American patriotic music 1917, when he saw headlines announcing the U.S. had entered World War I. Cohan also is famous for penning "Yankee Doodle Dandy," an over-the-top parody of patriotic music. A 1918 Irving Berlin composition, "God Bless America", is sometimes considered an unofficial national anthem of the United States and is often performed at sporting events alongside (or, in some rare cases, such as Ronan Tynan, in place of) "The Star-Spangled Banner." In 1940, Woody Guthrie wrote "This Land Is Your Land" in response to his dislike of "God Bless America", calling it unrealistic and complacent. The World War II era produced
God Bless America Before the 2001 versions, the last time "God Bless America" had been a "Billboard" chart hit was in 1959 when Connie Francis reached No. 36 with her version (the B-side of her Top 10 hit "Among My Souvenirs"). Bing Crosby recorded the song on March 22, 1939 for Decca Records. In 1997, American country music recording artist LeAnn Rimes recorded a cover of the song on her second studio album, "". After the events of September 11, Rimes rereleased the song on a compilation album by the same name. Rimes also released the song on a CD single. Two versions