"Over There" is a 1917 song written by

George M. Cohan George Michael Cohan (July 3, 1878November 5, 1942) was an American entertainer, playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, singer, dancer and theatrical producer. Cohan began his career as a child, performing with his parents and sister in a vaudev ...

that was popular with the

United States military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

and public during both

world war A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...

s. It is a patriotic song designed to galvanize American young men to enlist and fight the "

Hun The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...

". The song is best remembered for a line in its chorus: "The Yanks are coming."

History

It has been revived on various occasions during and after World War II. It was not heavily used during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, but has been used since the

September 11 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

Lyrics

As sung by early 20th-century recording artist Billy Murray:

Notes

References

External links

Nora Bayes recording July 13, 1917
via U.S. Library of Congress, National Jukebox
Rendition by Billy Murray and quartetLibrary of Congress essay
on recording on the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservati ...

.
Sheet music for "Over There"
Leo Feist, Inc., 1917.
Over There from Patriotic Melodies
{{Authority control 1917 songs American patriotic songs Songs about the military Songs of World War I Billy Murray (singer) songs Songs written by George M. Cohan Nora Bayes songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Songs used as jingles United States National Recording Registry recordings American military marches