Flag SongsFlag Songs
Songs about the American flag have been sung almost as long as there has been an American flag. Early songs consisted of adapted lyrics to other traditional melodies, but the 1800s saw the first songs written exclusively in tribute to the U.S. flag. While there are hundreds of patriotic songs, this display is focused only on those songs where the flag is the primary element.
The most important flag song, of course, is our National Anthem, the Star Spangled Banner. Interestingly, while the lyrics were written by Francis Scott Key in a heroic setting, the chosen melody was a traditional English drinking song.
The song lyrics displayed here represents the evolution of flag songs from the familiar anthems, to war-time hymns from the Civil War and later conflicts, to songs written in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy. As with many things, times of crisis and sorrow help us remember the importance of our heritage, and the American flag is the key symbol of that heritage.
You may click on the links below or just scroll through the list of songs.
COLUMBIA,
THE GEM OF THE OCEAN
T. Becket, D. Shaw; © 1999 AmeriMusic, Inc. Written in 1843
O, Columbia! the gem of the ocean,
The home of the brave and the free,
The shrine of each patriot's devotion,
A world offers homage to thee.
Thy mandates make heroes assemble
When Liberty's form stands in view;
Thy banners make tyranny tremble
When borne by the Red, White and Blue!
When borne by the Red, White and Blue!
When borne by the Red, White and Blue!
Thy banners make tyranny tremble
When borne by the Red, White and Blue!
The wine cup, the wine cup bring hither,
And fill you it true to the brim!
May the wreaths they have won never wither,
Nor the star of their glory grow dim!
May the service united ne'er sever,
But they to their colors prove true!
The Army and Navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white and blue,
The Army and Navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white and blue.
When
war winged its wide desolation,
And
threatened the land to deform,
The
ark then of freedom's foundation,
Columbia
rode safe through the storm.
With
her garlands of vict'ry around her,
When
so proudly she bore her brave crew;
With
her flag proudly floating before her,
The
boast of the red, white, and blue!
The
boast of the red, white, and blue!
With
her flag proudly floating before her,
The
boast of the red, white, and blue!
The
star spangled banner bring hither,
O'er
Columbia's true sons let it wave;
May
the wreaths they have won never wither,
Nor
its stars cease to shine on the brave.
May
thy service united ne'er sever,
But
hold to the colors so true;
The
army and navy forever,
Three
cheers for the red, white, and blue!
Three
cheers for the red, white, and blue!
Three
cheers for the red, white, and blue!
The
army and navy forever,
Three
cheers for the red, white, and blue!
Words and Music by Randy Newman Circa 1988
You
can stand a-lone or with some - bod - y else.
Or
stand with all of us, to-geth - er.
If
you can be-lieve in some-thing
big-ger____than your-self,
You
can fol
- low the flag
for - ev
- er.
They
say it's just a
dream that dream-ers
dreamed,
that
it's an emp-ty thing that real-ly has no
mean-ning.
They
say it's all a lie,
but it's not a lie.
I'm
gon-na fol
- low the flag 'till I die.
In-to
ev-ery life a
lit-tle rain must fall.___
But
it's not gon-na rain
for-ev -
er.
You
can rise a
- bove, you can rise a -
bove it all.
We
will fol - low
the flag to - geth - er.
We
will fol - low
the flag for-
ev - er.
Top
FOR THE DEAR OLE FLAG I DIE
"For the dear old flag I
die."
Said the wounded drummer boy;
"Mother, press your lips to mine;
O, they bring me peace and joy!
'Tis the last time on the earth
I shall ever see your face,
Mother, take me to your heart,
let me die in your embrace.
Chorus:
For the dear old flag I die,
Mother, dry your weeping eye;
for the honor of our land
and the dear old flag I die."
"Do not mourn, my Mother, dear,
every pang will soon be o'er;
for I hear the angel band
calling from their starry shore;
now I see their banners wave
in the light of perfect day,
though 'tis hard to part with you,
yet I would not wish to stay."
Farewell Mother, death's cold hand
weighs upon my spirit now,
and I feel his blighting breath
fan my pallid cheek and brow.
