You're a Grand Old Flag

History

The song was first publicly performed on February 6, the play's opening night, at Herald Square Theater in New York City. "You're a Grand Old Flag" quickly became the first song from a musical to sell over a million copies of sheet music. The title and first lyric comes from someone Cohan once met; the Library of Congress website notes:

The original lyric for this perennial George M. Cohan favorite came, as Cohan later explained, from an encounter he had with a Civil War veteran who fought at Gettysburg. The two men found themselves next to each other and Cohan noticed the vet held a carefully folded but ragged old flag. The man reportedly then turned to Cohan and said, "She's a grand old rag." Cohan thought it was a great line and originally named his tune "You're a Grand Old Rag." So many groups and individuals objected to calling the flag a "rag," however, that he "gave 'em what they wanted" and switched words, renaming the song "You're a Grand Old Flag".

In the play itself, the scene with the Civil War soldier was replicated. The soldier's comment was the lead-in to this song. Thus the first version of the chorus began, "You're a grand old rag / You're a high-flying flag". Despite Cohan's efforts to pull that version, some artists such as Billy Murray had recorded it under its original title, "The Grand Old Rag", in advance of the play's opening, and copies under that title still circulate among collectors. Cohan's second attempt at writing the chorus began, "You're a grand old flag / Though you're torn to a rag". The final version, with its redundant rhyme, is as shown below.

Lyrics

Chorus

You're a grand old rag, You're a high-flying flag, And forever in peace may you wave. You're the emblem of the land I love, The home of the free and the brave. Ev'ry heart beats true 'Neath the Red, White and Blue, Where there's never a boast or brag. But should auld acquaintance be forgot, Keep your eye on the grand old flag.

In popular culture

"You're a Grand Old Flag" was used in a major production number in Cohan's 1942 film biography, Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Recordings by Pride of the 48 and Catalina Strings, were used in the film Born on the Fourth of July.

The tune of "You're a Grand Old Flag" formed the basis of the club song of the Melbourne Football Club.

In the 1986 Kidsongs video "Sing Out, America", the barbershop quartet sang the first part of "You're a Grand Old Flag" and then the Kidsongs Kids sang the second part.

Billy Murray's rendition of "You're a Grand Old Flag" is featured in the 2013 video game BioShock Infinite.

The tune "You're a Grand Old Flag" is used as the school song for Big Lake High School in Big Lake, Minnesota.

The tune "You're a Grand Old Flag" is used as the school fight song for Oak Ridge High School in Conroe, Texas.

In an episode of the Nicktoon Fanboy & Chum Chum, a song called "It's a Grand Old Candy" was sung to the tune of "You're a Grand Old Flag."

The tune of "You're a Grand Old Flag" formed the basis of the club song of the Sturt Football Club, following their defeat of the Port Adelaide Football Club 16.16 (112) to 8.8 (56) in the 1966 SANFL Grand Final.