughout 2 hours then you're seriously deluded.

 

Get local bands / DJ's to send in copies of their work and offer them a set throughout the meeting. It won't cost a lot and some would probably do it free just for the exposure.

 

The Isle of Wight Warriors management, having brought speedway back to the island this after a two year absence, have done those very things this year JtS with music at all meetings provided by local DJ Phil Lynch of Cloud2 and at last week's meeting having IOW reggae star Derek Sandy singing live as part of a reggae based party night theme. Just part of a host of innovations introduced by them this year.

[RobMcCaffery]

I'm a long way past 60.

Then your ageism is even more depressing.

[Blazeaway]

One I thought of using if anyone ever let me back on the mic (unlikely) would be this OTT gem - written and part-performed by Meat Loaf's writer Jim Steinman, "Tonight Is What It Means To Be Young" by Fire Inc. has the motorcycle roar and excitement that matches a great speedway race and the title itself sums the sport up.

 

The only problem is that it takes 1 min 17 to get into its stride so would need editing to lose the drawn-out intro but if we're in the business of building atmosphere I think this might have done the trick:

 

https://vimeo.com/37336849

 

The problem with music at speedway is not the age but the style. Too often we end up with any old selection from the presenter's youth played without thought of relevance or blindly just playing the current chart.

 

You play chart and you alienate the majority, you play oldies and you alienate the young.

 

It needs a mixture - more than one radio station has worked on the basis of "If you don't like this one then you'll love the next".

 

We get a lot of complaints on here about tired old music being played. The trick is to play music that isn't tired or over-used. In the past 60 years a massive amount of music has been published and there are always new gems to be found, from any era. What we need to do at speedway is to build the mood. No, I'm not talking about head-banging hard rock but music that may not be familiar or may be forgotten but which builds atmosphere in an open air sports stadium which is a heck of a hard job to do, compared to an indoor venue.

 

Ballads and other slow tunes are just not right, neither is Adele-style r'n'b. That has its place, but not at a sports event. There is so much that could be played but isn't, mainly due to a lack of imagination or people just lazily playing the latest music that they know. More ambition is needed and quite frankly more knowledge but as long as we expect amateurs to present for free we're very unlikely to get better.

 

Sadly the sport probably can't afford the presentation that it needs. Instead it has to hope that a willing amateur might do the job.

 

Of course, ideally you don't want to use music. With the right mix of talk (not chat or idiotic banter) from the box, working with a roving interviewer who knows what they're doing you could eliminate most music, or just use it correctly to build on what the racing and presenters are already providing.

 

I know from personal experience (and pain) how antiquated p.a. systems often are at speedway though and I know how hard it is to get the right people to make the meeting come alive and it's one of the tragedies of modern speedway that the elements that could really make it work have to be sacrificed to fit tiny budgets.

 

Another asp[ect of presentation that needs to be borne in mind is the spectre of heavy fines for 'inappropriate comment' hanging over licensed announcers - no wonder guys these days play safe! No. we don't want anarchy and blatantly unjust comment but right now the whole show is too sanitised. We need the fun of the odd row, team managers taking on the ref on the phone in public view and on the mic. Kept in reason it could bring some of the fun back.

 

As ever, so much that could be done but it won't. Promoters won't and can't afford to take risks. One prominent presentation team that tried to do something different and creative appear to have been hounded out of the sport, sadly.

 

We expect everything to be done on the cheap, and to be honest most of the time you get what you pay for.

 

Hmmm - I was just supposed to be commenting on music. Apologies but these things frustrate me every time I go to a poorly-presented meeting.

 

Just one final point re 'themes' - they cvan work but it's vital not to overdo them so they irritate. I remember years back they used to play 'Jimmy Mack' by Martha Reeves & The Vandellas every time Jim McMillan won a race at Monmore. After a few weeks you used to pray that someone beat him...

 

A good idea, if repeated too often becomes a cliche - it's true of music just as it is with words.

You used to be a commentator? I never knew....