Closer! Closer! To your heart,
let me feel that you are by,
while my sight is growning dim,
for the dear old flag I die.
Words
and Music by Sydney Nesbitt
Our
flag is the flag of A-mer
- i - ca,
the most beau - ti - ful flag in the world;______
and all true A-mer i
- cans ev - 'ry where sa-lute
when Old Glo-ry's un
- furled.______
So bright in the sun-light our proud stars
and stripes fly
- ing high 'neath the blue skies a
- bove._______
Our flag is the flag of A-mer
- i - ca,
and we cher-ish the flag we love._____
Top
Poem Written by Francis Bellamy in 1892.
The Pledge was officially designed as the Pledge of Allegiance to the
Flag by Congress on December 23, 1945. Congress
designed this arrangement by Irving Caesar the official musical setting sometime
in 1955.
I
pledge al-le-giance, pledge al-le-giance,
Pledge al-le-giance to the flag,
To the flag of the U - nit-ed States of A-mer-i-ca, A-mer-i-ca,
And to the Re-pub-lic for which it stands!
One Na-tion
un-der God, One Na-tion
un-der God,
In-di-vis-i-ble with lib-er-ty and
jus-tice for all,
In-di-vis-i-ble with lib-er-ty and
jus - tice for all.
One Na-tion un-der God, One Na-tion
un-der God,
In-di-vis-i-ble with lib-er-ty and
jus-tice for all,
In-di-vis-i-ble with lib-er-ty and
jus - tice for all._____
By Johnny Cash Circa 1974
I
walked through a county court house square
On a park bench an old man was sitting there
I said, "Your court house is kinda run down"
He said, "Naw, it'll do for our little town"
I said, "Your flag pole has leaned a little bit
And that's a Ragged Old Flag you got hanging on it"
He said, "Have a seat" and I sat down
"Is this the first time you've been in our little town?"
I said, "I think it is," he said, "I don't like to brag
But we're kinda proud of that Ragged Old Flag
You see, we got a little hole in that flag there
When Washington took it across the Delaware
And it got powder burned the night Francis Scott Key
Sat watchin' it writing "Say Can You See'
And it got a bad rip in New Orleans
With Packinham and Jackson tuggin' at its seams
And it almost fell at the Alamo
Beside the Texas flag but she waved on through
She
got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville
And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill
There was Robert E. Lee, Beauregard and Bragg
And the south wind blew hard on that Ragged Old Flag
On Flanders Field in World War I
She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun
She turned blood red in World War II
She hung limp and low by the time it was through
She was in Korea and Vietnam
She
went where she was sent by her Uncle Sam
Native Americans, brown, yellow and white
All shed red blood for the Stars and Stripes
In her own good land here she's been abused
She's been burned, dishonored, denied and refused
And the government for which she stands
Has been scandalized throughout the land
And she's getting threadbare and waring thin
But she's in good shape for the shape she's in
'Cause she's been through the fire before
And I believe she can take a whole lot more
So we raise her up every morning, take her down every night
We don't let her touch the ground and fold her up tight
On second thought I do like to brag
'Cause I'm mighty proud of that Ragged Old Flag."
aka Rally 'Round The Flag, Boys
aka The
Battle-Cry Of Freedom
Original Words & Music Composed By George F. Root In 1861
Yes, we'll rally round the flag, boys
Rally once again,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom
We will rally from the hillside
We'll gather from the plains,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom!
Chorus:
The Union forever!
Hurrah boys hurrah!
Down with the traitor, up with the star,
While we rally round the flag, boys
Rally once again
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom!
We are springing to the call
Of our borthers gone before,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom.
And we'll fill the vacant ranks
With a million freemen more,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom!
Chorus:
We will welcome to our numbers
The loyal, true and brave,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom
And altho' they may be poor
Not a man shall be a slave,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom!
Chorus:
So we're springing to the call
From the East and from the West,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom.
And we'll hurl the Rebel crew
From the land we love the best,
Shouting the Battle Cry of Freedom!
