WWII songs

Subject: Lyr Add: A HOT TIME IN THE TOWN OF BERLIN
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 01:23 AM

A HOT TIME IN THE TOWN OF BERLIN
Words, John De Vries; music, Joe Bushkin; ©1944.
As recorded by by Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters

There'll be a hot time in the town of Berlin
When the yanks go marchin' in.
I want to be there, boy, spread some joy,
When they take old Berlin.
There'll be a hot time in the town of Berlin
When the Brooklyn boys begin
To take the joint apart and tear it down
When they take old Berlin.

They're gonna start a row
And show 'em how
We paint the town back in Kokomo.*
They're gonna take a hike
Through Hitler's Reich
And change that "Heil" to "Whatcha know, Joe?"*
There'll be a hot time in the town of Berlin
When the Yanks go marchin' in.
You could never keep 'em happy down on the farm
After they take Berlin.

[The above lines are sung by Bing Crosby; when the Andrews Sisters repeat them they change "Kokomo" to "Michigan" and "Whatcha know, Joe?" to "Gimme some skin."]

Subject: Lyr Add: D-DAY (Nat King Cole)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 08:53 AM

D-DAY
Words and music by Nat King Cole, ©1944.
As sung by Nat King Cole.

Grab yourself a chair and sit down, Gate(?); you're
Gonna hear some news of a military nature.
Relax while I give you the latest report, sport.

There never was a finer sight
When all our boys were fixed to fight
On D-Day, D-Day, D-Day, D-Day.

We hope they'll soon be comin' back
For now they're on a solid track
Since D-Day, D-Day, D-Day, D-Day.

It'll take more than a weekend,
So let's be patient, calm.
Cut out that public speakin',
Or we'll be the victim of a false alarm.

We got to help; we're in it too,
So buy those bonds and I do mean you,
For D-Day, D-Day, D-Day, D-Day.

D-day, D-Day, D-Day, D-Day.

D-day, D-Day, D-Day, D-Day.

Subject: Lyr Add: FIRST CLASS PRIVATE MARY BROWN (Loesser)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 09:28 AM

FIRST CLASS PRIVATE MARY BROWN
Words and Music by Frank Loesser, ©1944.
As sung by Perry Como

First Class Private Mary Brown,
She wore that uniform like a million-dollar gown.
How my heart would leap when she drove the jeep
With the one big stripe on her arm,
And it seemed to me that a PFC
Stood for "perfect feminine charm!"

First Class Private, Mary Brown,
Oh, how she smiled goodbye when they shipped me out of town!
Let the big guns roar; let me win this war,
'Cause I want to hurry right back
To First Class Private Mary Brown, my wonderful WAC.

First Class Private, Mary Brown,
I've got her army serial number written down.
She was all GI, but when she marched by,
I just had to look at her twice,
And it struck me then that the ASN
Meant an "angel, specially nice."

First Class Private, Mary Brown,
Could make the PX seem like the Ritz in New York town.
Let the big guns roar; let me win this war,
'Cause I want to hurry right back
On the double to First Class Private Mary Brown, my wonderful WAC.

Let the big guns roar; let me win this war,
'Cause I want to hurry right back
On the double to First Class Private Mary Brown, my wonderful WAC.

Subject: Lyr Add: COULD YOU PLEASE OBLIGE US WITH A BREN...
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 12:32 PM

COULD YOU PLEASE OBLIGE US WITH A BREN GUN?
Words and music by Noel Coward, ©1943.
As sung by Noel Coward

Colonel Montmorency, who was in Calcutta in ninety-two,
Emerged from his retirement for the War.
He wasn't very pleased with all he heard and all he saw,
But whatever he felt, he tightened his belt and organised a Corps.

Poor Colonel Montmorency thought, considering all the wars he'd fought,
The Home Guard was his job to do or die,
But after days and weeks and years, bravely drying his manly tears,
He wrote the following letter to the Minister of Supply:

"Could you please oblige us with a Bren gun?
Or, failing that, a hand grenade will do.
We've got some ammunition in a rather damp condition,
And Major Huss has a arquebus that was used at Waterloo.

