Bill Labov talks about the shift in Standard from a RP (Received Pronunciation) influenced r-less pronunciation to a r-full (i.e. rhotic) pronunciation. The rhotic pronunciation of Philadelphia probably influenced the rest of the United States. Now the rhotic pronunciation is standard in US English although there is still r-less speech in the South and New England (Boston, New York). The r-less speech of New England is due to the longer/stronger influence of the British RP standard speech. An additional feature that changed was the flapping of "t" between two vowels. RP does not flap "t" while US English does. FDR does not flap "t" in the word "shatter" showing the older RP influenced pattern. ----- Transcript At this stage, what interests me most is the whole idea of what passes for correct or incorrect in American English. Even before America declared its independence from Britian here in Philadelphia, the two Englishes had been going their own ways. George Bernard Shaw once joked that the two nations were separated by the same language. Bill Labov is the director of the Atlas of North American English. RM: What do you consider Standard American? BL: Well, most linguists recognize that there is a broadcast standard pronunciation which is not fixed but which converges towards a pattern that is not local. And that's changed over time. RM: We drew originally from where? BL: From England. There was something called International English that was really modelled upon British Received Pronunciation and took its form in London at the beginning of the 19th century. Americans were not all influenced by it. Only the big Tory cities: Boston, New York, Savannah, Charleston, Richmond. They adopted that r-less pronunciation whereby you say [ka:] not [kar] "car" and "store" [stor] which shifts to [sto:]. And that's still the pattern in England today. For me, the model of that international English standard was always FDR. He was a New Yorker who had the prestige pattern of the upper class in New York, and it was really r-less. It sounded like this: FDR: "To those who would not admit the possibility of the approaching storm, the past two weeks have meant the shattering of many illusions. With this rude awakening has come fear, fear bordering on panic. I do not share these fears." BL: So you notice that every time the letter R comes up unless a vowel follows its gonna sound like this: "The approaching storm". RM: Stom. BL: Not "storm" [storm] but [sto:m] and: "I do not share these fears". But he — it's more than just the R. You notice the way he say "shattering", and "utter good faith". So the pronunciation of "t" as "t" in those situations still found in Boston was again modelled on the British pattern. And it held right up to the end of World War 2. And then, to our great astonishment, it flipped. So, right after WW2 people growing up in New York City and in many other cities behaved in just the opposite way. When they were careful, they pronounced their "r"s. And when they were not careful, just speaking casually, they stayed with their r-less dialect. RM: So people wanted to sound more English before World War II and less so after World War II. BL: We hear British people use that pattern, and we love it. But it's not right for an American. Labov believes Philadelphia shaped American speech more than any other city because it was the only east coast city originally to pronounced its "r"s. And that "r" sound that so typifies American English, migrated west. ----- From "Do you speak American?" documentary.

Led Zeppelin - D'yer Mak'er High Quality: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fR45_VV0Twc&feature=email&fmt=18 Copyright - 1973 Atlantic Records "D'yer Mak'er" (intended to be pronounced with a British non-rhotic accent as "jah-may-kah") is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin, from their 1973 album Houses of the Holy. This song was meant to imitate reggae and its "dub" derivative emerging from Jamaica in the early 1970s. It emerged from rehearsals at Stargroves in 1972 when drummer John Bonham started with a beat similar to 1950s doo-wop, and then twisted it into a slight off beat tempo, upon which a reggae influence emerged. The distinctive drum sound was created by placing three microphones a good distance away from Bonham's drums. A few members of the band have noted that part of the inspiration for this style came from listening to Dee Dee Warwick's version of "Foolish Fool". "D'yer Mak'er" is one of the few Led Zeppelin songs where all four members share the composer credit. The sleeve on the album also credits "Rosie and the Originals", a reference to the doo-wop influence which was evident in the song's construction, as well as sharing the chord progression in its verse portions with the Rosie and the Originals' song "Angel Baby". This track, as well as "The Crunge", was not taken seriously initially, and many critics reserved their harshest criticism for these two arrangements. Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones has also expressed his distaste for the song, suggesting that it started off as a joke and wasn't thought through carefully enough. However, "D'yer Mak'er" has gathered critical respect in the years since, and has grown into something of a Led Zeppelin classic. Upon the album's release, Robert Plant was keen to issue the track as a single in the United Kingdom. Atlantic Records went so far as to distribute advance promotional copies to DJs (now valuable collectors' items). While it was released in the US, and the single peaked at #20 in December of 1973, it was ultimately never released in the UK. This song was never performed live in its entirety at Led Zeppelin concerts, although snatches of it were played during "Whole Lotta Love" during the 1975 concert tour of the United States and at the Earls Court shows in the same year. The name of the song is derived from a play on the words "Jamaica" and "Did you make her", based on an old joke ("My wife's gone to the West Indies." "Jamaica?" "No, she went of her own accord.") Lyrics: Oh oh oh oh oh oh You don't have to go oh oh oh oh oh You don't have to go oh oh oh oh oh You don't have to go Ay ay ay ay ay ay All those tears I cry ay ay ay ay ay All those tears I cry ay ay ay ay ay Baby please don't go. When I read the letter you wrote It made me mad mad mad When I read the news that it brought me It made me sad sad sad But I still love you so, I can't let you go I love you- ooh baby I love you Oh oh oh oh oh oh Every breath I take oh oh oh oh oh Every move I make oh oh oh oh oh Baby please don't go Ay ay ay ay ay ay You hurt me to my soul ay ay ay ay ay You hurt me to my soul ay ay ay ay ay Darling please don't go. When I read the letter you sent me It made me mad mad mad When I read the news that it brought me It made me sad sad sad But I still love you so And I can't let you go I love you- ooh baby I love you Oh oh oh oh oh oh You don't have to go oh oh oh oh oh You don't have to go oh oh oh oh oh (Baby please don't go)

An American actor on a British TV programme inappropriately adds an R to a word.