The War in Europe and D-Day

The War's Voices:

Broadcast and Commercial Recordings of Speeches and Interviews of World War II-era Personalities.

Winning the Home Front:

War-related Entertainment, Propaganda, and Ads Targeting World War II-era Radio Listeners.

G.I. Jive:

Popular and Topical Songs of World War II.

Boogie Woogie Bugle Boys:

USO Shows, Armed Forces Radio, V-Discs, and Other Morale Efforts Targeting the Military.

We Interrupt This Program:

War Reports, News Flashes, and Informational Programs Regarding World War II.

Now Hear This:

World War II-era Broadcast and Recording Technology.

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G.I. Jive

Radio connected entertainment and news with uncanny intimacy. The proverbial question "what were you doing when…" adopted a whole new meaning during the war, with gripping reports from distant places mingling with domestic leisure. As the war in Europe played out, the magical sounds of radio embodied this intrinsic quality, taking listeners on a roller-coaster ride of news, entertainment and popular song. From the soft and swinging sounds of dance bands, to the farfetched frolics of novelty groups, to the low-profile persona of rare records, music captivated listeners with all the poise and awareness of a seasoned soldier.

The ten songs presented here come from the 78 rpm and lp disc collections in the Marr Sound Archives.

Song #1: In Times Like These
June 6, 1944 began as just another "X" on the wartime calendar; and for some, surfing the radio dial for "live remotes" filled the bill of nightly activities. Air checks - as these broadcasts were commonly called - brought live performances of popular bands into homes across the country. On that historic night, New York's WOR broadcast Harry James and his orchestra from the Hotel Astor. At 12:45 a.m. - while "In Times Like These" enjoyed one of its first plays on the airwaves - an unsubstantiated report disrupted the late-night routine of radio listeners.

Song #2: Der Fuehrer's Face
Humor offers a remedy for turbulent times and nobody brewed a better musical potion during World War II than Spike Jones and his City Slickers. As German attacks beset Stalingrad and seesaw battles in North Africa raged, "Der Fuehrer's Face" - an ode about Hitler - spent a total of sixteen weeks in the charts, peaking at #3.

Song #3: Hitler Blues
Recording a mere eight sides, blues vocalist Ernest Blunt - a.k.a. "The Florida Kid" - epitomized the "hear today-gone tomorrow" story. "Hitler Blues," cut for Bluebird Records in Chicago, 1940, offered insight into love and war that would ring true for Americans thirteen months later. Accompanied by piano and single-string washtub bass, this bare-boned blues piece belies clever lyrics and the tonal acumen of the bassist.

Song #4: A Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin
The indelible crooner Bing Crosby and the sweet harmony of the Andrews Sisters guaranteed "A Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin" a six-week stay at #1. An amalgam of past anthems, this confident 1944 song referenced the WWI standard "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down On The Farm" as well as "A Hot Time In The Old Town," a popular song during the Spanish-American War. Note the composer byline credits "Sergeant" Joe Bushkin and "Private" John DeVries, stressing a common motto that an entertainer was a "soldier first, musician second."

Song #5: Mussolini's Letter To Hitler,
Song #6: Hitler's Reply To Mussolini
Country and Western pioneer Carson Robison contributed a wealth of songs to the war effort. Whether walking a fine line between biting satire and black humor (e.g. "We're Gonna Have To Slap The Dirty Little Jap") or arousing light-hearted patriotic chuckles, his catalog of WWII songs struck a chord in the American psyche. The 1942 record "Mussolini's Letter To Hitler" - "Hitler's Reply To Mussolini" bordered on the latter sentiment, and its modest success (#21) sparked two 1945 "letters" between Hitler and Japanese Emperor Hirohito.

Song #7: White Cliffs Of Dover
Five versions of "White Cliffs Of Dover" charted in early 1942 - Jimmy Dorsey, Sammy Kaye, and Glenn Miller all recorded popular renditions of this WWII favorite. Kate Smith - a very popular radio singer who first introduced Irving Berlin’s "God Bless America" to the public on Armistice Day, 1938, and again in the 1943 film This Is The Army - reached #9 with her rendition; but Kay Kyser was king in March, dethroning Miller's "Moonlight Cocktail", which had enjoyed a solid, ten-week stay at #1. The wistful vocal by Harry Babbitt characterized Americans' hope for a swift end to a disquieting European conflict.

Song #8: Careful Conversation At A Diplomatic Function
From quirky composer of the 1930's (no doubt you've heard "Powerhouse" tramping through the background of countless cartoons) to conductor of CBS's Your Hit Parade in the 1950's, to electronic music pioneer, Raymond Scott remained on the cutting edge of American popular music. His jazzy WWII bands at times showed more restraint than earlier outfits, but Scott's penchant for colorful titles kept radio listeners attentive. One such title from 1942, "Careful Conversation At A Diplomatic Function", calls to mind the brazen immediacy of a Churchill speech or the calm eloquence of Roosevelt's conviction.

Song #9: Stalin Wasn't Stallin'
"The world has never seen greater devotion, determination, and self sacrifice, that have been displayed by the Russian people and their armies under the leadership of Marshall Joseph Stalin," declared FDR in a July 28, 1943 speech. Though the alliance of future Cold War foes gelled precariously, it ultimately proved effective in halting the Axis advances during World War II. The Golden Gate Quartet's bouncy a cappella, "Stalin Wasn't Stallin'," lauded the Soviet leader's grit and shrewdness, as many decisive battles occurred on the eastern front.

Song #10: The General Jumped At Dawn
V-E Day loomed just around the corner in the spring of 1945: Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta to discuss post-war plans; Allied forces liberated concentration camps at Auschwitz, Buchenwald, and Belsen; and Stalin's army pressed toward Berlin while British forces bombed Dresden. The tide had turned at Normandy the year before and The Golden Gate Quartet celebrated this reality with a March, 1945 recording. "The General Jumped At Dawn" boasted the usual rhythmic vocals of the gospel-based group, but its inclusion of an electric guitar solo hinted at another reality: the changing face of popular music.

Text by Kelly McEniry, Marr Sound Archives
Digital Audio by Scott Middleton, Marr Sound Archives

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