Moving War Songs

Poststructural Pub
1

Recently I’ve been listening to 60s soul songs which have a social message. I began wondering what the most moving soul song about war is. All my top candidates are about drug addicted vets, at least in the soul bag. ‘The Band played Waltzing Matilda’ has the right credentials but isn’t a soul song of course.

I thought my favourite was the little-known ‘Can’t You See What You Done Done’ by Delia Gartrell. It’s still my equal favourite performance. But equal to it, and an even better song, is ‘Sam Stone’ by Swamp Dogg. John Prine wrote the song and has recorded it but Dogg’s performance blows his away. Anyway, for those who don’t know the lyrics, here they are:

Sam Stone
©John Prine


Sam Stone came home,
To his wife and family
After serving in the conflict overseas.
And the time that he served,
Had shattered all his nerves,
And left a little shrapnel in his knee.
But the morphine eased the pain,
And the grass grew round his brain,
And gave him all the confidence he lacked,
With a Purple Heart and a monkey on his back.

Chorus:
There’s a hole in daddy’s arm where all the money goes,
Jesus Christ died for nothin’ I suppose.
Little pitchers have big ears,
Don’t stop to count the years,
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios.
Mmm…

Sam Stone’s welcome home
Didn’t last too long.
He went to work when he’d spent his last dime
And Sammy took to stealing
When he got that empty feeling
For a hundred dollar habit without overtime.
And the gold rolled through his veins
Like a thousand railroad trains,
And eased his mind in the hours that he chose,
While the kids ran around wearin’ other peoples’ clothes…

Repeat Chorus:

Sam Stone was alone
When he popped his last balloon
Climbing walls while sitting in a chair
Well, he played his last request
While the room smelled just like death
With an overdose hovering in the air
But life had lost its fun
And there was nothing to be done
But trade his house that he bought on the G. I. Bill
For a flag draped casket on a local heroes’ hill.

Repeat Chorus



Can anybody think of a song about war that equals or tops this one?

2

Sinéad O’Connor, Paddy’s Lament

Dixie Chicks, Traveling Solider

3

Does it have to be soul?

Great song, Sam Stone.

4

before I got to the end of your post, I was gonna say “Sam Stone”.

Of course, with Nate IN the Navy now, even “Anchor’s Away” gets to me!

One of the songs I can’t listen to without getting teary eyed is “Christmas in the Trenches” by John McCutcheon.


Christmas in the Trenches
by John McCutcheon

My name is Francis Tolliver, I come from Liverpool.
Two years ago the war was waiting for me after school.
To Belgium and to Flanders, to Germany to here
I fought for King and country I love dear.
'Twas Christmas in the trenches, where the frost so bitter hung,
The frozen fields of France were still, no Christmas song was sung
Our families back in England were toasting us that day
Their brave and glorious lads so far away.

I was lying with my messmate on the cold and rocky ground
When across the lines of battle came a most peculiar sound
Says I, “Now listen up, me boys!” each soldier strained to hear
As one young German voice sang out so clear.
“He’s singing bloody well, you know!” my partner says to me
Soon, one by one, each German voice joined in harmony
The cannons rested silent, the gas clouds rolled no more
As Christmas brought us respite from the war
As soon as they were finished and a reverent pause was spent
“God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen” struck up some lads from Kent
The next they sang was “Stille Nacht.” “Tis ‘Silent Night’,” says I
And in two tongues one song filled up that sky
“There’s someone coming toward us!” the front line sentry cried
All sights were fixed on one long figure trudging from their side
His truce flag, like a Christmas star, shown on that plain so bright
As he, bravely, strode unarmed into the night
Soon one by one on either side walked into No Man’s Land
With neither gun nor bayonet we met there hand to hand
We shared some secret brandy and we wished each other well
And in a flare-lit soccer game we gave 'em hell
We traded chocolates, cigarettes, and photographs from home
These sons and fathers far away from families of their own
Young Sanders played his squeezebox and they had a violin
This curious and unlikely band of men

Soon daylight stole upon us and France was France once more
With sad farewells we each prepared to settle back to war
But the question haunted every heart that lived that wonderous night
“Whose family have I fixed within my sights?”
'Twas Christmas in the trenches where the frost, so bitter hung
The frozen fields of France were warmed as songs of peace were sung
For the walls they’d kept between us to exact the work of war
Had been crumbled and were gone forevermore

My name is Francis Tolliver, in Liverpool I dwell
Each Christmas come since World War I, I’ve learned its lessons well
That the ones who call the shots won’t be among the dead and lame
And on each end of the rifle we’re the same

5

“Soul” is a rather fluid definition, I think.

