American Folk And Patriotic Song Lyrics And Chords
American Folk And Patriotic Song Lyrics And Guitar Chords. Some have the banjo / mandolin tabs. A lot of these songs were already scattered around the site for years. I decided to bring the together on the one page. The newer one's which are the patriotic one's had the chords put to them by Marc. There are still a handful of American songs in other sections of the site which I left there because a lot of visitors to the site come here often and like to find the links to the songs where they are used to finding them, songs like A Mother's Love's A Blessing song and Two Sweethearts. There are many more songs that have become more popular in Ireland than America even though they were written by American's, for example ''Where My Eileen Is Waiting For Me '' was recorded here in Ireland by Johnny McEvoy and most people assume it's an Irish one. The guitar chord system is chordpro .
Music has always been an integral part of American culture, with its roots tracing back to the early years of the country’s history. From the revolutionary war to present day, American patriotic songs have played a significant role in shaping the nation’s identity and instilling a sense of pride and unity among its citizens.
One of the earliest forms of American patriotic songs can be traced back to the Revolutionary War. Soldiers, fighting for the country’s independence, sang songs such as “Yankee Doodle” and “The Liberty Song” to boost morale and inspire courage. These songs not only served as a means of entertainment, but also as a way to express their love and loyalty towards their newly formed nation.
As the country developed and expanded, so did its music. In the 19th century, patriotic songs became more popular and were used to celebrate national holidays and events. Songs like “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” and “America the Beautiful” were written during this time, reflecting the country’s growing sense of national pride and identity.
However, it was during times of war that American patriotic songs truly gained significance. The Civil War saw the emergence of songs like “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Dixie”, which were used to rally soldiers and citizens alike. These songs not only expressed the country’s determination and resilience, but also highlighted the division and conflict within the nation at that time.
The two World Wars saw the rise of popular patriotic songs such as “God Bless America” and “Over There”. These songs were used to unite the country and boost morale, as well as to honor the sacrifices made by soldiers and their families. They also served as a reminder of the values and ideals that the country stood for.
In the 20th century, American patriotic songs took on a new form with the emergence of genres like country and rock. Artists like Woody Guthrie, Johnny Cash, and Bruce Springsteen wrote songs that reflected the struggles and triumphs of the working class and the American spirit. These songs, such as “This Land is Your Land” and “Born in the USA”, became anthems for the common people and a means of expressing their patriotism.
The 21st century has seen a resurgence of patriotism in American music, with artists like Beyoncé, Katy Perry, and Lady Gaga all contributing to the genre with their own unique styles. Songs like “Proud to be an American” and “Firework” have become popular anthems, with their messages of unity, resilience, and freedom resonating with audiences.
American patriotic songs not only reflect the country’s history and values, but also serve as a form of cultural expression. They have the power to evoke strong emotions and bring people together, regardless of their backgrounds or beliefs. These songs have become a part of American identity, ingrained in the nation’s collective consciousness.
Furthermore, American patriotic songs have also been used as a means of protest and social commentary. During the Civil Rights Movement, songs like “We Shall Overcome” and “Blowin’ in the Wind” became powerful tools in the fight for equality and justice. They gave a voice to marginalized communities and showcased the power of music to bring about social change.
In recent years, there has been much debate surrounding the use of patriotic songs, with some arguing that they are exclusionary and promote a narrow definition of patriotism. However, it can be argued that these songs have evolved and adapted to reflect the changing values and beliefs of the country. They have become more inclusive and diverse, representing the melting pot of cultures and identities that make up the American nation.
In conclusion, American patriotic songs have played a crucial role in shaping the nation’s identity and unifying its people. They have evolved alongside the country, reflecting its history, struggles, and triumphs. These songs continue to hold immense significance in American culture, reminding us of the values and ideals that bind us together as a nation.
Introduction - Folk Songs
American folk songs are an essential part of the country’s cultural heritage, representing the diverse voices, experiences, and traditions of its people. These songs have been passed down through generations, evolving and adapting to reflect the changing times and social contexts. They are an integral part of the American identity, serving as a means of expression, storytelling, and community building. In this thesis, we will explore the history, characteristics, and significance of American folk songs, and how they have shaped and been shaped by the country’s cultural landscape.
History of American Folk Songs
The roots of American folk songs can be traced back to the country’s early settlers, who brought with them the music and oral traditions of their native lands. These songs were often used to tell stories, pass down religious and cultural beliefs, and provide entertainment. As America grew and expanded, these songs evolved and blended with the music of different immigrant groups, including African Americans, Native Americans, and European immigrants. This fusion of musical styles and traditions gave birth to a rich and diverse repertoire of folk songs that reflected the country’s multiculturalism.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the popularity of American folk songs grew, particularly with the rise of the industrial revolution and the expansion of railroads. This allowed for the dissemination of folk songs to a wider audience, and they became an essential part of popular culture. Many of these songs were collected and preserved by folklorists and ethnomusicologists, such as John Lomax and Alan Lomax, who traveled across the country documenting and recording these songs.
Characteristics of American Folk Songs
American folk songs are characterized by their simplicity, authenticity, and oral tradition. They are often passed down through generations by word of mouth, with no written notation. This has led to variations and different versions of the same song, depending on the region, community, or individual who sings it. The lyrics of these songs are usually simple and easy to remember, making them accessible to a wide audience.
Another defining characteristic of American folk songs is their storytelling nature. These songs often tell a story or convey a message, whether it be a historical event, a personal experience, or a moral lesson. They serve as a means of preserving and passing down cultural and historical knowledge, as well as providing a platform for social commentary and political protest.
Significance of American Folk Songs
American folk songs hold immense cultural, historical, and social significance. They provide a window into the lives and experiences of ordinary people, giving a voice to those who may not have had a platform for expression. These songs also serve as a means of connection and community building, as they are often sung and shared in communal settings such as festivals, gatherings, and work environments.
Moreover, American folk songs have played a crucial role in shaping the country’s music landscape, influencing various genres such as country, blues, bluegrass, and rock. Many popular musicians, such as Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Woody Guthrie, have drawn inspiration from American folk songs and incorporated them into their music. This has helped to keep these songs alive and relevant for new generations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, American folk songs are an essential part of the country’s cultural identity, representing the diversity and resilience of its people. They have evolved and adapted to reflect the changing times and social contexts, and continue to serve as a means of expression, storytelling, and community building. Through their simplicity, authenticity, and oral tradition, these songs have preserved and passed down cultural and historical knowledge, while also shaping the country’s musical landscape. It is crucial to recognize and appreciate the significance of American folk songs in order to understand the country’s past, present, and future.
One of the earliest forms of American patriotic songs can be traced back to the Revolutionary War. Soldiers, fighting for the country’s independence, sang songs such as “Yankee Doodle” and “The Liberty Song” to boost morale and inspire courage. These songs not only served as a means of entertainment, but also as a way to express their love and loyalty towards their newly formed nation.
As the country developed and expanded, so did its music. In the 19th century, patriotic songs became more popular and were used to celebrate national holidays and events. Songs like “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” and “America the Beautiful” were written during this time, reflecting the country’s growing sense of national pride and identity.
However, it was during times of war that American patriotic songs truly gained significance. The Civil War saw the emergence of songs like “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Dixie”, which were used to rally soldiers and citizens alike. These songs not only expressed the country’s determination and resilience, but also highlighted the division and conflict within the nation at that time.
