In Heaven There Is No Beer

"Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier" ("In Heaven There Is No Beer") also known as No Beer Polka
Music by	Ralph Maria Siegel
Lyrics by	Ernst Neubach
Published	1956 in German
Language	German
Recorded by	Two Ton Baker. Frankie Yankovic. Flaco Jimenez, Brave Combo, The Pogues, Clean Living,[1] Atongo Zimba[2]

In Heaven There Is No Beer is a song about the existential pleasures of beer drinking. The title of the song is the reason to drink beer while you are still alive. The song in German is "Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier", in Spanish, "En El Cielo No Hay Cerveza". ^[3] It was originally composed as a movie score for the film Die Fischerin vom Bodensee, 1956, by Ernst Neubach and Ralph Maria Siegel.^[4] The English lyrics are credited to Two Ton Baker ^[5] or to Joe Trolli and Frankie Yankovic.^[6]

Cinematography

The song was the inspiration for the title of the 1984 film and 1985 Sundance Film Festival winner, In Heaven There Is No Beer?,^[7] which also featured the song "Who Stole the Kishka?".^[8]

Sports

The song is frequently played by the Yale Precision Marching Band with the added verse: "At Harvard there is no ale (No ale?!) / That's why we go to Yale / And when our livers fail / We'll still be glad we went to Yale"

The University of Nebraska Cornhusker Marching Band sings this song after being dismissed at the end of every home game.

The song is played frequently at home hockey games at the University of Minnesota-Duluth (UMD), University of Minnesota, and University of Wisconsin by the schools' bands.

This song has been adopted by the University of Iowa as their victory song, to be played by the band after Iowa Hawkeyes wins. Some know it as the Hawkeye Victory Polka.

It is an unofficial school song of Michigan Technological University, as played by the Huskies Pep Band.

The song is a performed at all home games at the University of Wyoming[1], where it is known as the 'beer song'. The fans chant for the song to be played, until the band leader relents. This cycle may happen multiple times during a sporting event.

The song In Heaven There No Beer is played at every football and basketball game at Fort Hays State University, Kansas.

The song is also performed after every NDSU Bison football and basketball victory by the North Dakota State University Gold Star Marching Band and Bison Pep Band.

In Heaven There is No Beer is played after every football and basketball game at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. A game just isn't complete until the song is played.

The University of Idaho's Vandal Marching Band performs this song after every sporting event they play at, regardless of whether the Vandals win or lose. The band's Sousaphone Section also performs it at various tailgate partys before home football games.

The Ohio Northern University Marching Band during the fourth quarter of every home football game, while the pep band often plays it at the end of men's and women's basketball games.

The song is performed monophonically at football games and various homecoming events by the pep band of Wartburg College in Waverly, IA.

The song is often played at home UNH Hockey games by the Beast of the East Band.

Lyrics

In heaven there is no beer.

That's why we drink it here (Right Here!)

When we're gone from here,

all our friends will be drinking all our beer!

See also

• Es gibt kein Bier auf Hawaii
• I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell ^[9]

References

1. ^ Dr. Demento (1995) (sound recording). Dr. Demento 25th anniversary collection more of the greatest novelty records of all time.. Santa Monica, California: Rhino. OCLC 33275688. 
2. ^ "Music in Ghana- Atongo Zimba". http://www.musicinghana.com/migsite/artist/bio.php?artid=67. Retrieved 7 February 2010. 
3. ^ "En El Cielo No Hay Cerveza (lyrics in Spanish and Dutch)". http://www.freewebs.com/nuniesnews/spanglishlyrics.htm. Retrieved 20 September 2009. 
4. ^ Siegel, Ralph Maria; Neubach, Ernst (1956) (in German) (musical score). Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier : Marschfox. Aus dem Neubach-Film: Die Fischerin vom Bodensee [In Heaven There is No Beer]. Zürich: Helbling. OCLC 81325100. 
5. ^ "In Heaven There is No Beer (English Version)". http://twotonbaker.com/2ton/bio/bio4.htm. Retrieved 12 September 2010. 
6. ^ http://lyrics.wikia.com/Gracenote:Frankie_Yankovic:In_Heaven_There_Is_No_Beer
7. ^ Maslin, Janet (23 May 1984). "Documentaries on Polka and Bluegrass". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1984/05/23/movies/documentaries-on-polka-and-bluegrass.html?scp=5&sq=%22In%20heaven%20there%20is%20no%20beer%22&st=cse. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 
8. ^ In Heaven There Is No Beer? (1984)
9. ^ Max, Tucker (2006). I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell. Citadel. ISBN 0806527285.