Interesting fact about the Star Spangled Banner.

[pepperbear]

I had heard this many times and always thought it very telling.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner

The poem, titled "Defence of Fort McHenry," was set to the tune of the popular British drinking song "The Anacreontic Song", more commonly known by its first line, "To Anacreon in Heaven".....

*snip*

http://www.earlyamerica.com/music/star-spangled-banner.htm

The music as we know it today is English in origin. Ralph Tomlinson, president of the Anacreontic Society, a London social club, wrote a poem in 1770 called “To Anacreon in Heaven.” A year later John Stafford Smith, an organist and composer set the poem to music.


*snip*

Basically, some "men's only" society did their frat boy thing, got drunk and came up with a song so they could get wasted, there own "Louie Louie" if you will, and Francis Scott Key got inspired.

:rofl:

Sorry, just very telling to me.

[Lisa]

1. explains why the thing is so darned difficult to sing!

Uninhibited drunks probably have no problem hitting those high notes (or, more likely, THINKING they are hitting those notes).

[magellan]

2. Of course you know

...we also purloined the tune for "My Country 'Tis of Thee" from the British. It's their national anthem, "God Save Our Queen" (or King, depending).

[intheflow]

3. "Yankee Doodle Dandy," too.

Guess the early Americans weren't very original tunesters.

[Cobalt-60]

4. they were Weird Al's fore bearers

[Xenotime]

5. What?!?

[Cobalt-60]

8. well they took an extant tune and modified it for their own use

I'll grant you they aren't as funny as weird Al.

[eridani]

6. Exactly!

And now those internets tubes have put the folk process on steroids!

[melody]

9. Purloining melodies back then was quite common

It happened all the time, in all cultures ... the ancestors of the modern filker.

In fact, it was rare to have a melody that didn't have five or six different songs written to it.
For instance, "Hang Down Your Head, Tom Dooley" is sung to a tune that originally was an Irish
folk song.

[intheflow]

10. John Wesley took bar songs and turned them into hymns.

It's one of the reasons he was able to found such a robust religion.

[TrogL]

7. You've got to be drunk to sing it

An octave and a half is a big range for untrained singers if somebody picks the wrong key.

[raccoon]

11. "My Hometown" by Bruce Springsteen should be the new national anthem.

It tells about the way the country is going. :-(

[Virginia Dare]

14. Remember when the Reagan camp appropriated the song..

"Born In The USA"? I guess they never actually listened to the lyrics..:shrug:

As I recall, Springsteen sent them a very nasty cease and desist order...:applause:

[raccoon]

16. I remember that. It's amazing how many people think "Born in the USA"

is a nice little patriotic song. :shrug:

Good for Springsteen! Ditto on that :applause:

[formerrepuke]

12. What?! Next they'll be saying "My Country 'Tis of Thee" is an English song..!

[Virginia Dare]

13. Kudos to the Baltimoreans for saving the U.S.A...

or we'd all be taking tea in the afternoon and singing "God Save The Queen"!

http://www.bcpl.net/~etowner/battle.html

:patriot:

[ProfessorGAC]

15. It's Also Supposed To Be Sung Much Faster

The original intent of the song was a party song. It's not meant to be dirge, yet that's how we sing the stupid thing.

It would be a better song if it moved along and wasn't so ponderous in tempo. It'd be easy to sing too.
The Professor