May There Always Be Sunshine

May There Always Be Sunshine (Russian: Пусть всегда будет солнце! Actual Russian Title: Солнечный круг) is a Soviet Russian song, written for children. It was created in 1962. The music was composed by Arkady Ostrovsky, and the lyrics written by Lev Oshanin. The Russian writer and immensely popular children's poet, Korney Chukovsky, later wrote that the foundation for the song had been the four lines of the refrain, which were composed in 1928 by a four-year-old boy Kostya Barannikov.

Performed for the first time in 1963 at the Sopot International Song Festival by Russian singer Tamara Miansarova, it earned her first prize there and immediately became popular throughout the USSR and in other countries, as well. It was sung by members of the Young Pioneers in Young Pioneer camps, Young Pioneer meetings and at schools; it was sung by Little Octobrists at schools; it was sung even by pre-school children. This song was widely considered a symbol of peace in the Soviet Union.

It is one of few Soviet songs that remained popular in Russia after the USSR and the Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union ceased to exist.

Contents

Lyrics

The song was translated into English by Tom Botting. The song (or at least the chorus) has been sung in English by Pete Seeger, and appears on the live album Together in Concert recorded in 1975 with Arlo Guthrie.[1]

The song was translated into German by Ilse and Hans Naumilkat and Manfred Streubel (as Immer lebe die Sonne) and was popular among Ernst Thälmann Pioneers.

Hebrew lyrics were written for the song by composer Gidi Koren. It was recorded (Hebrew title: אלוהים שמור על אמא) and made popular by his Israeli folk group, The Brothers and the Sisters.[2]

Russian English (Literal) English (Poetic)
Солнечный круг,
Небо вокруг —
Это рисунок мальчишки.
Нарисовал он на листке
И подписал в уголке:
Припев:
— Пусть всегда будет солнце,
Пусть всегда будет небо,
Пусть всегда будет мама,
Пусть всегда буду я!
A sunny disk,
the sky's around (it);
This is a drawing by a young boy.
He drew it on a sheet (of paper),
And signed in the corner:
Chorus:
May there always be sun
May there always be sky,
May there always be mama,
May there always be me!
Bright blue the sky.
Sun upon high—
This is the little boy's picture
He drew for you
Wrote for you too.
Just to make clear what he drew.
Chorus:
May there always be sunshine,
May there always be blue skies,
May there always be my mama,
May there always be me!

Cultural references

The tune was used for the song "Gabrielle" by the Hootenanny Singers, led by Björn Ulvaeus. When this version became a hit song in 1964, the new lyrics were translated and performed by the group in Swedish, German, Finnish, Italian, Dutch, and English.

Raffi sang the original chorus and translations into English, Spanish and French on his album "Let's Play".

References

  1. ^ Together in Concert Rising Son Records ASIN B00075JYCS
  2. ^ http://www.bros-and-sis.com/album_mivhar.shtml האחים והאחיות

External links