Replacing the Star Spangled Banner as the National Anthem
A Few Modest Suggestions on a Suitable Replacement
There are, however, a wealth of worthies for the title of national anthem, singable, less bellicose, and, frankly, more in tune with today's America.
America the Beautiful
Oh beautiful, for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.
Oh beautiful, for pilgrims' feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw;
Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law!
Oh beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
'Til all success be nobleness, and ev'ry gain divine!
Oh beautiful, for patriot's dream
That sees, beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!
America the Beautiful was written in 1893 by Katharine Lee Bates as a poem inspired by a cross country train trip from Boston to Colorado. The poem as set to a number of music compositions over the years but, by 1910 or so, the melody generally accepted was a hymn by Samuel Ward, a church organist in Newark, New Jersey. It is his melody that has become the most popular today. The several references to "God" may pose a concern in some quarters, but there are allusions to the Deity in The Star Spangled Banner, albeit the language would not be understood by modern Americans for the most part:
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
God Bless America
This popular patriotic song would seem to be a perfect national anthem, written by Irving Berlin, a Russian immigrant who became one of the most productive and successful songwriters in American history. Berlin wrote the original song in 1918 while serving in the Army. In 1938, with the rise of Hitler in Germany, Berlin re-wrote the lyric to "revive" it as a "peace song". The song was popularized by singer Kate Smith in the late 1930's and a movement started to make this song our National Anthem. Again, opposition was raised by some because of the song's evocation of religion and the argument was made that this, alone, made God Bless America unsuitable. (As I have noted, both the Star Spangled Banner and America the Beautiful refer to God.)
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with the light from above
From the mountains To the prairies,
To the ocean white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.
I would submit that God Bless America would be a fantastic substitution for our National Anthem. As an added reason, Irving Berlin donated all royalties to the Boy and Girl Scouts of the United States. A mensch.
My Country . . .'tis of Thee"
This song is certainly familiar to nearly all Americans and can be sung by the average person. I would not suggest it because the melody is from "God Save the Queen", the British National Anthem, although this song was the de facto United States anthem during much of the nineteenth century. It is certainly a popular song/melody; it has been adopted as the National Anthem of Liechtenstein and, for a while, was the melody for the Anthem of the German empire prior to the first World War. The first verse is well known, the final verse, again, raises the issue of religion:
My country, 'tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!
****
Our fathers' God, to thee,
Author of liberty,
To thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
With freedom's holy light;
Protect us by thy might,
Great God, our King.
The Stars and Stripes Forever
Several problems would seem to disqualify this "National March". By Act of Congress, a composition of John Philip Sousa. First the lyrics are totally unfamiliar to the American public and far too many people learned the famous parody:
Be kind to your web-footed friends
For a duck may be somebody's mother
Be kind to your friends in the swamp
Where the weather is very, very damp [pronounced to rhyme with "swamp"]
Now, you may think that this is the end...
WELL, IT IS!
So, if the Star Spangled Banner were replaced, what would be your suggestion?
Published by Jim Stillman
Retired from Florida Department of Revenue after 25 years.and retired New York attorney. I am a liberal with regard to social responsibility and, likely, a Libertarian otherwise. View profile
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22 Comments
Post a CommentCan't sing the song? Simple remedy: change the key to one that fits your voice range. Don't know or appreciate your nation's history? Go back to school. You evidently slept through History and Civics classes.
Also...if I could change the National Anthem to something more contemporary (since 1980) I would select one of two songs: God Bless The USA by Lee Greenwood or They're Coming To America by Neil Diamond...favoring the latter moreso because it's more inclusive.
I also have a fondness for the 1940 song "This is my Country." because I like the two verses that honor both native born Americans and Naturalized Citizens. the first one says this is my country land of my birth this is my country grandest on earth and the next verse reads this is my country land of my choice this is my country hear my proud voice. Both verses conclude with I pledge thee my allegiance, America the Bold for this is my country to have and to hold.
Robert, you write on your page that you pride yourself for upholding Christian ideals and beliefs. Is your comment worthy of those beliefs? Besides that, what is "Russo"? Are you still fighting the Cold War? Sharks?
Thank you for your comments which say more about you than me.
Russo, why don't YOU take a long walk off a short pier, preferably where there are plenty of sharks!!!
yes this is a very beautiful peace. I would not like to change it for anything. i had to do a report for school on it and alot of kids thought that it was very wrong to like it because it was so old.
The Star Spangled Banner was indeed taught to kids in elementary school--that doesn't make it easier or even aesthetic. My vote to change it comes from the belief that it fails to recognize so much of the value of our country while taking a strong military slant. America the Beautiful is both harmonic, easy to sing and understand and puts our military prowess in better perspective. I think our flag should be a symbol rather than an idol. The current anthem suggests idolatry.
I share the belief that our country was not founded on godLESSness but on freedom to choose our expression of faith. I would suggest that EVERY citizen in the United States has a god. Maybe it's money or fame or power rather than a traditional spiritual figure. So the need to avoid the simple use of the word is non-existent.
Those who feel the anthem should NEVER change ought to also go back to the original flag.
I thought EVERYBODY, prior to about 1998, learned "The Star-Spangled Banner" (lyrics by Francis Scott Key) one way or another, as I had pretty much grown up with it as the lead-in to sporting events. It was severe culture shock for me to be told, in the early 21st century, that most Yanks no longer have the vocal/lyrical faculties for the US national anthem. I had correctly guessed that "God Bless America" (Irving Berlin) has become so trendy because it it simpler (see the relevant Wikipedia page).
Ugh. I agree completely... the American anthem should be able to be belted out by everybody, not just people with some strange 4 octave voice range... No to the Star Strangled Banner. And No to God Bless America (though being able to scream the last 3 words is a fun plus for crowds at the ballgame).
Besides, America isn't about the flag, war, or god only... it's about the land, the people, and their dreams, joined as individuals in a common endeavor.
America the Beautiful fits.
I would have to agree with Youranter. This country was based on the religious principles of our founding fathers. I also know that national anthems for most countries are based on a time of war like ours. I say, leave it the same!