The Story... Frank Sinatra considered Kate Smith the best singer of her time, saying when he first heard her sing God Bless America on the radio, they all pretended to have dust in their eyes as they wiped away a tear. The link at the bottom takes you to the very first public singing of GOD BLESS AMERICA. But you should know the story behind the first public showing of the song. The time was 1940. America was still in a terrible economic depression. Hitler was taking over Europe and Americans were afraid wed go to war. It was a time of hardship and worry for most Americans. This was just before TV, when radio shows were HUGE, and families sat around radios in the evenings, listening to their favorite entertainers; no entertainer was bigger than Kate Smith. Kate was also large; plus size, as we say, and the phrase still used today is in deference to her, It aint over till the fat lady sings. Kate Smith might not have made it big in the age of TV, but with her voice coming over the radio, she was the biggest star of her time. Kate was also patriotic. It hurt her to see Americans so depressed and afraid of what the next day would bring. She had hope for America, and faith in fellow Americans. She wanted to do something to cheer them up, so she went to the famous American song-writer, Irving Berlin (who also wrote White Christmas) and asked him to write a song that would make Americans feel good again about their country. When she described what she was looking for, he said he had just the song for her. He went to his files and found a song that he wrote, but never published, 22 years before - back in 1917. He gave it to her and she worked on it with her studio orchestra. She and Irving Berlin were not sure how the song would be received by the public, but agreed they would not take any profits from God Bless America. Any profits would go to the Boy Scouts of America. Over the years, the Boy Scouts have received millions of dollars in royalties from this song. This video starts with Kate Smith coming into the studio with the orchestra and an audience. She introduces the new song for the first time, and starts singing. After the first couple verses, with her voice in the background still singing, scenes are shown from the 1940 movie, Youre In The Army Now. At 4:20 of the video you see a young actor in the movie, sitting in an office, reading a paper; its Ronald Reagan. To this day, God Bless America stirs our patriotic feelings and pride in our country. Back in 1940, when Kate Smith went looking for a song to raise the spirits of her fellow Americans, I doubt whether she realized just how successful the results would be...and for generations of Americans to follow. Now you know the story, and I hope you enjoy it and treasure it even more. Many dont know theres a lead in to the song since it usually starts with God Bless America so heres the entire song as originally sung: https://youtube/watch?v=TnQDW-NMaRs
Posted on: Sat, 22 Nov 2014 17:06:56 +0000
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