The simple power of violence is all you need in “Song for Greg Valentine.”

Track: “Song for Greg Valentine”
Album: Unreleased

The discussion of if wrestling is real or not misses the point. This is central to all the Mountain Goats songs about wrestling, but it also really assumes you’re way past that point. I watched a lot of wrestling when I was younger and I don’t watch any now, but I feel like I still understand and appreciate what people are getting out of it. That said, it is an insular world. Justin McElroy, the podcaster, once said something that still sticks with me: “I often find when I don’t know who a celebrity is, it turns out they’re a wrestler.” It’s funny for several reasons but it’s also a reminder that this world is huge even without you knowing anything about it.

The real Greg Valentine that gives the title to “Song for Greg Valentine” was indeed a legendary wrestler. One of his gimmicks was to “break legs,” which explains the song’s driving message. “Break legs,” John Darnielle echoes over and over, giving the crowd that heard it the one time (maybe, likely, probably) it was ever played one more anthem of resistance. This one’s great and the only performance of it includes a full explanation of the man himself and the gimmick the song is about, but I invite you to also read the extremely (inordinately, maybe?) long wiki on Greg Valentine. He was a fascinating man, but you learn almost as much about the legacy of wrestling and fandom in that someone shortens Junkyard Dog to “JYD” here and in this space, well, that’s just fine.