Always remember as a kid
Float like a butterfly
Sting like a bee
The great smell of Brut
And the punch of Ali
He had the balls to fight Joe Frazier.
HE was the greatest I listened to him brag and recite poetry over the radio of my dad’s Ford Fairlane 500.
Clay comes out to meet Liston and Liston starts to retreat,
if Liston goes back an inch farther he’ll end up in a ringside seat.
Clay swings with his left, Clay swings with his right,
Look at young Cassius carry the fight
Liston keeps backing, but there’s not enough room,
It’s a matter of time till Clay lowers the boom.
Now Clay lands with a right, what a beautiful swing,
And the punch raises the Bear clean out of the ring.
Liston is still rising and the ref wears a frown,
For he can’t start counting till Sonny goes down.
Now Liston is disappearing from view, the crowd is going frantic,
But radar stations have picked him up, somewhere over the Atlantic.
Who would have thought when they came to the fight?
That they’d witness the launching of a human satellite.
Yes the crowd did not dream, when they put up the money,
That they would see a total eclipse of the Sonny.
(Except I remember him saying “the launch of a black satellite”)
This will shock and amaze ya
but Ali will defeat Joe Frazia
Against Liston it was...
I’ll Float like a butterfly
And Sting like a bee
His hands can’t hit
What his eyes can’t see.
But this was his best one IMO (also before the Sonny Liston fight:
Clay comes out to meet Liston
and Liston starts to retreat,
if Liston goes back an inch farther
he’ll end up in a ringside seat.
Clay swings with his left,
Clay swings with his right,
Look at young Cassius
carry the fight
Liston keeps backing, but there’s not enough room,
It’s a matter of time till Clay lowers the boom.
Now Clay lands with a right,
What a beautiful swing,
and the punch raises the Bear
clean out of the ring.
Liston is still rising and the ref wears a frown,
For he can’t start counting
till Sonny goes down.
Now Liston is disappearing from view,
The crowd is going frantic,
But radar stations have picked him up,
Somewhere over the Atlantic.
Who would have thought
when they came to the fight?
That they’d witness the launching
of a human satellite.
Yes the crowd did not dream,
when they put up the money,
That they would see
a total eclipse of the Sonny.
R.I.P Ali. I also remember him when I was a kid. Another part of my childhood gone.
This is gonna shock and amaze ya,
But I’m gonna whip Joe Frazia
I even remember the short lived cartoon.
RIP Ali.