The two World Wars saw the rise of popular patriotic songs such as “God Bless America” and “Over There”. These songs were used to unite the country and boost morale, as well as to honor the sacrifices made by soldiers and their families. They also served as a reminder of the values and ideals that the country stood for.
In the 20th century, American patriotic songs took on a new form with the emergence of genres like country and rock. Artists like Woody Guthrie, Johnny Cash, and Bruce Springsteen wrote songs that reflected the struggles and triumphs of the working class and the American spirit. These songs, such as “This Land is Your Land” and “Born in the USA”, became anthems for the common people and a means of expressing their patriotism.
The 21st century has seen a resurgence of patriotism in American music, with artists like Beyoncé, Katy Perry, and Lady Gaga all contributing to the genre with their own unique styles. Songs like “Proud to be an American” and “Firework” have become popular anthems, with their messages of unity, resilience, and freedom resonating with audiences.
American patriotic songs not only reflect the country’s history and values, but also serve as a form of cultural expression. They have the power to evoke strong emotions and bring people together, regardless of their backgrounds or beliefs. These songs have become a part of American identity, ingrained in the nation’s collective consciousness.
Furthermore, American patriotic songs have also been used as a means of protest and social commentary. During the Civil Rights Movement, songs like “We Shall Overcome” and “Blowin’ in the Wind” became powerful tools in the fight for equality and justice. They gave a voice to marginalized communities and showcased the power of music to bring about social change.
In recent years, there has been much debate surrounding the use of patriotic songs, with some arguing that they are exclusionary and promote a narrow definition of patriotism. However, it can be argued that these songs have evolved and adapted to reflect the changing values and beliefs of the country. They have become more inclusive and diverse, representing the melting pot of cultures and identities that make up the American nation.
In conclusion, American patriotic songs have played a crucial role in shaping the nation’s identity and unifying its people. They have evolved alongside the country, reflecting its history, struggles, and triumphs. These songs continue to hold immense significance in American culture, reminding us of the values and ideals that bind us together as a nation.
Introduction - Folk Songs
American folk songs are an essential part of the country’s cultural heritage, representing the diverse voices, experiences, and traditions of its people. These songs have been passed down through generations, evolving and adapting to reflect the changing times and social contexts. They are an integral part of the American identity, serving as a means of expression, storytelling, and community building. In this thesis, we will explore the history, characteristics, and significance of American folk songs, and how they have shaped and been shaped by the country’s cultural landscape.
History of American Folk Songs
The roots of American folk songs can be traced back to the country’s early settlers, who brought with them the music and oral traditions of their native lands. These songs were often used to tell stories, pass down religious and cultural beliefs, and provide entertainment. As America grew and expanded, these songs evolved and blended with the music of different immigrant groups, including African Americans, Native Americans, and European immigrants. This fusion of musical styles and traditions gave birth to a rich and diverse repertoire of folk songs that reflected the country’s multiculturalism.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the popularity of American folk songs grew, particularly with the rise of the industrial revolution and the expansion of railroads. This allowed for the dissemination of folk songs to a wider audience, and they became an essential part of popular culture. Many of these songs were collected and preserved by folklorists and ethnomusicologists, such as John Lomax and Alan Lomax, who traveled across the country documenting and recording these songs.
Characteristics of American Folk Songs
American folk songs are characterized by their simplicity, authenticity, and oral tradition. They are often passed down through generations by word of mouth, with no written notation. This has led to variations and different versions of the same song, depending on the region, community, or individual who sings it. The lyrics of these songs are usually simple and easy to remember, making them accessible to a wide audience.
Another defining characteristic of American folk songs is their storytelling nature. These songs often tell a story or convey a message, whether it be a historical event, a personal experience, or a moral lesson. They serve as a means of preserving and passing down cultural and historical knowledge, as well as providing a platform for social commentary and political protest.
Significance of American Folk Songs
American folk songs hold immense cultural, historical, and social significance. They provide a window into the lives and experiences of ordinary people, giving a voice to those who may not have had a platform for expression. These songs also serve as a means of connection and community building, as they are often sung and shared in communal settings such as festivals, gatherings, and work environments.
Moreover, American folk songs have played a crucial role in shaping the country’s music landscape, influencing various genres such as country, blues, bluegrass, and rock. Many popular musicians, such as Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Woody Guthrie, have drawn inspiration from American folk songs and incorporated them into their music. This has helped to keep these songs alive and relevant for new generations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, American folk songs are an essential part of the country’s cultural identity, representing the diversity and resilience of its people. They have evolved and adapted to reflect the changing times and social contexts, and continue to serve as a means of expression, storytelling, and community building. Through their simplicity, authenticity, and oral tradition, these songs have preserved and passed down cultural and historical knowledge, while also shaping the country’s musical landscape. It is crucial to recognize and appreciate the significance of American folk songs in order to understand the country’s past, present, and future.
Banks Of The Ohio
Back Home Again
The Boys Of The Irish Brigade
Blanket On The Ground
Hard Times
Seven Spanish Boots
Dreaming My Dreams
Deportees
I'm My Own Grandpa
The Kissing Of The Sheriff's Wife
Private Maguire
Tessie By The Dropkick Murphy's
The Torch By The Dropkick Murphy's
The Boys That Wore The Green
The Sands Of Mexico
The Star Spangled Banner Sheet Music Notes And Chords
The Irish Volunteer
Young America and Ould Ireland
Back Home Again
The Boys Of The Irish Brigade
Blanket On The Ground
Hard Times
Seven Spanish Boots
Dreaming My Dreams
Deportees
I'm My Own Grandpa
The Kissing Of The Sheriff's Wife
Private Maguire
Tessie By The Dropkick Murphy's
The Torch By The Dropkick Murphy's
The Boys That Wore The Green
The Sands Of Mexico
The Star Spangled Banner Sheet Music Notes And Chords
The Irish Volunteer
Young America and Ould Ireland
Red River Valley
The Sinking Of The Reuben James
To Arms And Dixie
Kelly's Irish Brigade
The Yellow Rose Of Texas
We'll Fight For Uncle Sam
Dixie's Land
The Bonnie Blue Flag
The Opinions of Paddy Magee
The Irish Battalion
The Rose Of Alabamy
Song Of The Rebel Irish
The Southern Soldier
Sons Of Molly
St. Patrick's Battalion
The Men That God Made Mad
Free And Green
I Left My Love
May I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight Mister
The Sinking Of The Reuben James
To Arms And Dixie
Kelly's Irish Brigade
The Yellow Rose Of Texas
We'll Fight For Uncle Sam
Dixie's Land
The Bonnie Blue Flag
The Opinions of Paddy Magee
The Irish Battalion
The Rose Of Alabamy
Song Of The Rebel Irish
The Southern Soldier
Sons Of Molly
St. Patrick's Battalion
The Men That God Made Mad
Free And Green
I Left My Love
May I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight Mister
SO MANY are the folk songs, so various are the themes, tunes, types, and styles of folk music found in the United States that one
may well say...
These forty-eight states came singing out the wilderness
Many long years ago....
A people made a three-thousand-mile march between the eastern and western oceans. Songs traveled with them; songs were born along the way. Every hamlet produced its crop of local ballads of murders, disasters, and scandals. Every occupation had its specialized poesy. Every fiddler put his own twists on the tunes he learned from his pappy. Every child had its own skipping jingle, a little different from the next child.... Songs flowered up out of the lives of the people as liberally as wildflowers on the West Texas plains in April, and most of them vanished as quickly, sowing the land with seed for the next springtime crop of songs. Those songs that lived to walk the long, lone- some road with the people have been largely written down by folklorists during the past fifty years. The "best" of these, the "most representative" our favorites after years of collecting and singing-we have chosen for Folk Song: U.S.A. For beauty, variety, strength, and singability these 111 songs will, we believe, stand alongside any songs from any nation or level of culture.
