Popular Culture Review Vol. 12, No. 2, August 2001 | Page 57
Reuben James: Sailor, Ship, Song
O f all forms of media, none are so personal, so personalized, or so perva
sive, as music. Personal in that everyone finds his or her own meaning for the
words and melody. Personalized in that we all use music for different things. Per
vasive in that music can be used by all other media forms as a means of expres
sion, o f setting a mood, or of communicating feelings, attitudes and beliefs. In
short, music is an almost transnational form of communication that can both bridge
gaps and build walls.
From the earliest days of the republic to the present, music and songs
such as “Yankee Doodle,” “Rally ‘round the Flag,” and even “I’ll Be a Cranky Old
Yank in My Clanky Old Tank on the Streets of Yokohama with My Honolulu
Mama Doing the Beat-O, Beat-O, Flat on My Seat-0 Blues,” have, at some level,
been used to inspire troops, rally citizenry and tell the story of battles fought and
won. Everyone remembers the patriotic standards, and perhaps some can even
remember the battles by which they were inspired. Other songs may not be “patri
otic” in the traditional sense, but still tell stories of bravery and duty, war and
combat. For example, one song that comes to mind is Johnny Horton’s 1960 hit,
“Sink the Bismarck.” But one song in particular is in a very peculiar position: most
people seem to know the words to the song, many can hum the tune, and some can
remember the event sung about. But, oddly enough, few people are able to link the
event, the words and the melody. That event was the sinking of the U.S.S. Reuben
James (DD-245) on Oct. 31,1941. The song was written by Woody Guthrie during
World War II, and then repopularized by the Kingston Trio in the 1960s. The melody,
taken from an old Civil War song that was rejuvenated by the Carter family, and
then borrowed by Guthrie, was “Wildwood Flower.”
The Battle for the North Atlantic
Even before the United States officially entered World War II in Decem
ber 1941, the U.S. Navy was engaged in a shooting war with Germany. In fact, as
far back as November 1939, Congress had repealed the Neutrality Act and allowed
war materials to be supplied on a “cash and carry” basis (Roskill, 612), and there
had been numerous encounters between German and American forces :
—On November 8,1940, the S.S. City ofRayville struck a mine
and was sunk.
—On April 10,1941, the U.S.S Niblack dropped depth charges
on a U-boat.