LILI MARLEEN リリー・マルレーン (Cover)

This month's song, "Lili Marleen," was based on lyrics from a collection of poems published in 1915 by poet Hans Leip, who was conscripted into the German army during World War I. The lyrics were set to music by composer Norbert Schulze, and sung by German actress Lare Andersen. The record was released in 1939. The song describes a soldier's longing for his lover back home.

It didn't sell at all when it was released, but in 1941, the song became popular among soldiers on the front lines after it was played on a German military radio station in Belgrade. Also, military radio waves were strong and could be received throughout Europe, including the Mediterranean coast, so it became popular throughout Europe, friend or foe.

The popularity of this song made singer Lare Andersen famous, and she became popular when entertaining the military, but because she had connections with Jewish artists, she was banned by the military from performing at all, and she attempted suicide but failed. However, because she was so popular, she was allowed to perform under certain conditions, including a ban on singing "Lili Marleen," and she performed the military-recommended propaganda song until the end of the war.

In Japan, there are several translations of the lyrics, and Kazuko Katagiri's translation is considered to be the closest to the original. This time, I'm using Tokiko Kato's translation. There are many different languages and poems for "Lili Marleen," but what kind of singer and lyric combination do you like?

今月の楽曲｢リリー・マルレーン｣は、第一次世界大戦時でドイツ軍に召集された詩人 ハンス・ライプが大正４(1915)年に発表した詩集を原典として作られた歌詞に、作曲家ノルベルト・シュルツェが曲をつけ、ドイツ人の女優ララ・アンデルセンが歌い、昭和14(1939)年にレコードがリリースされました。この曲には、故郷にいる恋人を思う兵士の思いが綴られています。

発売当時は全く売れていませんでしたが、昭和16(1941)年にベオグラード駐留ドイツ軍ラジオ局でこの曲が流されてから前線の兵士たちに流行しました。また、軍のラジオ波が強力で、地中海沿岸を含む欧州全体でも受信できたので、敵味方関係なく全欧州で流行しました。

この曲の流行で歌手ララ・アンデルセンは有名になり、軍の慰問で人気者になりましたが、ユダヤ人アーティストとの交流があったために軍から一切の演奏禁止処分を受け、自殺を試みましたが未遂となりました。それでも彼女の人気が高かったので、｢リリー・マルレーン｣の歌唱禁止を含む条件付きで公演が許可され、終戦まで軍が推奨するプロパガンダ曲を披露していました。

日本では、数種類の訳詞があり、最も原詩に近い日本語訳とされるのが片桐和子です。今回は加藤登紀子訳を使っています。｢リリー・マルレーン｣には言語も詩もいろいろな種類がありますが、どういう歌手と歌詞の組み合わせが好きですか？