When Johnny Comes Marching Home

Noted Bandmaster Patrick Gilmore wrote the lyrics for this tune when his band was attached to the 24th Massachusetts Infantry. The tune is the same as the Irish song “Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye“ but there is some dispute as to which came first. “Johnny“ did not refer to “Johnny Reb“ but most likely Gilmore's future brother-in-law, a Union army officer. The story behind the song is on the Library of Congress website.