You'll Never Walk Alone (song)
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"You'll Never Walk Alone" is a song written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for their 1945 musical, Carousel. It was sung in the original show by Christine Johnson and later Jan Clayton with chorus. It is sung in the movie by Claramae Turner (although the weeping Shirley Jones first tries to sing it, but cannot), and later reprised by Ms. Jones and a chorus.
In the musical, the song is sung after the death of the lead, Billy Bigelow, to give courage to Julie Jordan, pregnant with child at the time, and is reprised in the final scene to encourage a graduation class of which Louise (their daughter) is a member. As a result, it has become a standard, sung by graduation classes in the United States.
The song's popularity arose during the original Broadway production because of World War II, where many members of the audience had husbands, brothers, boyfriends or fiancés at war overseas, which led to solace in the song's message. The powerful words and melody assert there is always guidance and friendship from that which made us in loving kindness.
The song was recorded by many artists, first charting in 1945 in a version by Frank Sinatra (#9 on the Billboard charts). The great tenor Mario Lanza conducted by Constantine Callinicos sang it in 1950. Patti LaBelle and the BlueBelles had a #34 charting version in 1964. Elvis Presley's version got to #90 in 1968. Famous Dutch artist Lee Towers also recorded this song on his 1976 album "It's raining in my heart" as well as on several other albums later in his career.
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[edit] As inspirational sports anthem
In England, the song's most famous outing was recorded in the early 1960s by Liverpool Merseybeat group Gerry & the Pacemakers, which reached #1 in the UK charts on the 26 October 1963 where it stayed for 4 weeks. It quickly became the club anthem of Liverpool Football Club [1] and is invariably sung by its supporters moments before the start of the game. [2] The words You'll Never Walk Alone feature in the club crest. In Scotland the song was later adopted as the anthem of Glasgow football club Celtic[3].
The song is also sung by other association football crowds including:
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- England: Ipswich Town
- Austria: SK Rapid Vienna.
- Netherlands: FC Twente & Feyenoord Rotterdam.
- Germany: FC St. Pauli (also Borussia Dortmund and Alemannia Aachen).
- Greece: AEK Athens FC (AEK fans adopted a Greek version of the song).
- Japan: F.C. Tokyo.
- Italy: Hellas Verona F.C..
- Belgium: many Belgian traditional clubs (like Club Brugge K.V., Antwerp FC or KV Mechelen) have adopted the song. It has become tradition to hold scarves up high during this song, and - in spite of fierce rivalries between most traditional songs - respect the other team's singing of it.
The Pink Floyd song "Fearless", from their 1971 Meddle album, includes a recording of the Liverpool Kop singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" at the end of the track.
The song also reached #1 in the UK charts in June 1985 for 2 weeks, a charity record, following the Valley Parade fire at Bradford City on 11 May 1985. The song was performed by The Crowd (including Gerry Marsden, Paul McCartney and Rolf Harris). [4].
[edit] Other performances and recordings
An operatic version by José Carreras, Plácido Domingo & Luciano Pavarotti with Zubin Mehta, reached number 21 in the UK charts in July 1998.
In 1999, it was performed by John Farnham, who made his first release of the song in 1972, at the Tour Of Duty Concert in Dili, East Timor, for the Australian peace-keeping troops.
On The Led Zeppelin DVD a version was performed by the crowd at the conclusion of the 1979 Knebworth performance on the second disk of the set.
It is also played by the Western Illinois University Marching Leathernecks at the end of every performance. The band faces each other in a large circle with a quartet in the centre. The members play and sing "Never Walk" as reminder of the strength of the bond between members. This tradition was started by the late Dale Hopper during the 1970s.
The song is traditionally sung by the Desert Vista marching band after every performance, a tradition started by the late Eric Holden.
It is also the corps song of the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps and is sung by Jerry Lewis at the end of his annual telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
[edit] Television, film, and radio
The song was sung in the BBC radio show The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Eddie, the shipboard computer.
The Mario Lanza version is also played during the closing credits of the Peter Jackson film Heavenly Creatures.
In the US sitcom 'Cheers', the song is also sung at the end of an episode when Carla learns she is pregnant again. Feeling sorry for her situation and lack of money, Diane, Sam and Coach get a collection of donations for her and she is walked out of the bar as this is sung, lead by Diane, accompanied by much eyerolling from Sam and Cliff who obviously see the connection between this and 'Carousel'.
[edit] Recorded versions
- Frank Sinatra (1945)[5]
- Judy Garland (1946)[5]
- Mario Lanza (1950)
- Roy Hamilton (1954)[5]
- Claramae Turner in the movie Carousel (1956)[5]
- Nina Simone (1959)[5]
- Patti Labelle & The Blue Belles (1964)[5]
- Gerry & The Pacemakers (1965)[5]
- Elvis Presley (1968)[5]
- Johnny Maestro & The Brooklyn Bridge (1969)[5]
- Pink Floyd (1971) as a part of Fearless[5]
- Lee Towers (1976)[6]
- The Adicts (1981)
- The Crowd (1985)[5]
- Olivia Newton-John (1989)
- André Hazes (1994)
- Robson Green & Jerome Flynn (1996) in a medley
- Renée Fleming (2003)
- Katherine Jenkins (2004)
[edit] Lyrics
When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high
And don't be afraid of the dark.
At the end of the Storm there's a golden sky
And the sweet, silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind, walk on through the rain,
Though your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart,
And you'll never walk alone.
You'll never walk alone.
[edit] References
- ^ You’ll Never Walk Alone, LiverpoolFC.tv
- ^ YNWA, Google Video, Liverpool against Chelsea, 2005
- ^ [1], YouTube, Celtic against Barcelona Thursday, 11 March, 2004
- ^ Bradford remembers fire disaster, BBC Sport, 11 May 2005
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Arnold, Rypens (1991). The Originals 2. BRT Brussel. ISBN 90-5096-066-9.
- ^ IT’S RAINING IN MY HEART (LP/MC) 1976 ( goud & platina ), leetowers.nl
| Preceded by "Do You Love Me" by Brian Poole & The Tremeloes |
UK number one single October 31, 1963 |
Succeeded by "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles |
| Preceded by "19" by Paul Hardcastle |
UK number one single June 9, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Frankie" by Sister Sledge |
| Preceded by "Say You'll Be There" by Spice Girls |
UK number one single November 3, 1996 |
Succeeded by "Breathe" by The Prodigy |
