The Happy Wanderer No. 2

The Happy Wanderette
A couple of days ago I wrote a short post about Percy Addleshaw, writer of a poem called 'The Happy Wanderer', in 1896. I now wish to go back a bit further in time to the early 1800s and speak about another poet, who also penned a work called 'The Happy Wanderer' but was later set to music. 

In the early 19th century, a German called Florenz Friedrich Sigismund (1788-1857) put pen (or quill) to paper (or parchment) and wrote a poem in 1847 called 'Mein Vater war ein Wandersmann' which, translated from German, means 'My Father was a Wanderer'. It has also been catalogued as 'Der fröhliche Wanderer' ('The Happy Wanderer').

Yet is wasn't until just after the end of the Second World War that another German, Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller (1911-1993), put the words of Sigismund's poem to the catchy melodic tune that is now associated with the song. This was followed shortly afterwards by Möller's sister Edith adapting the song for the Obernkirchen Children's Choir. The choir sang the song at many venues before performing it at the 1953 Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales. The BBC broadcast the event and the song became an instant UK chart hit. Then along came writer and broadcaster Antonia Ridge, who wrote the English lyrics for the song, in 1954.

But the story doesn't end there. Former Cray Wanderers committee member Arthur Nichols (deceased) once told me back in the 1970s that, the supporters of our club in the mid-1950s adopted 'The Happy Wanderer' song, in a similar way that the present day Wands adopted 'The Wanderer' (originally sung by Dion & The Belmonts and later by Status Quo). 'The Happy Wanderer' is still very popular today and many artists of different music genres have recorded it, including The Stargazers (1954), The Village Stompers (1967), and The Chardon Polka Band. Even the Beverley Sisters (Joy Beverley was married to ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers captain Billy Wright) had a go with their version called 'Val De Ri - Val De Ra', also in the 1950s. And singers are still banging it out across the globe even in these more modern times! 

Proof positive that 'The Happy Wanderer' has been, still is and always will be a popular song.

Trevor Mulligan

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