Hail to the Chief

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"Hail to the Chief" is the official anthem of the President of the United States. The song accompanies the President at almost every public appearance. The U.S. Department of Defense made "Hail to the Chief" the official music to announce the President of the United States in 1954. The song is preceded by four ruffles and flourishes when played for the President.

History

Verses from Sir Walter Scott's "The Lady of the Lake", including "Hail to the Chief who in triumph advances!" were set to music "circa" 1810 by the songwriter James Sanderson (1769-1841), a self-taught English violinist and the conductor of the Surrey Theatre, London, who wrote many songs for local theatrical productions during the 1790s and the early years of the nineteenth century:

:Soldier, rest! thy warfare o'er,:Sleep the sleep that knows not breaking,:Dream of battled fields no more,:Days of danger, nights of waking. ::::("The Lady of the Lake," 1810)

Scott's romance was quickly made into unauthorized romantic melodramas. In November 1810, Scott wrote to a friend that "The Lady of the Lake" was being made into a play by Martin and Reynolds in London and by a Mr. Siddons in Edinburgh. About the same time Scott received a letter from a friend and army officer who ended his note with a copy of the music of the Boat Song, "Hail to the Chief."

A version of "Lady of the Lake" debuted in New York May 8, 1812, and "Hail to the Chief" was published in Philadelphia about the same time, as 'March and Chorus in the Dramatic Romance of the Lady of the Lake'. Many parodies appeared, a sure sign of universal popularity.

On July 4, 1828, the Marine Band performed the song at a ceremony for the formal opening of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, which was attended by President John Quincy Adams. The song was first played to announce the arrival of the president at James K. Polk's inauguration on March 4, 1845. It was Julia Tyler, wife of Polk's predecessor, John Tyler, who suggested that the song be played when a president made an appearance.

The lyrics

Lyrics that were written by Albert Gamse are set to James Sanderson's music, but they are rarely sung.

:Hail to the Chief we have chosen for the nation,:Hail to the Chief! We salute him, one and all.:Hail to the Chief, as we pledge cooperation:In proud fulfillment of a great, noble call.

:Yours is the aim to make this grand country grander,:This you will do, that's our strong, firm belief.:Hail to the one we selected as commander,:Hail to the President! Hail to the Chief!

The original lyrics, written by Sir Walter Scott, read:

:Hail to the chief, who in triumph advances,:Honored and bless'd be the evergreen pine!:Long may the tree in his banner that glances,:Flourish, the shelter and grace of our line.:Heav'n send it happy dew,:Earth lend it sap anew,:Gaily to bourgeon and broadly to grow;:While ev'ry highland glen,:Sends our shout back again,:"Roderigh Vich Alpine dhu, ho! i-e-roe!"

:Ours is no sapling, chance-sown by the fountain,:Blooming at Beltane, in winter to fade;:When the whirlwind has stripp'd ev'ry leaf on the mountain,:The more shall Clan Alpine exult in her shade.:Moor'd in the lifted rock,:Proof to the tempest shock,:Firmer he roots him, the ruder it blow;:Menteith and Breadalbane, then,:Echo his praise again,:"Roderigh Vich alpine dhu, ho! i-e-roe!"

:Row, vassals, row for the pride of the Highlands!:Stretch to your oars for the evergreen pine!:Oh, that the rosebud that graces yon islands,:Were wreath'd in a garland around him to twine!:O, that some seedling gem,:Worthy such noble stem,:Honor'd and bless'd in their shadow might grow!:Loud should Clan Alpine then,:Ring from her deepmost glen,:"Roderigh Vich Alpine dhu, ho! i-e-roe!"

