What is the name of the song that they sing at the funerals in “The Right Stuff”?
And does it have alternate words as well? I swear in some nautical movie (“The Perfect Storm” I think) I heard them sing the same song at a funeral, but the words were more nautical and less avaitor.
MtM
I thought this had been covered in a previous thread, but I can’t find it.
The song is a variation of “Eternal Father, Strong to Save”, also known (in the U.S. Navy, at least) as the “Navy Hymn”. The original words were written by the Rev. William Whiting, and it was adapted to music in 1861 by the Rev. John B. Dykes. In 1879 it was established as the concluding hymn of Sunday’s Divine Services as the United States Naval Academy.
New verses have been introduced along with advances in naval technology. I’ve found a reference to at least one verse for submariners. The version used in The Right Stuff was introduced around the time of World War II, and seems to be adapted from a seperate hymn, “Lord, Guard and Guide the Men Who Fly” by Mary C. D. Hamilton. I haven’t seen The Perfect Storm, but considering the seafaring tradition of the hymn, it’s probably one of the variations.
Lots of background here, or do a Google search on “Navy hymn”.
There are many verses theat give tribute to sailors, flyers, Marines, Seabees, Coast Guardsmen, and one written in 1961 for astronauts:
Thanks!
MtM
It is also sung in the movie Titanic during the church service, the line highlighted in that film of course
and those in peril on the sea.