The Stately Homes Of England

Album: Operette (1928)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • On page 392 of Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine for April 1827, appears a poem, The Homes Of England. It begins:

    THE stately Homes of England,
    How beautiful they stand!
    Amidst their tall ancestral trees,
    O'er all the pleasant land!


    Felicia Hemans (1793-1835) wrote these words, which one hundred and two years later were appropriated by Noël Coward thus for a humorous ditty:

    The Stately Homes of England,
    How beautiful they stand,
    To prove the upper classes
    Have still the upper hand


    "The Stately Homes Of England" features in Operette, which opened at the Manchester Opera House on February 17 the following year, and ran for 132 performances, closing at His Majesty's Theatre, London, on July 9. For Coward, this was fairly disappointing. In the original show, it was performed by Kenneth Carten, Ross Landon, John Gatrell and Hugh French as four lords, but Coward himself recorded the song.

    The day after its premiere, an advertisement on page 19 of the Times read:

    Noel Coward sings songs from his new musical play - "Operette" Dearest Love and Gipsy Melody The Stately Homes of England and Where are the songs we sung.

    Although foreigners, especially Americans, considered Coward to be the epitome of the (upper class) English gentleman, he was by his own admission born into "genteel poverty", and this song, which he recorded with the His Majesty's Theatre Orchestra conducted by Francis M. Collinson, might be seen as his taking a gentle swipe at Britain's landed gentry, and more particularly its ruling class (not necessarily the same thing), hence its reference to the playing fields of Eton, on which, according to the Duke of Wellington, the Battle of Waterloo was won. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

James Bond Theme Songs

James Bond Theme SongsMusic Quiz

How well do you know the 007 theme songs?

Andy McClusky of OMD

Andy McClusky of OMDSongwriter Interviews

Known in America for the hit "If You Leave," OMD is a huge influence on modern electronic music.

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"They're Playing My Song

As a songwriter and producer, Narada had hits with Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Starship. But what song does he feel had the greatest impact on his career?

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Goodbye, Hello: Ten Farewell Tour Fake-Outs

Goodbye, Hello: Ten Farewell Tour Fake-OutsSong Writing

The 10 biggest "retirement tours" that didn't take.

David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat & Tears

David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat & TearsSongwriter Interviews

The longtime BS&T frontman tells the "Spinning Wheel" story, including the line he got from Joni Mitchell.