Best 60 Sports Songs to Rock Your Sports Party

It does not matter if you are an Athlete or a Sports Fan, this MP3 Playlist of the Best 60 Sports Songs will get your blood flowing, pump you up mentally, inspire you spiritually, and keep the sports party going for about three or four hours. Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida will host Super Bowl XLIV on February 7, 2010. Carrie Underwood will sing the National Anthem and the U.S. Census Bureau will run three Super Bowl ads to encourage you to fill out your 2010 Census coming just in time for March Madness.

I have to throw in a few sports song fun facts before we get to the MP3 Playlist of Best 60 Sports Songs later in this feature. Please feel free to link back to this article if you would like to share this original list of Best 60 Sports Songs with your friends.

The Most Inspiring Sports Song of All Time: The Impossible Dream

The ultimate best sports song to inspire atheletes is The Impossible Dream, written for the 1965 play Man of La Mancha. In the play, Don Quixote sings the song in response to a question from Aldonza about what he means when he says "following the quest." Just ask anyone who is a Boston Red Sox fan about their 1967 pennant-winning quest and what their sports theme song is for that season!

Richard Kiley sang the song on the original Broadway cast album, but it was Simon Gilbert who sang for Peter O'Toole in the 1972 film version that made the song an eternal hit. The song has been covered by dozens of musicians, including Jennifer Hudson, Jim Nabors, Andy Williams, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Eddie Murphy, Tom Jones, and Cher.

The Most Controversial Sports Song of All Time: Rock and Roll Part 2 (known as the "Hey" song)

Gary Glitter's real name is Paul Gadd. By a twist of fate and stroke of luck, Gary Glitter finally had a recorded hit with Rock and Roll Parts 1 and 2. Glitter had been recording since 1958 and was on England's TV show called Ready, Steady Go. During this show, Glitter met Mike Leander who helped him write and record the song when David Essex did not show up for a session. It was released in 1972, and Glitter had many other hits in England after that. His hit song, Rock and Roll Part 2 became a top-played sports song at many sports stadiums in America.

American sports teams and sports stadiums stopped playing the popular sports song in 1997 when Glitter was arrested and sent to prison after taking his computer in for repairs with child porn all over it. Prior to that, he was arrested in England for drunk driving. After his release from prison in 1999, Glitter lived in Cuba and Cambodia and was told that he would face great harm if he ever returned to England.

Best Sports Songs Fun Facts

David Barrett wrote One Shining Moment in 20 minutes after watching a Larry Bird highlight tape. It became a sports theme song for CBS March Madness.

In 1908, Jack Norworth wrote Take Me Out To The Ball Game in 15 minutes on a scrap paper during a train trip to Manhattan, New York. He gave the scrap paper to Albert Von Tilzer who composed the music. The rest is history.

Check out this YouTube video of how John Tesh came up with another March Madness Theme Song, Roundball Rock.

The Zambonis are one of the most popular hockey sports song bands in North America with songs like Drop That Puck, Boom, Boom, Boom and Hockey Monkey. The Zambonis band is not to be confused with the famous Frank Zamboni family from Utah who created an ice skating rink in California, invented the first self-propelled ice resurfacing machine, and is inducted into the United States Figure Skating Association Hall of Fame.

Here is your MP3 Playlist of the Best 60 Sports Songs Ever

We Are the Champions by Queen
Live to Winby Paul Stanley
I Stand Amazed by The Legacy 12
Simply the Best by Tina Turner
The Impossible Dream by Jim Nabors
Philadelphia Freedom by Elton John
We Will Rock You by Queen
World In Motion by New Order
You're The Best by Joe Esposito
Right Here, Right Now by Fatboy Slim
You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet by Bachman-Turner Overdrive
King of the Road by Fu Manchu
The Hardest Part by Coldplay
Take Me Out To The Ball Game by Jack Norworth
Roundball Rock by John Tesh
R.E.S.P.E.C.T. by Aretha Franklin
Let's Get Physical by Olivia Newton John
Play The Game Tonight by Kansas
This Is Why I'm Hot by Mims
Rock and Roll Part 2 by Gary Glitter
Angel by Enya
Centerfield by John Fogerty
One Shining Moment by David Barrett or Luther Vandross
The Prayer by Celine Dion and Josh Groban
Start Me Up by The Rolling Stones
Remember The Name by Fort Minor
Angels Among Us by Alabama
You'll Never Walk Alone by Jordin Sparks
I Can See Clearly Now by Johnny Nash
Get ReadyFor This by 2 Unlimited
Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen
The Final Countdown by Europe
Run Run Run by Jo Jo Gunne
Don't Stop Believin' by Journey
Macho Man by Village People
Bugler's Dream, composed by Leo Arnaud (NBC's Olympic Theme Song)
I Feel Lucky by Mary Chapin Carpenter
What a Feeling by Irene Cara
Shining Star by Earth, Wind, & Fire
Kiss Them Goodbye by Steam
Star-Spangled Banner by Whitney Houston
Thunderstruck by AC/DC
This Land is My Land by Arlo Guthrie
Takin' Care of Business by Bachman-Turner Overdrive
Don't Look Back by Boston
Eye Of The Tiger by Survivor
Gonna Fly Now by Bill Conti
Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now by Starship
Sirius Instrumental by The Alan Parsons Project
Kung Fu Fighting by Carl Douglas
Hockey Monkey by The Zambonis
Here I Go Again On My Own by Whitesnake
Drop That Puck by The Zambonis
I'm On Fire by Bruce Springsteen
Super Bowl Shuffle by The 1985 Chicago Bears Football Team
Backfield in Motion by Mel & Tim
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
Chariots of Fire by Vangelis Papathanassiou
Celebration by Kool & The Gang

Sources:

http://www.songfacts.com

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/poetry/po_stmo.shtml

http://www.zamboni.com/story/story.html

http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/014558.html