|
"The U.S. Air Force" is the official song of the United States Air Force. It is informally known as "The Air Force Song," and is often incorrectly referred to as "Off We Go Into the Wild Blue Yonder," or simply "Wild Blue Yonder." The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial warfare branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services. ...
History Originally, the song was known as the 'Army Air Corps Song.' The lyrics and music were written by Capt. Robert Crawford in 1939. The words "U.S. Air Force" have since replaced the original "Army Air Corps".
In 1937, Army Air Corps second-in-command Hap Arnold persuaded his superior, Oscar Westover, that airmen needed a song reflecting their unique identity, and proposed a song competition with a prize to the winner. However, the Air Corps had no control over its budget, and could not give a prize. Liberty magazine stepped in, offering a purse of $1,000 to the winner. 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...
Henry Hap Arnold Henry Harley Hap Arnold was an aviation pioneer and commander of the United States Army Air Corps (from 1938), commander of the U.S. Army Air Forces (from 1941 until 1945) and the first General of the Air Force (in 1949. ...
Oscar Westover (July 23, 1883 - September 21, 1938) was a major general and chief of the United States Army Air Corps when he died. ...
Around 757 compositions were entered, and evaluated by a volunteer committee chaired by Mildred Yount, the wife of a senior Air Corps officer, and also featuring several distinguished musicians. The committee had until July 1939 to make a final choice. However, word eventually spread that the committee found no songs that satisfied them, despite the massive number of entries. Arnold, who took over command of the Air Corps in 1938 after Westover was killed in a plane crash, solicited direct inquiries from contestants, including Irving Berlin, but not even Berlin's creations proved satisfactory. Just before the deadline, Crawford entered his song, which proved to be a unanimous winner. Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ...
Irving Berlin (May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was an American composer and lyricist, one of the most prodigious and famous American songwriters in history. ...
The song did not catch favor with everyone. At a dinner in September 1939, committee chair Yount played a recording of the song for Charles Lindbergh and asked his opinion of the song. He responded politely to Yount, but years later remarked in a diary, "I think it is mediocre at best. Neither the music nor the words appealed to me." Arnold did not share Lindbergh's opinion; he sought to fund publication of band and ensemble arrangements of the song for nationwide distribution. However, the Air Corps did not have enough money to widely publish the piece, so Crawford arranged a transfer of the song's copyright to New York music publisher Carl Fischer Inc., including a perpetual performance release in favor of the U.S. government. This means that unlike the other services, the Air Force does not own its own service song. For Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Junior, see Lindbergh kidnapping. ...
Articles with similar titles include copywrite. ...
New York, NY redirects here. ...
Lyrics The full lyrics of the song are as follows: Image File history File links The_Air_Force_Song. ...
Software development stages In computer programming, development stage terminology expresses how the development of a piece of software has progressed and how much further development it may require. ...
Off we go into the wild blue yonder,
Climbing high into the sun;
Here they come zooming to meet our thunder,
At 'em boys, Give 'er the gun! (Give 'er the gun now!)
Down we dive, spouting our flame from under,
Off with one hell of a roar!
We live in fame or go down in flame. Hey!
Nothing can stop the U.S. Air Force!
Minds of men fashioned a crate of thunder,
Sent it high into the blue;
Hands of men blasted the world asunder;
How they lived God only knew! (God only knew then!)
Souls of men dreaming of skies to conquer
Gave us wings, ever to soar!
With scouts before And bombers galore. Hey!
Nothing can stop the U.S. Air Force!
Bridge: "A Toast to the Host"
Here's a toast to the host
Of those who love the vastness of the sky,
To a friend we send a message of his brother men who fly.
We drink to those who gave their all of old,
Then down they soared to score the rainbow's pot of gold.
A toast to the host of men we boast, the U.S. Air Force!
Zoom!
Off we go into the wild sky yonder,
Keep the wings level and true;
If you'd live to be a grey-haired wonder
Keep the nose out of the blue! (Out of the blue, boy!)
Flying men, guarding the nation's border,
We'll be there, followed by more!
In echelon we carry on. Hey!
