Olympic tribute song surfaces after 46 years
The guitar sets a folksy tone and a man’s voice bellows out a long-unheard song through the speakers.
“Nancy Greene, our Nancy Greene, fairest flower ever seen. The sun will shine, the moon will beam down on the one, our Nancy Greene,” the chorus rings.
The folk song Nancy Greene was recorded by Bob Unrau and originated in Greene’s hometown of Rossland, B.C. An online version of the two-sided record, which includes a second track called Rossland B.C., surfaced in social media circles at the end of the ski season.
The song refers to Greene as “our skiing champ, our Canadian queen” and “our only champion girl.”
SPIN reached out to Unrau’s daughter on social media to find out more.
“Gosh, way back when on the 45’s,” said Amberlee Ficociello, reminiscing on the music format of her father’s day. The song was written by Alex Riley, who was friends with Greene when she won Olympic gold and silver in 1968 and was recorded the following year.
She said she loved to hear of father’s recording surfacing after so many years.
“It’s touching because music was such a big part of my Dad’s life. It’s nice that some gets recognized and acknowledged because, that recording especially goes back a really long time,” she said, including that Unrau now lives in a senior’s home in West Kelowna and is nearing the age of 80.
Unrau loved to play country music and was always part of small band growing up. He was inspired by the likes of Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley.
As far as Ficociello is aware this is her father’s only recording and she still has a few copies at her home.
Nancy Greene Raine said it’s the only song to her knowledge that was written in her honour following her Olympic wins.
“I don’t think I’d ever heard it before. It certainly wasn’t familiar,” Greene Raine said. “It’s kind of funny, a blast out of the past.”
She said she feels fortunate to have grown up in an active community where everybody knows each other and there was a ton of local support.
“It makes you really appreciate where your roots are and you never forget that,” Greene Raine said. “You never forget the people that helped you get where you got to.”
The song can be heard at http://citizenfreak.com/titles/305315-unrau-bob-nancy-greene-b-w-rossland-b-c.
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