 | |
Regional anthem of  Ohio | |
| Lyrics | Wilbert McBride, 1989 |
|---|---|
| Music | Robert A. King, 1918 |
| Published | 1918 |
| Adopted | 1969 |
| Readopted | 1989 |
| Audio sample | |
"Beautiful Ohio", sung by Ruth Lenox (Pseudonym for Marie Morrisey) and Henry Burr, published c. January 1919. | |
"Beautiful Ohio" is the regional anthem of the U.S. state of Ohio, adopted in 1969 as the official state song. [2]
The first lyrics were written in 1918 by Ballard MacDonald and the music by Robert A. "Bobo" King, who used the pseudonym Mary Earl. [3] The melody is partly based on "Song of India" by Rimsky-Korsakov and "Beautiful Dreamer" by Stephen Foster. The original 1918 publication also featured a second obbligato voice, using the tune "Love's Old Sweet Song". [4]
A bill passed by the Ohio General Assembly in 1969 made it the state's official song, and in 1989 adopted an amendment to section 5.09 of the Ohio Revised Code which changed the original words to a new set, written by Wilbert McBride. [2]
"Beautiful Ohio" was originally written as a love song by Ballard MacDonald whose lyrics depict a "paradise of love divine." When McBride rewrote the lyrics for the 1989 version, he gave a much more accurate portrayal of Ohio by including things such as the state's cities and factories rather than two imaginary lovers. [3]
Popular versions in 1919 were by: [5]
Jo Stafford included the song on her 1966 album Do I Hear a Waltz?
Though "Beautiful Ohio" was originally written as a waltz, one version of the song is a march, arranged by Richard Heine. It is commonly performed by the Ohio State University Marching Band when traveling, including their appearance in the 2005 Inaugural Parade of President George W. Bush [6] and at the 2009 Inauguration of President Barack Obama. [7]
The original waltz version of the song is performed by the All Ohio State Fair Band (which holds shows multiple times a day during the Ohio State Fair) at the beginning of every performance.
The original waltz version of the song has been played at the end of cavern tours at Ohio Caverns in West Liberty, Ohio since 1928.
Long, long ago
Someone I know
Had a little red canoe,
In it room for only two.
Love found its start
Then in my heart,
And like a flower grew.
Chorus:
Drifting with the current down a moonlit stream,
While above the Heavens in their glory gleam,
And the stars on high
Twinkle in the sky,
Seeming in a paradise of love divine,
Dreaming of a pair of eyes that looked in mine.
Beautiful Ohio, in dreams again I see
Visions of what used to be. [8]
I sailed away;
Wandered afar;
Crossed the mighty restless sea;
Looked for where I ought to be.
Cities so grand, mountains above,
Led to this land I love.
Chorus:
Beautiful Ohio, where the golden grain
Dwarf the lovely flowers in the summer rain.
Cities rising high, silhouette the sky.
Freedom is supreme in this majestic land;
Mighty factories seem to hum a tune, so grand.
Beautiful Ohio, thy wonders are in view,
Land where my dreams all come true! [9] [10]
"Hang On Sloopy" is a 1964 song written by Wes Farrell and Bert Berns. Rhythm and blues vocal group the Vibrations were the first to record the tune in 1964. Atlantic Records released it as a single, which reached No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song is associated with Ohio State University and is Ohio's official rock song.
Cindy Walker was an American songwriter, as well as a country music singer and dancer. She wrote many popular and enduring songs recorded by many artists.
"Tennessee Waltz" is a popular country music song with lyrics by Redd Stewart and music by Pee Wee King written in 1946 and first released in January 1948. The song became a multimillion seller via a 1950 recording – as "The Tennessee Waltz" – by Patti Page.
"Missouri Waltz" is the official state song of Missouri and is associated with the University of Missouri.
"People" is a song composed by Jule Styne with lyrics by Bob Merrill for the 1964 Broadway musical Funny Girl starring Barbra Streisand, who introduced the song. The song was released as a single in 1964 with "I Am Woman", a solo version of "You Are Woman, I Am Man", also from Funny Girl.
"But Beautiful" is a popular song with music written by Jimmy Van Heusen, the lyrics by Johnny Burke. The song was published in 1947.
"Love Theme from The Godfather" is an instrumental theme from the 1972 film The Godfather, composed by Nino Rota. The piece was lyricized in English by Larry Kusik into "Speak Softly, Love", a popular song released in 1972. The highest-charting rendition of either version was by vocalist Andy Williams, who took "Speak Softly Love" to number 34 on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 and number seven on its Easy Listening chart.
"Mighty Lak' a Rose" is a 1901 song with lyrics by Frank Lebby Stanton and music by Ethelbert Nevin. The lyrics are written in an approximation of an African American accent as a "dialect song", and the title thus means "mighty like a rose". It is sung by a black woman called "Mammy" to a newborn blue-eyed white boy in her care. It was common at the time for white families to hire trusted black women to care for their children.
"Milord" or "Ombre de la Rue" is a 1959 song, famously sung by Édith Piaf.
"I Know You're Out There Somewhere" is a 1988 single by the English rock band the Moody Blues. It was written by guitarist Justin Hayward, and it is the sequel to the Moody Blues' 1986 single "Your Wildest Dreams", also written by Hayward. It is the band's final Top 40 single in the United States, peaking at #30 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Love on a Two-Way Street" is a soul ballad written by Sylvia Robinson and Bert Keyes in 1968. The song was originally recorded by Lezli Valentine, an artist signed to All Platinum, the record label that Sylvia Robinson co-owned with her husband, Joe. The song was then recorded by The Moments, an R&B vocal group signed to All Platinum subsidiary Stang Records, as filler for their 1968 album Not on the Outside, But on the Inside, Strong!. Sylvia and Joe decided to release the song as a single in March 1970 and it went on to become one of the biggest R&B hits of that year, spending five weeks at number one on Billboard's Soul Singles chart and reaching number three on the Hot 100 chart. Billboard ranked the record as the No. 25 song of 1970. It was also certified gold by the RIAA for sales of one million copies.
"Down in the Valley", also known as "Birmingham Jail", is a traditional American folk song. It has been recorded by many artists and is included in the Songs of Expanding America recordings in Burl Ives' six-album set Historical America in Song.
Passionnément! (Passionately) is a comédie musicale in three acts with music by André Messager to a French libretto by Maurice Hennequin and lyrics by Albert Willemetz. The title comes from the refrain of a waltz-song in the second act. It premiered on 16 January 1926 at the Théâtre de la Michodière in Paris.
"I Love" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Tom T. Hall. It was released in October 1973 as the only single from the album For the People in the Last Hard Town. The song would be Hall's most successful single and was his fourth number one on the US country singles chart, spending two weeks at the top and a total of 15 weeks on the chart. Additionally, "I Love" was Hall's sole entry on the Top 40, peaking at number 12.
Olive Kline was an American soprano who is chiefly remembered for her recordings for Victor Records from 1912 to 1935. She recorded a wide range of music from operas and Broadways musicals to sacred music, popular music, and songs from the classical concert repertoire.
Robert A. King was a prolific early twentieth century American composer, who wrote under pen names including the pen names, Mary Earl, Robert A. Keiser, and Betty Chapin.
Marguerite Dunlap was an American contralto opera singer. She is mainly remembered for her recordings for Victor Records from 1904 to 1928. She recorded a wide range of music from operas to Broadway musicals to sacred music, popular music, and songs from the classical concert repertoire.
