List of Songs About America

“The Star-Spangled Banner”

“The Star-Spangled Banner” has its roots in an 18th-century English music-club song called “To Anacreon in Heaven.” Composed about 1776, the English melody was used in many other songs of the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1814 a lawyer named Francis Scott Key was inspired to write a set of patriotic lyrics after watching the British attack Fort McHenry, Maryland, during the War of 1812. His words were published in a broadside under the title “Defence of Fort M’Henry.” They were then printed in Baltimore-area newspapers with an indication that they were to be sung to the tune of “To Anacreon in Heaven.” Later that year Key’s composition appeared in sheet music form, with its title changed to “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It was officially adopted as the U.S. national anthem in 1931.

“Yankee Doodle”

A song made popular during the American Revolution, “Yankee Doodle” originated as a favorite of British soldiers in the mid-18th century. Initially, it featured comical lyrics that insulted American colonists. The etymology of Yankee, which means a native of the United States or, more narrowly, someone from New England, is unknown. According to English dictionaries from the 17th century, doodle meant a “sorry, trifling fellow.” The pairing of these terms may have come from “Nankey Doodle came to town,” a line in a jingle that was sung to mock Oliver Cromwell and his followers during the English Civil Wars. During the American Revolution, colonists claimed the song as their own by singing it to British redcoats to jeer them after patriot victories. Over time the lyrics became more celebratory of the patriots, and “Yankee Doodle” was embraced as an unofficial U.S. national anthem.

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“My Country ’Tis of Thee”

Like “Yankee Doodle,” “My Country ’Tis of Thee” is considered an alternative national anthem of the United States. Ironically, its melody is that of the United Kingdom’s national anthem, “God Save the King.” The lyrics of the American version were written by Samuel Francis Smith, a Baptist minister, professor, and editor who selected the tune from a friend’s collection of German songbooks. (The tune he chose was a patriotic German song set to “God Save the King.” Historians think that Smith was unaware of its British origin.) His song was first performed by a children’s choir in Boston in 1831. Famously, “My Country ’Tis of Thee” was sung by African American opera singer Marian Anderson on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., in 1939; Anderson’s performance came after the Daughters of the American Revolution had refused her access to Constitution Hall on account of her race. In 1963 lines from the song, in particular “Let freedom ring,” were quoted by civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., in his “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered during the March on Washington.

“Battle Hymn of the Republic”

A Civil War song in support of the Union Army, “Battle Hymn of the Republic” began as a poem. It was written by abolitionist and, later, suffragist Julia Ward Howe after her visit to an army camp near Washington, D.C., with a minister friend. According to Howe, during their visit they were stirred by the soldiers’ singing of the anti-slavery song “John Brown’s Body” (named for a famous abolitionist). Howe’s friend suggested that she write some words to accompany the tune of “John Brown’s Body.” Infused with Christian imagery and praising the Union cause, Howe’s poem was published under the title “Battle Hymn of the Republic” in February 1862 in The Atlantic Monthly. It became the favorite war song of Pres. Abraham Lincoln.

“America the Beautiful”

“America the Beautiful” was inspired by a trip from Massachusetts to Colorado made by the poet, author, and educator Katharine Lee Bates in 1893. Spurred by a period of depression and encouragement from a friend, Bates accepted a teaching position that summer in Colorado Springs. One day she and other faculty went to Pikes Peak, where the opening lines of “America the Beautiful” came to her while taking in the stunning view. Bates published the lyrics as a poem titled “America” in the July 4, 1895, edition of a weekly newspaper. She would revise its name and words several times, eventually choosing the current title. Many composers have set Bates’s words to music, but the most common melody is “Materna,” composed by Samuel A. Ward in 1882 for the hymn “O Mother Dear, Jerusalem.” Ward’s melody was first published in accompaniment with “America the Beautiful” in 1910.

“The Stars and Stripes Forever”

The ultimate American marching tune, “The Stars and Stripes Forever” was composed by John Philip Sousa and first performed in 1897. It was an immediate success and became Sousa’s most famous piece among his more than 100 marches. Beginning with a short, rousing introduction, the piece follows with three contrasting melodies, the boldest of which is restated in the finale along with a piccolo solo. Unlike the other songs in this list, the march does not typically feature lyrics. In 1987, nearly a century after its debut, “The Stars and Stripes Forever” was selected as the official march of the United States.