You may not like them all at first. Folk song, as all art of serious intent, improves on acquaintance. Sing your way through this book. It was designed to be crooned and lilted, moaned and shouted through, not contemplated. Join your sin-ridden forefather as he bellows and thrashes all over the camp-meeting ground. Stomp and yell the lines of the hell-for-leather breakdown tunes. Raise up your head and howl with the cowboy over the lonesomeness and wonder of the Big West. Rock your own child to sleep with a tune that has lulled babies in log cabins and shanties. Only then will you feel how close these songs lie to your own and your country's marrow. Only then will you feel the surging life and the violent passions that lie hidden at times beneath the surface of these poker-faced songs. Only then will you feel the invigorating strength of this powerful folk art, the quality that sets it apart from popular song with its surface emotion and its cloying sweetness.
This is a sampling of America's folk songs- homemade hand-me-downs in words and music, songs accepted by whole communities, songs voted good by generations of singers and passed on by word of mouth to succeeding generations, a tradition quite distinct from popular song (made to sell and sell quickly) and cultivated art (made, so much of it, to conform to prestige patterns). If these songs had composers at first, they have been largely forgotten, and rightly so, since folk composers are adapters of old material rather than creators of original set pieces. The folk ballad-maker prefers to change an old song slightly to fit a new situation, making use of a tried tune and a well-loved plot formula and thus assuring himself of the favor of his audience. Every singer may then make his own emendations, to be accepted and passed on or rejected and forgotten by bis audiences. So the mass of a people participate in folk song's growth, forever reweaving old materials to create new versions, much as an old lady creates a new quilt out of an old by adding, year by year, new scraps and patches. So folk song grows in small steps, with every slight change tested for audience reaction, thereby achieving a permanence in man's affection matched only by the greatest art. This art lives upon the lips of the multitude and is transmitted by the grapevine, surviving sometimes for centuries because it reflects so well the deepest emotional convictions. of the common man. This is a truly democratic art, painting a portrait of the people, unmatched. for honesty and validity in any other record.
Examine the American record. This is not calendar art, not escape literature. (although there is much fantasy), or yet propaganda put out by some boost-America group advertising ours as the best of all possible lands and our people as generous and gay, well fed and genteel. Folk song, like any serious art, deals with realities- with poor boys a long way from home, with workers killed on the job, with bloody-handed murderers, with children dancing and fighting in the back yards, and with the dreams of all of these folk. There are deep shadows on this land- scape, the shadows of poverty and graceless toil. There are bitter hard lines in these faces, lines of violence and cruelty.... What lies in the minds of the gentle grandmothers we have heard, hour upon hour, chanting as their "favorite love songs" the old ballads in which love so often leads to bloodshed? What of the continual brooding over death in the spirituals?
The common man always has held the center of the stage in our balladry. From Paul Bunyan to Jesse James, the folklore heroes are brave, free-hearted, and handy on the job. A good hand was welcome and respected at the camp- fire, no matter what his race or religion, while a gent with "high-toned" airs was headed for certain trouble. Long before Whitman, Ameri- can folk singers rhapsodized the common man in all his dazzling variety, putting him first in all the ballads, describing him at work and play, and making his passions and problems their main concern. This is the big theme of American folk song, running through all the songs-the theme stated by Burns' "... A man's a man. for a' that." and even more powerfully in the Negro ballad, "John Henry."
A man ain't nothin' but a man....
The amazing popularity of "John Henry," "Frankie," and other Negro ballads among white singers, the tremendous enthusiasm of all Americans, no matter what their prejudices, for Negro folk music, and the profound influence of this music on American culture-all this denies the effect of Jim Crow at this level of human communication. From the beginning. Negroes and whites have swapped tunes, tales, dances, and religious ideas. And in the even more basic areas of speech and motor behavior this meeting of minds between the two groups is clearer still. White Americans, perhaps at first attracted by the exotic rhythms and earthy poesy of Negro song, have been deeply stirred by the poignant sorrow, the biting irony, and the noble yearning for a better world implicit there. And with every passing year American music becomes more definitely an Anglo-African blend. In American folk song, indeed-A man ain't nothin' but a man....
Certainly this is what the folklorist has to say to his audience. He goes where book-learning is not. He lives with the underprivileged. He brings back the proof in their songs and stories and dances that these folks are expressive and concerned about the beautiful and the good. In doing so, he continually denies the validity of caste lines and class barriers. Malinowski says of the anthropologist, "He also has the duty to speak as the native's advocate." Just so, the folklorist has the duty to speak as the advocate of the common man.
When my father collected and published the songs of the cowboy and the other pioneers of the great West, he became their advocate, just as a half century earlier Major Higginson had. championed the Negro slave in publishing the spirituals and declaring them beautiful. In the final analysis, it is our identification with the common man that has carried my father and myself on our ballad hunt across this continent. -into work camps and honky-tonks, into a thousand small houses, into the little churches, up back-country roads, and through the still horror of a score of penitentiaries. It is this enthusiasm that laid the basis for the Archive of American Folk Song in the Library of Congress, where we added the voice of the common man to the written record of America.
may well say...
These forty-eight states came singing out the wilderness
Many long years ago....
A people made a three-thousand-mile march between the eastern and western oceans. Songs traveled with them; songs were born along the way. Every hamlet produced its crop of local ballads of murders, disasters, and scandals. Every occupation had its specialized poesy. Every fiddler put his own twists on the tunes he learned from his pappy. Every child had its own skipping jingle, a little different from the next child.... Songs flowered up out of the lives of the people as liberally as wildflowers on the West Texas plains in April, and most of them vanished as quickly, sowing the land with seed for the next springtime crop of songs. Those songs that lived to walk the long, lone- some road with the people have been largely written down by folklorists during the past fifty years. The "best" of these, the "most representative" our favorites after years of collecting and singing-we have chosen for Folk Song: U.S.A. For beauty, variety, strength, and singability these 111 songs will, we believe, stand alongside any songs from any nation or level of culture.
You may not like them all at first. Folk song, as all art of serious intent, improves on acquaintance. Sing your way through this book. It was designed to be crooned and lilted, moaned and shouted through, not contemplated. Join your sin-ridden forefather as he bellows and thrashes all over the camp-meeting ground. Stomp and yell the lines of the hell-for-leather breakdown tunes. Raise up your head and howl with the cowboy over the lonesomeness and wonder of the Big West. Rock your own child to sleep with a tune that has lulled babies in log cabins and shanties. Only then will you feel how close these songs lie to your own and your country's marrow. Only then will you feel the surging life and the violent passions that lie hidden at times beneath the surface of these poker-faced songs. Only then will you feel the invigorating strength of this powerful folk art, the quality that sets it apart from popular song with its surface emotion and its cloying sweetness.
