We'll Meet Again (song)
Encyclopedia
"We'll Meet Again" is a 1939 song made famous by British singer Vera Lynn
with music and lyrics written by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles (born Charles Hugh Owen Ferry, 24 Jul 1907 in Reddish, Stockport, Cheshire).
The song is one of the most famous songs of the Second World War era, and resonated with soldiers going off to fight and their families and sweethearts. The assertion that "we'll meet again" is optimistic, as many soldiers did not survive to see their loved ones again. Indeed, the meeting place at some unspecified time in the future would have been seen by many who lost loved ones to be heaven
.
The song gave its name to the 1943 musical film
We'll Meet Again
in which Vera Lynn played the lead role (see 1943 in music
). Lynn's recording is featured in the final scene of Stanley Kubrick
's 1964 film Dr. Strangelove, and was also used in the closing scenes of the 1986 BBC
television serial The Singing Detective
.
During the Cold War
, Vera Lynn's recording was included in the package of music and programmes held in 20 underground radio stations of the BBC's Wartime Broadcasting Service
(WTBS), designed to provide public information and morale-boosting broadcasts for 100 days after a nuclear attack
. Mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins
reprised the song at her appearance alongside Lynn in London on the 60th Anniversary of VE Day in 2005, and has retained it as an occasional item in her repertoire.
Vera Lynn
Dame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...
with music and lyrics written by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles (born Charles Hugh Owen Ferry, 24 Jul 1907 in Reddish, Stockport, Cheshire).
The song is one of the most famous songs of the Second World War era, and resonated with soldiers going off to fight and their families and sweethearts. The assertion that "we'll meet again" is optimistic, as many soldiers did not survive to see their loved ones again. Indeed, the meeting place at some unspecified time in the future would have been seen by many who lost loved ones to be heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
.
The song gave its name to the 1943 musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
We'll Meet Again
We'll Meet Again (film)
We'll Meet Again is a 1943 British musical film directed by Philip Brandon and starring Vera Lynn.-Plot summary:The film is about a young dancer trying to make it in London during World War II and then discovers that people like her singing voice. Although she's reluctant at first to sing, she...
in which Vera Lynn played the lead role (see 1943 in music
1943 in music
-Events:*January 1 - Frank Sinatra appears at The Paramount causing a mob of hysterical bobby-soxers to flood Times Square and blocking midtown New York City traffic for hours...
). Lynn's recording is featured in the final scene of Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
's 1964 film Dr. Strangelove, and was also used in the closing scenes of the 1986 BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television serial The Singing Detective
The Singing Detective
The Singing Detective is a BBC television miniseries written by Dennis Potter, which stars Michael Gambon, and was directed by Jon Amiel. The six episodes were "Skin", "Heat", "Lovely Days", "Clues", "Pitter Patter" and "Who Done It"....
.
During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, Vera Lynn's recording was included in the package of music and programmes held in 20 underground radio stations of the BBC's Wartime Broadcasting Service
Wartime Broadcasting Service
The Wartime Broadcasting Service was a service of the BBC that was intended to broadcast in the United Kingdom either after a nuclear attack or if conventional bombing destroyed regular BBC facilities in a conventional war ....
(WTBS), designed to provide public information and morale-boosting broadcasts for 100 days after a nuclear attack
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
. Mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins
Katherine Jenkins
Katherine Jenkins is a Welsh mezzo-soprano. She is a classical-popular crossover singer who performs across a spectrum of operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns.-Early life and education:...
reprised the song at her appearance alongside Lynn in London on the 60th Anniversary of VE Day in 2005, and has retained it as an occasional item in her repertoire.
In popular culture
- The ByrdsThe ByrdsThe Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
recorded the song as the closing track on their debut album Mr. Tambourine ManMr. Tambourine Man (album)Mr. Tambourine Man is the debut album by the American folk rock band The Byrds and was released in June 1965 on Columbia Records . The album, along with the single of the same name, established the band as an internationally successful rock act and was also influential in originating the musical...
in 1965, inspired by the song's use in the filmFilmA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
Dr. Strangelove. - Pink FloydPink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
makes reference to this song and the performer in "VeraVera (song)"Vera" is a song by Pink Floyd which appears on their 1979 album, The Wall. The title is a reference to Vera Lynn, a British singer who came to prominence during World War II with her popular song "We'll Meet Again". The reference is ironic, as Roger Waters would not meet his father, lost in the war...
