Welcome to the Memorial Day edition of the sequestered-without-end Mark Steyn Show. In lieu of parades and other public observances, we have a special programme which we hope partially compensates for the lack of outdoor celebration. Mark has retooled some of our show's regular features, including our poem, song, Last Call and his 100 Years Ago Show, to cover many aspects of battle, sacrifice and remembrance through the years, from the Civil War to the Great War to the wars without end of our own time. Click above to listen.
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This is a very moving tribute, beautifully presented.
The "Battle Hymn" and other reflections are a stirring evocation: as wonderful to listen to as to read, but somehow lifted off the page, with greater intensity.
Magnificent work by everyone at SteynOnline!
that was truly excellent. And very moving. Thank you, Mark
Mark replies:
Thank you, Geoffrey.
My favorite arrangement of The Battle Hymn of the Republic is by Willoughsky. It is the version most performed by various military choirs I heard during my military career, including the Singing Sergeants of the Air Force Band in Washington, DC. It is also the arrangement recirded and often performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (now calked the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square). Durin the singing of the first three verses, the melody is underscored by the rhythm of the basses singing "truth is marching, truth is marching". The last verse becomes quiet and reverent, "In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea/ With a glory in his busom that transfigures you and me/ As he died to make men holy/ [then in a crescendo] Let us die to make men free/ As God is marching on." It is the song of Christian soldiers, willing to make the sacrifice that will end slavery. It is resonant with the words of Lincoln in his Srcpnd Inaugural Address, now inscribed opposite the Gettysburg Address inside the Lincoln Memorial, suggesting that the blood spilled in the war was required by God to atone for the nation's sin of slavery. And it describes the unselfish motive of Americans in wars ever since, not to cobquer and aggrandize, but to liberate. It is, in American eyes, the only thing worth dying for. And that truth is why we still sing and hear it a century snd a half later.
Another piece of music from the Civil War was written by Gen. Daniel Butterfield was recovering after the Seven Days Battles in Virginia in July 1862 with his men from 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps of the Grand Army of the Republic when he thought he could improve on the French bugle call Tattoo for Lights Out and wrote Taps. The call went viral and spread throughout the Army and even across the battle lines to the Confederates.
I've thought that the call may have been too mournful for the young soldiers, too far from home turning in at night. In James Jones' From Here to Eternity, the tragic Pvt. Robert E. Lee Prewitt was such a good bugler he could soften the hardest sergeant's heart when he played Taps.
PS. Daniel Butterfield was quite a character before, during and after the war.
I had an uncharacteristically busy Memorial Day, hosting a socially-distant cookout (I am usually found parade-side at my own town's cavalcade), so didn't listen to this until today, the day after. I would say this is the most moving Steyn Show (or Post, Coronocopia, etc.) I have yet heard, but I use that line a lot. It's safe to say it's the most moving Steyn Show I've heard since the last one. Long may it reign.
The music particularly touched me, and sent me scurrying down the rabbit holes of YouTube. "Tenting tonight" reminded me of Charles Ives's performance of his own song, "They Are There", which samples popular tunes from the (American) Civil and Great Wars. Ives is playing it in 1943, when war yet again plagues the world, and his voice (hoarse and barely tuneful as it is) is raw with emotion--fury, sarcasm, betrayal. Do look it up.
And then I went in search of performances of the "Battle Hymn" itself. First was Johnny Cash, as American a voice as there ever was. Fine, solid, moving. Next came Whitney Houston (the order was random, I assure you). This was 1991 Whitney: radiantly beautiful, in superb voice--and all wrong. It sounded like a musical act on SNL, backed by Paul Schaffer and the band. I bailed barely a minute in.
Judy Garland? I usually leave the show tune stuff to Mark, but sure, why not. She performed it on her TV show in December, 1963, about three weeks after JFK's assassination. She makes no dedication before the performance, but I guess it was hard to miss the point. To be honest, I find the performance in equal measure a rush and a wreck. The emotion is unrestrained; her grimaces and tics are almost ugly. Is she slurring, or just lost in the passion of the moment? Interestingly, she performed it on the show again a few weeks later, again with little explanation. To my eye, she's in better shape this time around, and the performance benefits. Or does it? At first, I liked take two better than take one; then I went back to take one; then back to two. I can't pick between them, the ferocity of the first, the better musicality of the second (except for the ugly rasp in the final note, alas). But to see a great artist connect with a great song so completely, more than a century after its composition, is breathtaking. And--again, to be honest--tear-jerking. (Judy not usually having that effect on me.)
