From: Peter Sinclair (Peter@LIMEDENE.DEMON.CO.UK)
Date: Sun Apr 11 1999 - 14:34:06 PDT
Ronald Gillen's detailed explanation fully endorses and explains the basic info as I remembered the history of the song. But where and when does the song "WHERE HA VE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE...." sung by Marlene Dietrich originate. Regards-Peter S. . On Sat, 10 Apr 1999 21:14:50 -0500, you wrote: >===========================snip====================================== > > >Lilli Marlene > > > >London, July 12, 1943-- > > This is the story of a song. Its name is "Lilli Marlene" and it >was >written in Germany in 1938 by Norbert Schultze and Hans Leit. In >due course they tried to publish it and it was rejected by about two >dozen publishers. Finally it was taken up by a singer, Lala >Anderson, a Swedish girl, who used it for her signature song. Lala >Anderson has a husky voice and is what you might call the >Hildegarde type. > > "Lilli Marlene" is a very simple song. The first verse of it goes: >"Underneath the lanterns, by the barracks square, I used to meet >Marlene and she was young and fair." The song was as simple as >that. It went on to tell about Marlene, who first liked stripes and then >shoulder bars. Marlene met more and more people until, finally, she >met a brigadier, which was what she wanted all along. We have a >song with much the same amused cynicism. > > Eventually Lala made a record of the song and even it was not >very popular. But one night the German station in Belgrade, which >sent out programs to Rommel's Afrika Korps, found that, due to a >little bombing, it did not have many records left, but among a few >uninjured disks was the song "Lilli Marlene." It was put on the air to >Afrika and by the next morning it was being hummed by the Afrika >Korps and letters were going in demanding that it be played again. > > The story of its popularity in Africa got back to Berlin, and >Madame Goering, who used to be an opera singer, sang the song of >the inconstant "Lilli Marlene" to a very select group of Nazis, if >there is such a thing. Instantly the song was popular and it was >played constantly over the German radio until Goering himself grew >a little sick of it, and it is said that, since inconstancy is a subject >which is not pleasant to certain high Nazi ears, it was suggested >that the song be quietly assassinated. But meanwhile, "Lilli >Marlene" had got out of hand. Lala Anderson was by now known as >the "Soldiers' Sweetheart." She was a pin-up girl. Her husky voice >ground out of portable phonographs in the desert. > > >==================snip============================================== > > So far, "Lilli" had been solely a German problem, but now the >British Eighth Army began to take prisoners and among the spoils >they got "Lilli Marlene." And the song swept through the Eighth >Army. Australians hummed it and fastened new words to it. The >powers hesitated, considering whether it was a good idea to let a >German song about a girl who did not have all the sterling virtues >become the favorite song of the British Army, for by now the thing >had crept into the First Army and the Americans were beginning to >experiment with close harmony and were putting an off-beat into it. >It wouldn't have done the powers a bit of good if they had decided >against the song. > > It was out of hand. The Eighth Army was doing all right in the >field and it was decided to consider "Lilli Marlene" a prisoner of >war, which would have happened anyway, no matter what the >powers thought about it. Now "Lilli" is getting deeply into the >American forces in Africa. The Office of War Information took up the >problem and decided to keep the melody, but to turn new words >against the Germans. Whether this will work or not remains to be >seen. "Lilli Marlene" is international. It is to be suspected that she >will emerge beside the barrack walls -- young and fair and >incorruptly inconsistent. > > There is nothing you can do about a song like this except to let >it >go. War songs need not be about the war at all. Indeed, they rarely >are. In the last war, "Madelon" and "Tipperary" had nothing to do >with war. The great Australian song of this war, "Waltzing Matilda," >concerns itself with sheep-stealing. It is to be expected that some >groups in America will attack "Lilli," first on the ground that she is >an enemy alien, and, second, because she is no better than she >should be. Such attacks will have little effect. "Lilli" is immortal. >Her >simple desire to meet a brigadier is hardly a German copyright. >Politics may have dominated and nationalized, but songs have a >way of leaping boundaries. > > And it would be amusing if, after all the fuss and heiling, all >the >marching and indoctrination, the only contribution to the world by >the Nazis was "Lilli Marlene." > >==================================snip==================================== > >Sinclair Hart wrote: >> >> According to a sheet I just printed, Lili Marlene was based on a German poem >> of 1915, but is it true that it wasnt sung until WWII? And does anyone >> remember the name of a Swedish singer named Lala Anderson, who, I think, >> recorded before Marlene Dietrich?. Can anyone enlighten?