The second World War, from 1939 to 1945, was a world wide cataclysm that redrew maps, toppled empires and fundamentally reshaped societies. In this unparalleled period of turmoil music was more than just a background noise, it was an essential thread in the social fabric, a vital tool for survival and a living diary for a generation. No war in history compares to World War 2 as a “radio war”. By 1940 more than 80% of American households owned a radio (Ertman, T. 2019), New technologies allowed broadcasts and recordings to reach soldiers on the front lines. The sound of the era-dominating by the energetic pulse of big band swing and the intimate heartache of the crooner’s ballad became a powerful force that managed morale.
The most dominant sound of the wars early years was the explosive energy of swing. Big bands led by titans such as Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington, provided a brassy, High tempo soundtrack for a nation mobilising for war (Gordeeva, A. 2021). This music was in effect, the sound of national unity. Songs such as “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” by The Andrew Sisters with its driving rhythm and the image of a drafted musician brings his “jive” to the army transformed the act of service into something exciting and modern (Ertman, T. 2019). The music was danceable, infectious and above all communal. It brought people together in the dance halls and at USO canteens providing a crucial and physical release from the tension of rationing, bond drives and endless dread of bad news. The patriotic sound also served as direct propaganda. Songs like “praise the lord and pass the ammunition” or Irving Berlin’s “this is the Army, Mr. Jones” were used as moral boosters that framed the war effort as a just necessary cause (library.syracuse.edu, n.d.). Even humorous novelty songs like Spike Jones’ “Der Fuehrer’s Face” served a purpose.
using ridicule to deflate the enemy’s aura of invincibility.
However once the war had gained momentum a second and more sober tone emerged. A deep and abiding sense of separation and yearning that characterised the times. For very soldier shipping out and for every family left behind. The dominant emotion was not patriotic but it was the dull ache of waiting and this feeling gave rise to the ballad. The frenetic pace of swing gave way to slower tempos, lush string arrangements and the rise of the solo vocalist. This was monumental. The bombastic impersonal sound of the full orchestra gave way to the intimate personal voice of the “crooners”. Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra became the confidants for millions. Songs like “I’ll be seeing you” were not about a specific couple but about every couple, summoning a ghostly presence in “All the old familiar places”. Bing Crosby’s “I’ll be home for Christmas” captures the heart-breaking reality that for most soldiers homecoming was a fantasy. This music was a shared language of loss and hope of being connected across thousand miles of ocean.
In Great Britain, this sound of resilience was personified by Vera Lynn, Her songs “we’ll meet again” and “The white cliffs of Dover” were not triumphant anthems but gentle (Beek, M. 2021) These were hymns of endurance sung by a nation holding its breath during the Blitz and they perfectly articulated a hope that was patient rather than demanding. This music confirmed that in as much as the geopolitical stakes were high, so was the personal emotional cost of war.
The military command understood the power of this music. An unparalleled logistic effort was launched to use music as a tool for troop morale, The USO organised camp shows that brought stars like Bob Hope and the Andrew Sisters directly to the front lines. But perhaps the most important single invention was the “V disc” program.
Began in 1943 during the bitter musicians strike that brought all commercial recording to halt. The V Disc program was a special deal between the government and the musicians union to create new exclusive recordings only for soldiers. These were not old castoffs, they were new recording from the biggest stars shipped all over the world. A V Disc might feature a special spoken introduction from Glenn Miller or an unprecedented collaboration between artists. It was a direct and tangible link with home, a reminder they were not forgotten.
The sound of Major Glenn Miller’s Army Air Force Band over the Armed Forces Radio service became the definitive sound of the American military presence in Europe. His disappearance during a fight over the English channel in 1944 cemented his status as a symbol of the era. “Moonlight Serenade” and “In the mood”, its immortal soundtrack. But music also became a battleground for culture and ideology.
In Nazi Germany, jazz and swing were officially banned as “degenerate music” due to its Black American and Jewish roots. Yet, clandestine “Swing Kids (Schwingjungden) in Hamburg and Berlin defiantly listened to the Allied radio, Using the music as a cultural rebellion. Curiously, the German love song “Lili Marlene” became an international phenomenon and was loved by soldiers on both sides of the conflict (Beek, M. 2021). Its haunting melody about a soldier longing for his love back home transcended national allegiances, a poignant reminder of a shared humanity.
When the war finally ended in 1945, the sound of music changed once more. The big band era already strained by the economics of war and the drafting of musicians effectively came to and end. The sound that welcomed the troops home was the sound that had been born from their separation. The “homecoming” songs, like Les Brown and Doris Day’s “sentimental journey” or “it’s been a long, long time”. These were nor bombastic marches. They were gentle, intimate and suffused with a sense of weary relief. The era of the solo vocalist was now fully established, setting the stage for the pop music of the 1950s.
The music of the second world war remains a perfect, poignant time capsule. It is the sound of a generation that danced to forget its fears and wept to remember what it was fighting for.
Refrences
Beek, M. (2021). What Were the Most Popular Songs during World War II? [online] www.classical-music.com. Available at: https://www.classical-music.com/features/works/world-war-ii-most-popular-songs [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].
Ertman, T. (2019). ‘Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy’: Music in World War II. [online] www.wwiimemorialfriends.org. Available at: https://www.wwiimemorialfriends.org/blog/boogie-woogie-bugle-boy-music-in-world-war-ii [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].
Gordeeva, A. (2021). Propaganda, Patriotism, and Perseverance: How Music Became an Instrument for the US War Effort during the Second World War. Inquiries Journal, [online] 13(11). Available at: http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1920/propaganda-patriotism-and-perseverance-how-music-became-an-instrument-for-the-us-war-effort-during-the-second-world-war [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].
Institution, S. (n.d.). ‘Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!’ [online] Smithsonian Institution. Available at: https://www.si.edu/object/praise-lord-and-pass-ammunition%3Anmah_670902.
Rose, E. (2024). The Forties and the Music of World War II | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. [online] Gilderlehrman.org. Available at: https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/essays/forties-and-music-world-war-ii [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].
The National WWII Museum (2018). World War II and Popular Culture | the National WWII Museum | New Orleans. [online] The National WWII Museum | New Orleans. Available at: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/world-war-ii-and-popular-culture [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].
Winkler, S. (2004). World War II Music. [online] Warfare History Network. Available at: https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/world-war-ii-music/ [Accessed 3 Nov. 2025].