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“Lift Every Voice and Sing”

In 1900 writer and activist James Weldon Johnson wrote what would come to be called the African American national anthem. Titled “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” it began as a poem for a celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday at Stanton School, a Black grammar school in Jacksonville, Florida, that Johnson had attended as a child and where he was then serving as principal. After Johnson finished it, his brother, John Rosamond Johnson, wrote an accompanying melody. The hymn was first performed in February 1900 by a chorus of 500 students at the school. While writing “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” Johnson sensed he was crafting something special. In his 1933 autobiography he wrote, “I knew that in the [first] stanza the American Negro was, historically and spiritually, immanent.” It eventually became the official song of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. It also became an anthem of the Black Power movement in the 1960s, and it saw a resurgence of popularity during protests in 2020 following the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed while he was in police custody in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

“You’re a Grand Old Flag”

George M. Cohan, the composer of “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” became famous in the early 20th century as the “Yankee Doodle Dandy” and “the man who owned Broadway.” An important figure in the development of American theater, especially musical comedies, he produced more than 50 musicals and published hundreds of popular songs, many of them evoking the themes of patriotism, nostalgia, and the indomitable American spirit. “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” a tribute to the “stars and stripes” heraldry of the United States, is just one of Cohan’s patriotic anthems. It was composed in 1906 for his musical George Washington, Jr., an homage to the first U.S. president. Cohan’s other pro-American tunes include “Yankee Doodle Boy” (also called “I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy”) and the World War I anthem “Over There.”

“God Bless America”

“God Bless America” was written by Irving Berlin, one of the most celebrated American songwriters of the 20th century. A Russian-born immigrant and a draftee into the U.S. Army during World War I, Berlin later said he wrote “God Bless America” as “an expression of gratitude for what this country has done for its citizens, of what home really means.” During his war service, Berlin wrote an unpublished version of the song for a military-themed musical revue. Then in 1938 radio star Kate Smith asked Berlin to compose something that she could sing for Armistice Day, which commemorates the end of World War I. With a little revision to his old draft, Berlin produced “God Bless America.” It became Smith’s signature song and a patriotic favorite. On September 11, 2001, the song became a symbol of American unity when members of Congress gathered on the steps of the U.S. Capitol to sing “God Bless America” in the wake of terrorist attacks against the United States.

“This Land Is Your Land”

Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” has been embraced as both a protest song and an alternative patriotic anthem. He penned the lyrics in 1940 after moving to New York City. A native of Oklahoma, Guthrie had experienced the economic hardship of the Great Depression and many family tragedies, and he had spent several years “roaming and rambling” parts of the United States before heading east. He wrote “This Land Is Your Land” as a celebration of equality and inclusion and as a critical response to “God Bless America.” Guthrie considered Berlin’s song a too-rosy picture of a complicated country. The original title of Guthrie’s rebuttal was “God Blessed America for Me,” and he included verses that addressed hunger and confronted the concept of private property. However, these verses were excised from the song when it debuted on the radio in 1944 and when it was first published in 1945. “This Land Is Your Land” soon became a folk classic, and it is sung at patriotic events as well as political protests.

“Back in the U.S.A.”

One of rock music’s most admired songwriters, Chuck Berry paired singular guitar riffs with clever wordplay and storytelling that recounted the exuberance of postwar America. His 1959 song “Back in the U.S.A.” is an ode to classic Americana, featuring references to skyscrapers, freeways, drive-ins, corner cafés, sizzling hamburgers, and jukeboxes “jumping with records like in the U.S.A.” Its lyrics were inspired by Berry’s appreciation for his home country after touring Australia, where Berry (who was Black) was unsettled by the racism against Australian Aboriginal people. In an interview many years after composing the song, Berry explained, “I was in Australia, and I found out they wouldn’t even let a Black man become a citizen there. That’s why I wrote that song, ‘Back in the U.S.A.’” In 1968 the Beatles drew from Berry’s song for their single “Back in the U.S.S.R.,” and in the 1970s Linda Ronstadt scored a hit with a cover of “Back in the U.S.A.”

“Ragged Old Flag”

Like Guthrie, country singer Johnny Cash penned songs that tell dual stories of hardship and celebration. Among these was “Ragged Old Flag”—more of a spoken-word piece set to music than a traditional song—which Cash recorded in 1974. It was written during turbulent times, in the wake of U.S. forces withdrawing from a protracted war in Vietnam and amid the Watergate scandal that would result in Pres. Richard Nixon’s resignation. Cash had previously been vocal about his views against the Vietnam War and other social justice issues, such as the plight of Native Americans. In “Ragged Old Flag,” Cash focuses on the battle scars of a proud yet embattled country, tracing America’s history through its conflicts and wars. Near the end Cash includes a statement about the country’s current troubles: “And the government for which she stands / Is scandalized throughout the land.”

