The NATO Song
It is an alliance of global firepower that aims to maintain world security by military and political means.
But in a mood of jolly celebration 60 years ago, Nato appeared to put aside its steely image to commission its own cheery jingle – a bizarre song by none other than the world’s favourite Christmas crooner Bing Crosby.
The global alliance of countries from Europe and North America has marked a new chapter in its history by welcoming Finland as its 31st member state but, in 1959, Nato wanted to celebrate what was then its tenth anniversary and came up with various ways to ‘derive maximum publicity’ for the alliance on the milestone year of the signing of the treaty.
This included the idea of its own jingle, for which Bing Crosby, singer of one of the world’s best-selling singles of all time, White Christmas, was asked to perform.
Crosby’s unique and somewhat unusual song featured in the anniversary celebrations along with other ideas to mark the occasion such as picture books, stamps, stickers and military parades and fly-pasts across many European and North American countries in the alliance.
The much-loved American singer and actor – star of films such as High Society, Holiday Inn and White Christmas – recorded The Nato Song for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as, according to Nato itself, “a short ode to the value of Nato as a defensive shield behind which its free societies could flourish”.
The lyrics describe a journey the Nato members took from their violent past to the more peaceful present, saying: “Ten years have passed since people lived in fear and dread, when hope and independence died, and dark aggression spread.
“Then Nato went on guard and free men ceased to yield.
“We live again in peace and strength behind the Nato shield.”
Listen: Bing Crosby sings ‘The Nato Song’. (You only need to listen to the first song)
A decade before, on 4 April 1949, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States signed the North Atlantic Treaty to establish the North Atlantic Alliance.
Nato defines the treaty as committing “each member to share the risk, responsibilities and benefits of collective defence”.
The main aim of the treaty in 1949 was to create a “pact of mutual assistance to counter the risk that the Soviet Union would seek to extend its control of Eastern Europe to other parts of the continent”.
Ten years later, the then 15 member states gave the go-ahead for Mr Crosby to record The Nato Song.
After its release, the song was stored in The Crosby Archive for decades before being republished in 2017 as part of Mr Crosby’s compilation album Among My Souvenirs.
Another Nato song to mark its tenth anniversary was composed by Captain Hans Lorenz of the German Air Force and written by Captain Stephanus van Dam of the Netherlands and Leon van Leeuwen of the US.
It was performed by an orchestra and a chorus at the Nato 10th anniversary pageant. Its lyrics are equally as rousing as Mr Crosby’s song: “Side by side we march together with the flag unfurled.
“Nato is sword and shield for a peaceful world.”