1960 Songs: Sink the Bismarck

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First, an apology. I try to be accurate when it comes to the song titles. However, I just cannot, in good conscience, spell it the way it is on the 45. I’m the same way with Elvis’ “Frankfurt Special”: it’s spelled Frankfort (as in, the capital of Kentucky) on the album. But that’s for another discussion. Here’s another song that, like me, is now 65. Sink the Bismarck - Johnny Horton Yes, it’s Bismark on the label. Oh, and Linda? NO! This song was inspired by the movie Sink the Bismarck!, although it wasn’t used in the film (much like the way Gene Pitney’s “(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance” came to be). Don’t worry, though: Johnny Horton’s song “North to Alaska” DID appear in that movie. Johnny Horton had a thing for “historical ballads.” His biggest hit was “The Battle of New Orleans,” and he also did the Civil War song “Johnny Reb.” Of course, that’s a stereotype. Dwight Yoakam made a hit out of the song “Honky Tonk Man,” which was written by (and originally a hit for) Horton. George Jones had a hit with “I’m a One-Woman Man,” which was, again, written by and a hit for Horton first. However, he also did things like “Sam McGee,” a Jimmie Driftwood song based on the poem The Cremation of Sam McGee, and the song “When It’s Springtime in Alaska (It’s Forty Below),” so he was good at the narratives. You know, “typical” country songs. Less than a year after Horton’s biggest success he was dead, the victim of a drunk driver. As far as I’m concerned, he is one of the most obscenely overlooked people missing from the Country Music Hall of Fame. Sink the Bismarck Written by Johnny Horton and Tillman Franks Recorded by Johnny Horton Released as a single, 1960 Churchill told the people: