From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"When Johnny Comes Marching Home"
Song
Writer(s)	Louis Lambert (lyrics)

"When Johnny Comes Marching Home" (sometimes "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again") is a popular song of the American Civil War that expressed people's longing for the return of their friends and relatives who were fighting in the war.

The tune is that of the Irish antiwar song "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye", presumed to be the original on the basis of oral and textual evidence, although no published version is known to pre-date "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again" [1]. The same tune is used for the children's songs "The Ants Go Marching One By One" and also "The Animals Went in Two by Two". The lyrics, written by Irish-American bandleader Patrick Gilmore, and published under the pseudonym 'Louis Lambert', effectively reverse those of the original, in which Johnny returns home blind and crippled, to the woman he abandoned in order to join the army. The larcenous tendencies of some Union soldiers in New Orleans were parodied in the Confederate lyrics, "For Bales", to the same tune.

When Johnny comes marching home again,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We'll give him a hearty welcome then
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The men will cheer and the boys will shout
The ladies they will all turn out
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

The old church bell will peal with joy
Hurrah! Hurrah!
To welcome home our darling boy,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The village lads and lassies say
With roses they will strew the way,
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

Get ready for the Jubilee,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We'll give the hero three times three,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The laurel wreath is ready now
To place upon his loyal brow
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.

Let love and friendship on that day,
Hurrah, hurrah!
Their choicest pleasures then display,
Hurrah, hurrah!
And let each one perform some part,
To fill with joy the warrior's heart,
And we'll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home

• "When Johnny Comes Marching Home," unlike most patriotic songs, is written in a minor key.

• The music for this song is used (with different lyrics) by The Clash for their song "English Civil War".

• The song has a recurring presence in the Bruce Willis movie Die Hard: With a Vengeance as the on screen theme of Simon Gruber.

• The music is played as an instrumental march during the movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) any time the action shifts to Major Kong's B-52.

• The music is played during the movie Stalag 17.

• There is a World War I (1914) variation: "When Tommy Comes Marching Home".

• Parts of the song were performed by U2 during the Vertigo Tour as a medley with "Bullet the Blue Sky."

• Also the song is being played in the Simpsons Episode G.I._(Annoyed_Grunt) of Season 18.

• Guns N' Roses used a part of the song for their song Civil War.

• French version "Johnny Revient d'la Guerre / Frères d'armes" (listed as two songs, but it actually sounds like one piece of music) by Bérurier Noir on the album "Macadam Massacre"

• The song was remade by David Rovics titled "When Johnny came marching home" as an antiwar-song.

• On the night of Johnny Carson's last first-run Tonight Show in 1992, Comedy Central was running continuous tributes to Carson, interweaving a variant on this song, sung by Penn Jillette, as "When Johnny Goes Marching Home".

• Iced Earth used a part of the song for their song "The Devil to Pay" on The Glorious Burden.

• W.A.S.P. used a part of the song as an intro to their song "Heaven's Hung In Black" on the 2007 release Dominator.

• Library of Congress song info
• MIDI and description

Patriotic music of the United States

"America the Beautiful" • "Ballad of the Green Berets" • "Battle Cry of Freedom" • "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" • "Columbia, Gem of the Ocean" • "Eternal Father, Strong to Save" • "For The Dear Old Flag, I Die" • "God Bless America" • "God Bless the USA" • "Hail, Columbia" • "Hail to the Chief" • "The Liberty Bell" • "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" • "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" • "Over There" • "PT-109" • "Stars and Stripes Forever" • "The Star-Spangled Banner" • "There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving" • "This is My Country" • "This Land Is Your Land" • "Yankee Doodle" • "The Yankee Doodle Boy" • "You're a Grand Old Flag" • "Fifty Nifty United States" • "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" Armed services: "The Army Goes Rolling Along" • "Anchors Aweigh" • "The U.S. Air Force" • "Marines' hymn" • "Semper Paratus"