Origin of "The Star Spangled Banner"

Here is the last of my holiday posts.

Although The Star Spangled Banner was the unofficial national anthem of the U,.S. for many years , it didn't become the official national anthem until 1931. The melody was taken from an 18th century drinking song, The Anacreaon Song". The Anacreon was a club, based in London, of amateur musicians.

Here are the lyrics to "The Anacreon Song"

http://www.potw.org/archive/potw234.html


One of my favorite songs that mentions Independence Day is "Tears of Rage" .I prefer the Dylan version,,backed by The Band to the Band's version from "Music From Big Pink".