Some Thought On O Canada
- matt58clark
- Mar 23
- 5 min read
By Mathew Clark
O Canada! Our Home and Native land!
True Patriot love in all of us command"
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
THe True North Strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Those are the words to Canada's national anthem titled O Canada. Without a doubt the most bland, ordinary ditty ever selected for inspiring citizens to have special (positive) emotions for the nation they inhabit. So dull is the tune of this song that it could well be played as elevator music in a dollar store. When compared to other nations anthems it is an embarrassment. It easily explains much of the inferiority complex Canadians are famous for throughout the globe. Singing O Canada is akin to having a molar pulled. One wants to be unconscious when it is occurring. O Canada's musical notes are a grievious assualt on the senses.
Way back in 1880 the Lieutenant Governor of the (Canadian) province of Quebec decided a good way to celebrate the upcoming (June 24th) Saint Jean Baptiste day was to commission a song dedicated to the nation. From that decision came O Canada, it's music composed by the accomplished Calixa Lavallee, with the french lyrics written by Adolphe-Basile Routhier. Robert Stanley Weir put pen to the English lyrics in 1908. In 1980, a century after O Canada was first sung, the melody was officially proclaimed the nation anthem of the realm.
At this point it is of interest to note that the Saint Jean Baptiste organization is now (in 2025) a separatist institution advocating political independence for the province of Quebec from the nation of Canada. Furthermore Calixa Lavallee, composer of O Canada, would during his lifetime publicly enunciate that Canada should be annexed by the United States. Perhaps he was the earliest member of President Trumps MAGA? These facts are indicative on how surreal it has been to adopt O Canada as the country's national anthem.
Politics aside O Canada is monumentally boring. It rivals, perhaps even surpasses, "God Save the King" in it's ability to dull the senses. Back when Canadians were attached to their British heritage schoolchildren in the Great White North were sometimes subjected to a rendition of both "God Save The King" and "O Canada" at the commencement of the school day. This might explain why during the 2nd World War so many high school students left their academic pursuits to join the armed forces. Not, it must be stated, out of patriotism, rather as an escape to a slightly higher form of sanity.
Britons nevertheless can rightly brag their unofficial anthem, "Rule Britannia," rouses the population into an exxaggerated pride. Meanwhile the national songs of the United States, France, and Russia prompts a similar reaction in the citizens of those lands.
Every school morning in the jurisdiction of Ontario, Canada's most populous province, the day begins with the playing of O Canada. As an education assistant I have to enforce Board of Education rules which demand students stand at attention, with headgear removed, while the anthem plays over the P.A. system. Being an education assistant is a wonderful vocation. Aiding young people in the learning process is immensely rewarding. Nevertheless every employment has it's tradeoffs. Enforcing the Board policy on O Canada is definitely a negative trade off. As the sombre notes descend on tense students I wonder, as a church going man, if the Good Lord will hold me responsible for subjecting teenagers to such an ordeal. Am I putting my eternal soul in jeopardy by enforcing the rules? Assaulting the ears of innocent youth in such a fashion cannot be good. In some circles it might even be considered a violation of human rights.
There have been two occasions that I know of when the singing of O Canada did sound halfways decent. In the first instance a junior Canadian hockey team, having just won the world junior hockey championship, found out there was no recording in the arena of the Canadian national anthem. Improvising, the young men broke into their own version of the melody. Not one of them sung a true note, which is probably why the youthful athletes sounded so lyrical.
On the second occasion a Los Vegas lounge singer agreed to croon the Canadian national anthem before the beginning of a Canadian football game. Never having heard O Canada before, and singing a cappella, the professional entertainer took one look at the melodies lyrics and decided they would be best projected to the tune of "O Christmas Tree." It turned out to be an inspired choice. Even in the summer heat visions of the saviours birth, turkey stuffing, and RED Rider BB guns soothed the mind. Never in my life was the Canadian anthem so wonderous to hear.
Perhaps O Canada requires being attached to some worthwhile cause so it can grow in luster. Many citizens of the Northern Kingdom complained for decades that the Canadian flag was inhibiting. Then wonderful freedom loving truckers took on the egregious authoritarian federal government of Canada, using the Canadian flag as their symbol of resistance. Since that episode(s) the Canadian flag has become a source of pride.
Maybe a way to reform the national dirge would be for Canadians at a Taylor Swift concert breaking into the anthem every time the young woman starts to bellow out a tune about some boyfriend who has done her wrong. Indeed if executed properly, with Ms. Swift successfully drowned out, there is a chance the global community might show their appreciation by proclaiming O Canada the first international anthem.
Canadians will not have an inspired anthem as long as they accept O Canada as the nation's musical testimony. To change this fate I suggest a contest be held to choose a new anthem. It could be opened up to international competitors. Prize money could be offered to be won by the composer(s) of the top entries. Offering a reward might even cause United states President Donald Trump to submit an entry. No doubt his submission would be entitled " O Tariff free 51st State We Love Thee." Drakes attempt might be called "Airplanes Redux."
In all liklihood Canadians are stuck with O Canada as a national anthem for a considerable time to come. This is another sad condition for a country of fine people who, collectively, have created a nation which is anything but fine! Nevertheless the situation could be even worse. Below is the full version of O Canada, rather than the abridged edition which is used for the anthem.
O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love, thou dost in us command,
we see thee rising fair, dear land,
The true north strong and free;
And stand on guard, O Canada,
we stand on guard for thee
refrain
O Canada! O canada! O Canada we stand on guard for thee,
O Canada! we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada! Where pines and maples grow
Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow,
How dear to us thy broad domain,
From East to Western Sea!
Thou land of hope for all who toil!
The True north strong and free!
Refrain
O Canada! beneath thy shining skies,
to keep thee steadfast through the years
from east to western sea,
our own beloved native land,
our true north, strong and free!
Refrain
Ruler supreme, who hearest humble prayer,
Hold our dominion within thy loving care,
help us to find, O God, in thee
A lasting rich reward,
As waiting for the better day,
We ever stand on guard.
Refrain
References:
Government of Canada website
The history of "O Canada"
O canada
Canada's national anthem
fact checked by editors of Encyclopedia Britannica
Last updated March 10, 2025
Calixa Lavallee By Susan Spier, Gilles Potvin published online June 11, 2008
updated by Andrew McIntosh last edited July 7, 2020
The Canadian encyclopedia
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