"We Don't Want the Bacon (What We Want Is a Piece of the Rhine)" is a World War I–era song released in 1918. The lyrics were written by "Kid" Howard Carr and Harry Russell, and the music composed by Jimmie Havens.[1][2] The song was published by Shapiro, Bernstein & Co. of New York City. On the cover is a soldier tearing through a large piece of bacon with his bayonet. A fearful-looking Kaiser Wilhelm II is standing on the bacon.[3] It was written for voice and piano.[4]
| "We Don't Want the Bacon (What We Want Is a Piece of the Rhine)" | |
|---|---|
 Sheet music cover at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library | |
| Song | |
| Released | 1918 |
| Composer(s) | Jimmie Havens |
| Lyricist(s) | "Kid" Howard Carr Harry Russell |
The song was recorded on September 9, 1918 by the Peerless Quartet. They were conducted by Josef Pasternack. Victor Records issued the song.[5]
The song's title is influenced by the popular saying, "bring home the bacon".[6] This phrase means to be successful, specifically financially successful.[7] In the song, it is emphasized that Americans have thrived in holding their own against any enemy and always "brought home the bacon, no matter what". This time though, their focus is not on bacon, but getting the "Hun". It is apparent in the lyrics that the fear of Germany is downplayed.[8] The chorus is as follows:[9]
We don't want the bacon
We don't want the bacon,
What we want is a piece of the Rhine.
We'll feed "Bill the Kaiser" with our Allied appetizer.
We'll have a wonderful time.
Old Wilhelm Der Gross will shout, "Was is Los?"
The Hindenburg line will sure look like a dime;
We don't want the bacon
We don't want the bacon,
What we want is a piece of the Rhine.
References edit
- ^ Vogel 1995, p. 260.
- ^ "We don't want the bacon we only want the Rhine". Library of Congress. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Parker, Bernard S. (2007). World War I Sheet Music. Vol. 2. Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 755. ISBN 978-0-7864-2799-4.
- ^ "We Don't Want the Bacon". Digital Collections. Mississippi State University Libraries. Retrieved February 25, 2016.[dead link]
- ^ "We don't want the bacon". National Jukebox. Library of Congress. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- ^ "We Don't Want the Bacon. What We Want is a Piece of the Rhine". The Great War: A Baylor University Museum Studies Exhibition. Baylor University. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- ^ "Bring home the bacon". The Phrase Finder. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- ^ Vogel 1995, p. 98.
- ^ Duffy, Michael (August 22, 2009). "We Don't Want the Bacon (What We Want is a Piece of the Rhine)". firstworldwar.com. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- Bibliography
- Vogel, Frederick G. (1995). World War I Songs: A History and Dictionary of Popular American Patriotic Tunes, with Over 300 Complete Lyrics. Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 0-89950-952-5.
External links edit
- Sheet music at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Digital Collections
- Sheet music at University of Florida Digital Collections
- Sheet music and song MP3 at the Illinois Digital Archive
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