This is a sampling of America's folk songs- homemade hand-me-downs in words and music, songs accepted by whole communities, songs voted good by generations of singers and passed on by word of mouth to succeeding generations, a tradition quite distinct from popular song (made to sell and sell quickly) and cultivated art (made, so much of it, to conform to prestige patterns). If these songs had composers at first, they have been largely forgotten, and rightly so, since folk composers are adapters of old material rather than creators of original set pieces. The folk ballad-maker prefers to change an old song slightly to fit a new situation, making use of a tried tune and a well-loved plot formula and thus assuring himself of the favor of his audience. Every singer may then make his own emendations, to be accepted and passed on or rejected and forgotten by bis audiences. So the mass of a people participate in folk song's growth, forever reweaving old materials to create new versions, much as an old lady creates a new quilt out of an old by adding, year by year, new scraps and patches. So folk song grows in small steps, with every slight change tested for audience reaction, thereby achieving a permanence in man's affection matched only by the greatest art. This art lives upon the lips of the multitude and is transmitted by the grapevine, surviving sometimes for centuries because it reflects so well the deepest emotional convictions. of the common man. This is a truly democratic art, painting a portrait of the people, unmatched. for honesty and validity in any other record.
Examine the American record. This is not calendar art, not escape literature. (although there is much fantasy), or yet propaganda put out by some boost-America group advertising ours as the best of all possible lands and our people as generous and gay, well fed and genteel. Folk song, like any serious art, deals with realities- with poor boys a long way from home, with workers killed on the job, with bloody-handed murderers, with children dancing and fighting in the back yards, and with the dreams of all of these folk. There are deep shadows on this land- scape, the shadows of poverty and graceless toil. There are bitter hard lines in these faces, lines of violence and cruelty.... What lies in the minds of the gentle grandmothers we have heard, hour upon hour, chanting as their "favorite love songs" the old ballads in which love so often leads to bloodshed? What of the continual brooding over death in the spirituals?
The common man always has held the center of the stage in our balladry. From Paul Bunyan to Jesse James, the folklore heroes are brave, free-hearted, and handy on the job. A good hand was welcome and respected at the camp- fire, no matter what his race or religion, while a gent with "high-toned" airs was headed for certain trouble. Long before Whitman, Ameri- can folk singers rhapsodized the common man in all his dazzling variety, putting him first in all the ballads, describing him at work and play, and making his passions and problems their main concern. This is the big theme of American folk song, running through all the songs-the theme stated by Burns' "... A man's a man. for a' that." and even more powerfully in the Negro ballad, "John Henry."
A man ain't nothin' but a man....
The amazing popularity of "John Henry," "Frankie," and other Negro ballads among white singers, the tremendous enthusiasm of all Americans, no matter what their prejudices, for Negro folk music, and the profound influence of this music on American culture-all this denies the effect of Jim Crow at this level of human communication. From the beginning. Negroes and whites have swapped tunes, tales, dances, and religious ideas. And in the even more basic areas of speech and motor behavior this meeting of minds between the two groups is clearer still. White Americans, perhaps at first attracted by the exotic rhythms and earthy poesy of Negro song, have been deeply stirred by the poignant sorrow, the biting irony, and the noble yearning for a better world implicit there. And with every passing year American music becomes more definitely an Anglo-African blend. In American folk song, indeed-A man ain't nothin' but a man....
Certainly this is what the folklorist has to say to his audience. He goes where book-learning is not. He lives with the underprivileged. He brings back the proof in their songs and stories and dances that these folks are expressive and concerned about the beautiful and the good. In doing so, he continually denies the validity of caste lines and class barriers. Malinowski says of the anthropologist, "He also has the duty to speak as the native's advocate." Just so, the folklorist has the duty to speak as the advocate of the common man.
When my father collected and published the songs of the cowboy and the other pioneers of the great West, he became their advocate, just as a half century earlier Major Higginson had. championed the Negro slave in publishing the spirituals and declaring them beautiful. In the final analysis, it is our identification with the common man that has carried my father and myself on our ballad hunt across this continent. -into work camps and honky-tonks, into a thousand small houses, into the little churches, up back-country roads, and through the still horror of a score of penitentiaries. It is this enthusiasm that laid the basis for the Archive of American Folk Song in the Library of Congress, where we added the voice of the common man to the written record of America.
Songs Of America
"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel," the great English lexicographer, Samuel Johnson, is supposed to have said in 1775. And the alleged excesses of patriotic zeal have been roundly criticized by many other thoughtful commentators. Albert Einstein in 1921: "Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind." Or journalist H. L. Mencken, 1955: "Whenever you hear a man speak of his love for is country it is a sign that he expects to be paid for it." Nevertheless, most of us are more favorably disposed towards acts of patriotism, and take them as a mark of high virtue. Songs of patriotism generally emerge during times of war. They tend not to be propagandistic-that is, designed to convince any listener of the justness of one side's cause over that of the other. Rather, they try to unite already sympathetic listeners with pride for their leaders, their soldiers, or their country. So, not surprisingly, most of our best-known patriotic songs are associated with a war-from the Revolutionary War to the action against Iraq in the Persian gulf a few years ago. As the following notes indicate, authors or composers of many of our most popular patriotic songs have not been identified, suggesting possible folk origins for a number of them.
During the Napoleonic wars, Britain announced that it would prevent neutral ships from trading with their adversaries, the French, unless they first stopped at British ports. This, and other events associated with the war, so angered the Americans, who were still not on very good terms with their former rulers, that on June 18, 1812, Congress declared war. Several memorable ballads emerged from wartime events, but the best known composition is undoubtedly the STAR SPANGLED BANNER.
In September 1814, the British navy, preparatory to an attack on the port of Baltimore, bombarded nearby Fort McHenry. At the time, Francis Scott Key, lawyer and District Attorney for the District of Columbia, was being detained on a British ship, where he had gone as special emissary to seek the release of one of the State's prominent citizens who was being detained for various reasons. From the British ship he watched the shelling of Ft. McHenry with great trepidation, but in the morning, when he could see the American flag still flying over the fort, he realized with relief that the attack had been unsuccessful. He wrote his famous poem and published it less than a week later (September 18 or 19) as a broadside (a single sheet of text printed on one side) under the title, "Defence of Fort M'Henry," to the "Tune-Anacreon in Heaven." The latter was a composition for and by the Anacreontic Society of London-sort of an ole boys drinking club-that was published in 1779-80. The composer of the melody is not known with certainty but was probably John Stafford Smith, a member of the Society. "The Star Spangled Banner" enjoyed popularity in the years immediately after the war, but did not receive the wide acclaim and acceptance it now as until the Civil War. Not until 1931 did Congress make the song the official national anthem.
OVER THERE is the handiwork of an eminent American songwriter, George M. Cohan. It was published on June 1, 1917, less than 2 months after the United States entered World War I, and its lyrics boasted with brash confidence that our doughboys would soon put things right in Europe. It was first sung on stage by Nora Bayes.
