Summary
“Rock, Flag and Eagle” is a hilarious song from the minds of theIt’s Always Sunny inPhiladelphiacrew, and it was almost even funnier.It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphiais incredibly adept at mocking society, culture, and politics. The writers (who are also the stars) have a knack for finding ultra-specific aspects of American life and skewering them to the point of absurdity.They’ve tackled everything from garbage strikes to the theory of evolutionin over16 seasons ofIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Sometimes they’ve done it through strangely catchy songs, generally sung at inopportune times.
Songs are only occasionally a part ofIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphiaepisodes, but they’re always appreciated when they come on. They’re not always long, but they still manage to get stuck in a viewer’s head. Take season 2, episode 9, “Charlie Goes America All Over Everybody’s Ass”. In the episode, Charlie (Charlie Day) and Mac (Rob McElhenney) get over-invested in the idea of American patriotism, leading to Charlie breaking into an impromptu song, “Rock, Flag and Eagle”. It lasts less than 20 seconds, butit’s the best part of the episode.
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It’s Always Sunny’s “Rock, Flag And Eagle” Song Was Inspired By American Truck Commercials
The Song Features Stereotypical American Symbols
In the episode, Charlie has tried and failed to perform in front of a crowd, vomiting from stage fright. When he and Dee (Kaitlin Olson) return to Paddy’s Pub to find it filled with the worst kind of clientele, thanks to Mac and Dennis' (Glenn Howerton) new “anything goes” policy,Charlie summons the courage to sing a patriotic song, “Rock, Flag and Eagle”. He begins by improvising random lyrics, mumbling generic “American” words like “truck” and “kicking ass”, before finally landing on the crescendo, “Rock, flag and eagle!”,
“I’m gonna rise up, I’m gonna kick a little ass, gonna kick some ass in the USA, gonna climb a mountain, gonna sew a flag, gonna fly on an eagle, I’m gonna kick some butt, I’m gonna drive a big truck, I’m gonna rule this world, gonna kick some ass, gonna rise up, kick a little ass - ROCK, FLAG AND EAGLE!”
The gang shared the inspiration for this “patriotic” song onThe Always Sunny Podcast. Day said he and co-writer David Hornsby (Rickety Cricket) used to joke around about similar anthems,
“Hornsby and I would joke about truck commercials, and that they — at that time, I don’t know if they’re still doing this — it seemed like they were just pumping out the most stereotypical American things. So, it was, like, eagles and rocks and it was just like, you know. Flags… Drive a big truck, gonna kick some ass, whatever. So, that — I think it was just coming from there. Just, like, grabbing that riff in my head.”
It’s a hilarious parody of those over-the-top car, truck, and beer commercials where there doesn’t seem to be any point to the lyrics save for the multiple mentions of American symbols like eagles and the flag. Day and Hornsby stretched that idea by also including stereotypical American things that aren’t exactly patriotic, like “trucks” and “rock”.
It’s Always Sunny’s Mary Elizabeth Ellis Almost “Rock, Flag And Eagle” Even More Over-The-Top
Dennis And Mac Are Not In The Shot Because They Are Laughing Too Much
Mary Elizabeth Ellis playsthe Waitress inIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphiaand is Charlie Day’s real-life wife. Day mentions in the podcast episode that Ellis had a great idea to take the song even further,
“Mary Elizabeth [Ellis] had a really funny [riff], too. She used to joke that they would take it as far as, like, Jesus carrying the cross. And then all of a sudden, like, a truck comes up and he, like, throws the cross in the back of the truck to take himself up the hill. It was like, ‘Jesus drives a Ford.’ So, credit to Mary Elizabeth for that one.”
This just takes the idea Hornsby and Day were circling and kicks it up another level.There is a stereotype of American culture that it’s obsessed with religion, in the same way there are stereotypes about trucks, eagles, flags, and other hyper-American fixations. Adding this extra layer of satirization about Jesus and getting the truck and cross involved just ups the comedy. Only Charlie and Dee are in the shot of Charlie singing because McElhenny and Howerton are laughing too much to do their usual riffing. The shot may have just been Day if he included Ellis' lyrics.
How “Rock, Flag And Eagle” Compare To Other It’s Always Sunny Songs
IASIP Is Filled With Excellent Original Songs
“Rock, Flag and Eagle” is an excellentIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphiasong, but there are so many good ones to choose from. “The Nightman Cometh”, “What Are the Rules?”, “Birds of War”, “Go F**k Yourself”, and “Yankee Doodle” are just a few of the incredible musical moments in the show. “Rock, Flag and Eagle” is actually one of the shorter numbers in the show, but those 20 seconds are enough to make it as memorable as any.
“Rock, Flag and Eagle”
“Birds of War”
“What Are the Rules?”
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Cast
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is a television series that premiered in 2005, chronicling the chaotic lives of four self-involved friends running an Irish pub in Philadelphia. Their misguided decisions and skewed perspectives often result in amusing and uncomfortable situations, complicating their professional and personal relationships.
