Sink the Bismark

"Sink the Bismark" (later "Sink the Bismarck") is a march song by American country music singer Johnny Horton and songwriter Tillman Franks, based on the pursuit and eventual sinking of the German battleship Bismarck in May 1941, during World War II. Horton released this song through Columbia Records in 1960, when it reached #3 on the charts. As originally released, the record label used the common misspelling "Bismark"; this error was corrected for later releases of the song. It was inspired by the 1960 British war movie Sink the Bismarck! and was in fact (with the producer John Brabourne's approval) commissioned from Johnny Horton by 20th Century Fox who were worried about the subject's relative obscurity in the United States. For some reason the size comparisons of guns and shells are switched. While the song was used in U.S. theater trailers for the film, it was not used in the film itself.

This article is about the song by Johnny Horton. For the film, see Sink the Bismarck! For other uses, see Sink the Bismarck (disambiguation).
"Sink the Bismark (Sink the Bismarck)"
The photo on the "45" Columbia record jacket is from the movie, but depicts the model of HMS Prince of Wales made for the movie. The models made for this movie are closely modeled after their real-life counterparts.
Single by Johnny Horton
B-side"The Same Old Tale the Crow Told Me"
Released1960
GenreCountry, Novelty
Length3:12
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Johnny Horton and Tilman Franks
Producer(s)Don Law[1]
Johnny Horton singles chronology
"Sal's Got a Sugar Lip"
(1959)		 "Sink the Bismark (Sink the Bismarck)"
(1960)		 "Johnny Freedom"
(1960)

Chart performance
Chart (1960) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot C&W Sides[2] 6
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] 3
Canadian CHUM Chart [4] 1

Blues Brothers recording

The song was later recorded by The Blues Brothers for a scene in the movie, The Blues Brothers, but was cut out.[5]

Cover versions
  • In the UK the song was a hit for Don Lang also in 1960, where it peaked at #43.[6]

See also

References
  1. Billboard Magazine, July 11, 1960
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 162.
  3. Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 394.
  4. "CHUM Hit Parade - April 11, 1960".
  5. Sudo, Chuck (July 6, 2012). "Friday Morning Diversion: The Blues Brothers Sing "Sink The Bismarck"". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 23 August 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  6. "officialcharts.com". officialcharts.com. Retrieved December 14, 2021.


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