Here’re the lyrics to the songs I mentioned:

Paddy’s Lament (traditional, sung by Sinéad O’Connor)

Well it’s by the hush, me boys, and sure that’s to mind your noise
And listen to poor Paddy’s sad narration
I was by hunger stressed, and in poverty distressed
So I took a thought I’d leave the Irish nation

Well I sold me horse and cow, my little pigs and sow
Me father’s farm of land I soon departed
And me sweetheart Bid McGee, I’m afraid I’ll never see
For I left her there that morning broken-hearted

Hear ye boys, now take my advice
To America I’ll have ye’s not be going
There is nothing here but war, where the murderin’ cannons roar
And I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin

Well meself and a hundred more, to America sailed o’er
Our fortunes to be making we were thinkin’
When we got to Yankee land, they put guns into our hands
Saying “Paddy, you must go and fight for Lincoln”

Hear ye boys, now take my advice
To America I’ll have YOUSE not be going
There is nothing here but war, where the murderin’ cannons roar
And I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin

General Meagher to us he said, if you get shot or lose your Head
Every MOTHER’S SON of youse will get a pension
Well in the war I lost me leg, AND ALL I’VE NOW’S A WOODEN PEG
And by me soul it is the truth to you I mention

Hear ye boys, now take my advice
To America I’ll have YOUSE not be coming
There is nothing here but war, where the murderin’ cannons roar
And I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin

Well I think meself in luck, if I get fed on Indianbuck
And old Ireland is the country I delight in
To the devil, I would say, God curse Americay
For the truth I’ve had enough of their hard fightin

Hear ye boys, now take my advice
To America I’ll have youse not be going
There is nothing here but war, where the murderin’ cannons roar
And I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin

I wish I was at home
I wish I was at home
I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin

DIXIE CHICKS - Travelin’ Soldier

Two days past eighteen
He was waiting for the bus in his army green
Sat down in a booth in a cafe there
Gave his order to a girl with a bow in her hair
He’s a little shy so she gives him a smile
And he said would you mind sittin’ down for a while
And talking to me,
I’m feeling a little low
She said I’m off in an hour and I know where we can go

So they went down and they sat on the pier
He said I bet you got a boyfriend but I don’t care
I got no one to send a letter to
Would you mind if I sent one back here to you

Chorus: I cried
Never gonna hold the hand of another guy
Too young for him they told her
Waitin’ for the love of a travelin’ soldier
Over love will never end
Waitin’ for the soldier to come back again
Never more to be alone when the letter said
A soldier’s coming home

So the letters came from an army camp
In California then Vietnam
And he told her of his heart
It might be love and all of the things he was so scared of
He said when it’s getting kinda rough over here
I think of that day sittin’ down at the pier
And I close my eyes and see your pretty smile
Don’t worry but I won’t be able to write for awhile

[Chorus]

One Friday night at a football game
The Lord’s Prayer said and the Anthem sang
A man said folks would you bow your heads
For a list of local Vietnam dead
Crying all alone under the stands
Was a piccolo player in the marching band
And one name read and nobody really cared
But a pretty little girl with a bow in her hair

6

There are a number of folk/folk-like war songs (with words) on [u]page three of the Most tragic/depressing songs thread[/u].

Two Soldiers
Atlanta is Burning
Greycoat Solders
Shiloh Hill
Christmas in the Trenches
Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye

I find them all touching, but wouldn’t know how to compare them in terms of one equaling or topping another.

7

Mmmm…Sam it is.

Even dylan,in all his glory,would have been proud of that one.

A great song cast in a great shadow…

Let us not debate the soul of those who had the misfortune to live and create..in the heavy shadow that Bob cast on the landscape.

John Prine was in the wrong place at the wrong time..a modern tragedy.

Then there was Bob.Everyone else is history.

Slan,
D. :wink:

8

I dunno. I still see John performing on TV occasionally–mostly Austin City Limits, but other venues from time to time. It’s been a few years since I last saw Bobby Z. in a more-or-less-current performance.

9

I almost posted this a month or so ago, when I saw a news item reporting that Australia’s last ww1 veteran had died.

Twenty or more years ago, Eric Bogle foresaw the day:

I see the old men all twisted and torn
The forgotten heroes of a forgotten war
And the young people ask me “What are they marching for?”
And I ask myself the same question

And the band plays Waltzing Matilda
And the old men still answer the call
Year after year, those old men disappear
Soon no one will march there at all

10

This is a song written in the '60’s. The inspiration was the book “Co. Aytch” by Sam Watkins, who was a “high private” in Co. H (The Maury Grays), 1st Tennessee Regiment, CSA. The call of the whipporwill in the early morning was regarded as an evil omen in some Native American cultures.


