May There Always Be Sunshine
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"May There Always Be Sunshine" (Russian: "Пусть всегда будет солнце!" or "Солнечный круг") is a popular Soviet children's song created in 1962. The music was composed by Arkady Ostrovsky and the lyrics written by Lev Oshanin. Korney Chukovsky, a writer and immensely popular children's poet, later wrote that the inspiration for the song had been the four lines of the refrain, which were composed in 1928 by the four-year-old boy Kostya Barannikov.
The song was first performed in the Good Morning! (Russian: С добрым утром!) radio show in July 1962 by Maya Kristalinskaya. Performed in 1963 at the Sopot International Song Festival by Tamara Miansarova, the song earned her first prize there and immediately became popular throughout the USSR and in other countries too. It was frequently sung by Young Pioneers at their camps and school meetings, as well as by Little Octobrists in primary schools, and even by pre-school children. The song was widely regarded in the Soviet Union as expressing the people's desire for peace.
Lyrics
[edit]The song expresses the yearning for lasting peace by millions of people, young and old. In war, the lyrics say, there are no winners. For our sake, and especially for our children's sake, we must achieve peace and remove the dark clouds that now cover the sun.
Hootenanny Singers version ("Gabrielle")
[edit]Swedish band, Hootenanny Singers, led by future ABBA member Björn Ulvaeus recorded and released the song "Gabrielle". The tune was based on "May There Always Be Sunshine". The band enjoyed great success with this single in Scandinavia, and with this song, the band saw their first international exposure.
| "Gabrielle" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The Hootenanny Singers | ||||
| from the album The Hootenanny Singers (2nd Album) | ||||
| Language | Swedish | |||
| B-side | "I Lunden Gröna" | |||
| Genre | Folk, pop | |||
| Length | 2:55 | |||
| Label | Fontana | |||
| The Hootenanny Singers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
[edit]In Autumn 1964, the band released their second album "The Hootenanny Singers" which included "Gabrielle" as the opening track.[1] "Gabrielle" was also included in an EP released in Sweden on September 1964. The EP also included other songs such as "La Mamma" [2][3]
After reaching No. 5 on the Swedish Kvalltoppen charts in December 1965, No. 6 in the Norwegian charts[4] , "Gabrielle" had been recorded in German, Finnish, Italian, Dutch, and English . The Finnish version had reached No.2 in the Finnish charts[5].
| "Gabrielle" | |
|---|---|
| Single by The Hootenanny Singers | |
| Language | Dutch |
| B-side | "Zuidenwind-Noordenwind" |
| Released | 1965 |
| Genre | Folk, pop |
| Label | Philips |
| "Gabrielle" | |
|---|---|
| Single by The Hooten Singers | |
| Language | English |
| B-side | "Darlin’" |
| Released | January 1965 |
| Genre | Folk, pop |
| Length | 3:00 |
| Label | United Artists, Ascot |
Negotiations had been made by Stig Anderson, the manager of Polar Music, for the Hootenanny Singers to record and release the single internationally throughout 1964 and 1965. It was the intention for the Hootenanny Singers to record a debut single in Germany, recorded in the German language as early as January 1964[6]. Two German record labels had been interested in presenting the band[6]. The German version of Gabrielle titled “Denk' Daran” had been released as a B-side to “La Mamma” on the Metronome label. [7] Andersson had also travelled to Holland by March 1965[8] and during the success of the single in Scandinavia, Anderson travelled to London[9], New York[10] to establish an United Artists release [9] and Paris[11].
| "Gabriella" | |
|---|---|
| Single by The Hootenanny Singers | |
| Language | Italian |
| B-side | "Fermati In Me" |
| Released | 25 March 1965 |
| Genre | Folk, pop |
| Label | Derby |
By December 1964, it was announced that the English version of Gabrielle would be released in the USA[12] in the following month. The single was rated B+ (very good) and received positive reviews[13]. “The Hooten singers are a young Swedish group who could well find success in the U.S. with this charming, medium paced lyrical romancer which is dished up in an appealing warm hearted pop folk style. Eye it. While the B-Side Darling was reviewed to be an “Impressive, rhythmic soulful folk ode”[13].
| "Gabrielle" | |
|---|---|
| Song by The Hootenanny Singers | |
| Language | Finnish |
| A-side | "La Mamma" |
| Released | 1964 |
| Genre | Folk, pop |
| Label | Telefunken |
Another review stated “A Swedish group and they do a tune with a strong melody. Song originated in Russia but this group gives a powerful English performance. Could be a real sleeper.”[13] It was stated that group recorded Gabrielle in French which was to be released as part of an EP[11][13], but it is unknown if this came about.
| "Gabrielle" | |
|---|---|
| Song by The Hootenanny Singers | |
| Language | German |
| A-side | "La Mamma" |
| Released | December 1964 |
| Genre | Folk, pop |
| Label | Metronome |
Despite the positive reviews, the singles did not chart internationally.
