In Heaven There Is No Beer

"In Heaven There Is No Beer" is a song about the existential pleasures of beer drinking. The title of the song is the reason for drinking beer while you are still alive. The song in German is "Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier", in Spanish, "En El Cielo No Hay Cerveza". [1] It was originally composed as a movie score for the film Die Fischerin vom Bodensee, 1956, by Ernst Neubach and Ralph Maria Siegel.[2] The English lyrics are credited to Art Walunas.

"Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier"
Song
LanguageGerman
English title"In Heaven There Is No Beer"
Published1956
GenreDrinking song
Composer(s)Ralph Maria Siegel
Lyricist(s)Ernst Neubach

Atongo Zimba recorded a version[3] as well as Clean Living.[4] The song was the inspiration for the title of the 1984 film and 1985 Sundance Film Festival winner, In Heaven There Is No Beer?,[5] which also featured the song "Who Stole the Kishka?".[6] A version with different lyrics, titled "Es gibt kein Bier auf Hawaii" ("There Is No Beer in Hawaii") was performed by the German singer Paul Kuhn in 1963.

A version of the song by the Amherst, MA band Clean Living became a hit in 1972 (US Billboard #49, Cash Box #34[7]; Canada #88).[8][9]

University of Iowa

A rendition of the song, the Hawkeye Victory Polka, is played by the University of Iowa Hawkeye Marching Band after Iowa Hawkeyes football victories and has been a tradition since the 1960s. The Iowa Pep Band also plays the song, when present, after men's basketball, women's basketball, football and other Iowa Hawkeyes athletic team victories. The song was banned for a brief period in 2001 due to its association with alcohol, but was quickly reinstated a month later.

University of Nebraska

A version of the song, Beer Song, is played after every home game by the University of Nebraska Cornhusker Marching Band after exiting Memorial Stadium. It is played as a Tuba Solo, with the crowd singing the melody. The verse is repeated three times, with the second time singing la's instead of the lyrics. It is also played at other events throughout the year in celebration.

Michigan Technological University

An extended version of the song is performed by the Huskies Pep Band during various sporting events, such as between periods during hockey and while leaving their halftime performances during football. This includes verses made by the pep band that go along to the same tune except instead covering topics such as snowfall, marijuana, sex, and referees.

Marijuana

In heaven there is no pot.
That's why we smoke alot!(Just say no!)
When we die and rot.
Our friends will be smoking all our pot!

Referees

In heaven there are no refs,
(But) down here they're blind and deaf.
And when we all have left.
Our friends will be yelling at the refs!

Snowfall

In heaven there is no snow,
that's why we want to go!
And when it's ten below.
Our friends will be freezing in the snow!

Sex

In heaven there is no sex,
that's why we use brand X.
And when we hit the deck.
Our friends will be having all our sex!(What sex!)

Other renditions
  • The Yale Precision Marching Band plays as a brass feature. It is played for tailgaters at Yale University football games. The band has written various other verses attacking other schools in the Ivy League.
  • The song is played by the Fort Hays State University pep band at sporting events.
  • An extended version of the song, with 5 verses, is played by the North Dakota State University Gold Star Marching Band and Bison Pep Band after a Bison victory.
  • University of North Dakota fans sing a version throughout the season, particularly at hockey games.
  • The University of Wyoming band plays it at all home games, football and basketball. The band also goes to every bar the night before home football games playing both the fight song and the beer song.
  • Following University of Minnesota sporting events, the Pride of Minnesota tubas play an instrumental form of this song.
  • At home games, the Pride of Dayton trombones play an instrumental form of this song in between third and fourth quarters.
  • Fort Hays State University band plays it at all home games, football and basketball.
  • The Texas Tornados covered in on their album "Está Bueno"[10].

Lyrics

In heaven there is no beer.
That's why we drink it here (Right Here!)
and when we're gone from here,
our friends will be drinking all the beer!

Im Himmel gibt’s kein Bier,
Drum trinken wir es hier.
Denn sind wir nicht mehr hier,
Dann trinken die andern unser Bier.

References
  1. "En El Cielo No Hay Cerveza (lyrics in Spanish and Dutch)". Retrieved 20 September 2009.
  2. Siegel, Ralph Maria; Neubach, Ernst (1956). Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier: Marschfox. Aus dem Neubach-Film: Die Fischerin vom Bodensee [In Heaven There is No Beer] (musical score) (in German). Zürich: Helbling. OCLC 81325100.
  3. "Music in Ghana- Atongo Zimba". Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 7 February 2010.
  4. Dr. Demento (1995). Dr. Demento 25th anniversary collection more of the greatest novelty records of all time (sound recording). Santa Monica, California: Rhino. OCLC 33275688.
  5. Maslin, Janet (May 23, 1984). "Documentaries on Polka and Bluegrass". New York Times. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
  6. "In Heaven There Is No Beer? (1984)", IMDb.
  7. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, December 23, 1972". Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  8. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  9. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada" (PDF). Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1973-01-06. Retrieved 2019-07-11.
  10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kF_Z34RBLyg
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