"With the Vicar's stirrup pump, a pitchfork and a spade,
It's rather hard to guard an aerodrome,
So if you can't oblige us with a Bren gun,
The Home Guard might as well go home.

"Could you please oblige us with a Bren gun?
We're getting awfully tired of drawing lots.
Today we had a shipment of some curious equipment,
And just for a prank, they sent us a tank that ties itself in knots.

"On Sunday's mock invasion, Captain Clark was heard to say
He hadn't even got a brush and comb,
So if you can't oblige us with a Bren gun,
The Home Guard might as well go home."

Colonel Montmorency planned, in case the enemy tried to land,
To drive them back with skill and armoured force.
He realised his army should be mechanised, of course,
But somewhere inside, experience cried, "My kingdom for a horse!"

Poor Colonel Montmorency tried, at infinite cost to time and pride,
To tackle his superiors again.
Having just one motorbike, fourteen swords and a marlinspike,
He wrote the following letter in the following urgent strain:

"Could you please oblige us with a Bren gun?
We need it very badly, I'm afraid.
Our local crossword solver has an excellent revolver,
But during a short attack on a fort, the trigger got mislaid.

"In course of operations planned for Friday afternoon,
Our orders are to storm the Hippodrome,
So if you can't oblige us with a Bren gun,
The Home Guard might as well go home.

"Could you please oblige us with a Bren gun?
The lack of one is wounding to our pride.
Last night we found the cutest little German parachutist.
He looked at our kit and giggled a bit, and laughed until he cried.

"We'll have to hide that armoured car when marching to Berlin.
We'd almost be ashamed of it in Rome.
So if you can't oblige us with a Bren gun,
The Home Guard might as well go home."


[There have been several distinguished people named Montmorency, but as far as I can figure, the one in this story is fictional.]

Subject: Lyr Add: (LIGHTS OUT) 'TIL REVEILLE
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 12:49 PM

(LIGHTS OUT) 'TIL REVEILLE
words, Stanley Cowan; music, Stanley Cowan & Bobby Worth; ©1941.
As recorded by the John S. Trotter Orchestra with Bing Crosby, vocalist.

From taps till reveille, I dream the whole night through.
Each night till I hear reveille, I dream, my dear, of you.
I have your face before me, the moment we're apart,
And from taps till I hear reveille, I dream of you, sweetheart.

[Also recorded by Kay Kyser & His Orchestra; Glenn Miller & His Orchestra, with Ray Eberle, vocalist]

Subject: Lyr Add: THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 01:57 PM

THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS
Words, Oscar Hammerstein II; music, Jerome Kern; ©1940.
Introduced by Ann Sothern in the film "Lady Be Good" (1940)
Also used in the film "The Last Time I Saw Paris" (1954)
As sung by Ann Sothern:

A lady known as Paris, romantic and charming,
Has left her old companions and faded from view.
Lonely men with lonely eyes are seeking her in vain.
Her streets are where they were, but there's no sign of her.
She has left the Seine.

[a] The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay.
I heard the laughter of her heart in every street cafe.
The last time I saw Paris, her trees were dressed for spring,
And lovers walked beneath those trees and birds found songs to sing.

I dodged the same old taxicabs that I had dodged for years.
The chorus of their squeaky horns was music to my ears.

The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay.
No matter how they change her, I'll remember her that way. [b]

I'll think of happy hours and people who shared them,
Old women selling flowers in markets at dawn,
Children who applauded Punch and Judy in the park,
And those who danced at night and kept our Paris bright,
Till the town went dark.

[Repeat from [a] to [b].]


[Wikipedia says: "The song catered to a wartime nostalgia for songs about European cities following the Second World War Battle of France (which brought Paris under Nazi control)...", but I don't know of any other songs in that category. Anybody?]

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 02:09 PM

Long thread; haven't read every post: but I take it somewhere up there will be found Bud Flanagan's "Who Do You Think You're Kidding, Mr Hitler?", signature tune for Dad's Army.

