American Military Songs & Marches

[Desert Fox]

It's approaching the Fourth of July so thought I'd open a dedicated thread for American military marches & songs. Will be including both Confederate (CSA) and Union (USA) songs since both are an integral part of American history.

Battle Hymn of the Republic​

One of my personal favorites. Born out of the American civil war, If there is one song that embodies the American spirit it is this one. This is a Union (Northern) song.

"The "Battle Hymn of the Republic," also known as "Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory," outside of the United States, is a lyric by the American writer Julia Ward Howe using the music from the song "John Brown's Body." Howe's more famous lyrics were written in November 1861, and first published in The Atlantic Monthly in February 1862. The song links the judgment of the wicked at the end of the age (Old Testament, Isaiah 63; New Testament, Rev. 19) with the American Civil War. Since that time, it has become an extremely popular and well-known American patriotic song."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Hymn_of_the_Republic


Original version:

With lyrics:

Paratroopers/Airborne version:

Also served as the official anthem of the Silver Legion of America:

@Nilgiri @Gomig-21 @Hamartia Antidote @Vergennes @Psychic

 

[Desert Fox]

@vostok @Falcon29

Yellow Rose of Texas​

Said to be a Confederate song. There are different versions of this song with varying lyrics.

""The Yellow Rose of Texas" is a traditional American folk song dating back to at least the 1850s. Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.[1] Several versions of the song have been recorded, including by Elvis Presley, Willie Nelson[2] and Mitch Miller."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Yellow_Rose_of_Texas_(song)

With lyrics:

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Version sung by Elvis Presley:

Another one with slightly varying lyrics:

​

Another version with Chuck Norris look-alike:

 

[Hamza913]

My personal favourite, by Hoyt Axton:

"Oh, I'm a good old rebel
Now thats just what I am
And for this yankee nation
I do no give a damn
I'm glad I fought against her
I only wish we'd won
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done
I hates the Yankee nation
And eveything they do
I hates the declaration
Of independence too
I hates the glorious union
'Tis dripping with our blood
I hates the striped banner
And fought it all I could
I rode with Robert E. Lee
For three years there about
Got wounded in four places
And I starved at Point Lookout
I caught the rheumatism
Campin' in the snow
But I killed a chance of Yankees
And I'd like to kill some more
Three hundred thousand Yankees
Is stiff in southern dust
We got three hundred thousand
Before they conquered us
They died of southern fever
And southern steel and shot
I wish they was three million
Instead of what we got
I can't take up my musket
And fight 'em down no more
But I ain't a-goin' to love them
Now that is certain sure
And I don't want no pardon
For what I was and am
I won't be reconstructed
And I do not give a damn
Oh, I'm a good old rebel
Now that's just what I am
And for this Yankee nation
I do no give a damn
I'm glad I fought against her
I only wish we'd won
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done..."

 

[Desert Fox]

Dixie's Land​

One of the most famous Confederate songs from the American Civil War and of the war itself.

""Dixie," also known as "Dixie's Land," "I Wish I Was in Dixie," and other titles, is a popular song in the Southern United States. It is one of the most distinctively Southern musical products of the 19th century[1] and probably the best-known song to have come out of blackface minstrelsy.[2] It was not a folk songat its creation, but it has since entered the American folk vernacular. The song likely cemented the word "Dixie" in the American vocabulary as a nickname for the Southern United States."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dixie_(song)


Confederate version (which is the original) with lyrics:

Union parody of the song:

​

 

[Metanoia]

The best version of the US national anthem which I have come across, which to date hasn't been surpassed:

In my opinion, nothing comes close to the soulfulness and vigour of Russian national anthem performed by the Red Army Orchestra or Alexandrov Ensemble:

 

[Gomig-21]

Confederate version (which is the original) with lyrics:

Union parody of the song:​

​

That's pretty cool. The banjo truly defines original American music, combined with the fiddle which is integral to American music which in many ways is considered "folk" music essentially because it brought folks together.

But the banjo is really the American music stamp.

 

[Desert Fox]

My personal favourite, by Hoyt Axton:

"Oh, I'm a good old rebel
Now thats just what I am
And for this yankee nation
I do no give a damn
I'm glad I fought against her
I only wish we'd won
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done
I hates the Yankee nation
And eveything they do
I hates the declaration
Of independence too
I hates the glorious union
'Tis dripping with our blood
I hates the striped banner
And fought it all I could
I rode with Robert E. Lee
For three years there about
Got wounded in four places
And I starved at Point Lookout
I caught the rheumatism
Campin' in the snow
But I killed a chance of Yankees
And I'd like to kill some more
Three hundred thousand Yankees
Is stiff in southern dust
We got three hundred thousand
Before they conquered us
They died of southern fever
And southern steel and shot
I wish they was three million
Instead of what we got
I can't take up my musket
And fight 'em down no more
But I ain't a-goin' to love them
Now that is certain sure
And I don't want no pardon
For what I was and am
I won't be reconstructed
And I do not give a damn
Oh, I'm a good old rebel
Now that's just what I am
And for this Yankee nation
I do no give a damn
I'm glad I fought against her
I only wish we'd won
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done
I ain't asked any pardon
For anything I've done..."