", in a song from their album The WallThe WallThe Wall is the eleventh studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Released as a double album on 30 November 1979, it was subsequently performed live with elaborate theatrical effects, and adapted into a feature film, Pink Floyd—The Wall.As with the band's previous three...
: "Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?/Remember how she said that we would meet again some sunny day?". A short clip of "We'll Meet Again" can also be heard at the beginning of the first track on the Pink Floyd album Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980-81Is There Anybody out There? The Wall Live 1980-81Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980–81 is an album released by Pink Floyd in 2000. It is a live rendition of The Wall, produced and engineered by James Guthrie, with tracks selected from the August 1980 and June 1981 performances at Earls Court in London...
. - Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
covered this song in his 2002 album American IV: The Man Comes AroundAmerican IV: The Man Comes AroundAmerican IV: The Man Comes Around is the fourth album in the American series by Johnny Cash, released in 2002. The majority of songs are covers which Cash performs in his own spare style, with help from producer Rick Rubin...
and is used in the beginning of the 2010 remake of The Crazies. - In 1972, P. J. ProbyP. J. ProbyP.J. Proby is an American singer, songwriter, and actor, who has portrayed Elvis Presley and Roy Orbison in musical theater productions as well as enjoying a successful recording career in his own right....
recorded a power-ballad rendition of the song. It was released by the EMI Group as Proby's last single for his recording contract that ran between 1961 and 1972. - Barry ManilowBarry ManilowBarry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
covered this song on his Barry Live in BritainBarry Live in BritainLive in Britain is the eleventh album released by singer and songwriter Barry Manilow. The album was recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall in London in January 1982 with Victor Vanacore as the musical director...
album. - The final scene of the last episode of the 1997 animated superhero comedy Freakazoid!Freakazoid!Freakazoid! is an American animated television series created by Steven Spielberg, Bruce Timm, and Paul Dini for the Kids' WB programming block of The WB. The series chronicles the adventures of the title character, Freakazoid, a manic, insane superhero who battles with an array of super villains....
features the cast singing this song at the Hollywood BowlHollywood BowlThe Hollywood Bowl is a modern amphitheater in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, United States that is used primarily for music performances...
. - Françoise HardyFrançoise HardyFrançoise Madeleine Hardy is a French singer, actress and astrologer. Hardy is an iconic figure in fashion, music and style. She is married to the singer and movie actor Jacques Dutronc.-Biography:...
sang it in a French version by Serge GainsbourgSerge GainsbourgSerge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
, Comment te dire adieu ? which was covered by Jimmy SomervilleJimmy SomervilleJames William Somerville is a Scottish pop singer and songwriter. He had considerable success in the 1980s with the pop groups Bronski Beat and The Communards, and has also had a successful solo career. He is known in particular for his falsetto singing voice...
in 1989. - Jim Keats meaningfully sings the song in the series finale of Ashes to Ashes (TV series)Ashes to Ashes (TV series)Ashes to Ashes is a British science fiction and police procedural drama television series, serving as the sequel to Life on Mars.The series began airing on BBC One in February 2008. A second series began broadcasting in April 2009...
- Traditionally, this song is played on May 5 as a closure to the Liberation Day Concert in Amsterdam, to mark the end of World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in the Netherlands, as HM Queen BeatrixBeatrix of the NetherlandsBeatrix is the Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands comprising the Netherlands, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, and Aruba. She is the first daughter of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands and Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld. She studied law at Leiden University...
leaves the concert on a canalGrachtThe word gracht is a Dutch term that is encountered by English-speaking people when confronted with Dutch art , Dutch history or tourism...
boat. - On her last radio show, NPR host Liane Hansen quoted the song in her farewell address to listeners .
- German actress Franka PotenteFranka PotenteFranka Potente is a German film actress and singer. She first appeared in the comedy After Five in the Forest Primeval and gained critical recognition in the action thriller Lola rennt . Potente received Germany's highest film and television awards for her performances in Run Lola Run and...
sings this song in the movie "The Sinking of the LaconiaThe Sinking of the LaconiaThe Sinking of the Laconia is a two-part TV film, first aired on 6 and 7 January 2011 on BBC Two, about the Laconia incident; the sinking of the former British ocean liner RMS Laconia during World War II by a German U-boat, which then, together with three other U-boats and an Italian submarine,...
" (2011)