Does it count, as it was written for the series by Jimmmy Perry as a psatiche of the sort of defiantly patriotic songs this thread is so full of [see wikipedia entry]?; but it's a very good, convincing pastiche, isn't it?

~M~

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 03:58 PM

Some fine day the news'll flash
Satan with a small moustache
Is asleep beneath the lawn
When That Man Is Dead and Gone

Irving Berlin, would you believe? 1941. I remember that one. In fact, I remember them all. This thread isn't history to me, it's a big nostalgia trip!

~M~

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 04:03 PM

Along with Jimmy Kennedy's "We're Gonna Hang Out the Washing on the Siegfried Line (Have you any dirty washing, mother dear?"" ~~ a funny little couples-in-circle, Gay Gordons style, dance went to this one ~~ goose-stepping around with arms raised, Heil Hitler style. Very Jimmy Kennedy ~~ he wrote the Hokey Cokey too.

The Siegfried Line, in case you didn't know, was the German fortifications system, against which the Allies had the French Maginot Line: which turned out to be a chocolate teapot.

~M~

Subject: Lyr Add: THERE'S A BOY COMING HOME ON LEAVE
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 05:37 PM

THERE'S A BOY COMING HOME ON LEAVE
Words and music by Jimmy Kennedy, ©1940.
As recorded by Maurice Winnick and His Orchestra.*

In a big department store,
There's a girl whose heart sings a song.
She's had word to say he's on his way,
And now it won't be long.

There's a boy coming home on leave.
There's a girl wants him home on leave.
She'll meet him right at the station,
And will she tell all the nation!

There's a boy coming home on leave,
And his heart won't be on his sleeve.
They'll have a grand celebration
When he comes home on leave.

And as they meet, he'll tell her how he's missed her.
That's after he's kissed her;
And then they'll talk about that wedding party(?).
They'll plan a honeymoon; the army can't wait till June.

There's a boy coming home on leave.
He'll enjoy coming home on leave.
They'll make it ten days of heaven,
When he comes home on leave.

[* I picked this recording rather arbitrarily because it was easiest to understand among several available on Spotify. I was unable to find out which recording was the first, or best known or had the most sales—I suspect it was Flanagan & Allen because their version is on many currently available CDs.]

Subject: Lyr Add: TILL THE LIGHTS OF LONDON SHINE AGAIN
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 06:06 PM

TILL THE LIGHTS OF LONDON SHINE AGAIN
Words and music by Tommie Connor & Eddie Pola, ©1939.
As sung by Chick Henderson, with Joe Loss & His Band.

For a while we must part,
But remember me, sweetheart,
Till the lights of London shine again;
And while I'm over there,
Think of me in every prayer,
Till the lights of London shine again.

I'll keep your picture near me, a tender souvenir.
Now hold me close and kiss me, and may God bless you, dear.

Don't you cry when I'm gone.
Wear a smile and carry on,
Till the lights of London shine again.

Subject: Lyr Add: ADOLF (Annette Mills)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 06:33 PM

ADOLF
Words and music by Annette Mills, ©1939.
As recorded by Ambrose and His Orchestra, with vocalist Sam Browne.

1. A certain German chancellor has lost his head.
He's going to get a headache somewhere else instead,
And he will be retiring very soon,
To join a certain Kaiser down in doom(?).

CHORUS: Adolf, you've bitten off much more than you can chew.
Come on; hold your hand out; we're all fed up with you. (Gor blimey!)
Adolf, you toddle off, and all your Nazis, too,
Or you may get something to remind you of the old red, white and blue.

2. We're sick of all the muddle and the mess you've made.
You've gone and stuck your fingers in the marmalade,
So now you're going to get a big surprise.
You're nothing but a basket full of lies. CHORUS

[I transcribed this song from Spotify, where it is found on 2 albums: "Sounds of the Big Bands Vol. 1" and "There'll Always Be an England: Great War Songs Vol. 3." The title I found there was ADOLPH but I have taken the liberty of correcting it to ADOLF. Apparently the spelling error was committed by either Spotify or the publisher of the CDs, and not by the songwriter or the publisher of the original sheet music or the 78-rpm record.]