“Kennesaw Line”
lyrics by Don Oja Dunaway

I am but a simple man, I got no command of the written word
I can only try to tell you all the things I’ve seen and heard
So listen to the picture forever etched on my mind
The day that hell broke loose just north of Marietta all along the Kennesaw line
The day that hell broke loose just north of Marietta all along the Kennesaw line

The sun rose high above us that morning on a clear and cloudless day
A peckerwood taps on a tree, he’ll soon be shot away
The heat blistered down through the leaves on the trees
The air seemed hot enough to catch fire
The heavens seemed to be made of brass
As the sun rose higher and higher

Everything got real still and quiet, my old mess mate, Walter Hood
He said, “Sam, I believe them Yanks down there are up to something
And I know it ain’t no damn good”
Well the storm broke and it swept down on us
It rumbled through the hills
Walter sighed then he dropped his rifle
He said somethin’ to me about a whippoorwill

He said, "Sammy, can’t you hear 'em singing
Singing for you and me
And all the Maury Grays, Lord
Carry me back to Tennessee
God bless the First and the Twenty-seventh
And The Grand Rock City Guard
Nobody ever told me dying would be so hard

"Sam, I think I’ve been hurt real bad, ain’t this one hell of a day
You’d better go and leave me now, I think I need some time to pray
You know how bad I’ve been wantin’ to go home,
But I couldn’t see rightly how,
Old Colonel Field ain’t gonna to have no choice this time,
I think I’ll get my furlough now.

And don’t you tell me that you can’t hear them,
Singing for you and me
And all the Maury Grays, Lord
Carry me back to Tennessee, Tennessee"

I told you I’m a simple man, I got no command of the written word
I can only try to tell you all the things I’ve seen and heard
So listen to the picture forever etched on my mind
The day that hell broke loose just north of Marietta all along the Kennesaw line
The day that hell broke loose just north of Marietta all along the Kennesaw line
The day that hell broke loose just north of Marietta all along the Kennesaw line

11

Geez, there are just too many to think of any. Three of my faves have been mentioned: The Band played Waltzing Matilda, Christmas in the Trenches, and Johnny I hardly knew ye/Fighting for strangers.

A few others that come to mind:

When I was on horseback
Universal Soldier (Buffie Ste Marie)
The Victory
Montrose

12

No, any song will do. That’s just how I got to be thinking about the topic.

13

When Jonnie Comes Home Again. Not tragic, but bitter sweet.
Moreen, or “The Minstrel boy”

14

“The Lost Children”
–Gordon Lightfoot

Down the hall their voices ring, their feet are on the run
Phantoms on the winter sky, together they do come
Faded lips and eyes of blue they’re carried in the wind
Their laughter filled the countryside but they’ll not laugh again

All the games are ended now, their voices have been stilled
Their fathers built the tools of war by which they all were killed
Their mothers made the uniforms showing which side they were on
And the young boys were the middle men for the guns to pray upon

You’ve seen the fires in the night, watched the devil as he smiles
You’ve heard a mothers mournful cry as she searches for her child
You’ve seen the lines of refugees, the faces of despair
And wondered at the wise men who never seem to care

Goodbye you lost children, God speed you on your way
Your little beds are empty now, your toys are put away
Your mother sings a lullaby as she gazes at the floor
Your father builds more weapons and marches out once more

Down the hall their voices ring, their feet are on the run
Phantoms on the winter sky, together they do come
Faded lips and eyes of blue they’re carried in the wind
Their laughter filled the countryside but they’ll not laugh again

–James

Edited: fixing typos…

15

Right up there with Sam Stone is -
(and I know I’ve posted this before, but, what can I say… I do love this tune)

Feel Like I’m Fixing To Die Rag (Next Stop Vietnam)

Country Joe & the Fish

Come on all of you big strong men
Uncle Sam needs your help again
he’s got himself in a terrible jam
way down yonder in Viet Nam so
put down your books and pick up a gun we’re
gonna have a whole lotta fun

(CHORUS)
And it’s one, two, three, what are we fighting for
don’t ask me I don’t give a damn, next stop is Viet Nam
And it’s five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates
ain’t no time to wonder why, whoopee we’re all gonna die

Come on generals, let’s move fast
your big chance has come at last
now you can go out and get those reds
cos the only good commie is the one that’s dead and
you know that peace can only be won when we’ve
blown 'em all to kingdom come

Come on wall street don’t be slow
why man this war is a go-go
there’s plenty good money to be made by
supplying the army with the tools of its trade
let’s hope and pray that if they drop the bomb,
they drop it on the Viet Cong

Come on mothers throughout the land
pack your boys off to Viet Nam
come on fathers don’t hesitate
send your sons off before it’s too late
and you can be the first ones on your block
to have your boy come home in a box

16

Way to go Cow…way to go.


Peace,
D.

17

soulful war songs? the best is war by the late edwin starr : http://www.edwinstarr.info/ listen to it here : http://www.towerrecords.com/product.aspx?pfid=2980011

18

has anyone heard paul brady’s version of paddy’s lament on the gathering lp ? vastly superior to sine-aid’s yelping.

