Bless 'Em All

DESCRIPTION: Verses can be on any subject, though usually military and often obscene. Many units had their own versions. The conclusion, either "Bless 'em all" or "Fuck 'em all," is diagnostic
AUTHOR: F. Godfrey?
EARLIEST DATE: 1916
KEYWORDS: soldier war technology bawdy flying
FOUND IN: Britain(England) US(SW) Canada
REFERENCES (7 citations):
Cray-EroticMuse, pp. 386-391, "Fuck 'Em All" (3 texts plus floating stanzas, 1 tune)
Hopkins-SongsFromTheFrontAndRear, pp. 105-106, "Bless 'Em All" (1 text, 1 tune); p. 107, "Bless 'Em All -- Corvettes" (1 verse); p. 107, "Bless 'Em All -- Lancasters" (1 verse); p. 108, "Bless 'Em All -- Wellingtons" (1 verse)
Ward-Jackson/Lucas-AirmansSongBook, pp. 136-137, "Bless 'Em All" (2 texts)
Tawney-GreyFunnelLines-RoyalNavy, p. 107, "Sod 'em All" (1 text, tune referenced -- a version which uses only the chorus portion, not the verse)
Ward-Jackson/Lucas-AirmansSongBook, pp. 22-24, "The R.A.F. Trooping Song -- Bless 'Em All" (1 text, 1 tune); p. 241, "Bless Em' All (Paratrooper's Version)" (1 text)
DT, BLSSALL1* BLSSALL2* BLSSALL3* BLSSALL4* BLSSALL5* BLSSALL6* BLSSALL7* BLSSALL8* BLSSALL9* BLSSAL10*
ADDITIONAL: Reginald Nettel, _Seven Centuries of Popular Song_, Phoenix House, 1956, p. 232, "(no title)" (1 short text)
Roud #8402
SAME TUNE:
HMS Exeter Song (File: Tawn066)
A Lib Leaving Malta for Gib (File: WJL179)
NOTES [235 words]: Ed Cray notes, "It was a poor unit during the Second World War that didn't have at least one version of this classic...." It probably originated in World War I, and has been credited to "F. Godbey." A copyright version appeared in 1940; this is probably the cleanest version that has ever existed. Curiously, it is not attributed to Godfrey/Godbey; the copyright in Hopkins-SongsFromTheFrontAndRear lists wordy and music by Jimmy Hughes, Frank Lake, and Al Stillman.
It is not immediately evident which of the two basic titles ("Bless" or "Fuck") is more common, though there is no doubt that it is usually printed as "Bless 'Em All.".
Many different services apparently had their own versions, as shown by the texts in Hopkins. Often these weapons systems have their own songs as well. E.g., for the Lancaster bomber, see "Flying Fortresses." For the corvettes, which were just as uncomfortable as the song implies, see "Beneath the Barber Pole."
For the Wellington bomber, see "Ops in a Wimpey."
The song was familiar enough that several books have used "Bless 'Em All" as a title, e.g. there are volumes by Doug Smith and Alan Saddler. Smith, at least, was a genuine air force man describing his life in World War II (I believe).
There was a sheet music version published in 1940. It obviously was not the original. I have not seen it, but I suspect it involved an extraordinary amount of bowdlerization. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.8
File: EM386

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