Subject: Lyr Add: NASTY UNCLE ADOLF (Phil Park)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 19 Jun 13 - 10:32 PM

(IT'S JUST TOO BAD FOR) NASTY UNCLE ADOLF
Words and music by Phil Park, ©1939?
As recorded by Ambrose and His Orchestra, with Jack Cooper, vocalist.

This war's an awful nuisance and it's all one fellow's fault,
And now he's got it started, it's too late to call a halt.
We've so much to put up with that we call him awful names,
For everything that happens, he's the man the public blames.

We blame him for the sandbags that keep tripping up our feet,
For imitation coppers in tin hats on every beat.
Our air-raid warden's very blond and simply too-too sweet,
So it's just too bad for nasty Uncle Adolf; he's in for it now, all right.

A friend said, "I've an air-raid shelter, sandbags by the score.
I've put some fairy lights around it; can you guess what for?
They'll see the lights and vomit while we're playing darts next door,
So it's just too bad for nasty Uncle Adolf; he's in for it now, all right."

It really is amazing how we hate that fellow's name,
For everything that worries us, he has to take the blame.
We're always out of petrol and we keep our headlights dim,
So if the girl gets out and walks, we go on blaming him.

We blame him for the lies that Goebbels tells of you and me,
Announcements and news bulletins galore from BBC,
And records of some chamber music, opus ninety-three,
So it's just too bad for nasty Uncle Adolf; he's in for it now, all right.

Since Goering started slimming, he looks different on parade.
The tucks from all his uniforms rig out the boys' brigade,
And now there isn't room for all his medals, I'm afraid,
So it's just too bad for nasty Uncle Adolf; he's in for it now, all right.

Subject: Lyr Add: BERLIN OR BUST (from Six Swingers)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 12:56 AM

BERLIN OR BUST
As recorded by The Six Swingers, 1939?

And so it's Berlin or bust!
Oh, we didn't want to do it but we must, boys.
Berlin or bust!
Someone started kicking up a fuss, boys.
Tell them the truth, we loudly roar,
And so the RAF have posted leaflets through the door.
So it's Berlin or bust!
Oh, we didn't want to do it but we must.

Subject: Lyr Add: WHEN THAT MAN IS DEAD AND GONE (I Berlin)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 01:54 AM

WHEN THAT MAN IS DEAD AND GONE
Words and music by Irving Berlin, ©1941.
As recorded by Al Bowlly.

When that man is dead and gone,
When that man is dead and gone,
We'll go dancing down the street,
Kissing everyone we meet,
When that man is dead and gone.

What a day to wake upon!
What a way to greet the dawn!
Some fine day the news will flash:
Satan with a small mustache
Is asleep beneath the lawn,
When that man is dead and gone.

Satan, Satan, thought up a plan,
Dressed as a man,
Walking the earth, and since he began,
The world is hell for you and me,
But what a heaven it will be—

When that man is dead and gone,
When that man is dead and gone.
When they lay him twelve feet deep,
I'll be there to laugh, not weep,
When that man is dead and gone.

What a day to wake upon!
What a way to greet the dawn!
Satan'll take him by the hand
To meet old Goering's Luftwaffe band,
When that man is dead and gone,
When that man is dead and gone.

Some fine day the news will flash:
Satan with a small mustache
Is asleep beneath the lawn,
When that man is dead and gone.

What a day to wake upon!
What a day to greet the dawn,
When a certain man is dead and gone!

* * *
[On a different recording, Mildred Bailey sings these additional lines:]

Hap-hap-happy, yes, indeed,
On the morning when we read
That that man is dead and gone.

We've got a date (Oh, what a date!)
To celebrate (We're gonna celebrate!)
The day we catch up with that one man spreadin' hate.

His account is overdrawn
And his chances are in pawn.
Some fine day the news will flash....(etc.)

[A complete band arrangement is viewable online at The National Library of Australia.]

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: kendall
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 08:25 AM

Talk about coincidence,I just bought a 1937Chevrolet, and I found that someone had installed a radio' cd player. The seller may have forgotten his cd of old songs that was left in the player. One of the songs is The White Cliffs of Dover.

I remember many of the songs mentioned here; when I was a boy we used to listen to a battery powered radio, and one of the programs was called "Your Hit Parade" sponsored by Luck Strike cigarettes.

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: beardedbruce
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 08:37 AM

I still like this one- ( lyrics from older thread)

I can relate to it by experience...




THE THING-UMMY-BOB (THAT'S GONNA WIN THE WAR)
(Written by David Heneker & Gordon Thompson, 1942)

Arthur Askey
Gracie Fields

SPOKEN: You've heard of Florence Nightingale, Grace Darling and the rest.
You've all seen Greta Garbo and her bosom friend, Mae West;
But there's a little lady I want you all to meet.
She's working on munitions and she lives just down the street.

She can't pretend to be a great celebrity,
But still, she's most important in her way.
The job she has to do may not seem like much to you,
But all the same, I'm very proud to say:

SUNG: She's the girl that makes the thing
That drills the hole that holds the spring
That drives the rod that turns the knob
That works the thing-ummy-bob.
She's the girl that makes the thing
That holds the oil that oils the ring
That takes the shank that moves the crank
That works the thing-ummy-bob.

It's a ticklish sort of job
Making a thing for a thing-ummy-bob,
Especially when you don't know what it's for;
But it's the girl that makes the thing
That drills the hole that holds the spring
That works the thing-ummy-bob that makes the engines roar;
And it's the girl that makes the thing
That holds the oil that oils the ring
That works the thing-ummy-bob that's going to win the war.

SPOKEN: She's not what you would call a heroine at all.
I don't suppose you'll even know her name;
And though she'll never boast of her important post,
She strikes a blow for Britain just the same.

(REPEAT THE SUNG PORTION ABOVE.)

I thank you.

*****

VARIATION AS RECORDED BY GRACIE FIELDS:


SPOKEN: I can't pretend to be a great celebrity,
But still, I'm quite important in me way.
The job I have to do may not sound much to you,
But all the same, I'm very proud to say:

SUNG: I'm the girl that makes the thing
That drills the hole that holds the ring
That drives the rod that turns the knob
That works the thing-ummy-bob
I'm the girl that makes the thing
That holds the oil that oils the ring
That takes the shank that moves the crank
That works the thing-ummy-bob.

It's a ticklish sort of job
Making a thing for a thing-ummy-bob,
Especially when you don't know what it's for;
But it's the girl that makes the thing
That drills the hole that holds the ring
That makes the thing-ummy-bob that makes the engines roar;
And it's the girl that makes the thing
That holds the oil that oils the ring
That makes the thing-ummy-bob that's going to win the war.

SPOKEN: I'm not what you would call a heroine, at all.
I don't suppose you'd even know me name.
But though I'll never boast of my important post,
I'll strike a blow for freedom just the same.

(MUSIC)
That works the thing-ummy-bob
(MUSIC)
That works the thing-ummy-bob

It's a ticklish sort of job
Making a thing for a thing-ummy-bob,
Especially when you don't know what it's for;
But it's the girl that makes the thing
That drills the hole that holds the ring
That makes the thing-ummy-bob that makes the engines roar;
And it's the girl that makes the thing
That holds the oil that oils the ring
That makes the thing-ummy-bob that's going to win the war.

It is an' all.

Subject: Lyr Add: WE DID IT BEFORE (AND WE CAN DO IT AGAIN)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 05:26 PM

My transcription from a recording at YouTube:

WE DID IT BEFORE (AND WE CAN DO IT AGAIN)
Words and music by Charles Tobias, ©1941.
As sung by Dick Robertson.

