Collections › Australian & New Zealand Songs

Australian & New Zealand Songs

160 songs · chronological · A–Z by artist
Annotations and notes by Justin A. Brummer
Entries are numbered (#1, #2 …) for reference on this page; the numbers shift when entries are added or split.
A collection of Vietnam War songs and spoken-word records from Australia & New Zealand
This forms part of the larger Vietnam War Song Project, an interpretive examination of over 6,500 Vietnam War songs identified, revealing how the war's significance is represented through music. The project also collects spoken-word recordings about the conflict. This unique collection of voices advances scholarship by providing insights into people’s views about the war over time as represented in music, looking at diverse communities and vibrant music scenes. It is crucial in developing our knowledge of the war and the humanities, through the use of a digital research platform.
Note: The VWSP has identified, to date, 160+ songs from Australia & New Zealand – 6 of which are from New Zealand, with the rest from Australia.
Citation: Justin A. Brummer, Vietnam War Song Project (VWSP) — Australian & New Zealand Songs, vietnamwarsongproject.com/list/australian-new-zealand-songs, accessed 12 November 2026
Further acknowledgement: A special thanks to Warren Fahey (Australian Folklore Unit) for identifying song titles and providing lyrics. Also thanks to Mark Gregory, Andrew K. Smith (author of Tex Morton: From Australian Yodeler to International Showman), and Raymond Crooke for helping with lyrics and song titles.

Bibliography

The songs in this collection most often deal with: ANZUS, Anti-War, Vet, Draft.
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Front cover of left-wing publication Maritine Workers Journal, showing members of the Seamen's Union of Australia, refusing to sail the HMAS Boonaroo, in protest against the Vietnam War, 1966.1
  • Collins, Carolyn, Save Our Sons: Women, Dissent and Conscription during the Vietnam War (Melbourne: Monash University Press, 2021).
  • Dane, Barbara, & Irwin Sibler, eds., The Vietnam Songbook (New York: The Guardian, 1969).
  • Fahey, Warren, Diggers' Songs: Songs of the Australians in Eleven Wars (Loftus, Australia: Australian Military History Publications, 1996).
  • Fahey, Warren, Ratbags and Rabblerousers: A Century of Political Protest, Song, and Satire (Strawberry Hills, NSW: Currency Press, 2000).
  • Gregory, Mark, Sixty Years of Australian Union Songs: The Australian Folk Revival and the Australian Labour Movement Since the Second World War, (MA diss, Macquarie University, 2007) (online).
  • Grey, Jeffrey and Jeff Doyle, "Australia R&R: Representation and Reinterpretations of Australia's War in Vietnam," Vietnam Generation, Vol. 3, No. 2 (online).
  • Mansell, Ken, "The Yeast Is Red: A History of the Bakery (Off-Campus Centre of the Monash University Club 1968-71)", Labour History Melbourne, April 1994 (online).
  • Mansell, Ken, "Taking to the Streets against the Vietnam War: A Timeline History of Australian Protest 1962-1972", Labour History Melbourne, 8 May 2020 (online).
  • National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, Canberra, ACT, Australia: Sound Recordings: Vietnam.
  • National Library of Australia, Canberra, ACT, Australia: Vietnam War: Audio Recordings.
  • Piccini, Jon, Evan Smith, & Matthew Worley, eds., The Far Left in Australia Since 1945 (Abingdon, Oxon: Rutledge, 2019).
  • Saunders, M.J., "The Trade Unions in Australia and Opposition to Vietnam and Conscription: 1965-73", Labour History, No. 43 (Nov., 1982), pp. 64-82 (online).
  • "Songs of the Vietnam War in the Rob and Olya Willis Folklore Collection", National Library of Australia, Canberra, ACT, Australia (online).
  • Turnbull, Malcolm, J., "The Great Folk Revival: Some Issues, Debates, and Controversies", Warren Fahey's Australian Folklore Unit (online).
  • York, Barry, "Music, protest and democracy", Museum of Australian Democracy, 4 March 2019 (online)