19

S1m0n mentioned Eric Bogle, I’m surprised no-one’s mentioned his “Green Fields of France”. I saw Finbar Furey perform that one a couple of weeks ago…stirring stuff:

Willie McBride / Green Fields Of France / No Man’s Land

Well how do you do Private William McBride,
Do you mind if I sit here down by your graveside?
And rest for awhile beneath the warm summer sun,
I’ve been walking all day and now I’m nearly done
I see by your gravestone you were only nineteen
When you joined the glorious fallen in 1916;
Well I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean,
Or, young Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene?

Refrain:
Did they beat the drum slowly,
Did they play the fife lowly?
Did they sound the Death March
As they lowered you down?
Did the band play
“The Last Post And Chorus?”
Did the pipes play
“The Flowers Of The Forest?”

Did you leave 'ere a wife or a sweetheart behind?
In some faithful heart is your memory enshrined?
And although you died back in 1916,
In that faithful heart are you forever nineteen?
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Enclosed forever behind a glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn, and battered and stained,
And faded to yellow in a brown leather frame?

Refrain:

Ah the sun now it shines on these green fields of France,
The warm summer breeze makes the red poppies dance,
And look how the sun shines from under the clouds;
There’s no gas, no barbed wire, there’re no guns firing now.
But here in this graveyard is still No Man’s Land,
The countless white crosses in mute witness stand
To man’s blind indifference to his fellow man,
To a whole generation that was butchered and damned.

Refrain:

Ah, young Willie McBride, I can’t help wonder why,
Did all those who lay here really know why they died?
And did they believe when they answered the call,
Did they really believe that this war would end war?
For the sorrow, the suffering, the glory, the pain,
The killing and dying were all done in vain,
For, young Willie McBride, it all happened again,
And again and again and again and again.

Refrain:

20

It was the song I was thinking about too. The translation of “Green Fields of France” made by Hannes Wader into German is even better when sung live by Eric Fish.

Es ist an der Zeit (Wader / Bogle)

Weit in der Champagne im Mittsommergrün
dort, wo zwischen Grabkreuzen Mohnblumen blühn
da flüstern die Gräser und wiegen sich leicht
im Wind, der sanft über das Gräberfeld streicht
auf deinem Kreuz finde ich, toter Soldat
deinen Namen nicht, nur Ziffern und jemand hat
die Zahl neunzehnhundertundsechzehn gemalt
und du warst nicht einmal neunzehn Jahre alt

Ja, auch dich haben sie schon genauso belogen
so wie sie es mit uns heute immer noch tun
und du hast ihnen alles gegeben
deine Kraft, deine Jugend, dein Leben

Hast du, toter Soldat, mal ein Mädchen geliebt?
sicher nicht denn nur dort, wo es Frieden gibt
können Zärtlichkeit und Vertrauen gedeihn
warst Soldat, um zu sterben, nicht um jung zu sein
vielleicht dachtest du dir, ich falle schon bald
nehme mir mein Vergnügen, wie es kommt, mit Gewalt
dazu warst du entschlossen, hast dich aber dann
vor dir selber geschämt und es doch nie getan

Ja, auch dich haben sie schon genauso belogen
so wie sie es mit uns heute immer noch tun
und du hast ihnen alles gegeben
deine Kraft, deine Jugend, dein Leben

Soldat, gingst du gläubig und gern in den Tod?
oder hast du verzweifelt, verbittert, verroht
deinen wirklichen Feind nicht erkannt bis zum Schluß?
ich hoffe, es traf dich ein sauberer Schuß
oder hat ein Geschoß dir die Glieder zerfetzt
hast du nach deiner Mutter geschrien bis zuletzt
bist du auf deinen Beinstümpfen weitergerannt
und dein Grab, birgt es mehr als ein Bein, eine Hand?

Ja, auch dich haben sie schon genauso belogen
so wie sie es mit uns heute immer noch tun
und du hast ihnen alles gegeben
deine Kraft, deine Jugend, dein Leben

Es blieb nur das Kreuz als einzige Spur
von deinem Leben, doch hör meinen Schwur
für den Frieden zu kämpfen und wachsam zu sein
fällt die Menschheit noch einmal auf Lügen herein
dann kann es geschehn, daß bald niemand mehr Iebt,
niemand, der die Milliarden von Toten begräbt.
doch Iängst finden sich mehr und mehr Menschen bereit,
diesen Krieg zu verhindern, es ist an der Zeit.

Ja, auch dich haben sie schon genauso belogen
so wie sie es mit uns heute immer noch tun
und du hast ihnen alles gegeben
deine Kraft, deine Jugend, dein Leben