Photo courtesy Delta County Historical Society Archives There’s nothing like an evening in the park with some stirring music. Here’s a vintage photo of the Escanaba City Band near Rose Park.

Editor’s note: The following column was written by former Daily Press staff writer Lori Rose, substituting for her sister Karen Wils.

ESCANABA – It’s almost the Fourth of July. It’s an Olympic year and an election year. Pretty soon we’ll be hearing lots of patriotic songs and anthems.

That’s fine with me.

Though I was born at the tail end of the Baby Boom generation, who were often suspicious of anything government-y, I enjoy hearing the songs of America’s past.

Case in point: our national anthem. It’s hard to sing, it’s been slaughtered by celebrities, argued over – and yet it endures.

Whether I hear those opening notes at a football game, graduation or the recent D-Day memorial, I always feel my heart beat a little faster.

It has to be such a proud moment for American athletes when they hear the anthem played during Olympic medal presentations. After all their hard work it must literally be music to their ears.

I get a kick out of hearing “O Canada” paired with the American anthem while watching hockey on TV. Our song starts with the mundane “Oh, say” section and rambles into a wild crescendo.

Canada’s tune is more like a glorious march… elegant as frost on a morning window.

Another one that gets me is “America the Beautiful.” These days I hear it most often at church around U.S. holidays.

Composed by Samuel A. Ward with lyrics by Katherine Lee Bates, this song soars among others and contains a large amount of exclamation points as well.

I’m kind of partial to the lesser-known third verse: “O beautiful for heroes proved/In liberating strife/Who more than self their country loved/And mercy more than life!”

Years ago Willie Nelson gave an interview to Men’s Journal, saying “I think we ought to make ‘America the Beautiful’ the national anthem. It’s not about war, there’s no bombs bursting in air, no rocket’s red glare.

“It’s about the land, amber waves of grain. That sounds good to me. Plus, it’s a hell of a lot easier to sing.”

Then there’s “Stars and Stripes Forever,” a patriotic tune you can even tap your toe to.

I love this song, whether rendered by the historic Escanaba City Band or in concert on the national mall. I’m not a musician so all I can say is I love the tempo changes, high notes and other loop de loops.

It’s not uncommon for toddlers to sway to the music or grannies to wave their flags in time. The percussion moves the piece forward, pointing toward a future we’ve yet to see.

Another reason to love “Stars and Stripes” is the knowledge that its composer, John Philip Sousa, once visited our fair city.

So if you get a chance to hear some good old-fashioned American music this year, enjoy the words and the melodies once again.

They do not disappoint.

Happy Independence Day!

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Karen (Rose) Wils is a lifelong north Escanaba resident. Her folksy columns appear weekly in Lifestyles.