Frank Emerson: Music

The Flag of Our Fathers

(frank emerson)

w/m: Frank Emerson ASCAP

The Flag of our Fathers
© 2001 Frank Emerson ASCAP

CHORUS
C Em F G7 C The flag of our fathers is the flag that waves today
C Em F G7 Old Glory snapping crisply high above the waves
F G7 C F G7 C The flag of our fathers all across the U.S.A.
F G7 C Still stands for what they stood for
F G7 C What they sacrificed their blood for
F G7 C (Am) What they cast their lot and fought for
F Em F G7 C The flag of our fathers is the flag that waves today

(G7) C Em F G7 C They were ordinary men from every walk of life
CEm F G7 Some single some with children & a wife
F G7 C F G7 C But war would breed necessity and circumstance create
C7 The challenge
F EmF EmF D7C Whereby ordinary men do something that is great

(They came) From Appleton, Wisconsin & from Texas on the Gulf
From the Granite State up north & Arizona in the South
From hard-scrabble farms in Kentucky’s rolling hills
They came
From the fire and molten iron of Pennsylvania’s mills

To Midway, to Wake Island, to Iwo and The Rock
To Anzio & to St. Lo & up the cliffs of Point du Hoc
To Myitkyina in Burma to the Makin Island raid
They went
As scared but brave as any man that God has ever made

Uncommon valor was the common thread of all
The young men who answered to the call
In the air, on land and sea - that others might be free
They fought
And made a better world for us - safe from tyranny.

Explanation of references in
The Flag of Our Fathers
w/m Frank Emerson
© 2001 Frank Emerson Music Publishing ASCAP

Verse 1 Paraphrases a statement made by ADM. Wm. F. “Bull” Halsey.
“There are no great men. Just great challenges which ordinary men, out of necessity, are forced by circumstances to meet.”

Verse Two The states and places mentioned were the homes of the six men who are pictured in the Joe Rosenthal photo of the flag raising on Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima on 23 FEB 45. In order, they are as follows: Appleton, WI – PHM2 John Bradley, USN, Rio Grande Valley (near McAllen) TX – CPL Harlon Block, USMC, Manchester, NH – PFC Rene Gagnon, USMC, Gila River Indian Reservation, AZ – PFC Ira Hayes, USMC, Hilltop, KY – PFC Franklin Sousley, USMC, Franklin Borough, PA – SGT Michael Strank, USMC
(Strank, Sousley and Block were all KIA on Iwo Jima)

Verse Three – Scenes of Action
Midway – 4-6 June 42. First Japanese naval defeat since 1592. All action consisted of carrier based aircraft.
Wake Island – Attacked by large Japanese assault force on 7 DEC 41. Small Contingent of 24th Marines, Army Signal Corps and Navy personnel held off single handedly until 23 DEC.
Iwo –Iwo Jima. 26 days of battle – 26 Medals of Honor. More than any single engagement in US history.
The Rock – Corregidor off Bataan. Also common nickname for Guadalcanal.
Anzio – Amphibious invasion 1943 in Italy – behind German lines
St. Lo. – Inland from Normandy beaches. 10-18 JUL44. Prime target of advancing Allies Forces following D-Day 6JUN44.
Point du Hoc – At Omaha Beach. A company of the 2nd Ranger BN lost 150 out of the 200 men who made the initial assault up these cliffs.
Myitkyna – Culmination of 5 month campaign by 5307 Composite Group (Provisional) – Merrill’s Marauders. 3000 volunteers who were the first US Infantry to fight on the Asian mainland.
Makin Island – LTCOL. Evans Carlson, USMC and the 2nd Marine Raider BN, including MAJ. James Roosevelt ( son of the president) as XO, put ashore from submarines on this Gilbert Island atoll 17 AUG42. Conducted a successful raid. Diverted enemy attention from Guadalcanal. Huge morale booster back in The States.

Verse Four – Paraphrases a statement made by ADM Chester Nimitz about Iwo Jima and is the inscription on the Marine Corps Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery.
“Uncommon Valor was a common virtue”