| Title | After the war is over |
| Composer | Casey, James W. [William] |
| Lyricist | Casey, James W. [William] |
| Publisher | Seattle, WA : Echo Music Pub. Co. |
| Year of Publication | 1917 |
| Date of Copyright | 1917-08-21 |
| Physical Description | 1 score, voice and piano ([1], 2-3, [1] p.) |
| Comment | Despite its reissue as part of Casey’s attempt to establish a Tin Pan Alley presence, this song does not appear to have attained much popularity in the East. However, scattered reports indicate some regional success in the West and some use in silent film accompaniments. At least six songs were issued in 1917 with similar or identical titles; Casey’s song probably suffered most by comparison with Harry Andrieu’s “After the War Is Over Will There Be Any Home Sweet Home?”, which had been issued four months earlier and was popular in the East in 1917 and nationally through most of 1918. |
| Historical Note | - This is the second printing of the first edition, the two printings distinguished by back covers and small variants in the cover. A second edition, with no changes to the music, was published in New York some time after October 1, 1917, when Casey and his firm moved there.
- No piano rolls or recordings have been found, but the song was briefly promoted. Shortly after the first printing appeared, a Seattle trade magazine reported that the song had “already become a great favorite with the soldier boys through the Northwest.” Once in New York, Casey plugged and advertised the song repeatedly; but that effort ended in January 1918, and thereafter it was mentioned only in motion picture trade journals.
|
| Musical Note | A formally conventional march song in duple time (marked “March Tempo”), this employs the usual devices: chains of secondary dominants, a deceptive cadence to the mediant in the antepenultimate phrase, and syncopation at the start of most phrases in the chorus. A rat-a-tat-tat fill closes the verse. The lyric structure of the refrain closely resembles “After the Ball,” but the music is wholly different. |
| Subject - Topic | - World War, 1914-1918 -- Songs and music.
- Popular music -- United States -- 1911-1920.
- Separation (Psychology) -- Songs and music.
- Soldiers -- Songs and music.
- Homecoming -- Songs and music.
- Peace -- Songs and music.
|
| Lyrics | - [verse 1] A soldier boy in a foreign land, / Was as lonely as could be, / Tho’ danger lurk’d on ev’ry hand, / His thoughts were across the sea. / Then in the din of the cannon’s roar, / (Back to the one he was longing for,) / Quickly he pencil’d a little note, / This is the message he wrote.
- [refrain 1] After the war is over, / After the world’s at rest, / I’m coming back to you, dear, / The one I love the best. / Then there will be no sorrow, / Sunshine will come once more, / We’ll have a happy tomorrow, / After the war is o’er.
- [verse 2] The weary days slowly dragged along, / Yet his heart knew no fear, / His regiment kept fighting on, / With victory seeming near. / Back in the village some one doth year, / Praying each day for his safe return, / Press’d to her heart is his tender note, / She loves each word that he wrote.
- [refrain 2]
|
| Musical Genre | March song |
| Repository | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Sousa Archives and Center for American Music |
| Artist | Hager, George |
| Cover Description | Small, somewhat abstract image below title, as a kind of medallion; art deco frame and design; woman (sweetheart), seated at low table in profile, facing left, holding letter. Red and blue on white paper; signed BR (in image). |
| Back Cover Description | - Incipits for five “Favorite Songs” in art deco border with vertical ornament:
- My Hawaii (© 1917 01 29)
- Come Along Ma Honey (© 1917 07 21)
- In the Heart of Hawaii (© 1917 07 12)
- Bow Down to Uncle Sam (© 1917 08 13)
- Hawaiian Echoes (© 1917 03 05)
|
| Interior Description | - Cover, CL: 5 [circled]
- Cover, under Casey’s name: Composer of / Sing Me a Song of the South / Old Love Letters In the Heart of Hawaii / Etc., Etc.
- p. 2, TR, under composer’s name: Composer of / “Sing Me a Song of the South” / “Hawaiian Echoes” etc.
- p. 2, BL: title advertisement: Hawaiian Echoes (© 1917 03 05)
- p. 2, BR: title advertisement: In the Heart of Hawaii (© 1917 07 12)
- p. 3, BC: title advertisement: My Hawaii (© 1917 01 29)
- P. 3, BR: title advertisement: Come Along Ma Honey (© 1917 07 21)
- Back cover, BC: Echo Music Publishing Co. / 145 West 45th St., New York N. Y. / People’s Bank Bldg., Seattle, Wash.
- Plate number: p. 3, BL: After The War 2
|
| Performance Medium | Voice and piano |
| Original Location | - Record Series 12/9/96
- Series 2, Box 12, Folder 4
|
| Local Identifier | 2014_12996_009 |
| Collection Title | James Edward Myers Sheet Music Collection, 1836-1986 |
| Collection | James Edward Myers World War I Sheet Music Collection |
Supplementary Document