Nothing can stop the U.S. Air Force!
Performance of the song Most commonly only the first verse is performed, though in professional performances all four verses may be presented. The third verse ("Here's a toast...") has a different melody, and a more reverent mood than the rest of the song to commemorate those who have fallen in the service of the Air Force and the United States. This verse is sometimes performed independently of the other verses.
The first verse of the song is used as the fight song for the United States Air Force Academy. It is also sung by all the flights, in unison, at the beginning of the duty day at Air Force basic training. The third verse of the song is sung by itself as the Academy's alma mater at football games (most notably after games against rivals Army and Navy) and is also sung by Academy cadets and graduates to honor the passing of a fellow cadet or graduate. A fight song is primarily a sports term, referring to a song associated with a team. ...
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA), located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, (), is an institution for the undergraduate education of officers for the United States Air Force. ...
Alma mater is Latin for nourishing mother. It was used in ancient Rome as a title for the mother goddess, and in Medieval Christianity for the Virgin Mary. ...
United States simply as football, is a competitive team sport that is both fast-paced and strategic. ...
USMA redirects here. ...
The United States Naval Academy (USNA) is an institution for the undergraduate education of officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps and is in Annapolis, Maryland, near Washington D.C. The Academy often is referred to simply as Annapolis although naval officers normally refer to it in conversation...
Contemporary sheet music contained a footnote advising the substitution of "terrible roar" for "hell of a roar", for radio performances, in accordance with public airwaves rules of the day. "Hell of a roar" is heard much more often nowadays, in the more relaxed modern standards of decorum.
Trivia Another, though unofficial song, surfaced in 1957. A Department of Defense newsreel from 1957/12/09, played a much different Air Force song with even more different lyrics.
They took the blue from the skies and the pretty girls eyes
and untouchable Glory's hue,
And gave it to the men who proudly wear the U.S. Air Force blue.
The U.S. Air Force blue!
Oh they. are men with a dream on America's team,
They're a rugged and brave crew.
And you can bet your boots the world looks up to U.S. Air Force blue.
To U.S. Air Force blue!
They know where they're goin', they've set their course,
the sky's no limit in the Air Force.
They took the blue from the skies and the pretty girl's eyes
and untouchable glory's hue.
And gave it to the men who proudly wear the U.S. Air Force blue.
And you can wear it too!
The U.S..
Air Force...
Blue!
The video can be found on Youtube, where some who viewed it commented that they grew up with the song during the Korean War and after the Vietnam War. Combatants United Nations: Republic of Korea, Australia, Belgium, Luxembourg, Canada, Colombia, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States Medical staff: Denmark, Australia, Italy, Norway, Sweden Communist states: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Peoples Republic of China, Soviet Union Commanders...
Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftBMALUd21U
References
See also
Original sheet music cover // Anchors Aweigh is the song of the United States Navy, composed in 1906 by Charles A. Zimmerman with lyrics by Alfred Hart Miles. ...
The song was originally written by field artillery First Lieutenant (later Brigadier General) Edmund L. Gruber, while stationed in the Philippines in 1908 as the Caisson Song. ...
Eternal Father, Strong to Save, is a hymn often associated with the Royal Navy or the United States Navy. ...
The Marines Hymn is the official hymn of the United States Marine Corps. ...
Semper Paratus (march) Semper Paratus (Latin for Always ready) is the official slogan of the United States Coast Guard. ...
The Royal Air Force March Past is the official march of the Royal Air Force (RAF). ...
| Patriotic music of the United States |
 | | "America the Beautiful" • "Ballad of the Green Berets" • "Battle Cry of Freedom" • "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" • "Columbia, Gem of the Ocean" • "Eternal Father, Strong to Save" • "For The Dear Old Flag, I Die" • "God Bless America" • "God Bless the USA" • "Hail, Columbia" • "Hail to the Chief" • "The Liberty Bell" • "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" • "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" • "Over There" • "PT-109" • "Stars and Stripes Forever" • "The Star-Spangled Banner" • "There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving" • "This is My Country" • "This Land Is Your Land" • "Yankee Doodle" • "The Yankee Doodle Boy" • "You're a Grand Old Flag" • "Fifty Nifty United States" • "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" The bombardment of Fort McHenry that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the lyrics for thenational anthem. ...
Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
America the Beautiful is an American patriotic song which rivals The Star-Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the United States, in popularity. ...
Album cover Ballad of the Green Berets is a patriotic song in the ballad style about the Green Berets, an elite special operations force in the U.S. Army. ...
Battle Cry of Freedom is a song written in 1862 by American composer George F. Root (1825–1895) during the American Civil War. ...
The Battle Hymn of the Republic is a patriotic anthem, written by Julia Ward Howe, that was made popular during the American Civil War. ...
Columbia, Gem of the Ocean is an United States patriotic song which was popular in the 19th and early 20th century. ...
Eternal Father, Strong to Save, is a hymn often associated with the Royal Navy or the United States Navy. ...
For The Dear Old Flag, I Die is a U.S. Civil War song. ...
God Bless America is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin in 1918 and revised by him in 1938. ...
God Bless the USA is an American patriotic song written by nationalist country musician Lee Greenwood. ...
Hail, Columbia was the unofficial national anthem of the United States until its replacement in 1931 by the officially mandated Star-Spangled Banner. It was originally composed by Joseph Hopkinson in the late 18th century. ...
Sheet music for the chorus to Hail to the Chief Hail to the Chief is the official anthem of the President of the United States. ...
The Liberty Bell is an American military march composed by famous bandmaster John Philip Sousa in 1893, and is considered one of his finest works. ...
African American flag Lift Evry Voice and Sing — often called The Black National Anthem — was written as a poem by James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) and then set to music by his brother John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954) in 1899. ...
Wikisource has original text related to this article: America My Country, Tis of Thee, also known as America, is an American patriotic song. ...
Over There is a 1917 song popular with United States soldiers in both world wars. ...
PT-109 was a song by Jimmy Dean about the adventures of John F. Kennedy and the crew of the PT-109. ...
The Stars and Stripes Forever is a patriotic American march. ...
Nicholson took the copy Key had given him to a printer, who published it as a broadside on 17 September, 1814 under the title Defence of Fort McHenry, with a note explaining the circumstances of its writing. ...
One of the most popular war songs, written during World War II is Paul Roberts and Shelby Carnells (Bob Miller) Theres A Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere. ...
This is My Country is an American folk song composed in 1940. ...
Wikisource has original text related to this article: This Land is Your Land This Land Is Your Land is one of the United States most famous folk songs, written by Woody Guthrie in 1940. ...
Yankee Doodle is a well-known American song, often sung patriotically today . ...
The Yankee Doodle Boy is a patriotic song from the Broadway musical Little Johnny Jones written by George M. Cohan. ...
Youre a Grand Old Flag is a patriotic song of the United States. ...
Fifty Nifty United States is an American patriotic song by Ray Charles. ...
When Johnny Comes Marching Home (sometimes When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again) is a popular song of the American Civil War that expressed peoples longing for the return of their friends and relatives who were fighting in the war. ...
Armed services: "The Army Goes Rolling Along" • "Anchors Aweigh" • "The U.S. Air Force" • "Marines' hymn" • "Semper fidelis" • "Semper Paratus" The Military of the United States, officially known as the United States Armed Forces, is structured into five branches consisting of the: United States Army United States Marine Corps United States Navy United States Air Force United States Coast Guard The U.S. Public Health Service and NOAA also have...
The song was originally written by field artillery First Lieutenant (later Brigadier General) Edmund L. Gruber, while stationed in the Philippines in 1908 as the Caisson Song. ...
Original sheet music cover // Anchors Aweigh is the song of the United States Navy, composed in 1906 by Charles A. Zimmerman with lyrics by Alfred Hart Miles. ...
The Marines Hymn is the official hymn of the United States Marine Corps. ...
Semper Fidelis is Latin for Always faithful. ...
Semper Paratus (march) Semper Paratus (Latin for Always ready) is the official slogan of the United States Coast Guard. ...
| |
Feeds |
Contact