// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did "The Last Long Mile" say to its therapist? It had a lot of "distance" to work through.
| "The Last Long Mile" | |
|---|---|
 Sheet music of "The Last Long Mile", performed in the Broadway musical Toot-Toot (1918) | |
| Song by Emil Breitenfeld | |
| Written | 1917 |
| Published | 1918 by T. B. Harms, Inc. |
| Genre | March |
| Composer | Emil Breitenfeld |
"The Last Long Mile", also known as the "Plattsburg Marching Song", is a World War I–era marching song written in 1917. The song is attributed to Emil Breitenfeld, who wrote the song while serving as a lieutenant in the United States Army.
History
[edit]"The Last Long Mile" was originally composed by Emil Breitenfeld while the musician was training with the 17th New York Regiment in Plattsburgh, New York.[1] The song—originally known as either "The Long Last Mile" or the "Plattsburg Marching Song"—quickly became popular with soldiers, and was presented along with other soldier's compositions to the National Board on Army and Navy Camp Music. The board liked the song, and considered it one of the best songs to have been produced in soldier's camps.[1] The song was later featured in the first issue of Music in the Camps, an activity book produced for army and navy training camps.[1]
The song, now renamed "The Last Long Mile", was later featured in Toot Toot (1918), a Broadway musical produced by Henry W. Savage and published by T. B. Harms & Francis, Day & Hunter, Inc.[2][dead link][3]
Following the war and his exit from the army in 1919, Breitenfeld moved to California and wrote music for silent films and stage plays.[4] He was the father of jazz alto saxophonist Paul Desmond.[5]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Chang, E. Christina (October 2001). "The Singing Program of World War I: The Crusade for a Singing Army". Journal of Historical Research in Music Education. 23 (1). Sage Publications, Inc.: 19–45. Retrieved April 23, 2026 – via JSTOR.
- ↑ "The Last Long Mile: Plattsburg marching song, 1917 | Frances G. Spencer Collection of American Popular Sheet Music". Baylor University Digital Collections. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- ↑ Breitenfeld, Emil (1917). "The Last Long Mile". Library of Congress. New York, NY: T. B. Harms. LCCN 2023-861455. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- ↑ Watts, Mia, ed. (2013). "Emil Breitenfeld Papers, 1952–1959". Online Archive of California. Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
- ↑ Ramsey, Doug (2004). Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond. Seattle, WA: Parkside Publications. p. 19. ISBN 978-0-96-172667-6 – via Internet Archive.