Over There

“Over There” is a 1917 song popular with United States soldiers in both world wars. It was a “propaganda” song designed to galvanize American young men to enlist in the army and fight the “Hun”.

It was written by George M. Cohan in April 1917. Americans believed at that time that the war would be short and the song reflected that expectation.

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.”

By the time “Over There” was released, Malcolm was already over there. In February 1917, two months before the United States entered World War I, He and some fellow students from Williams College travelled to Montreal and enlisted in the Canadian Army. He served as a Gunner in a feld artillary unit.