Beautiful Isle of Somewhere” is a song with words by Jessie Brown Pounds and music by John Sylvester Fearis written in 1897. The song gained huge popularity when it was used in William McKinley’s funeral. It was a staple of funerals for decades subsequently, and there are dozens of recorded versions. “Beautiful Isle of Somewhere” was originally a poem entitled “Beautiful Isle” by Jessie Brown Pounds. The words were written in the winter of 1896, during a period of miserable weather. Persuaded or possibly forced to stay home, the words were written within an hour’s time. It was set to music by John S. Fearis, who had purchased the poem for five dollars, and the song was published in 1897. In 1901, the song was sung by the Euterpian Ladies Quartet towards the beginning of the President McKinley’s memorial service. A 1908 recording for Edison by Harry Anthony and James Harrison was very popular, as was a 1916 version by John McCormack. In 1969 Jake Hess won the 1969 Grammy Award for Best Inspirational Performance using this song as the title of his album.
Songs with Banjo from Harold Hagler