ROUND HER NECK SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON has a long and colorful history. Its ultimate origins reach back to the Middle Ages when knights wore their fair ladies' colors in ribbons or scarves on their sleeves. The yellow ribbon in particular hearkens back to the 1870s, when wives of the riders of the U.S. Army's Seventh Cavalry wore such decorations in honor of their loved ones-probably inspired by the yellow stripe on the uniform pants, for which the Cavalry were nicknamed "The Yellowlegs." More directly, the song is based on an English song from around 1838, "All Round My Hat," words by J. Ansell, music by John Valentine, which begins (without the dialect), "All round my hat, I wear a green willow, all round my hat, for a twelvemonth and a day; If anyone should ask the reason why I wear it, Tell them that my true love is far, far away." In 1917, St. Louis-born journalist/songwriter George A. Norton (author of "Memphis Blues," "My Melancholy Baby," and others) wrote "Round Her Neck She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" for World War I, which was recorded in the next year by several popular phonograph artists. In 1949, John Wayne starred in a John Ford film, "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon." Two years later, the Andrews Sisters recorded a new version for the Korean war and sold a million copies. In 1973, Tony Orlando & Dawn recorded a completely different song about a man returning home from prison, "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree." That song was still current in 1979, when Iran took Americans hostage, and inspired a New York hostage's wife to tie yellow ribbons to trees, lampposts, and fences in remembrance of the hostages. Yellow ribbons reappeared in 1990 when Iran invaded Kuwait and American soldiers were sent to the Persian Gulf to stop Saddam Hussain. The song has thus come to have associations with several military conflicts over the past century.
IT'S A LONG WAY TO TIPPERARY was credited to two English vaudevillians, Jack Judge and Harry Williams when it was published in 1912. According to some sources, however, the song was written by Judge alone, who put Williams's name on it to repay a debt. Though written and published before World War I, it achieved its great popularity during that conflict. Many prominent singers of the day recorded it, including John McCormack and Enrico Caruso.
The sheet music for WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME credits Louis Lambert with words and music. "Lambert" was a pseudonym for Patrick S. Gilmore, the Irish-born bandmaster of the Union Army attached to Gen. Butler's command in New Orleans. The song was published in September 1863, just a few months after publication of "Johnny Fill Up the Bowl," which shares the same melody. The ultimate origin of the tune is still disputed; some, but not all, musicologists regard it as sounding distinctly Irish, and have sought, inconclusively, a source in Irish folk tunes.
The words of the stirring BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC were written by Julia Ward Howe, a New England abolitionist and newspaper editor, in November 1861, when she, her husband, and some others were visiting Washington and made an excursion to see a review of the troops of McClellan's army. On their way, the roads were full of marching troops, who sang various Army songs, among them, "John Brown's Body" (lies a-moldering in the grave...). One of their party suggested that Mrs. Howe write some new words for that thrilling tune. She stayed up late that night and finished off a poem, submitting it to the Atlantic Monthly, where it was published in the following February. However, the chorus, "Glory Hallelujah, had been published three or four years earlier. The identity of the composer of the melody has not been established. Incidentally, contrary to what is often written, the original John Brown of "John Brown's Body"was not the abolitionist John Brown hanged in 1859 for his infamous raid on Harper's Ferry, but was a sergeant killed in a skirmish at Ft. Warren just a few months earlier.
8TH OF JANUARY. The last major battle of the War of 1812 was the Battle of New Orleans, actually fought on January 8, 1815, some two weeks after the signing of the peace treaty between the Americans and the British at Ghent. Neither Andrew Jackson nor Sir Edward Pakenham, respectively the commanders of the American and British forces, knew that the war was already over. The British outnumbered the Americans but Jackson's brilliant leadership won the day; in the first half hour of battle the British suffered 2036 casualties or losses to the Americans' 21. The victory contributed immensely to Jackson's popularity and doubtless to his later election as 7th President of the United States.
Why is the South called "Dixie"? Many explanations have been offered, the most likely that it is contracted from the Mason-Dixon line, the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland that later was established, by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, as part of the boundary between free and slave states. So far, though, no one has found it in print before 1859, when Daniel Decatur Emmett used it in a song shortly before he wrote DIXIE. Or did he write "Dixie"? Ever since it was first publicly performed by Bryant's Minstrels on April 4, 1859, the accepted author of "Dixie" has been the celebrated minstrel star, Dan Emmett. Periodically, though there have arisen disputes over Emmett's claim; the most recent and thorough investigation by Howard and Judith Rose Sacks, published in 1993, argues (convincingly but not beyond any doubt) that the song was written by one of the Snowdens, an African-American musical family of former slaves who settled near Mt. Vernon, Ohio, where Emmett was born, died and lived most of his life. Almost certainly the Snowdens knew Emmett and may even have played music with him. But whether they wrote the song (or, as Ben Snowden's tombstone states, taught it to Emmett), is still in doubt. In any case, one can well imagine that acknowledging African- American authorship of the South's premier "national anthem" would be a bitter pill for many Southerners to swallow.
The words to MARYLAND, MY MARYLAND were written on April 23, 1861, by James R. Randall, a Baltimore native and professor of English literature at Polydras College, Pointe-Coup,e, Louisiana. It was published in a New Orleans newspaper three days later and became immensely popular, being frequently: reprinted by other Southern newspapers. A Miss Jennie Cary of Baltimore subsequently set it to the tune of the German Christmas song. "Tannenbaum."
No one knows exactly how or when "Yankee Doodle Dandy" originated. The song must have been well-known in the colonies in the 1760s, but its first mention in print was in an American comic opera of 1767. The words most of us associate with this ditty-"Yankee Doodle came to town, riding on a pony: stuck a feather in his hat and called in macaroni" had nothing to do with the original song, and were first published in a collection of traditional English nursery rhymes, Gammer Gurton's Garland, in 1810. They may, therefore, be English, not American. The origin of the tune is an even deeper mystery, with American, English, and central European sources having been claimed.
A story has circulated that at the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, which concluded hostilities of the War of 1812, the American representatives were asked what tune they wanted the Belgian band to play on behalf of the United States. The Americans-John Q. Adams, Henry Clay, and others were stumped; there was no printed music available, and none of them was musically inclined. Finally Adams recalled that his (African-American) servant could whistle anything, so they asked him to run through "Yankee Doodle." The bandmaster learned it from his whistling, and the band played it to everyone's satisfaction.
The tune in this collection, THE YANKEE DOODLE BOY, was George M. Cohan's 1904 composition, written for the musical play, "Little Johnny Jones." It incorporated phrases from the older well-known tune. "Yankee Doodle Dandy" was also the title of Cohan's biopic starring James Cagney.
As for the word "yankee" itself, it also has inspired many theories, but most popular is that it derives from Dutch, either janke, equivalent of "Little John," or Jan Kaas, literally. "John Cheese," a derogatory nickname for a Dutchman. (Compare "John Barleycom" or "John Bull," English nicknames.) There is, however, a dissenting opinion that asserts it is derived from Algonquinian, "awaunaguss," literally, "this stranger," which that tribe of American Indians is said to have used to refer to the English settlers. Whatever its source, it later came to mean a Dutch pirate, and the Dutch who settled in what is now New York applied the term scornfully to the English immigrants. Southern colonies used the term to apply to Northern colonists; Northerners used it to refer specifically to New Englanders. The British used it to refer to all Americans. During the Civil War it again came to mean Northerners, but when America entered World War I in 1917 the reference to all Americans returned.
STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER (you may know it better from the childhood parody. "Be kind to your webfooted friends...") was composed by America's March King, John Philip Sousa, director of the Marine Band, while on a ship returning to the United States from England in the fall of 1896. As he later recalled, "during the voyage the melodies of 'The Stars and Stripes Forever' came to me, as I paced the deck with a mental brass band playing the march fully a hundred times during the week I was on the steamer." It was published in May of the following year. It soon became a favorite during the brief Spanish-American War (1898), though it had been written earlier. Though Sousa was an early staunch opponent of the phonograph (in a 1906 magazine article titled, "The Menace of Mechanical Music" he railed against the anticipated effects of canned music: "...Singing will no longer be a fine accomplishment; vocal excercises will be out of vogue! Then what of the national throat? Will it not weaken? What of the national chest? Will it not shrink?") his band recorded "Stars and Stripes Forever at least three times: in 1897, 1901, and 1917.
