A mere fifteen years after the end of WWI, the World witnessed the rise to power of Adolf Hitler, when he became Chancellor of Germany in 1933. The Second World War is widely accepted to have begun in 1939, when British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain declared that Britain was at war with Germany. Within hours, Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies made the announcement that this country was also at war.
 
As before, music played a great part in the upkeep of morale, for both the public at home and the brave soldiers, sailors and airmen involved in the conflict. 
 
In this collection of contemporaneous recordings, you can hear the songs that lifted the spirits of the public and the armed forces alike. From the comic (Der Führer’s Face, Kiss Me Goodnight Sergeant Major) to the sentimental (We’ll Meet Again, White Cliffs Of Dover), from the optimistic ([We’re Gonna Hang Out] The Washing On The Siegfried Line, When The Lights Go On Again [All Over The World]) to the songs of army life (Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, This Is The Army, Mister Jones) we have collected the songs that we think encapsulates the feeling of the times and helped Australian, New Zealand, American and British troops through what is considered “our darkest hour”.
 
01. Announcement Of The Outbreak Of War  
: Prime Minister Robert Menzies 
02. We’ll Meet Again: Vera Lynn
03. Bless ‘em All: George Formby
04. Wish Me Luck (As You Wave Me Goodbye)
: Gracie Fields
05. (We’re Gonna Hang Out) The Washing On The
Siegfried Line : Flanagan & Allen
06. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy : The Andrews Sisters
07. G.I. Jive : Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five
08. Coming In On A Wing And A Prayer 
: The Four Vagabonds
09. I Left My Heart At The Stage Door Canteen 
: Swing And Sway With Sammy Kaye (vocal Don Cornell)
10. I’ll Be Seeing You 
: Tommy Dorsey Orchestra with Frank Sinatra 
11. Kiss Me Goodnight Sergeant Major 
: Billy Cotton & His Band (vocal Alan Breeze)
12. Lili Marlene : Anne Shelton
13. This Is The Army, Mr Jones : Irving Berlin
14. Der Führer’s Face : Spike Jones & His City Slickers
15. When The Lights Go On Again All Over The World 
 : Vaughn Monroe
16. The White Cliffs Of Dover : Vera Lynn
17. Obey Your Air Raid Warden 
: Tony Pastor & His Orchestra
18. He Wears A Pair Of Silver Wings : Dinah Shore
19. American Patrol : Glenn Miller & His Orchestra
20. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square 
: Leslie ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson
21. When They Sound The Last ‘All Clear’ : Vera Lynn
22. Victory In Europe Announcement 
: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill