Over There

"Over There" is a 1917 hit song written by George M. Cohan that was popular with United States military and public during both world wars. It was a patriotic song designed to galvanize American young men to enlist in the army and fight the "Hun". The song is best remembered for a line in its chorus, "The Yanks are coming."

Cohan wrote the song in 1917, when the United States entered World War I on the side of the Allies and began sending troops to Europe. The song reflected Americans' expectations that the war would be short.

Cohan wrote "Over There" on April 7, 1917, just one day after President Woodrow Wilson declared war on Germany. Cohan wrote the song in under two hours and was inspired by the song "Johnny Get Your Gun." The song went unpublished until June 1, 1917 when publisher William Jerome registered it with the Library of Congress...

The song was introduced to the public in the fall of 1917 when it was sung at a Red Cross benefit in New York City. It would later become the most popular song during the war with over two million copies sold.

Notable early recordings include versions by Nora Bayes, Enrico Caruso, Billy Murray, Arthur Fields and Charles King. According to Michael Duffy of FirstWorldWar.com, "Cohan later recalled that the words and music to the song came to him while travelling by train from New Rochelle to New York shortly after the U.S. had declared war against Germany in April 1917."

The sheet music was heavily reprinted and has variant covers. One of those editions was a "Popular edition."

This song, as well as "It's a Long Way to Tipperary", was a popular patriotic song during the First World War. On June 29, 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt awarded Cohan the Congressional Gold Medal for this and other songs.

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