Katherine Lee Bates, a professor of English Literature at Wellesley College, wrote the poem, AMERICA, THE BEAUTIFUL after climbing Pike's Peak in Colorado and gazing in wondrous admiration at the vast beauty of the country spread out around her. The poem was first printed in 1895, and in 1910 was set to music composed by Samuel A. Ward in 1882.
- Norm Cohen
"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel," the great English lexicographer, Samuel Johnson, is supposed to have said in 1775. And the alleged excesses of patriotic zeal have been roundly criticized by many other thoughtful commentators. Albert Einstein in 1921: "Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind." Or journalist H. L. Mencken, 1955: "Whenever you hear a man speak of his love for is country it is a sign that he expects to be paid for it." Nevertheless, most of us are more favorably disposed towards acts of patriotism, and take them as a mark of high virtue. Songs of patriotism generally emerge during times of war. They tend not to be propagandistic-that is, designed to convince any listener of the justness of one side's cause over that of the other. Rather, they try to unite already sympathetic listeners with pride for their leaders, their soldiers, or their country. So, not surprisingly, most of our best-known patriotic songs are associated with a war-from the Revolutionary War to the action against Iraq in the Persian gulf a few years ago. As the following notes indicate, authors or composers of many of our most popular patriotic songs have not been identified, suggesting possible folk origins for a number of them.
During the Napoleonic wars, Britain announced that it would prevent neutral ships from trading with their adversaries, the French, unless they first stopped at British ports. This, and other events associated with the war, so angered the Americans, who were still not on very good terms with their former rulers, that on June 18, 1812, Congress declared war. Several memorable ballads emerged from wartime events, but the best known composition is undoubtedly the STAR SPANGLED BANNER.
In September 1814, the British navy, preparatory to an attack on the port of Baltimore, bombarded nearby Fort McHenry. At the time, Francis Scott Key, lawyer and District Attorney for the District of Columbia, was being detained on a British ship, where he had gone as special emissary to seek the release of one of the State's prominent citizens who was being detained for various reasons. From the British ship he watched the shelling of Ft. McHenry with great trepidation, but in the morning, when he could see the American flag still flying over the fort, he realized with relief that the attack had been unsuccessful. He wrote his famous poem and published it less than a week later (September 18 or 19) as a broadside (a single sheet of text printed on one side) under the title, "Defence of Fort M'Henry," to the "Tune-Anacreon in Heaven." The latter was a composition for and by the Anacreontic Society of London-sort of an ole boys drinking club-that was published in 1779-80. The composer of the melody is not known with certainty but was probably John Stafford Smith, a member of the Society. "The Star Spangled Banner" enjoyed popularity in the years immediately after the war, but did not receive the wide acclaim and acceptance it now as until the Civil War. Not until 1931 did Congress make the song the official national anthem.
OVER THERE is the handiwork of an eminent American songwriter, George M. Cohan. It was published on June 1, 1917, less than 2 months after the United States entered World War I, and its lyrics boasted with brash confidence that our doughboys would soon put things right in Europe. It was first sung on stage by Nora Bayes.
ROUND HER NECK SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON has a long and colorful history. Its ultimate origins reach back to the Middle Ages when knights wore their fair ladies' colors in ribbons or scarves on their sleeves. The yellow ribbon in particular hearkens back to the 1870s, when wives of the riders of the U.S. Army's Seventh Cavalry wore such decorations in honor of their loved ones-probably inspired by the yellow stripe on the uniform pants, for which the Cavalry were nicknamed "The Yellowlegs." More directly, the song is based on an English song from around 1838, "All Round My Hat," words by J. Ansell, music by John Valentine, which begins (without the dialect), "All round my hat, I wear a green willow, all round my hat, for a twelvemonth and a day; If anyone should ask the reason why I wear it, Tell them that my true love is far, far away." In 1917, St. Louis-born journalist/songwriter George A. Norton (author of "Memphis Blues," "My Melancholy Baby," and others) wrote "Round Her Neck She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" for World War I, which was recorded in the next year by several popular phonograph artists. In 1949, John Wayne starred in a John Ford film, "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon." Two years later, the Andrews Sisters recorded a new version for the Korean war and sold a million copies. In 1973, Tony Orlando & Dawn recorded a completely different song about a man returning home from prison, "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree." That song was still current in 1979, when Iran took Americans hostage, and inspired a New York hostage's wife to tie yellow ribbons to trees, lampposts, and fences in remembrance of the hostages. Yellow ribbons reappeared in 1990 when Iran invaded Kuwait and American soldiers were sent to the Persian Gulf to stop Saddam Hussain. The song has thus come to have associations with several military conflicts over the past century.
IT'S A LONG WAY TO TIPPERARY was credited to two English vaudevillians, Jack Judge and Harry Williams when it was published in 1912. According to some sources, however, the song was written by Judge alone, who put Williams's name on it to repay a debt. Though written and published before World War I, it achieved its great popularity during that conflict. Many prominent singers of the day recorded it, including John McCormack and Enrico Caruso.
The sheet music for WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME credits Louis Lambert with words and music. "Lambert" was a pseudonym for Patrick S. Gilmore, the Irish-born bandmaster of the Union Army attached to Gen. Butler's command in New Orleans. The song was published in September 1863, just a few months after publication of "Johnny Fill Up the Bowl," which shares the same melody. The ultimate origin of the tune is still disputed; some, but not all, musicologists regard it as sounding distinctly Irish, and have sought, inconclusively, a source in Irish folk tunes.
The words of the stirring BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC were written by Julia Ward Howe, a New England abolitionist and newspaper editor, in November 1861, when she, her husband, and some others were visiting Washington and made an excursion to see a review of the troops of McClellan's army. On their way, the roads were full of marching troops, who sang various Army songs, among them, "John Brown's Body" (lies a-moldering in the grave...). One of their party suggested that Mrs. Howe write some new words for that thrilling tune. She stayed up late that night and finished off a poem, submitting it to the Atlantic Monthly, where it was published in the following February. However, the chorus, "Glory Hallelujah, had been published three or four years earlier. The identity of the composer of the melody has not been established. Incidentally, contrary to what is often written, the original John Brown of "John Brown's Body"was not the abolitionist John Brown hanged in 1859 for his infamous raid on Harper's Ferry, but was a sergeant killed in a skirmish at Ft. Warren just a few months earlier.
8TH OF JANUARY. The last major battle of the War of 1812 was the Battle of New Orleans, actually fought on January 8, 1815, some two weeks after the signing of the peace treaty between the Americans and the British at Ghent. Neither Andrew Jackson nor Sir Edward Pakenham, respectively the commanders of the American and British forces, knew that the war was already over. The British outnumbered the Americans but Jackson's brilliant leadership won the day; in the first half hour of battle the British suffered 2036 casualties or losses to the Americans' 21. The victory contributed immensely to Jackson's popularity and doubtless to his later election as 7th President of the United States.
