Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Jurgen Klinsmann?

"Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Jurgen Klinsmann?" is a song by the English band Tonedef All Stars. It is set to the tune of the Dad's Army theme tune, Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler? The song was released to coincide with the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

"Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Jurgen Klinsmann?"
Song by Tonedef Allstars
LanguageEnglish
GenreParody music
Songwriter(s)Tonedef Allstars
Composer(s)Tonedef Allstars

History

The song was created as part of a competition run by The Sun to determine their official World Cup song. "Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Jurgen Klinsmann?" was selected as the winner. The song was first broadcast on 26 May 2006[1] on BBC Radio 2 on Chris Evans Drivetime.

The song was performed by Tonedef All Stars with boxer Frank Bruno, 1966 World Cup winners Sir Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters, and Bill Pertwee, who played Warden Hodges in Dad's Army.[1]

Reception

The song was initially popular, with music journalists and bookmakers[2] suggesting it would chart higher than the official world cup song, "World at Your Feet" by Embrace.[3] Embrace member, Danny McNamara said that the song was "brilliant" and thought that it might beat Embrace in the charts.[4] The song debuted in the UK Singles Charts at 13, behind World at Your Feet at 3.[3] It spent four weeks in the charts, failing to improve on its initial 13th position[5] after dropping to 27 in its second week.[6]

Despite being popular with England fans, the song was not universally liked. Stylus Magazine called it "charming xenophobia",[7] with it being suggested that The Football Association didn't like it because of the references to the war.[8] The German national football team manager, Jürgen Klinsmann reportedly did not like the song because he disliked the connection that the song was comparing him to Adolf Hitler.[9] Tony Christie, a singer with an entry in the competition, said that while he thought the video was "very good", he felt the change from "Hitler" to "Klinsmann" was unwise and suggested that people should "steer clear".[10] Manchester Evening News criticised the performers, calling them "just a few celebrities on a karaoke machine"; however, they also stated that the song was "infuriatingly catchy".[11]

References
  1. "Bill Pertwee Dead: Dad's Army Actor Who Played Warden Hodges Passes Away". Huffington Post. 27 May 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  2. "Sheep, frog and disgraced MP sing for Sven". China Daily. Archived from the original on 10 June 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  3. "3AM: This Week's Charts – The Official UK Singles Chart". The Free Online Library. 12 June 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  4. "Anthems vie for World Cup glory". BBC News. 5 June 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  5. "Tonedef Allstars". Official Charts. 17 June 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  6. "Keane in at one on UK album chart". BBC News. 18 June 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  7. "Shall We Sing A Song For You?: Footballers on Record". Stylus. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  8. Owen Gibson, media correspondent (1 June 2006). "Pub singers and golden oldies vie for Cup hit". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  9. "Football: They don't like it up 'em, Mr Klinsmann". The Mirror. 7 May 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  10. Charles, Chris (6 June 2006). "Christie's World Cup songs verdict". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  11. Sarah Walters (15 February 2007). "The runners and riders". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
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