December seventh, nineteen hundred and forty-one,
Our land of freedom was defied.
December eighth, nineteen hundred and forty-one,
Uncle Sam replied:

We did it before and we can do it again,
And we will do it again.
We've got a heck of a job to do,
But you can bet that we'll see it through.

We did it before and we can do it again,
And we will do it again.
We're one for all and we're all for one.
They'll get a lickin' before we're done.

Millions of voices are ringing,
Singing as we march along.

We did it before and we can do it again,
And we will do it again.
We'll knock them over and then we'll get
The guy in back of them.

We did before; we'll do it again.

Subject: Lyr Add: TWENTY-ONE DOLLARS A DAY, ONCE A MONTH
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 06:17 PM

TWENTY-ONE DOLLARS A DAY, ONCE A MONTH
Words by Ray Klages; music by Felix Bernard; ©1941.
As recorded by Tony Pastor and His Orchestra

You might have been a banker's son; you might have pushed a plow.
It makes no diff'rence what you were; you're in the army now.

They wake you up at five o'clock in the morning
For twenty-one dollars a day, once a month.
They take you for a hike without any warning
For twenty-one dollars a day, once a month.
Your feet will hurt, your back will ache, and you'll be muscle bound,
But all of this will disappear when payday comes around.
For seven days a week,
They build up your physique
For twenty-one dollars a day, once a month.

Subject: Lyr Add: ROUND AND ROUND HITLER'S GRAVE
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 20 Jun 13 - 11:00 PM

ROUND AND ROUND HITLER'S GRAVE
Words by Woody Guthrie, Millard Lampell, and Pete Seeger; tune, trad. "Old Joe Clark"; 1942.
As sung by The Almanac Singers

Now I wisht I had a bushel; wisht I had a peck.
Wisht I had old Hitler with a rope around his neck.

CHORUS: Hey! Round and round Hitler's grave, round and round we go.
Gonna lay that poor boy down; he won't get up no mo'.

Mussolini won't last long; tell you the reason why:
We're gonna salt his beef and hang it up to dry.

The German army gen'ral staff, I guess they missed connection,
Went a hundred miles a day but in the wrong direction.

I'm a-goin' to Berlin to Mister Hitler's town.
I'm gonna take my forty-four and blow his playhouse down.

Now Hitler went to Russia in search of Russian oil,
But the only oil he'll find there is the pot in which he'll boil.

Now Mister Hitler's traveling mighty fast but he's on a one-way track,
Started down that Moscow road but now he's comin' back.

Subject: Lyr Add: V STANDS FOR VICTORY
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 12:32 AM

V STANDS FOR VICTORY,
As sung by Margaret Eaves (1941?)

V stands for victory,
Victors of tyranny.
V stands for victory:
Let that be your hymn.
V for victorious
In the air, on land and sea.
Let ev'ry mother's son
Until the war is won
Make his motto "V for victory."

[Apparently several different songs with the same title were written around this time. I was unable to determine who wrote this particular song.]

Subject: Lyr Add: A SLIP OF THE LIP (CAN SINK A SHIP)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 01:35 AM

A SLIP OF THE LIP (CAN SINK A SHIP)
Words and music by Luther Henderson, Jr. and Mercer Ellington, ©1942.
As recorded by Duke Ellington and His Orchestra.

Shhh! Don't talk too much.
Shhh! Don't know too much.
Jack, don't be too hip,
'Cause a slip of the lip might sink a ship.

Shhh! Don't see too much.
Boy, don't you jive too much.
Jack, don't be so hip,
'Cause a slip of the lip might sink a ship.

The walls have ears.
The night has eyes,
So let's be wise
And trick those nasty Nazi spies.

Shhh! Don't talk too much.
Shhh! Don't know too much.
Boy, don't you be too hip,
'Cause a slip of the lip might sink a ship.

Shhh!
Shhh!
Shhh!
Shhh!
Shhh!
It's so bodacious to be loquacious.

A slip of the lip might sink a ship.
Shhh!