Thank you so very much, Mark, for this beautiful Memorial Day show. There couldn't be a finer tribute than all you put together for it---each story, song, and poem brings tears and inspires a swelling of pride for our country and all that our fine people have been, have accomplished, and have valued throughout our history (we'll skip the present day's insanity for the moment....augh!). You are a master of your craft and a wonderful historian in all these categories--what a fine and moving presentation you made today. Thank you!
We live in a similarly small town on the far northWEST thickly forested coast of the country, with parades and traditions something like those you described, and a military cemetery in the 19th century-built fort at the edge of the municipal boundary. Unfortunately, our Memorial Day parade has become smaller and smaller as time goes by (this year, of course, everything is canceled, anyway), while the town becomes more and more left-leaning (extremely far left, at this point), and our fifth graders may not even be able to read, much less recite the Gettysburg Address, even were they allowed to do so by the rewriters of history here. But nonetheless, history speaks for itself if one chooses to listen, and some of us still remember and celebrate.
With gratitude and appreciation for your uplifting and inspiring presentation,
good Memorial Day to you and warmest regards
Thanks for giving us a very moving and interesting podcast. It's a great example of what is possible. Makes you wonder what a nation of 330 million might achieve if it opened its heart and eyes.
This is your best presentation to date. Thanks.
Thank you, Mark, for such a thoughtful audio offering to honour Memorial (Decoration) Day. My tears flowed liberally with every poem, song and story but perhaps most freely for the breathtaking choral performances of the Battle Hymn of the Republic. We owe our fallen heroes so much, yet I sense that the generation of my grandchildren has little understanding of or appreciation for the human sacrifices that have made their way of life free and fortunate; and our current leaders seem numb to the folly of the ongoing war. To soothe my spirit (with the catharsis of a few more tears) I sought solace in your readings of McCrae's "In Flanders' Fields" and Kipling's "Recessional" and the context you provide for them. So grateful.
Mark replies:
Thank you, CBG. We could use a Kipling at this hour...
A Magnificent Gift on Memorial Day, Mark.
I will admit that I had a tear in my eye.
Thank You.
On this Memorial Day, I wish to add a group that are not often recognized.
My dad was a crew chief and engine/prop specialist in WWII in an Army AirCorps fighter squadron. He served from Guadalcanal and all up the Solomon Islands. He told me that, from time to time, a pilot would leave for a routine reconnaissance patrol - and never return. No radio communication, nothing. Of course, search units were sent out, but all too often they found no wreckage, no parachute, no sign of anything. Coast watchers - and their island intelligence network - might also have no information. I think it likely that most, if not all, fighter squadrons had similar cases.
After the war was ended, the military searched the existing Japanese after-action reports especially for these cases, though I do not know how many cases were resolved this way.
Of course the family at home received a "Missing Presumed Lost" notification. So there is no gravesite to visit except possibly a symbolic one that the family erected. Though there are "MIA" monuments in the U.S., I know of none that are specifically dedicated to these lost aviators, kids mostly, alone in an airplane over the big blue Pacific...
Another beautiful tribute to some wonderful poets, songwriters and fallen heroes. Your daughter's little poem always makes me cry even before "weep." This is one Memorial Day I will never forget. Thank you, Mark.
Mark, your daughter's poem is so moving and beautifully stated. You're raising your children well.
I want to thank you for this entire show. The story of John Chapman USAF is especially moving. My oldest son is a veteran of the current conflict. The best book I've read detailing the experience of troops in Iraq is Generation Kill by Evan Wright. The best book about the conflict in Afghanistan is Into the Fire by Bing West. There's something surreal about having a son defending your country when there's no sign that anyone knows we're at war at home. Worse yet is the way our federal government has carelessly allowed people who sympathize with our enemies, and even join their ranks, into the U.S. When the Boston marathon was bombed my oldest son who is a military linguist told me that we were warned by Russia about the Tzarnaev brothers but the warnings were ignored. I hope we increasingly elect people like Congressman Dan Crenshaw to represent us. We need men and women in congress who appreciate the sacrifices that are being made to keep us free.
God bless the souls of those who've died defending our great nation. May the rest of us live lives mindful of and worthy of their sacrifice.
A very touching tribute. Thank you, Mark.
Mark:
Wonderful show.
