John von Rhein on the Star Spangled Banner at the Olympics

Excerpt from an article on the Olympics and Star Spangled Banner by John von Rhein, former Beacon Journal music critic now at the Chicago Tribune

“Why do those national anthems, ours included, have so little to do with the true culture of the countries they are supposed to represent? I listened to the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" last weekend as Michael Phelps, the U.S. swimming star, appeared to struggle with the words to the national anthem as he was awarded his first gold medal. As I did, I had to remind myself that the tune began as a British drinking song that had nothing to do with the Stars and Stripes or the infant Republic. It was only after Francis Scott Key outfitted it with patriotic words, in 1814, that it became as indelible a symbol of American patriotic pride as the flag, the Fourth of July and Donald Trump.”

“Do we really need, on top of that, some stodgy march from the Old World whose words nobody can get right (is it "through the perilous fight" or "perilous night"?), and whose vocal line is almost impossible for ordinary folks to sing? How much better it would be if we adopted the late Ray Charles version of "America the Beautiful" or James Brown's "Living in America," as the nation's celebratory hymn. Wouldn't that or some other pop classic be a better, politically and culturally hipper reflection of today's American society to send around the world? Sadly, other countries haven't done much better. With few exceptions, none of their national anthems contains indigenous musical elements, and most of those are mired in the bloated pomp of the 19th Century. Listening to most of them is as much of a snooze as watching synchronized swimming."

[The article appeared in the August 20, 2004 issue of the Chicago Tribune and was reprinted Monday, August 23 in the Beacon Journal. The link above will take you to the Tribune article.]