Oh, yes! That's the Confederate rebel song. There's different variations of the lyrics.

For example, instead of "Yankee nation" there's "for this fair land of freedom"

The more common version:

Here's the one with the lyrics you posted:

That's pretty cool. The banjo truly defines original American music, combined with the fiddle which is integral to American music which in many ways is considered "folk" music essentially because it brought folks together.

But the banjo is really the American music stamp.

Oh yes most definitely. The banjo is unfortunately an underrated instrument yet so crucial to American folk songs which wouldn't be the same without it.

The best version of the US national anthem which I have come across, which to date hasn't been surpassed

The current American national anthem is weak in my opinion. The Battle Hymn of the Republic would have made a better alternative.

 

[Desert Fox]

Battle Cry of Freedom​

Another iconic song from the American civil war.

"The "Battle Cry of Freedom", also known as "Rally 'Round the Flag", is a song written in 1862 by American composer George Frederick Root (1820–1895) during the American Civil War. A patriotic song advocating the causes of Unionism and abolitionism, it became so popular that composer H. L. Schreiner and lyricist W. H. Barnes adapted it for the Confederacy."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Cry_of_Freedom


The original Union version with lyrics:

Confederate version of the song:

​

Faster-paced version of both Confederate and Union:

 

[Desert Fox]

When Johnny Comes Marching Home​

Another iconic American civil war song. This one, like many other civil war songs, has Irish roots due to the large numbers of Irishmen fighting in the ranks of both the Union and the Confederate armies (Scotts-Irish in the latter's case).

""When Johnny Comes Marching Home" (sometimes "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again") is a popular song from the American Civil War that expressed people's longing for the return of their friends and relatives who were fighting in the war."

"The lyrics to "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" were written by the Irish-American bandleader Patrick Gilmore during the American Civil War. Its first sheet music publication was deposited in the Library of Congress on September 26, 1863, with words and music credited to "Louis Lambert"; copyright was retained by the publisher, Henry Tolman & Co., of Boston.[1] Why Gilmore chose to publish under a pseudonym is not clear"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/When_Johnny_Comes_Marching_Home


Union version with lyrics:

​

Irish version:

As an important side note "gay" used to mean happy in classical English, not homosexual like it is known to be today.

 

[Desert Fox]

Lorena​

Song for Confederate and Union soldiers who departed with their beloveds to go into battle where many never returned from.

""Lorena" is an antebellum song with Northern origins. The lyrics were written in 1856 by Rev. Henry D. L. Webster, after a broken engagement. He wrote a long poem about his fiancée but changed her name to "Lorena", an adaptation of "Lenore" from Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven." Henry Webster's friend Joseph Philbrick Webster wrote the music, and the song was first published in Chicago in 1857. It became a favorite of soldiers of both sides during the American Civil War. Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.[1]"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorena_(song)

 

[Desert Fox]

Hey Brother by Avicii​

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@Hamartia Antidote @Gomig-21 @LeGenD @Nilgiri @KAL-EL

​

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Seems these days we only hear these songs on the 4th played by orchestras. Most of the time without even lyrics.

 

[Desert Fox]

Seems these days we only hear these songs on the 4th played by orchestras. Most of the time without even lyrics.

Mostly due to the political climate. The lyrics to most of these songs trigger leftist special snowflakes and for this reason are deemed "politically incorrect". Can't hurt peoples feelings now can we?

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Mostly due to the political climate. The lyrics to most of these songs trigger leftist special snowflakes and for this reason are deemed "politically incorrect". Can't hurt peoples feelings now can we?

Before the days of infomercials they used to play these songs at around 2:30 am when local tv stations signed off because they ran out of programs. So many people identified them as the "sign off" songs.

 

[Gomig-21]

Nice thread, Fox.

Seems these days we only hear these songs on the 4th played by orchestras. Most of the time without even lyrics.

Indeed, especially when we have the Pops ingrained in us with all the years of the 4th celebrations on the Esplanade. It's just one of those priceless, home-grown traditions that honestly, never gets old. I love it year in and year out. Best time of the year.

Fox, on the same lines of your thread, check out the talent on these two Boston cops.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1013807006946226177