"The Greasy Chip Butty Song" is a football chant sung by the supporters of Sheffield United football club to the tune of "Annie's Song", glorifying life in Sheffield, in chief the chip butty but also nightlife, beer and tobacco products. The song, with its good-natured humour, has been adopted and adapted by fans of a number of other association football teams.

Origin

The song was initially written in the late 1970’s by a Rotherham United fan named Terry Moran. While the song became known as the "Greasy Chip Butty Song", Moran's inspiration came from Magnet, with the mention of chip butties being an afterthought. Gavin Hancock, a Rotherham Blade, overheard Moran singing the song in a pub and wrote his own version about the Blades; Hancock's version quickly grew in popularity among Sheffield United supporters from the early 1980’s and is now considered the club's anthem.

Words and music

The song is to the tune of "Annie's Song" by John Denver to lyrics that have varied over time with changes to the opening and final two lines. This recording also used "You fill up my senses... come thrill me again" lyrics.

Meaning

To a native of Yorkshire the words are probably self-explanatory; the words celebrate the many pleasures that can be had in Sheffield, culminating in the target of the fan's adoration, in this instance, Sheffield United.

  • Magnet refers to Magnet Bitter from John Smith's Brewery, widely available in Yorkshire.
  • Woodbines refers nostalgically to a once-popular brand of strong cigarette.
  • Snuff is ground tobacco for sniffing up the nose. Wilson's Snuff Mill, established in 1737, is located a mile away from Bramall Lane.
  • A greasy chip butty can be purchased in any of the many local fish and chip shops. Butty is a dialect word for a sandwich, and a chip butty is simply a sandwich where the filling is chips, ideally greasy and sometimes sprinkled with salt and vinegar. Generally, a white sandwich bap will be used for the bread. In Sheffield, these are simply known as breadcakes.

The song itself is a plaintive rally-cry by the fans of Sheffield United. It is usually heard at the start of home games played at 'Beautiful Downtown Bramall Lane' (as it is often called by the announcer on match days), the home of the club, and sporadically throughout away matches.

Other versions

Moran's original version is similar save for the mentions of Sheffield (replaced respectively with "Masborough" and "Rotherham United") and the last line, which Moran changed to "Can’t fill me enough".