Why is the South called "Dixie"? Many explanations have been offered, the most likely that it is contracted from the Mason-Dixon line, the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland that later was established, by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, as part of the boundary between free and slave states. So far, though, no one has found it in print before 1859, when Daniel Decatur Emmett used it in a song shortly before he wrote DIXIE. Or did he write "Dixie"? Ever since it was first publicly performed by Bryant's Minstrels on April 4, 1859, the accepted author of "Dixie" has been the celebrated minstrel star, Dan Emmett. Periodically, though there have arisen disputes over Emmett's claim; the most recent and thorough investigation by Howard and Judith Rose Sacks, published in 1993, argues (convincingly but not beyond any doubt) that the song was written by one of the Snowdens, an African-American musical family of former slaves who settled near Mt. Vernon, Ohio, where Emmett was born, died and lived most of his life. Almost certainly the Snowdens knew Emmett and may even have played music with him. But whether they wrote the song (or, as Ben Snowden's tombstone states, taught it to Emmett), is still in doubt. In any case, one can well imagine that acknowledging African- American authorship of the South's premier "national anthem" would be a bitter pill for many Southerners to swallow.
The words to MARYLAND, MY MARYLAND were written on April 23, 1861, by James R. Randall, a Baltimore native and professor of English literature at Polydras College, Pointe-Coup,e, Louisiana. It was published in a New Orleans newspaper three days later and became immensely popular, being frequently: reprinted by other Southern newspapers. A Miss Jennie Cary of Baltimore subsequently set it to the tune of the German Christmas song. "Tannenbaum."
No one knows exactly how or when "Yankee Doodle Dandy" originated. The song must have been well-known in the colonies in the 1760s, but its first mention in print was in an American comic opera of 1767. The words most of us associate with this ditty-"Yankee Doodle came to town, riding on a pony: stuck a feather in his hat and called in macaroni" had nothing to do with the original song, and were first published in a collection of traditional English nursery rhymes, Gammer Gurton's Garland, in 1810. They may, therefore, be English, not American. The origin of the tune is an even deeper mystery, with American, English, and central European sources having been claimed.
A story has circulated that at the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, which concluded hostilities of the War of 1812, the American representatives were asked what tune they wanted the Belgian band to play on behalf of the United States. The Americans-John Q. Adams, Henry Clay, and others were stumped; there was no printed music available, and none of them was musically inclined. Finally Adams recalled that his (African-American) servant could whistle anything, so they asked him to run through "Yankee Doodle." The bandmaster learned it from his whistling, and the band played it to everyone's satisfaction.
The tune in this collection, THE YANKEE DOODLE BOY, was George M. Cohan's 1904 composition, written for the musical play, "Little Johnny Jones." It incorporated phrases from the older well-known tune. "Yankee Doodle Dandy" was also the title of Cohan's biopic starring James Cagney.
As for the word "yankee" itself, it also has inspired many theories, but most popular is that it derives from Dutch, either janke, equivalent of "Little John," or Jan Kaas, literally. "John Cheese," a derogatory nickname for a Dutchman. (Compare "John Barleycom" or "John Bull," English nicknames.) There is, however, a dissenting opinion that asserts it is derived from Algonquinian, "awaunaguss," literally, "this stranger," which that tribe of American Indians is said to have used to refer to the English settlers. Whatever its source, it later came to mean a Dutch pirate, and the Dutch who settled in what is now New York applied the term scornfully to the English immigrants. Southern colonies used the term to apply to Northern colonists; Northerners used it to refer specifically to New Englanders. The British used it to refer to all Americans. During the Civil War it again came to mean Northerners, but when America entered World War I in 1917 the reference to all Americans returned.
STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER (you may know it better from the childhood parody. "Be kind to your webfooted friends...") was composed by America's March King, John Philip Sousa, director of the Marine Band, while on a ship returning to the United States from England in the fall of 1896. As he later recalled, "during the voyage the melodies of 'The Stars and Stripes Forever' came to me, as I paced the deck with a mental brass band playing the march fully a hundred times during the week I was on the steamer." It was published in May of the following year. It soon became a favorite during the brief Spanish-American War (1898), though it had been written earlier. Though Sousa was an early staunch opponent of the phonograph (in a 1906 magazine article titled, "The Menace of Mechanical Music" he railed against the anticipated effects of canned music: "...Singing will no longer be a fine accomplishment; vocal excercises will be out of vogue! Then what of the national throat? Will it not weaken? What of the national chest? Will it not shrink?") his band recorded "Stars and Stripes Forever at least three times: in 1897, 1901, and 1917.
Katherine Lee Bates, a professor of English Literature at Wellesley College, wrote the poem, AMERICA, THE BEAUTIFUL after climbing Pike's Peak in Colorado and gazing in wondrous admiration at the vast beauty of the country spread out around her. The poem was first printed in 1895, and in 1910 was set to music composed by Samuel A. Ward in 1882.
- Norm Cohen
The songs of a country are both geography and history in music. They reflect the lives and dreams of a people and their pride in the land, its cities, mountains and rivers, but they reflect also moments in the history of that land and people. It can be needlessly restrictive, then, to say that only "true folk songs," songs of unknown authorship and oral tradition, have the power to express that coming together of place and time we call a nation, or even to say that such songs are our only folk songs. The "folk," after all, are not some mythical, far-away people, but you and I, whether we live in Manhattan or on a rural road in Tennessee. Honesty of expression, rather than anonymity, is, perhaps, the real arbiter; and those songs, of whatever origin, that we, our fathers and our chil- dren have taken to our hearts and memories may well be the real folk songs. One can hardly say that a song like Beautiful Dreamer is any the less true or less loved because its author did not choose to remain anonymous.
The songs on this record, then, are a part of the history of the United States and it is appropriate that they be sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir because that organization is itself a part of our history. The Choir was organized in 1847, a scant few weeks after the first Mormon pioneers had reached Utah and begun the settlement that was later to be known as Salt Lake City. Its first home was a structure called "The Bowery," a brush-covered enclosure on what is now the famous Temple Square. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir was active before Abraham Lincoln entered politics, before the country entered the terrible era of the Civil War and almost fifty years before Utah itself entered the Union as a state. Its present 375 members are drawn from all walks of life and are amateurs in the best sense of that word. With more than a century of dedication to music and more than thirty years of national broadcasting over CBS Radio, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has established itself as one of America's great institutions.
THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
The title song of this record is the most famous of the many songs composed by Woody Guthrie, a true wandering minstrel of our own time. It has become virtually the national anthem of the great folk-song revival movement that has swept our country in recent years, a movement that has not only changed our singing habits, but has directed our aware- ness toward the great social problems. But this song is not about problems or hard times. It is a sweeping affirmation of our country and people, an expression of patriotism so simple, direct and true that there is nothing chauvinistic about it.
DOWN IN THE VALLEY
The mountains of the United States and the people who live by them have been the source of many of the most beautiful folk tunes. Down in the Valley is said to have had its origin in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Its melancholy mood and distinctive melody furnished the basis for the often- performed folk opera of the same name by Kurt Weill.
SHE'LL BE COMIN' ROUND THE MOUNTAIN
This familiar old tune is said to be, by most authorities, a secular version of the folk hymn Old Ship of Zion. Though its words talk about "six white horses," its reference is prob- ably to the railroad, whose expansion into the western areas of our country brought about one of the most exciting eras in American history and produced some of the most lasting of our songs.
BEAUTIFUL DREAMER
Probably the last song written by Stephen Collins Foster, Beautiful Dreamer was published by Firth, Pond & Co. soon after the composer's death in 1864. Foster had a dual career as a song writer, on the one hand, writing what were then called "Ethiopian" songs for the minstrel shows, and on the other, simple, sentimental ballads such as this song. It is a tribute to his genius that he was able to infuse both types with real lyricism and vitality.
