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1954 original: The Happy Wanderer - Obernkirchen Children's Choir - Road March ☛ 1955

Posted by Pan Times on November 11, 2013 at 7:50pm

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1955, March, Road

The Road March ☛ 1955 - Trinidad and Tobago - Val-der-eeee! Val-der-aaah! Six months on the UK charts (peaking at #2), this first recorded version of "The Happy Wanderer" (sung in German) was also a major record hit in various other countries for the small youth choir from Schaumburg County in Germany. Composed in the mid-1940's, the march-tempo'd tune enjoyed its greatest U.S. success in the recorded versions by Frank Weir (the one with the soprano sax) and Henri Rene, but Decca did also sell a number of copies of this original version (misspelling the town of Obernkirchen on the label). Transferred and digitally processed from 45rpm: Decca 29193 - The Happy Wanderer (Der Froehliche Wanderer) (Moller-Siegesmund) by The Obernkirchen Children's Choir

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Comments

Glenroy R Joseph November 13, 2013 at 7:46pm

Sometimes rules tend to be counter productive, Teddy. Who knows the direction Carnival music would have taken had that rule not been in place.

Steelbands have shown almost a preference for playing non calypso tunes on the road from day one.

If you listen to the Carnival Parade from 1956, you'd realize that only one calypso was played, and that was the eventual Road March, Sparrow's "Jean and Dinah"
EDWARD TEDDY PINHEIRO November 13, 2013 at 5:59pm

I do remember this both by the original and Frank Weir. When this became the road march of 1955 a rule was passed that no foreign tune could never win the road march title again. This rule stopped Short Shirt from winnibg the title in 1976.Silver Stars recorded it and so did Paul Noregia's dance band.

Teddy Pinheiro
terry November 13, 2013 at 4:14pm

@Brenda - The 1958(?) movie, Windjammer featured four tracks by Silvertones Steel Band, recorded

on 45rpm by CBS EP 6015.

Side A: The Happy Wanderer and Don't Hurry Worry Me

Side B: Everybody Loves Saturday Night and Sugar Cane.

I believe the movie was recently re-issued on DVD.
Pan Times November 13, 2013 at 9:58am

@ Brenda - check this video at about 2:10
Pan Times November 13, 2013 at 9:53am

Brenda,

Glenroy posted this video a couple of years ago...