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 03:30 AM

Couple more that leap to my mind {probably already mentioned, but just in case}

Praise the Lord & Pass the Ammunition

& I think, by atmosphere & implication & association

There'll Always Be An England

would qualify.

~M~

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 12:54 PM

"Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer" and "Praise the Lord...." are posted in thread 5146. But more information on composers needed for the latter.

Can't find that "There'll always be an England" has been posted.

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 01:07 PM

Ear-ya

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" is an American patriotic song written by Frank Loesser and published as sheet music in 1942 by Famous Music Corp. The song was a response to the attack on Pearl Harbor that marked United States involvement in World War II.

The song describes a chaplain ("sky pilot") being with some fighting men who are under attack from an enemy. He is asked to say a prayer for the men who were engaged in firing at the oncoming planes. The chaplain puts down his Bible, mans one of the ship's gun turrets and begins firing back, saying, "Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition".

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: GUEST,Kendall
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 01:10 PM

I thought Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition was a WW 1 song.

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 01:12 PM

Two more relevant refs from wikipedia ~~

Trust in God and keep your powder dry is a maxim attributed to Oliver Cromwell, but which first appeared in 1834 in the poem "Oliver's Advice" by William Blacker with the words "Put your trust in God, my boys, and keep your powder dry!" The poem is a dramatic representation of Cromwell addressing his army during the invasion of Ireland. Edward Hayes, who edited the anthology in which the work first appeared, calls it a "well-authenticated anecdote of Cromwell".

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article of January 1, 1943, the origin of the quote may well have been John Ford's 1939 film 'Drums along the Mohawk'.

Subject: Lyr Add: G. I. JIVE (Johnny Mercer)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 09:04 PM

G. I. JIVE
Words and music by Johnny Mercer, ©1944.
As sung by Johnny Mercer

This is the G.I. jive.
Man alive!
It starts with the bugler blowing reveille over your bed when you arrive.
Jack, that's the G.I. jive.
Rootly toot!
Jump in your suit.
Make a salute.
Voot!

After you wash and dress,
More or less,
You go get your breakfast in a beautiful little cafe they call the mess.
Jack, when you convalesce,
Out o' your seat,
Into the street.
Make with the feet.
Reet!

If you're a P-V-T, your duty
Is to salute the L-I-E-U-T,
But if you brush the L-I-E-U-T,
The M.P. makes you K.P. on the Q.T.

This is the G.I. jive.
Man alive!
They give you a private tank that features a little device called fluid drive.
Jack, after you revive,
Chunk all your junk
Back in the trunk,
Fall on your bunk.
Clunk!

This is the G.I. jive.
Man alive!
They give you a private tank that features a little device called fluid drive.
Jack, if you still survive,
Chunk all your junk
Back in the trunk,
Fall on your bunk.
Clunk!

Soon you're countin' jeeps, but before you count to five,
Seems you right back diggin' that G.I. jive.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE VICT'RY POLKA (Andrews Sisters)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 11:22 PM

THE VICT'RY POLKA
Words by Samuel Cahn; music by Jule Styne; ©1944.
As sung by the Andrews Sisters.

There's gonna be a hallelujah day,
When the boys have all come home to stay,
And a million bands begin to play,
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.

And when we've lit the torch of liberty,
In each blacked-out land across the sea,
When a man can proudly say "I'm free,"
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.

And we will give a mighty cheer
When a ration book is just a souvenir,
And we'll heave a mighty sigh
When each gal can kiss the boy she kissed goodbye.

And they'll come marching down Fifth Avenue,
The United Nations in review,
When this lovely dream has all come true,
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.

Dance, dance, dance the vict'ry polka.
Join, join the merry throng.
Sing, sing, sing the vict'ry polka.
Raise your voices loud and strong.

There's gonna be a great hallelujah day
When the boys have all come home to stay,
And a million bands begin to play,
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.

And they'll come marching down Fifth Avenue,
The United Nations in review.
When this lovely dream has all come true,
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.
We'll be dancing the vict'ry polka.

