This morning I was dancing to Chumbawamba’s ‘Tubthumping‘ before I got in the shower.
Something I do every morning as hearing the lyrics “ “I get knocked down, but I get up again/You’re never gonna keep me down” over and over again is guaranteed to give you the right attitude for the day.
What I didn’t expect, though, was to hear Chumbawamba’s ‘Tubthumping‘ on the final season of the Netflix series The Crown just a few hours later — The Crown, Season 6, Episode 1, “Persona Non Grata“.
But there the upbeat song was, playing on the radio at the beginning of the episode as Princess Diana and Prince William are driving to Chequers to see the Prime Minister and his family.
It then shows up again in Episode 3 of The Crown as Diana and Dodi arrive at the restaurant.
The coolness of Chumbawamba’s ‘Tubthumping‘
While British alternative rock and anarcho-communist thinking band Chumbawamba’s ‘Tubthumping‘ was a big hit and a favorite of mine when it first released, it is only in the last few years I have adopted it as my daily mantra in my effort to be happy, healthy and successful.
Play the song once a day, and it is amazing how hopeful you feel about any challenge you may experience.
The song itself, however, came out in 1997 as the lead single and title track from the British rock band Chumbawamba’s eighth studio album Tubthumper.
With its catchy, danceable tune and fun, upbeat lyrics, the track went on to become the band’s most successful song and biggest hit, charting at #1 on charts in Australia, Canada (3 charts), Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Scotland, and the United States (3 charts).
Although a huge international hit in 20 countries, interestingly, it didn’t quite make it to the top spot in the rock band’s home country of the UK, but instead halted its climb at #2.
Twenty five years later, and if you mentioned the name of the now-defunct band Chumbawamba to a huge percentage of the planet, ‘Tubthumping‘ is the song they would think of immediately.
Sadly for the ever political band’s fans, they were together for 30-plus years, but decided to break up in 2012.
Not surprisingly though, with their politics the way they always remained, their last single release was named “In Memoriam: Margaret Thatcher’ in 2013.
Some of their music, which still sounds just as fresh as it did upon first release, does still pop up on TV shows quite a lot, however, as is evidenced by its latest inclusion on The Crown.
Listen to Chumbawamba’s ‘Tubthumping‘ as heard on the first episode of the final season of The Crown in the song’s music video, and on the band’s Tubthumper album, which, by the way, features several other bangin’ songs.
I don’t know about you but, to me, this one is the world’s best mantra.
Meanwhile, the first four episodes of Season 6 of The Crown are now streaming on Netflix. The final six will not be released until December 14th.