I am Australian. We have a crap anthem and I think most Australians would agree. I'd like Waltzing Matilda to be our national anthem.

I found a neat article from the Guardian (disclosure: it's a British newspaper) that has chosen the 10 best national anthems:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/aug/11/olympics2008/print

The author seems to have chosen these anthems tongue-in-cheek but some of them are very unusual to my ears. I also didn't know the U.S. Virgin Islands had their own anthem. It sounds like a waltz!

It funny and in their nature too that most australians will disparage their anthem while most americans posting here seem to getting a bit annoyed that someone could be questioning the musical merits of theirs.

If you want to talk about musical (as opposed to lyrical) merits then it needs to be said that the tune of "The Star-spangled Banner" is from "The Anacreontic Song", which is a drinking song by any measure.

Replacing "Advance Australia Fair" with "Waltzing Matilda" is like replacing "The Star-spanged Banner" with "Yankee Doodle"... The lyrics would be nonsense but who could argue about that catchy tune?! ;-D

@ figle - You were the first to bring up God Save the Queen, so I thought I'd make the stupid American joke talk about the Sex Pistols.

The star spangled banner is a fine tune. I especially like the Jimi Hendrix version.

Ah right.
@aum - Not sure about that. I get your message, but its not that extreme.
The first thing that comes to mind when you hear Waltzing Mathilda is Australia, but Yankee Doodle does not immediately (/ever in my case) make you think 'America'

I kind of wish America the Beautiful was our national anthem.

Just to show some South American nationalism, here is the Brazilian Anthem http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta8JJtOFMLM , and its intrumental version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xBQxzi9i2Y&feature=related . It is basically common belief in here that ours is the most beautiful Anthem ever; Although it sounds quite predictable, I must confess I tend to agree.

[Of the anthems mentioned above, the Soviet Anthem surely beats the American one!]

Kazakhstan greatest country in the world.
All other countries are run by little girls.
Kazakhstan number one exporter of potassium.
Other countries have inferior potassium...

@ spyman - Agreed. I've always wanted just one Olympian or something to insist on having the Star Spangled Banner played by Jimi if they win.

@ figle - Well then either you've never heard Yankee Doodle or you entirely missed the point of that song. During the Revolutionary War it was practically our anthem. Also Yankee has become synonomous with Americans for most people outside of America, though it generally refers to New Englanders for us Americans.

@Patizcool:
In 1922 the United Kingdom gave freedom to Ireland, both north and south. The elected representatives of the Northern Irish parliament chose to leave the Irish Free State.

Do I take it that you are opposed to freedom and democracy? If so, then I hope you hear God Save The Queen/King constantly.

If you cringe at it because of earlier British policies then FFS get over it.

I always think the Russian anthem is particularly stirring.

Although I find the words & tune of GSTQ/K rather dire, as a Brit, it does cause a stir in my breast. I think the tunes of LOH&G and Jerusalem are better, words still a bit dodgy, and could be used as English national anthem with GSTQ as UK anthem.

Oh, I rather like the EU anthem, which is based on Beethoven's 9th symphony.

There is one anthem, I cannot recall the country (probably a good thing), which always sounds to me like it should be played by a gay marching band with pink uniforms and a leader with a sparkly baton and hot pants.

Apologies to any Croatians out there but the cock-up in lyrics when your anthem was sung at Wembley a couple of years' ago:

"My dear, my penis is a mountain"

still makes me smile.

Page Three and no-one has mentioned my pet hate: The Chinese National Anthem.

It has the same artistic merit as a 1950's large mural showing female workers holding flags and scything wheat.

Mind you, North Korea does a mean emetic too.