"Blue is the Colour"

Lore & Background

The song was produced by Larry Page, who commissioned Daniel Boone and lyricist David Balfe (under the pseudonym Rod McQueen) to write the song for Chelsea F.C. The song was sung by members of the squad. The original version sold a quarter of a million copies, and sales of various versions of the song reached a million copies worldwide.

In Their Own Story

The air inside the stadium suddenly shifts. The pre-match chatter dies down, replaced by a low, vibrating hum that builds into a deafening roar as the first synth chords strike. It starts in the stands—a ripple of blue jumping to its feet—but quickly swells into a unified, earth-shaking chorus that shakes the very foundations of the Etihad. For ninety seconds, thousands of strangers become one voice, belting out lyrics about unity and shared identity with a ferocity that transcends the scoreline. It is a moment of pure, unadulterated belonging, where the worries of the outside world dissolve into the collective memory of the club's history.

Reader's Guide

The song has been adapted by many other teams in various sports around the world. Dutch team Ajax released a version titled "Ajax, Leve Ajax!" by Vader Abraham with Zijn Goede Zonen. The French singer Antoine released a version with the Marseille team. A Swedish version was also recorded. In 1972, the song was performed by the Australian cricket team visiting England as part of the Ashes tour, recorded as "Here Come the Aussies." The song has been modified into Danish by Flemming Antony as "Rød-hvide farver" for the Denmark national team at the 1972 Summer Olympics. It was covered in Czech by František Ringo Čech as "Zelená je tráva." In Finnish, it was recorded by Vexi Salmi for Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi as "HOO-JII-KOO." In 1975, Erik Beck adapted it as "Green Is the Color" for the Portland Timbers. In 1978, it was re-recorded as "White Is the Colour" for the Vancouver Whitecaps. An adapted version called "Green Is the Colour" is the official fight song of the Saskatchewan Roughriders since 1981. Supporters of Montedio Yamagata and Molde FK also use variants. The song was used as the basis for a campaign record by the Conservative campaign in the 1979 general election. Peel Thunder bases its club song on this tune.

Did You Know?

• The song reached number 5 in the UK Charts and number 8 in Ireland in March 1972.
• The original version sold a quarter of a million copies, and total sales of all versions reached a million worldwide.
• The Ajax version reached No. 25 on the Dutch Top 40.
• The Portland Timbers version sold 8,000 copies and received airplay on Portland radio stations throughout the 1970s and 1980s.