The Star Spangled Anacreon

Memorial Day weekend often brings me to the thought of the great debt we owe to the society that originated the tune that is now used to accompany the words Francis Scott Key wrote that have become known as "The Star Spangled Banner."

Many think the tune was originally a drinking song, and the fact that it also once accompanied words to "Adams and Liberty" suggests that the Sons of Liberty in revolutionary Boston had probably figured anybody who could hack the song had the stuff of which dedicated patriots are made of. And a Wikipedia article suggests it was in fact a form of sobriety test among the members of the Anacreon Club. But as anyone knows about "The Star Spangled Banner," friends, don't let friends drink and sing this.

In the 1700s, more than once the crowd told Paul Revere, "sing it again until you get it right" which led him to declare, "I'd rather spend on night on a horse in the Middlesex village and farms." That was better than Sam Adams, who used to sing it until he was horse, sort of like John Lennon at the end of "Twist and Shout" and all the patriots would hoot and holler at him, suspected as his reason for going into the beer business.

But the melody goes back to The Anacreontic Song , also known from the first line, "Anacreon in Heaven." If an entry on Wikipedia has it right, this song, written in the 1760s, included the chorus "And long may the sons of Anacreon intwine the myths of Venus with Bacchus vice." You could often hear the words, "Play ball" echoing across the Boston common after the ringing last notes, followed by the rustling of bags of peanuts and loud belches from the beer-drinking crowd.

It's debated if the members of the Anacreon Society in England were interested in the poetry of the Greek author after whom they took their names or that entwining of Venus and Bacchus, which sounds a lot more interesting that reciting a bunch of stuffy poems. In fact, the patriots spent more time harassing the waitress, trying to interest them in some off-hours entwining, which was totally against house rules.

But the real subject at has is why Francis Scott Key - the name rolls off like a mother yelling at an errant child, Francis SCOTT Key - picked the melody. The Wikipedia article says it fit. I figure that he realized he was writing for free and decided to have a good laugh.

"Let's see how many of them can hit that high note," is likely to be the inscription found in his lost diary.