City native pens his own ditty about his beloved Saints

Published 12:00 am Sunday, February 7, 2010

Like so many devout Saints fans, former Vicksburg resident David Williams never dreamed the team once known as the “Aints” would someday play in the Super Bowl.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said Williams, 66, a Vicksburg native now living in Louisiana.

The morning after the Saints victory, Williams began to think about ways to pay homage to the team he loves. He started mentally composing a song and scribbled notes furiously.

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To listen to the song, click here then scroll to the bottom of the page, Vicksburg News

Lyrics available on this page by scrolling down

“One thing led to another and the song was written,” he said. “It took about 45 minutes for me to write the song, but four or five hours to get it to music.”

He phoned his musician cousin, Ted Holman of Vicksburg, who has a recording studio in his home, and sang the song over the phone.

“He said, ‘Bubba, I love it,’” Williams said.

Williams drove to Vicksburg last Sunday to record the track.

“Out of the blue he called me and said, ‘Teddy, I got something here,’” said Holman, one-half of the DiamondJacks Casino house band of Arthur and Ted. “He sang the song over the phone and I said, ‘David, that is all right.’”

Holman worked on the background music, which sounds similar to The Animals classic “House of the Rising Sun.” That song, about New Orleans, was the perfect match, Williams said.

When Williams arrived, Holman had already laid the instrumentals.

“He wanted me to sing it, but I could never sing ‘House of the Rising Sun’, so I said, ‘You sing it,’” Holman said. “We went through it, changed a couple words and recorded it.”

Williams sang the song only one time. “After one take, Ted said, ‘That will do it,’” Williams said.

A few hours later, a few CDs had been made of the song, titled “Super Bowl XLIV” and the push for air time began.

The song begins, “There is a team/down in New Orleans/They’re called/The Who Dat Saints.” A drumline and keyboard accompanies the song, which lasts about 5 minutes.

Now Williams is hoping the song catches on with radio stations around the South. He said the song has already been played on a station in New Orleans, and he is planning on pitching it to several stations in Baton Rouge. Vicksburg stations also are being targeted because of Williams’ connections to Vicksburg.

He graduated from Culkin Academy in 1962 and married the former Lyndale Pepper, also a Culkin grad. He moved away in the 1970s, spent time in Beaumont, Texas, and across Louisiana before settling in Wilson, La. — about five miles south of the Mississippi border.

His love of the Saints began in 1967, the first year of the franchise. He has watched many losing seasons filled with broken dreams and dashed hopes before the team reached the pinnacle of professional football.

“They said hell would freeze over before the Saints made it to the Super Bowl,” said Williams. “I guess it has frozen over.”

Sean P. Murphy is Web editor. Contact him at 601-6364545 or smurphy@vicksburgpost.com

SUPER BOWL XLIV

There is a team down in New Orlans they call the Who-Dat Saints

They fought their way through the championship

They no longer can be called the “Aint’s”

Their playing in super bowl forty four

They’ll meet Payton and the Colts

The battle is set down in Miami

The winner will be the champ

Don’t worry about Brees and his scoring machine

they’ll score time and time again

But Payton has some answers himself studying and studying the film

If you are not careful he’ll beat you in the end

Like he’s done so many times, time and time again.

He’ll take you down to the very end with sadness you’ll look at the score

So let this be a lesson to learn, the winner will over come

They’ll leave the field with the big rings on

The winner of the super bowl.