Known cultural references

* Based on the popular anthem, the expression "Hail to the Chief" is occasionally used in American culture as a friendly, or hostile, mocking of authority figures. In a similar satirical vein, two video productions have used this phrase as their titles.
** "Hail," released in 1971 and also known as "Hail to the Chief," was a dark comedy starring Richard B. Shull as a presidential advisor who discovers his Chief's assembling of a private army to put down domestic unrest.
** "Hail to the Chief" (1985) was a short-lived television comedy from Susan Harris, Paul Junger Witt. and Tony Thomas, the creators of "Soap," in which Anna Marie "Patty" Duke starred as Julia Mansfield, the first female President of the United States. The late Ted Bessell, in his last major acting role, played former astronaut Oliver Mansfield, the "First Gentleman," a general officer in the U.S. Air Force.
* "Hail to the Chief" is excerpted at the beginning of the song, "Catholic Day", by Adam and the Ants. The song is a satirical ode to John F. Kennedy which also features excepts from a Kennedy speech while Adam sings the line "the chickens have come home to roost".
* "Hail to the Thief" is the sixth studio album by British rock band Radiohead, released in June 2003.
* "Hail to the Chief" was referenced in the lyrics of the song "Fortunate Son," written and composed by John Fogerty and performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
* In the movie "My Fellow Americans" (1996) former presidents Russell P. Kramer (Jack Lemmon) and Matt Douglas (James Garner) had each made up their own lyrics to "Hail to the Chief." Kramer's version was: "Hail to the Chief, he's the chief and he needs hailing / He is the chief so everybody hail like crazy." Douglas's version was more sinister: "Hail to the Chief, if you don't I'll have to kill you / I am the chief, so you'd better watch your step, you bastards."
* The movie M* A* S* H (1970) featured a version of "Hail to the Chief" beginning, "Hail to the Chief / He's the best of all the surgeons."
** The TV version of M* A* S*H also featured an episode covering a similar circumstance that expanded on this with, "Hail to the Chief / He's the King of all the surgeons / He needs a Queen / To satisfy his urgin's."
*The film "Dave" included a version of the song sung by Kevin Kline, as David "Dave" Kovic, the main character, while in the shower, including the lines "Hail to the Chief/He's the one they all say hail to/They all say Hail/'Cause he keeps himself so clean./He's got the power/That's why he's in the shower."
* In Kurt Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions" (1973), his character Kilgore Trout has written a short story about "an optimistic chimpanzee who became President of the United States." "Everywhere he went, bands would play 'Hail to the Chief'. The chimpanzee loved it. He would bounce up and down."
*In "The Simpsons," Homer watches the movie "Hail to the Chimp" with a similar plot. When his policies are questioned, the chimp becomes frenzied and starts pummeling and screaming; seeing this, Homer jovially exclaims, "That's what you get for not hailing to the chimp!" In the episode "Deep Space Homer," he is seen wearing an apron with "Hail To The Chef" written on it. Also, on "The Last Temptation of Homer," Kent Brockman looks at the affairs of Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon and Clinton in a segment called "Hail to the Cheat."
* In a similar vein, Bender of "Futurama" has a "Heil to the Chef" apron.
* In the Sega CD game "Eternal Champions," the character "Senator" has a stage set in Washington DC, with a heavy metal version of "Hail to the Chief" as the background music.
* The children's television series "Arthur" plays "Hail to the Chief" every time there is an imaginary sequence of a character, usually D.W., as the President in the future.
* Washington Nationals pitcher Chad Cordero is nicknamed "The Chief," and the Nationals show the message "Hail to the Chief!" on the display screens in RFK Stadium whenever he enters a game.
* In the musical Assassins by Stephen Sondheim, "Hail to the Chief" is played throughout the score in 3/4 time and in the style of a carnival merry-go-round. It is also found as a recurring motif in many of the musical numbers.
* "Hail to the Chief" was, according to the book "A Record Of Employment," the original working title for the Kaiser Chiefs song "Caroline, Yes," featured on their debut album "Employment."
* There is a remix used in Chevrolet, GM and Saturn commercials for Presidents's Day sales.
* The band Big D and the Kids table has a song titled "President," which has "Hail to the Chief" as background music.
* A documentary on the History Channel featured an interview with a former WWII German U-boat commander, who mentioned that whenever he returned from patrolling the Atlantic, his boat would be greeted by a band at dockside who would always play the same song. He wouldn't find out till after the war that the song they played was "Hail to the Chief."
* In the comedy movie "First Daughter," released in 2004, there is a comedic version of "Hail to the Chief" including a rap and dance sequence.
* University of Michigan, Ann Arbor alumnus Gerald R. Ford, the 38th President of the United States, often had the Naval band play the U of M fight song, "The Victors," prior to state events instead of "Hail to the Chief." [cite book | title=The Press and the Ford Presidency | author=Rozell, Mark J. | date=October 15, 1992 | publisher=University of Michigan Press | id=ISBN 0-472-10350-4 | pages=38.] He also selected the song to be played during his December 2006 funeral procession at the U.S. Capitol. [Anne E. Kornblut, "Ford Arranged His Funeral to Reflect Himself and Drew in a Former Adversary," "New York Times," December 29, 2006.]
* In the movie "Blazing Saddles," released in 1974, the film's villain, Hedley Lamarr (Harvey Korman) persuades Gov. William J. LePetomaine (Mel Brooks)to appoint a black man named Bart (Cleavon Little) as the Sheriff of Rock Ridge. He parades him around rendering a comedic version of "Hail to the Chief."
* Television commercial icon Ernest P. Worell sang a version while "dialing" the President: "Hail to the Chief, he's your buddy and your neighbor."
*Comedian Stephen Colbert referred to his coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign as "Hail to the Cheese" (as it was sponsored by doritos brand corn chips).
* Hail to the Chimp, a video game by Wideload Games, depicts the elections on the animal kingdom.
* "Jail to the Chief" was a slogan first seen on buttons and bumper stickers during the Watergate scandal of President Richard Nixon.

References

External links

* [http://www.npc.navy.mil/NR/rdonlyres/6EBB9F7C-7082-48C8-A508-3FCC12E97493/0/4RFHailtotheChief.mp3 Ruffles and flourishes with "Hail to the Chief" (MP3)]