When I started thinking about the song list for AMERICA: 250 Years Young, one thing I knew for certain was that it would include the works of George M. Cohan. “The Man Who Owned Broadway” was America’s first show business superstar, known coast to coast as a successful actor, singer, dancer, playwright, composer, librettist, director, producer – and unabashed patriot. Creator of over 50 musicals, he published over 300 songs including two featured on this album.
Born on the 4th of July (despite the July 3rd date on his Birth Certificate), he really was the Yankee Doodle Boy.
I Want to Hear a Yankee Doodle Tune
In 1911 – just seven years after writing The Yankee Doodle Boy – Cohan returned to this favorite theme to write I Want to Hear a Yankee Doodle Tune. Written as a bit of a musical protest against the “pretentious, complicated” music coming from Europe at the time, it provides exactly the bold energy I wanted to open the album. To capture the brash, fast-paced style of the early American Musical, I paired the song with an arrangement for full orchestra designed to sound like a hometown marching band.
You’re a Grand Old Flag
In contrast, one of Cohan’s most famous pieces – You’re a Grand Old Flag – is featured later on the album in a much simpler arrangement reminiscent of a Music Hall. The song was inspired by a chance encounter Cohan had with a Civil War veteran on a park bench holding a faded, tattered American flag. The soldier looked at the colors and told Cohan “She’s a grand old rag.” A quick change of word and an American classic was born. Published in 1908, it became the first piece of sheet music from a Broadway show to sell over a million copies, and has been a symbol of American pride ever since.
If you visit New York today, you can find an 8-foot bronze statue of Cohan standing at the corner of Broadway and 46th Street – the only actor honored with a statue in Times Square. He was also the first person in any artistic field to be presented with the Congressional Gold Medal, primarily for his historic World War I anthem Over There.
Not too bad for a self-proclaimed “simple song-and-dance man.”
Listen Now
You can stream both of these Cohan tracks on AMERICA: 250 Years Young, available now on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and more.