Fraulein,
Fraulein... you are my pretty Fraulein. Have you heard this
song before? Perhaps you have; it is still widely sung in karaoke bars, singing
competitions, radios, and other venues.
"Fraulein" is the title of the song. Many believe that the song was written by Lawton Williams, an American country singer and songwriter. He served in the army during World War II. Williams' previous songs were not commercially successful; it is said that he began writing in the late 1940s, but nothing became popular until he wrote the immortal song "Fraulein."
Fraulein rose to prominence in 1957, when it was recorded by Bobby Helms for the Decca label and released as a single the same year. It was named Country Song of the Year at both the Billboard and Cashbox awards.
Williams received a star on the Walk of Fame at the Country Music Hall of Fame
and Museum in Nashville in 1991. He passed away in 2007.
THE INSIDE STORIES OF THE SONG
The term "fraulein" is derived from a German term that refers to an unmarried German woman.
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| Photo Credit: Bundesarchiv via Wikipedia |
It was an honorific term, similar to
Miss. Originally, the word fraulein stemmed from the root word "frau," which
was widely used as an honorific term for a married German woman. It was the
same as saying 'My lady' and 'Madam'. However, as time passed, the word frau
became devalued and less honorific for women in the 1800s. Around 1970, the
word was widely regarded as 'diminutive of woman' and came to be regarded as
sexist by modern feminism. It later became taboo, leading to the word's
prohibition in West Germany by the Minister of Interior in 1972.
Some speculated that
Lawton Williams' friend Hank Williams wrote the song rather than Lawton
Williams himself. "Where I loved her and left
her But I can't forget her 'Cause I miss my pretty Fraulein," Lawton sang
the song, presumably referring to a German woman he yearned for. It should be
noted that Lawton was living in Texas at the time and was married to Jeanette
Crews, so falling in love with a German woman while married to his wife would
appear contradictory, unless he had a secret affair with the woman in Germany.
Furthermore, Lawton had never visited Germany, so it would be impossible for
him to abandon a woman in Germany when he had never been there in the first
place. Hank Williams, on the other hand,
stayed there for about a month in 1950.
Hank Williams wrote the song approximately a year after he went to Germany, but it was kept hidden until his death in January 1952, when it was believed that the band member and Lawton Williams would hand it over to Bobbie Helms some years later, and he had a great hit with it.
Bobby Helms
recorded his own version of "Lonely River Rhine" in 1960, and the
lyrics reveal a dark history of the singer: he had a wife, but
when he moved to Munich, he "stole love" from a local girl, only to
later leave her and learn from the newspapers that she had committed suicide by
drowning herself in the Rhine, and that the person was the one he truly loved.
Far across the blue
waters
Lives an old German's
daughter
By the banks of the old river Rhine
Where I loved her and
left her
But I can't forget her
I miss my pretty Fräulein
Fräulein, Fräulein
Look up toward the
heavens
Each night, when the stars start to shine
By the same stars
above you
I swear that I love
you
You are my pretty Fräulein
When my memories
wander
Away over yonder
To the sweetheart that I left behind
In a moment of glory
A face comes before me
The face of my pretty Fräulein
Fräulein, Fräulein
Walk down by the river
Pretend that your hand's holding mine
By the same stars
above you
I swear that I love
you
You are my pretty Fräulein
Source: Musixmatch
Regardless of the
song's backstory, it cannot be denied that it still has a positive tone and
impact on listeners today, as it evokes old memories and conveys the
difficulties of a long-distance relationship, particularly in the days when
communication was difficult.
Fraulein, Fraulein.. You are my pretty Fraulein.
