"Sink the Bismark" (later "Sink the Bismarck") is a march song by American country music singer Johnny Horton and songwriter Tillman Franks, based on the pursuit and eventual sinking of the German battleship Bismarck in May 1941, during World War II. Horton released this song through Columbia Records in 1960, when it reached #3 on the charts. As originally released, the record label used the common misspelling "Bismark"; this error was corrected for later releases of the song. It was inspired by the 1960 British war movie Sink the Bismarck! and was, with the producer John Brabourne's approval, commissioned from Johnny Horton by 20th Century Fox who were worried about the subject's relative obscurity in the United States. Inexplicably, the size comparisons of guns and shells are switched. While the song was used in U.S. theater trailers for the film, it was not used in the actual film.
| "Sink the Bismark (Sink the Bismarck)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The photo on the "45" Columbia record jacket is from the movie, but depicts the model of HMS Prince of Wales made for the movie. The models made for this movie are closely modeled after their real-life counterparts. | ||||
| Single by Johnny Horton | ||||
| B-side | "The Same Old Tale the Crow Told Me" | |||
| Released | 1960 | |||
| Genre | Country, Novelty | |||
| Length | 3:12 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Johnny Horton and Tilman Franks | |||
| Producer(s) | Don Law[1] | |||
| Johnny Horton singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Chart performance
edit| Chart (1960) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot C&W Sides[2] | 6 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] | 3 |
| Canadian CHUM Chart [4] | 1 |
Blues Brothers recording
editThe song was later recorded by The Blues Brothers for a scene in the movie, The Blues Brothers, but was cut out.[5]
Cover versions
editSee also
edit- "PT-109" Another song about a World War II ship
- Parody song "We Didn't Sink The Bismarck" by Homer and Jethro
References
edit- ^ Billboard Magazine, July 11, 1960
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 162.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 394.
- ^ "CHUM Hit Parade - April 11, 1960".
- ^ Sudo, Chuck (July 6, 2012). "Friday Morning Diversion: The Blues Brothers Sing "Sink The Bismarck"". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 23 August 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
- ^ "officialcharts.com". officialcharts.com. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
- ^ "discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
External links
edit
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