Former England international John Barnes has branded some of his former teammates “frauds” for skipping the recording of the iconic 1990 World Cup anthem 'World in Motion' in favour of visiting a pub. Speaking to online bingo provider Zingo Bingo, Barnes reflected on the making of the track, which was recorded with the band New Order.
Only six players attended the recording session
Barnes recalled that only six members of the England squad actually took part in the recording: himself, Paul Gascoigne, Peter Beardsley, Steve McMahon, Chris Waddle, and Des Walker. The rest of the team opted out, choosing to go to the pub instead. “There’s a story behind this, and I’m going to expose a lot of the frauds involved,” Barnes said. “As much as this is a number-one hit for the England World Cup song from 1990, there were only six people who were on the song.”
According to Barnes, the players' reluctance stemmed from a previous experience in 1986 when the squad recorded 'Viva Es Spana' for the Mexico World Cup, which he described as “terrible.” When manager Bobby Robson proposed another song for 1990, the players were initially unaware that New Order would be involved. “We thought it was going to be typical: 20 players with their arms around each other, the song was going to be terrible,” Barnes explained.
Surprise discovery of New Order's involvement
Barnes noted that the players only discovered the quality of the project upon arriving at the studio in Marlow, Buckinghamshire. “It was not until we got to the studios that we saw Keith Alan, Peter Hook and Bernard Sumner from New Order. That was the first time that we knew it was a New Order song and it was going to be good,” he said. Despite only six players attending, the song became a number-one hit, and all squad members appeared in the music video.
Elsewhere in the interview, Barnes spoke about the importance of his family to his football career. “My family is the most important thing,” he said. “My mum and dad, they are the reason I’m the person I am and do everything I do. They’re the reason I’m a footballer and I became the husband and father I am.”
