Steve Goodman: Facing the Music
by Clay Eals

"Go, Cubs, Go"

Steve Goodman at Wrigley Field, 1981. Photo courtesy Bob Sirott.

The phenomenon of "Go, Cubs, Go"

The ecstasy of early victory and the agony of ultimate defeat have defined the persona of the Chicago Cubs for more than 100 years -- and they underlie Steve Goodman's two classic songs about his favorite team:

• "A Dying Cub Fan's Last Request" (1981)
• "Go, Cubs, Go" (1984)

The two tunes are forever linked, as the latter grew out of the former in Chicago grassroots fashion. After Goodman was banned from singing "Dying Cub Fan" at Wrigley because of its affectionate depiction of the team's futility, he was commissioned to write a more optimistic song. Thus was born "Go, Cubs, Go," just six months before Goodman's death.

"Go, Cubs, Go," the team's official song in 1984 and for several years afterward, became a true phenomenon in 2007. The catchy anthem rocked Wrigley Field at the end of every home win, and all 40,000 fans present joined in the singing. This led to Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn declaring Oct. 5, 2007, to be Steve Goodman Day throughout the state -- just one day before a Cub loss dropped the team out of post-season competition. Throughout 2008, the 100th anniversary of when the team last won the World Series, the bellowing continued, both in and outside of Wrigley. The team echoed the strains, leading the majors in wins nearly all season long, only to drop three straight in the first playoff, falling short of the World Series once again.

Because the Cubs tilted at their losing reputation in 2008, nearly every day the stellar musicianship of Steve Goodman gained new prominence. Articles in the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post and on the Major League Baseball and CBS Sports sites (to name just a few) saluted the enduring charm of Goodman's two Cubs songs.

Through this coverage, fans have developed heartstrings for Goodman beyond his status as a peerless musician of his era. Goodman died at the young age of 36 of leukemia nearly 16 years after his first diagnosis, lending poignancy to the comments of his mother, Minnette, to Chicago Tribune columnist Eric Zorn. Hearing a ballpark full of fans singing "Go, Cubs, Go" is an experience both rewarding and comforting, she said. "It blows my mind."

Happily, many who are getting to know Goodman for the first time via his visceral love for baseball are discovering that he is the same guy who wrote the nearly mythical "City of New Orleans" and many other affecting romantic, hilarious and socially acerbic tunes.

The prospect of eventual Cub success begs some serious questions. Would the team shed its "loveable loser" mystique and become just like every other team that seems to win it all every once in awhile? More pertinent to Steve Goodman, it would be a milestone if the Cubs were to merely reach the World Series, which "Dying Cub Fan" points out sardonically hasn't happened since 1945. In that event, "Go, Cubs, Go" would fulfill its destiny, but some rewriting of "Dying Cub Fan" would be in order. Or would anyone dare to rewrite what many consider the best baseball song ever?

Whatever happens, from some unknown position Steve Goodman is enjoying two bags of peanuts and a frosty malt, relishing a front-row seat to it all. Go, Steve, Go.

Want to know more?

The symbiotic origin and impact of "Dying Cub Fan" and "Go, Cubs, Go" is a topic that is covered in great detail in "Steve Goodman: Facing the Music."