David Kohn (fl. 1912–1922) was an American songwriter and playwright. He was best known for songs involving World War I and Prohibition.

Career

In 1912, Dave Kohn wrote a five-act dramatic play named Bismarck, the Iron Chancellor, which was prepared for a tour in 1913, but this was cancelled due to the outbreak of war the following year.[1]

His 1917 song "The Ocean Must Be Free", cowritten with Lew Flint, was published with the caption "Dedicated to the United States Army and Navy to encourage enlistment".[2][3] It was reviewed favorably by Billboard: "The Ocean Must Be Free is an exceptionally good title for a song at the present time and the words and music are as good as the title."[4] The Music News described it as, "a very attractive new song which has one of the best Patriotic texts yet noted."[5] After the war, it was advertised in a 1919 issue of the trade publication National Farmer and Stock Grower as a "splendid international song...Our boys could not help fighting for it."[6] It received praise from public figures such as John Philip Sousa and Theodore Roosevelt.[1] Kohn performed the song himself at several venues in Illinois.[7]

In 1918, Kohn wrote the lyrics and E.C. Penn wrote the music for the song "Right and Justice Must Everywhere Prevail".[8][9] He also cowrote the lyrics to 1919's "Peace Reigns on Earth" with Carolyne Lamberton, music by Bert Keene and Ernest L. Walker.[10]

In 1922, Kohn's song "Light Wine and Beer" (cowritten with George Vest Jr., music by Bert Keene) was taken up by the Anti-Prohibition Party and Association Against the Prohibition Amendment as their official song.[11][12]

Kohn ran a book shop on 10th Street in St. Louis in the 1920s, where he would write songs for customers on demand.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Voelker, F. E. (October 20, 1921). "In Our Midst". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 24. Retrieved April 4, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "The Ocean Must Be Free". Pritzker Military Museum & Library. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  3. ↑ "The Ocean Must Be Free". Brown Digital Repository. Brown University. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Music Notes". Billboard. Vol. 29. June 2, 1917. p. 15. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  5. ↑ "New Patriotic Song". The Music News. 9 (2): 7. October 12, 1917. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Music on the Farm". National Farmer and Stock Grower. Hale Publishing Company. 42. 1919. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Author Sings His Patriotic Effort". The Decatur Herald. February 17, 1918. p. 20. Retrieved April 4, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Vogel, Frederick G. (1995). World War I Songs. McFarland. p. 232.
  9. ↑ Catalog of copyright entries, Part 3. Vol. 13. United States Copyright Office. 1918. p. 1811. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Peace Reigns on Earth". Performing Arts Encyclopedia. Library of Congress. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  11. ↑ "New Cohan Show" (PDF). Music Trade Review. July 22, 1922. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  12. ↑ "3500 at Meeting Favoring Return of Beer and Wine". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. May 10, 1922. p. 3. Retrieved April 4, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
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