On this Memorial Day, did the millions who died fighting for liberty pay the ultimate price so that we could be locked in our homes and locked out of our houses of worship? Shame on our leaders and shame on us for electing these leaders while ignoring the four simple criteria given to us in Exodus 18:21 for choosing leaders. As for the pursuit and preservation of democracy, they can keep their democracy as I sing the "Battle Hymn of the Republic"!
I apologize if I'm plagiarizing you or someone else as I vaguely remember you making the following point regarding the final lyric in the chorus of "Over There": "...And we won't come back till it's over, over there." After a century it's not over, over there and we haven't come back. As there is always another there, It seems that it will never be over, over there and we'll never be back. Also, while we go over there, why do we seem so cavalier on bringing there over here?
With apologies to Mr. Cohan and with no deference to the CCP:
Over here, over here, send the word, Send the word over here that the Yanks are succumbing, the Yanks are succumbing the despots executing everywhere. So prepare, say a prayer, send the word to beware – It'll be over, it's coming over, And we won't come back till it's over, over here.
P.S. Mark: Your daughter's poem brought to mind an age old question. Nature or nurture? I imagine it's probably a combination of both. You both have much to be proud of.
I think I can safely say" not a dry eye in the house". So many have given so much for this country.
Wonderful show, Mark, with especially touching stories. I hope your town in NH continues the Memorial Day parade after this hiatus; sometimes a break like this ends a tradition. Any suggestion that we have 5th graders decorating the cemetery in our city would be met with active opposition from parents, teachers, and administrators. But if the school board planned a "Diversity Day Parade" they'd be all for it. Unfortunately that's the country we live in now.
Jan S., Thank you for your post, very thoughtful and moving.
Mark: I hope when the coronavirus crisis has passed you find a way to continue these amazing shows. I eagerly check the website for them every day. Count me as one southern boy who loves the Battle Hymn of the Republic. When I was in prep school preparing for the History AP exam, out teacher accurately predicted that one of the essay question would be: Why did the North win the Civil War? Having anticipated the question, we all nailed it with discussions of the Union's industrial advantage, the successful blockade southern ports, the failure of Confederate diplomacy to obtain intervention by Britain or France, tactical errors in the first two years, etc. If I was answering the question today, I would say: "The Union had a better song!" Which is more likely to inspire bravery and determination, a song that urges you to emulate Christ by dying to make men free or one that asks you to recall "buckwheat cakes and Indian batter"? One evening I ran across on YouTube a performance of the Battle Hymn by the Iowa All-Star Chorus, Band, and Orchestra performed in Ames, Iowa in 2012. I've watched it at least a dozen times. The performance would probably not be allowed these days due to political correctness. Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3r52djSFVo
Happy Memorial Day and keep up the good work.
Great show, so well prepared. I've heard many jazz artists play the "Battle Hymn" usually in a reverent tone, with a Gospel flair, as by pianists Gene Harris and Monte Alexander (no relation). Clark Terry also played a memorable version live in clubs. The other version I recall is by the Air Force service band, "Airmen of Note," the modern jazz outgrowth of Glenn Miller's "Army Air Force" band. The tune lends itself well to a sanctified bluesy reading, appropriate for this day.
Truly fine, Mark. Thanks as always.
Thank you so much, Mark, for creating this touching and haunting salute to our fallen heroes. As a child, I would join my fellow classmates and decorate my bike wheels with red, white and blue strips of crepe paper to ride in our Memorial Day parade. We elementary school children thought it great fun to be in a pack behind the jeeps and bands in our small Texas town. The parade always took the Main Street route, past the Baptist and Methodist churches, which occupied opposing street corners,ending with the barber shop and the soda fountain, which served soft-serve cones and mikhshakes. The parade always passed a seated row of old men in military caps and other garb, set apart from the crowd in a special section. Growing up in a patriotic family was as natural then as brushing my teeth. The men in my family always served their country when they were young men. But they never talked about it. I never heard any war stories. Occasionally I would hear of a fact of a war episode retold by a descendant, but never the men themselves. In 1992, my Uncle Tom Wilson presented me with a baby gift for my newborn daughter: A book of her geneology, which is also to say mine,painstakingly researched. Chronicled within its pages were the names and facts of the brave men and women who gave me and our country life.It was only then did I know just how brave and noble our family is, not by a royal birthright, but by being keepers of the flame of liberty. Through me, she inherits a family whose men served under Washington, fought on both sides of the Civil war, and in all wars since. They did it because they love our country and felt the responsibulity of keeping it free for their succeeding generations.
