Sweet Caroline

With awful events around the world every day, there is a need for escapism. At this time, mine is football on TV, plus watching André Rieu DVDs. At the time of writing, the Women’s Euros have just begun and the Lionesses have lost their first match. Hope they can progress.
But is there any connection between André Rieu and football? Well some years ago, he famously performed his big hit, “The Second Waltz”, at the Ajax Stadium, with the crowd at the match joining in. That is a bit tenuous.
But there is a closer link in the form of the song “Sweet Caroline”, which became a football anthem at the previous Women’s Euros. This song is now one of the encores on André’s most recent DVD, “Power of Love”, a recording made at one of his Maastricht concerts in 2024. After a programme including works by Handel, César Frank, Respighi, Verdi, Strauss and Lehár, the last few numbers were ones for the large audience to sing along to. One of these was “Sweet Caroline”, performed brilliantly, with a lead singer who nailed the song, and full backing from the orchestra and choir. André must have decided that an electric guitar was needed. So we had a tall guy playing a great big white Fender to excellent effect. Like other members of this smart orchestra, he was in full formal dress. Is that a first in pop music history?
This song is perfect for an audience to sing along to, and the crowd in the big square made the most of it. The tune and lyrics seemed well known to them, along with the usual gestures and moves. It is a cheerful song about a man who finds love unexpectedly. Most pop songs these days seem pretty miserable, and it is good to know that there are cheerful ones still around.
The performance reminded me of the Lionesses’ victory in the last Euros. Let us hope they will win this time, with their fans again singing along to “Sweet Caroline”.

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