“God Bless the U.S.A.”

Country singer Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” has become an Independence Day playlist staple. When the song debuted in 1984, it made the top 10 of Billboard’s country singles chart. Since then, events such as the Persian Gulf War and the terrorist attacks on September 11 have ensured its return to the chart. In an interview with The Tennessean in 2021, Greenwood noted its many revivals since its release, saying that it was embraced by the Tennessee National Guard, the military, Pres. Ronald Reagan’s 1984 reelection campaign, and many others throughout the country’s triumphs and tragedies. Greenwood said, “Each time, more Americans found ‘God Bless the U.S.A.’ to be a song of spirit and unity.”

“Born in the U.S.A.”

Also released in 1984, “Born in the U.S.A.” is one of rocker Bruce Springsteen’s most recognizable—and misunderstood—songs. With its fist-pumping chorus consisting mostly of the song’s anthemlike title, “Born in the U.S.A.” is frequently mistaken as a declaration of American pride. Yet its lyrics tell the story of a bitter Vietnam veteran protesting the U.S. government’s treatment of its forgotten warriors. It was a story Springsteen firmly believed in, having become active in organizations in support of Vietnam veterans after meeting anti-war activist and former Marine Ron Kovic in the late 1970s. (Kovic’s 1976 memoir, Born on the Fourth of July, details his traumatic experience in Vietnam, which left him paralyzed, and his embrace of the anti-war movement. Springsteen, however, had escaped the draft because he was deemed medically unfit during his physical exam.) Several politicians have attempted to use it as their campaign song without the songwriter’s consent.

“Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)”

Toby Keith recorded “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)” in 2002. Two major events in 2001 spurred the writing of the song. In March his father, a Korean War veteran, died in a car accident. Then came the terrorist attacks on September 11. The story goes that Keith wrote the lyrics for “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue” in 20 minutes on the back of a fantasy football sheet. Included on his 2002 album, Unleashed, the song was embraced by patriots but criticized by those who considered it militant (its best-known detractors included fellow country artists the Chicks). Keith released several other patriotic songs as well as more traditional country music fare. In 2004 he told Time magazine, “I’m not the banger of the war drum people think.”

“This Is America”

Childish Gambino (the musical alter ego of actor, writer, and comedian Donald Glover) first performed “This Is America” during an appearance on Saturday Night Live in 2018. Combining South African melodies, trap music, and the harmonizing of a Black gospel choir, the song focuses on gun violence and racism in its lyrics. Its music video features shocking scenes that allude to mass shootings and white supremacy, juxtaposed with dance routines performed by Childish Gambino and a group of schoolchildren. “This Is America” was hailed as a powerful protest song and piece of cultural commentary. It won four Grammy Awards, including both record and song of the year.

Other famous songs

Many other musicians have released songs about the United States. These include wistful songs about young Americans’ restless searching for the American Dream (Simon and Garfunkel’s “America”), condemnations of the country’s legacy of slavery and xenophobia (Randy Newman’s “Sail Away” and Green Day’s “American Idiot”), joyous paeans to immigrants (Neil Diamond’s “America”), and pure pop confections (Kim Wilde’s “Kids in America” and Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the U.S.A.”).

• “America” (1957) by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim for the musical West Side Story
• “Surfin’ U.S.A.” (1963) by the Beach Boys
• “America” (1968) by Simon and Garfunkel
• “American Woman” (1970) by the Guess Who
• “American Pie” (1971) by Don McLean
• “Sail Away” (1972) by Randy Newman
• “American Girl” (1976) by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
• “America” (1980) by Neil Diamond for the film The Jazz Singer
• “Kids in America” (1981) by Kim Wilde
• “Pink Houses” (1983) by John Mellencamp
• “America” (1985) by Prince and the Revolution
• “Living in America” (1985) by James Brown for the film Rocky IV
• “Some Gave All” (1992) by Billy Ray Cyrus
• “Only in America” (2001) by Brooks & Dunn
• “American Idiot” (2004) by Green Day
• “Freedom Isn’t Free” and “America, F*** Yeah!” (2004) by Trey Parker for the film Team America: World Police
• “Party in the U.S.A.” (2009) by Miley Cyrus