Subject: Lyr Add: RATION BLUES (Louis Jordan)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 21 Jun 13 - 11:57 PM

RATION BLUES
Words and music by Louis Jordan, Collenane Clark, & Antonio Cosey; ©1943.
As recorded by Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five

Baby, baby, baby, what's wrong with Uncle Sam?
He's cut down on my sugar; now he's messin' with my ham.

I got the ration blues, blue as I can be.
Poor me, I've got those ration blues.

I got to live on forty ounces of any kind of meat.
Those forty little ounces got to last me all the week.
I got to cut down on my jelly; it takes sugar to make it sweet.
I'm gonna steal all your jelly, baby, and rob you of your meat.

I got the ration blues, blue as I can be.
Poor me, I've got those ration blues.

I like to wake up in the mornin' with my jelly by my side.
Since rationing started, baby, you just take your stuff and hide.
They reduced my meat and sugar, and rubber's disappearin' fast.
You can't ride no more with papa 'cause Uncle Sam wants my gas.

I got the ration blues, blue as I can be.
Poor me, I've got those ration blues.

Subject: Lyr Add: THANKS FOR DROPPING IN, MR HESS (A Askey)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 30 Nov 18 - 01:13 PM

This song commemorates a strange occurrence during the war: Rudolf Hess’ flight to Scotland. You can hear it at YouTube. I have omitted some patter from the beginning of the record.


THANKS FOR DROPPING IN, MR HESS
As recorded by Arthur Askey (1941), also on “Band Waggon & Big-Hearted Arthur Goes to War”

Welcome, little stranger, falling from the skies,
Falling like the raindrops or the dew.
Are you out of danger? Do you realize
Just what sort of welcome’s waiting you?

Well, thanks for dropping in, Mister Hess.
We’ve told your friends to note your new address.
They’ve heard you got here safely in Berlin and in Rome,
So put away your parachute and make yourself at home.
Thanks for dropping in, Mister Hess.
Forgive the small announcement in the press.
Had you told us you were coming and informed us where you’d land,
We would certainly have had a big reception nicely planned
With a carpet and some streamers and Jack Hylton and his band.
Thanks for dropping in.
Thanks for popping in.
What a nice surprise, Mister Hess!

Nice and unexpected, just the way we like,
Strolling in as friendly as can be!
Soon we’ll have old Adolf jumping off his bike,
Calling in to have a cup of tea.

Thanks for dropping in, Mister Hess.
We trust you haven’t left behind a mess.
Perhaps you thought that someone would take you for a ride.
Perhaps you thought it safer here than on the other side.
Thanks for dropping in, Mister Hess.
Don’t tell us why you came; we’d like to guess.
P’rhaps you’d such a lot to tell us, that you thought we ought to know.
P’rhaps you’d heard that bonny Scotland was a charming place to go.
P’rhaps you even thought George Peck(?) might sign you up to do a show.
Thanks for dropping in.
Thanks for popping in.
What a nice surprise, Mister Hess!

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: GUEST,Jerry
Date: 07 Jun 19 - 08:16 AM

I've been looking for a song I heard my grandparents sing. Here is what I recall of it.
Hitler had a little ol' yaller dog.
A mangy ol' cur from Tokyo.
On December the 7th, when everything was still
He tried to sic that dog on Uncle Sam.

Well that little ol' yaller dog had a million yaller pups,
They jumped on Uncle Sam and tried to eat him up.
But you know our Uncle Sam, he's a mighty, mighty man.
He chased that litter back to Japan.

There was an ol' hog over in Rome.
He'd have been better off if he'd have stayed at home.
But he kept on a rootin' in the other feller's land,
Til he rooted right into Hitler's hand.

Subject: RE: WWII songs
From: Stringsinger
Date: 09 Jun 19 - 12:48 PM

Heil, Right In The Fuhrer's Face....Spike Jones

Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer

Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition

Southern Black troops sang:
"Left my wife and a can o' beans, headed out to New Orleans"
"Sound off! Sound off! One two three four one two....three four!"
"I don't know but I been told, Berlin's streets are paved with gold" Sound off.....etc.