Chorus:
John Philip Sousa - 1897/1898
Let
martial note in triumph float
and
liberty extend its mighty hand
A
flag appears 'mid thunderous cheers,
The
banner of the Western land.
The
emblem of the brave and true
Its
folds protect no tyrant crew;
The
red and white and starry blue
Is
freedom's shield and hope.
Other
nations may deem their flags the best
And
cheer them with fervid elation
But
the flag of the North and South and West
Is
the flag of flags, the flag of Freedom's nation.
Hurrah
for the flag of the free!
May
it wave as our standard forever,
The
gem of the land and the sea,
The
banner of the right.
Let
despots remember the day
When
our fathers with mighty endeavor
Proclaimed
as they marched to the fray
That
by their might and by their right
It
waves forever.
Let
eagle shriek from lofty peak
The
never-ending watchword of our land;
Let
summer breeze waft through the trees
The
echo of the chorus grand.
Sing
out for liberty and light,
Sing
out for freedom and the right.
Sing
out for Union and its might,
O
patriotic sons.
Other
nations may deem their flags the best
And
cheer them with fervid elation,
But
the flag of the North and South and West
Is
the flag of flags, the flag of Freedom's nation.
Hurrah
for the flag of the free.
May
it wave as our standard forever
The
gem of the land and the sea,
The
banner of the right.
Let
despots remember the day
When
our fathers with might endeavor
Proclaimed
as they marched to the fray,
That
by their might and by their right
It waves forever.
Henry
Holcomb Bennett
Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums,
A flash of color beneath the sky; Hats
Off!
The flag is passing by!
Blue
and crimson and white it shines,
Over the steel-tipped, ordered lines.
Hats off! The colors before us
fly;
But more than the flag is passing by.
Sea-fights
and land-fights, grim and great,
Fought to make and to save the State:
Weary marches and sinking ships;
Cheers of victory on dying lips;
Days
of plenty and years of peace;
March of a strong land's swift increase;
Equal justice, right, and law,
Stately honor and reverend awe;
Sign
of a nation, great and strong
Toward her people from foreign wrong:
Pride and glory and honor, -- all
Live in the colors to stand or fall.
Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums;
And loyal hearts are beating high:
Hats off!
The Flag is passing by!
Words and Music by C.A. White Circa 1943
For
years and years I've wav'e o'er my peo-ple,
O'er
land and sea, O-ver church tow'r and stee-ple,
Fore-most
in bat-tle, Proud-ly I reign,
Tri-umph-ant
now o'er thee, with -
out one stain.
Oh,
how I trem-bled, When called
a-lone to stand,
But
brave hearts sus-tained me, To wave
o'er the land.
Oh,
my A-mer-i-ca, oh, my A-mer-i-ca, Proud-ly I wave o'er thee,
Sweet
land of Lib-er-ty.
Oh,
my A-mer-i-ca, oh, my A-mer-i-ca, Proud-ly I wave o'er thee,
Sweet
land of Lib-er-ty.
No
Flag on earth shall in-sult this na-tion,
Jus-tice
and right shall e'er be our re-la-tion,
No
creed or sect shall here ev-er reign,
While
floats the Stars and Stripes, with - out one
stain,
Stars
that were blot-ted are shin-ing
once a-gain,
The
an-gel of peace, has wiped out the
stain.
Oh,
my A-mer-i-ca, oh, my A-mer-i-ca, Proud-ly I wave o'er thee,
Sweet
land of Lib-er-ty.
Oh,
my A-mer-i-ca, oh, my A-mer-i-ca, Proud-ly I wave o'er thee,
Sweet
land of Lib-er-ty.
Brothers of free descent were we,
and native to the soil,
knit soul to soul in one great whole, fruit of our Father's toil;
but when that bond of love was rent, the cry rose near and far,
To arms! To arms! Long live the stripes! We know no "single star."
Chorus:
Hurrah! Hurrah!
For the Union flag, Hurrah!
Hurrah for the Union flag,
that knows no "single star."
So long as Southern arrogance
forbore to touch that flag,
full many a taunt we meekly bore, and many an idle brag;
but when on Sumter's battlements, the traitors did it mar,
we flung abroad that Union flag, that ne'er shall lose a star.
