As the New York Rangers family mourns the passing of anthem singer John Amirante, we look back at a classic.
John Amirante was so much more than someone who sang the National Anthem at Madison Square Garden. In a way, he was the New York Rangers.
The song was written in 1940 as a tribute to the Ranger team that won the Stanley Cup in the 1939-40 season. The song was written by J. Fred Coots and dedicated to Lester Park and the New York Rangers organization.
Amirante heard the song in 1992 and instantly knew that he had to sing it. He would perform it as part of a pre-game segment. Like Al Trautwig said prior to the broadcast, there is/was no other person best suited to sing that song.
“Listen to the cheering of the people in the stands
Twenty Thousand hockey bugs and each a Ranger fan!
It’s plain as day to see
They want a victory!
All together now strike up the band!Just keep your stick on that puck
And don’t lay down on your luck;
That’s the Rangers’ Victory Song!
Get through the enemy’s goal
With all your heart and your soul;
That’s the Rangers’ Victory Song!You’ve got to fight, Rangers fight
With a grin on your chin!
Tonight is the night
So get in there and win!This game is worth any price;
Go out and put it on ice
That’s the Rangers’ Victory Song!-Via nyrangers.com
The Rangers no longer use the song with the lyrics at the end of games. Over the last few seasons, they’ve rotated their victory songs with this season being Tiesto’s “Carry You Home”. But that doesn’t mean that the song has lost its meaning. Right before the Rangers play their final song of the night at the Garden, fans hear an instrumental version Coot’s song.
Perhaps in the upcoming 2018-19 season, the Rangers could use the Amirante version as a way to honor him. Fans would not mind hearing his voice one more time. It would be like Amirante was singing to them from the great beyond.
John really knew how to get the Garden going, especially during his pregame performances of the National Anthem. The last couple of years, the performances dwindled at the Garden for Amirante. With the appearances becoming less frequent, but when he was in the Garden it was much more special.
Videos like John Amirante singing the Rangers Victory song now have a bigger meaning behind them than they ever did before.
