Tennessee State US Bicentennial March

"The Tennessee Salute"

Words by Richard M. "Pek" Gunn

Adopted in 1975.

Two songs were adopted by the 89th General Assembly. In 1975, Senate Joint Resolution 19 adopted "The Tennessee Salute" by Richard M. "Pek" Gunn as Tennessee's Bicentennial March. In 1976, "Fly Eagle, Fly!" by James Rogers was also adopted as an official Bicentennial Song by Senate Joint Resolution 161.

Tennessee State US Bicentennial March:
"The Tennessee Salute"

"The Tennessee Salute"

Tennessee, Oh How I love you
with your fertile rolling plain
Tennessee your lakes are playgrounds
where the water skiers sway

Purple tinted hills and mountains
Touring over fields of grain
To the speeding boats that pull them
Through the misty silvery spray

Smoke and steam from busy factories
Rising upward in the air
Trout and brim and bass and croppie
Finest in the U.S.A.

From the smoky mountains to Mississippi
Happiness is everywhere
When you go a-fishin'
Catch instead of wishing'
H'rah for good ole Tennessee

Oh how I love you
There is none that is above you
You are on the move

Tennessee is on the double
With a minimum of trouble
No one can do prove

Tennessee is on good footing
Industy is really putting
Hard times on the run

Everything that's done and said
puts Good ole Tennessee ahead
We'll all join in the fun

Origin of Song: "The Tennessee Salute"

Richard M. "Pek" Gunn, serving as the first poet laureate of Tennessee, wrote the poem, "The Tennessee Salute," on March 13, 1975. In that same year, the 87th Tennessee General Assembly passed Senate Joint Resolution No. 19, adopting "The Tennessee Salute" as the state's official bicentennial march.