John Stafford Smith (attributed) (Music) and Frances
Scott Key (Lyrics) - 1780s/1814
Oh,
say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
On
the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now
it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
And
where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No
refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
Oh!
thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then
conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
THERE’S A STAR SPANGLED BANNER WAVING SOMEWHERE
Words and Music by Paul Roberts and Shelby Darnell
There's
a Star Span-gled Ban-ner wav-ing some-where____
in a dis-tant land so man-y miles a-way.___
On - ly Un - cle Sam's great he-roes get to go there
where I wish that I could al-so
live some - day.
I'd
see Lin-coln, Cus - ter, Wash-ing-ton and Per-ry
and Nath-an Hale and Co-lin Kel-ley too!_____
There's a Star Span-gled Ban-ner wav-ing some-where,
wav-ing o'er the land of he-roes brave and true.
In
this war with its mad schemes of de-struc-tion
of our coun-try fair and our sweet lib-er-ty.
By the mad dic-ta-tors, lead-ers of cor-rup-tion,
can't the U. S. use a moun-tain boy like me?
God
gave me the right to be a free A-mer-i-can
and for that pre-cious right I'd glad-ly die.
There's a Star Span-gled Ban-ner wav-ing some-where,
That is where I want to live when I
die.___
Tho'
I realize I am crip-pled, that is true, sir!
Please don't judge my cour-age by my twist-ed leg.
Let me show my Un - cle Sam what I can do, sir!
Let me help to bring the ax-is down a peg.
If
I do some great deed I will be a he-ro_
and a he-ro brave is what I want to be.
There's a Star Span-gled Ban-ner wav-ing some-where
In that heav-en there should be a place for me.
Top
Sung by Angela Adams and Calvin Bishop, 2002
They pledge allegiance to the flag to the
country that it serves,
Do the children know as they recite the
full meaning of the words?
There’s a passion for the symbol that
makes us feel so tall,
They pledge allegiance to the flag,
allegiance to us all.
One nation indivisible tells the world that
we are strong,
For every single one of us from shore to
shore they know,
Liberty speaks of freedom to live the life
we choose,
And justice to protect those rights, the
rights we dare not lose.
To the flag, to a land, to a people walking
hand in hand,
Shout it out, shout it loud, we’ve a
history to make us proud,
Here we say, here we will stay, share the
love that’s called the USA,
We pledge allegiance to the flag.
Children need to know just why we crave it
so,
America, Americans are helping freedom
roll.
To the flag, to the land, to a people
walking hand in hand,
Shout it out, shout it loud, we’ve a
history to make us proud,
Here we say, here we will stay, share the
love called the USA,
We pledge allegiance to the flag, to the
flag.
WHERE THE STARS AND STRIPES AND THE EAGLE FLIES
Aaron Tippin
Well if you ask me where I come from
Here's what I tell everyone
I was born by God's dear grace
In an extra-ordinary place
Where the
stars and stripes and the eagle flies...
It's a big old land with countless dreams.
Happiness ain't out of reach
Hard work pays off the way it should
Yea, I've seen enough to know that we got it good
Where the
stars and stripes and the eagle flies...
There's a lady that stands in a harbor for what we believe
And there's a bell that still echoes the price that it cost to be free
I pledge allegiance to the flag
And if that bothers you, well that's too bad
But if you've got pride, and you're pride to do
Hey, we can use more like me and you
Where the
stars and stripes and the eagle flies...
Yes, There's a lady that stands in a harbor for what we believe
And there's a bell that still echoes the price that it cost to be free
No, it ain't the only place on earth
It's the only place that I prefer
To love my wife and raise my kids
(Hey) The same way my daddy did
Where the
stars and stripes and the eagle flies...
Where the
stars and stripes and the eagle flies...
Words
and Music by George M. Cohan
You're a grand old flag,
You're a high flying flag
And forever in peace may you wave.
You're the emblem of the land I love.
The home of the free and the brave.
Ev'ry heart beats true 'neath the Red, White and Blue,
Where there's never a boast or brag.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
Keep your eye on the grand old flag.