Patriots are made at home. We no longer teach our children to be patriots. We complain about the schools and then do little to ensure that our history stays alive in the curriculum and around the dinner table. We don't do our research on school board candidates, and our negligence elects a board member who wants to pull irrelevant 19th-century texts from the history book list.
A virus won't do us in; Our country will be lost from apathy and ignorance, the kissing cousins of tyranny. On this day I celebrate these brave men (and women), and pray we may not go down in societal rot.
Jan, Thank you for your post. Very thoughtful and moving - you can be so proud of your family.
John
John, indeed I am proud, and grow increasingly more so with each passing year. Those men fought, and many of them died,for American freedom.
Like most of us here, my admiration for Mark goes back many years. His written commentary and books are a staple in my household. I find it ironic and somewhat twisted that it took a Canadian to produce the deepest and most moving Memorial Day tribute I've ever had the joy to experience.
My dad earned his Combat Infantryman Badge, Purple Heart, and PoW Medal about a week and a half before Christmas 1944, on the Schnee Eifel in the Ardennes forest northeast of Bastogne. 106th Division, 423rd Infantry Regiment. My father-in-law earned his Purple Heart in hand-to-hand combat at the Chosin Reservoir six years later. First Marines. Our son-in-law served two tours in the middle east, part of a unit associated with the 101st Airborne, one of the units who came to the relief of the beleagured boys at Bastogne. It's raining here in Everett, Washington, but our flag is hanging under the eaves of the roof out front for the neighbors and passers-by to see.
Thanks, Dad, Dad, and Son.
Thanks, Mark.
I just learned that my grandfather was in the 1st Marine Division at Chosin. When he was first sent to Korea, he left behind his wife of seven months and their unborn daughter, my mother. He wrote that he thought he would be home in time for Christmas, not knowing China had decided to enter the war at that time. He helped with the evacuation of Wonson. Fortunately, he made it home. He was a wonderful father and grandfather.
Wow. Just wow!!!
Thank you.
Great show!! It certainly made my Memorial Day here in small town Pennsylvania a little brighter, all the things you mentioned about your small town in NH we celebrate here and yes it is missed by me and all my neighbors. Too bad our governor is such a tool and forbids us to come out and remember all the people who gave their lives for this country, shameful!
Mark replies:
Agreed, Mark. From my corner of the Granite State to yours in the Keystone State, happy (such as it is) Memorial Day.
Wonderful job, Mark. Thank you!
Lovely, Mark. Thank you.
Another brilliant episode. Bravo Mark!
Mark replies:
Thank you, Michael. Happy Memorial Day.
Dear Mark,
I've listened to each COVID edition of the Mark Steyn show since the series began and I am rarely unimpressed.
Quite naturally, I have found some broadcasts more magnificent than others. However, the Memorial Day show has lingered within me gracefully and pungently. I can say, without any irony, that this episode was a patriotic masterpiece.
I was enchanted, enthralled and movingly saddened by the haunting voices and stories that arose. Among them: Combat Controller John A. Chapman's last stand in Afghanistan; the three weary Civil War caskets, finally finding home, slung across an unsuspecting family's front porch; 23,746 casualties in two days at the Battle of Shiloh – Julia Ward Howe's galvanizing Battle Hymn of the Republic; a Steyn daughter's simple poem. I nearly fell to my knees in grief. And remained bowed in reverence towards America, its tangled journey towards liberty, and its legion of warrior dead.
I've decided to gather my family on Monday and share the download. Thank you, Mark, for reaching such artistry.
A lovely and fitting commentary on the day, from the daughter's sweet poem to the somber singing at the end. While many words come to my mind, I think one word is the best choice:
Amen.
I should have added to my earlier comment that "missing" would also include men taken prisoner, not all of whom, again, would ever make it home.
Just to correct a point there: the number of "dead" Mark quoted for the Battle of Shiloh is actually the total of killed, wounded and missing. The formally recorded number of killed is 3,482. 3,844 more were missing and, eventually, presumably assumed dead, unless they were rounded up subsequently as stragglers and deserters. How many of the wounded recovered and how many subsequently succumbed to their wounds doesn't generally seem to be recorded for any nineteenth century battle. All the same, total dead and total overall casualties will not have been the same.
I have admired that Melville poem, though, ever since I first read it.