America the Beautiful
One of the most famous patriotic American songs, America the Beautiful was composed by Samuel A. Ward (1847 - 1903) with lyrics by Katharine Lee Bates (1859 - 1929). The song is a composite of Ward's piece Materna (1882) and Bates' poem Pikes Peak (1895).
Popular versions have made by various artists, including Charlie Rich, Mickey Newbury, Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, and Buffy Sainte-Marie. In 1939, the great opera singer Marian Anderson sang American the Beautiful on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial after being refused use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution because of her skin color.