SWEET BETSY FROM PIKE
One of the most popular songs of pioneer days, Sweet Betsy traces its musical origin back to an old English ballad called Villikens and His Dinah. The words are typically and authetically American, and Betsy and Ike, whose characters were certainly drawn from real people, probably played their part in the Gold Rush of 1849. Pike County, by the way, is in Missouri.
GOSPEL TRAIN-OLD TIME RELIGION
These two spirituals, the first of Negro origin, the second of white, have been combined by Morton Gould in this arrangement, taken from his "Spirituals for Strings."
WHEN I FIRST CAME TO THIS LAND
The melody of this song bears a certain resemblance to the tune we know as Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and the French know as Ah, vous dirai, Maman. The words, by Oscar Brand, are based on Pete Seeger's translation of what was probably an old Pennsylvania Dutch song.
SHENANDOAH
Also known as Across the Wide Missouri, Shenandoah is an old sea chantey of the kind that was used to set the rhythm for hauling anchor. There are many variants of the words,
the title sometimes referring to the valley of that name (in Virginia and West Virginia) and sometimes to an Indian chief whose daughter was courted by a white trader. The melody is one of the most beautiful in all American folk music.
HOME ON THE RANGE
Here is a song generally thought of as being a traditional tune, but with its authorship actually claimed by several individuals. It was uncovered independently by John A. Lomax and by David Guion, whose versions unquestionably started it on the road to popularity, but the original writers appear to have been Dr. Bruce Higley (lyrics) and Dan Kelly (music) of Kansas.
HE'S GOT THE WHOLE WORLD IN HIS HANDS
Generally regarded as an authentic Negro spiritual, this has actually become a modern "pop" song through its various commercialized versions. It was first brought to light and arranged by the late Marion Kerby.
I WONDER AS I WANDER
John Jacob Niles, who either found or, more probably, composed this beautiful song, was and is one of the greatest American folk singers. The song is melodically reminiscent of many songs of English origin that survived in the mountains of Kentucky and Carolina long after they had died out in England, providing this country with one of its major folk-song traditions.
OH, SUSANNA
This familiar tune has been called "the number-one novelty song of all time." Stephen Foster, who wrote both the words and music, naively sold it for $100, with several other numbers, to a music publisher and never collected a cent in royal- ties. The publisher made many thousand of dollars from it and it became one of the most popular songs of the Gold Rush. It was Foster's first big hit.
DEEP RIVER
One of the most beautiful of all Negro spirituals, this expressive and dignified song has become popular with singers and musicians of many different persuasions. Though it is, of course, of traditional origin, its soaring melodic line would not be disdained by any serious composer.
The songs on this record, then, are a part of the history of the United States and it is appropriate that they be sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir because that organization is itself a part of our history. The Choir was organized in 1847, a scant few weeks after the first Mormon pioneers had reached Utah and begun the settlement that was later to be known as Salt Lake City. Its first home was a structure called "The Bowery," a brush-covered enclosure on what is now the famous Temple Square. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir was active before Abraham Lincoln entered politics, before the country entered the terrible era of the Civil War and almost fifty years before Utah itself entered the Union as a state. Its present 375 members are drawn from all walks of life and are amateurs in the best sense of that word. With more than a century of dedication to music and more than thirty years of national broadcasting over CBS Radio, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has established itself as one of America's great institutions.
THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
The title song of this record is the most famous of the many songs composed by Woody Guthrie, a true wandering minstrel of our own time. It has become virtually the national anthem of the great folk-song revival movement that has swept our country in recent years, a movement that has not only changed our singing habits, but has directed our aware- ness toward the great social problems. But this song is not about problems or hard times. It is a sweeping affirmation of our country and people, an expression of patriotism so simple, direct and true that there is nothing chauvinistic about it.
DOWN IN THE VALLEY
The mountains of the United States and the people who live by them have been the source of many of the most beautiful folk tunes. Down in the Valley is said to have had its origin in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Its melancholy mood and distinctive melody furnished the basis for the often- performed folk opera of the same name by Kurt Weill.
SHE'LL BE COMIN' ROUND THE MOUNTAIN
This familiar old tune is said to be, by most authorities, a secular version of the folk hymn Old Ship of Zion. Though its words talk about "six white horses," its reference is prob- ably to the railroad, whose expansion into the western areas of our country brought about one of the most exciting eras in American history and produced some of the most lasting of our songs.
BEAUTIFUL DREAMER
Probably the last song written by Stephen Collins Foster, Beautiful Dreamer was published by Firth, Pond & Co. soon after the composer's death in 1864. Foster had a dual career as a song writer, on the one hand, writing what were then called "Ethiopian" songs for the minstrel shows, and on the other, simple, sentimental ballads such as this song. It is a tribute to his genius that he was able to infuse both types with real lyricism and vitality.
SWEET BETSY FROM PIKE
One of the most popular songs of pioneer days, Sweet Betsy traces its musical origin back to an old English ballad called Villikens and His Dinah. The words are typically and authetically American, and Betsy and Ike, whose characters were certainly drawn from real people, probably played their part in the Gold Rush of 1849. Pike County, by the way, is in Missouri.
GOSPEL TRAIN-OLD TIME RELIGION
These two spirituals, the first of Negro origin, the second of white, have been combined by Morton Gould in this arrangement, taken from his "Spirituals for Strings."
WHEN I FIRST CAME TO THIS LAND
The melody of this song bears a certain resemblance to the tune we know as Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and the French know as Ah, vous dirai, Maman. The words, by Oscar Brand, are based on Pete Seeger's translation of what was probably an old Pennsylvania Dutch song.
SHENANDOAH
Also known as Across the Wide Missouri, Shenandoah is an old sea chantey of the kind that was used to set the rhythm for hauling anchor. There are many variants of the words,
the title sometimes referring to the valley of that name (in Virginia and West Virginia) and sometimes to an Indian chief whose daughter was courted by a white trader. The melody is one of the most beautiful in all American folk music.
HOME ON THE RANGE
Here is a song generally thought of as being a traditional tune, but with its authorship actually claimed by several individuals. It was uncovered independently by John A. Lomax and by David Guion, whose versions unquestionably started it on the road to popularity, but the original writers appear to have been Dr. Bruce Higley (lyrics) and Dan Kelly (music) of Kansas.
HE'S GOT THE WHOLE WORLD IN HIS HANDS
Generally regarded as an authentic Negro spiritual, this has actually become a modern "pop" song through its various commercialized versions. It was first brought to light and arranged by the late Marion Kerby.
I WONDER AS I WANDER
John Jacob Niles, who either found or, more probably, composed this beautiful song, was and is one of the greatest American folk singers. The song is melodically reminiscent of many songs of English origin that survived in the mountains of Kentucky and Carolina long after they had died out in England, providing this country with one of its major folk-song traditions.
OH, SUSANNA
This familiar tune has been called "the number-one novelty song of all time." Stephen Foster, who wrote both the words and music, naively sold it for $100, with several other numbers, to a music publisher and never collected a cent in royal- ties. The publisher made many thousand of dollars from it and it became one of the most popular songs of the Gold Rush. It was Foster's first big hit.
DEEP RIVER
One of the most beautiful of all Negro spirituals, this expressive and dignified song has become popular with singers and musicians of many different persuasions. Though it is, of course, of traditional origin, its soaring melodic line would not be disdained by any serious composer.
