Land of Hope and Glory. Featured at the Last Night of the Proms.
Sadly, no longer appropriate. Not much hope or glory there right now.
Personally, anything without Victorian-style imperial bombast would be better.
As for the original Archers theme, I like Billy Connolly’s idea!
Haven’t heard it, but the Archers theme tune is due to get an update.
It’s actually called Barwick Green and is not an old traditional tune at all, having been written in 1924.
Whenever the question comes up of an alternative national anthem, the one thing I can think of that unites the UK is:
All this talk of “Jerusalem” has made me think of another Israeli anthem, one that happens to be about the actual Jerusalem:
“Jerusalem of Gold”
And one more: this is an interesting case of a song that was written as a left-wing protest song but, like “Born in the U.S.A.”, was also adopted by the right.
“I Don’t Have Another Country”
Maybe because it’s spring training time, but the first one that came to mind for the United States is “Take Me Out to the Ballpark”
How about the “Internationale”? Do young and old still know it?
Woodman Spare That Tree
It was the first American “hit” song, poem by George Pope Morris, music by Henry Russell, an English-Jewish emigre.
Ouch! … to lyrics, music, and singing.
Ha. I didn’t listen. There are lots of covers. It’s a historical moment shall we say.
For Germany, the most obvious alternative national anthem is “Ode an die Freude” aka “Freude schöner Götterfunken” (“Ode To Joy”), the finale of Beethoven’s 9th symphony. As a composition by Germany’s greatest composer with lyrics by Germany’s second most important poet Friedrich Schiller, it even has achieved the status as a kind of universal global hymn.
And once again, the bugle calls us on campaign.
We all stand in formation, and march into holy battle
Rise up for the Faith, Russian land!
What “The Maple Leaf Forever” has to do with it, I don’t know!
Vstavai, strana ogromnaya!
Vstavai, na smertnyi boi!
(Arise, enormous country!
Arise, to deadly battle!)
Another one for Mexico (why didn’t I think of this until now?):
La Cucaracha