Controversy
[edit]Due to a lack of international copyright agreements, songs from the Soviet Union were then considered to be in the public domain. Stig Anderson and Bengt Bernhag, co-founders of the band's production company Polar Music, claimed credits for the song's arrangement and Swedish lyrics. Russian media sources would later describe this as plagiarism or theft.[14]
Track listing
[edit]Norway and Denmark (TF 269 047)
A. "Gabrielle" (Swedish version)
B. "I Lunden Gröna"
USA, Canada and England (UA 2171)
A. "Gabrielle" (English version)
B. "Darling"
Netherlands (TF 269 047)
A. "Gabrielle" (Dutch version)
B. "Zuidenwind-Noordenwind" (Dutch version of Jag väntar vid min mila)
Netherlands (TF 269 047)
A. "Gabrielle" (Italian version)
B. "Fermati In Me" (Italian version of Stanna En Stund)
Charts
[edit]| Chart (1964-1965) | Peak
position |
|---|---|
| Sweden (Kvällstoppen) | 5 |
| Sweden (Svensktoppen) | 2 |
| Norway | 6 |
| Finland | 2 |
International versions
[edit]The song was translated into English by Tom Botting. The song (or at least its chorus) has been sung in English by Pete Seeger, and is featured on the live album Together in Concert recorded in 1975 with Arlo Guthrie.[15]
The song was translated into German by Ilse and Hans Naumilkat and Manfred Streubel (as "Immer lebe die Sonne") and was popular among Ernst Thälmann Pioneers.
The song was also very popular among Finnish Pioneers as "Paistaa aurinko aina".
It was also used by the Estonian Pioneers, the Estonian translation being "Olgu jääv meile päike" by Heljo Mänd. The most popular recording of it, is by the popular singer Georg Ots.[16]
Hebrew lyrics were written for the song by composer Gidi Koren. It was recorded (Hebrew title: אלוהים שמור על אמא) and made popular by his Israeli folk group, The Brothers & the Sisters.[17]
In popular culture
[edit]Charlotte Diamond, the Canadian children's musician included the song in her 1985 album 10 Carrot Diamond. The chorus is sung in English, Russian, French, Spanish, German, and Cantonese with the instrumental accompaniment changing musical styles for each culture.[18]
Raffi sang the original chorus and translations into English, Spanish and French on his album Let's Play. There is also an instrumental outro of the other song's title after this song.[19]
This song was included in a medley during the opening ceremonies of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.[citation needed]
A bronze monument to Samantha Smith in Artek, Crimea, has an inscription on the pedestal: "May There Always Be Sunshine".[20]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Hootenanny Singers - Hootenanny Singers, 1964, retrieved 2024-12-28
- ^ biblioteket, Kungliga. "SÖLVESBORGSTIDNINGEN 1964-09-25". Svenska tidningar (in Swedish). Retrieved 2024-12-28.
- ^ Hootenanny Singers - Hootenanny Singers, 1965, retrieved 2024-12-28
- ^ "HOOTENANNY SINGERS - GABRIELLE (SONG)". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2024-12-28.
- ^ Timo (16 July 2015). "Suomen vanhat singlelistat: 1965". Suomen vanhat singlelistat. Retrieved 2024-12-29.
- ^ a b Cashbox (PDF). 25 January 1964.
- ^ Hootenanny Singers - La Mamma / Denk' Daran, 1965, retrieved 2024-12-28
- ^ Cashbox (PDF). 14 March 1964.
- ^ a b Cashbox (PDF). 24 October 1964.
- ^ Cashbox (PDF). 17 October 1964.
- ^ a b Cashbox (PDF). 28 November 1968.
- ^ Billboard. 26 December 1964.
- ^ a b c d Cashbox (PDF). 27 February 1965.
- ^ ""Пусть всегда будет солнце": история гимна человеческому счастью - ТАСС". TACC (in Russian). Retrieved 2024-12-28.
- ^ Together in Concert Rising Son Records ASIN B00075JYCS
- ^ Georg Ots - Olgu jääv meile päike (1963), February 2009, archived from the original on 2021-12-13, retrieved 2021-05-18
- ^ האחים והאחיות
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: 10 Carrot Diamond- Charlotte Diamond (1985). YouTube.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: May There Always Be Sunshine. YouTube.
- ^ В «Артеке» открыли памятник Саманте Смит In Russian
External links
[edit]- The song sung in Russian on YouTube
- The song sung in English on YouTube
- The song sung in Hebrew and other languages on YouTube
- The song on songlexikon.de (in German)