Historical Context

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"Mobilze Againt the War - a New Zealand anti-war poster.1
According to the National Archives of Australia, approximately 60,000+ Australian served in the Vietnam War, as part of an alliance with the US, between 1962 and 1973. 521 Australians died, and approximately 3000 were wounded.23 Between 1962-1965, Australia had a limited presence, with a small number of advisors. In November 1964, the government introduced conscription for compulsory military service for 20-year-olds. Australia's military presence increased significantly from 29 April 1965, when Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies announced increased support for its US ally. By 1969, there were more than 7,000 Australian troops in Vietnam.4 The withdrawal of forces began under Prime Minister John Gorton (1968-71). The last Australian infantry battalion in South Vietnam sailed for Australia on board HMAS Sydney on 9 December 1971. Australian advisers continued to work with the South Vietnamese, until the incoming Prime Minister Gough Whitlam (1972-1975) withdrew Australia's final presence, by early 1973.
_________

More than 3,000 New Zealand military and civilian personnel served in Vietnam between 1963 and 1975. 37 men died, and 187 were wounded.56

Song Summary: Peace / Anti-War

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Vietnam Moratorium march, in Sydney, Australia, 1970
To date, the VWSP has identified 65+ songs from Australia and New Zealand released during the war years. Of these, 49 contained some anti-war / peace sentiment, 11 featured patriotic / pro-government views, while the others looked at the domestic and servicemen's perspective.

Most Australian protest songs during the war years came out of the contemporary folk movement. The early songs were broad-ranging anti-war tracks, not specifically mentioning the Vietnam conflict, but a representation of the early 60s anti-war movement in Australia. This is seen with Don Henderson's "It's On", covered by Gary Shearston and Trevor Lucas, which looked at the futility of war: "reason and logic are gone, winning the fight won't prove that you're right", while Doug Ashdown covered the well-known peace / protest song "Universal Soldier" composed by Buffy Sainte-Marie.

As the Australian government expanded its war-effort from April 1965, and the introduction of military conscription, the protest songs took on a more specific, detailed nature. Possibly the earlier Australian song to specifically reference the Vietnam War was "Nasho Service" by The Norfolk Singers in which the narrator noted "it's hot in Vietnam.. with Viet Cong..", and considered ways the draft could have been avoided: "why didn't we go to uni?.. I wouldn't be here if I had a wife".

Draft songs continued with the true story of Sydney-based school teacher William "Bill" White, who defied the Australian draft, as a conscientious objector, arrested and jailed, inspired at least three anti-war songs. Willow Macky in "Ballad of William White" called him a "brave Australian boy, the hero of my song", while Glen Tomasetti, in "Ballad of Bill White noted that "violence leads to violence, and pain and useless tears". Meanwhile, Gary Shearston chose to focus on the draft, in both "Twenty Summers, and "The Conscription Romp", the latter of which he pondered why Australians must be sent to fight in a "foreign land not warring with Australia". Ken Mansell, in "The S.S. Vancouver", found inspiration from the arrival of the U.S.S. Vancouver in Australia in May 1965, having off-loaded marines in South Vietnam. He argued that "our army boys are used as pawns" and "foreign mercenaries". The song "Boonaroo by Don Henderson was about members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refusing to sail that vessel in 1966 in opposition to the war. Clem Parkinson's "Kevin Conway" was about the first Australian casualty in the Vietnam War, which told of the North Vietnamese side-of-the-story: "peasants fought for freedom".

Others, while not based on specific events, focused on the horrors of war and its impact on soldiers and civilians on both sides. Gary Shearston mourned the deaths in "this terrible war" in his song "The Lost Soldier", Mike Leyden's "Chessboard of Vietnam" noted that people were "caught up in this giant war machine", and Roger Thwaites"Child of Vietnam" described a child resting "on the bloody ground", and the "streets full of pain". Ronnie Burns' well-known song "Smiley", based on Vietnam War veteran Normie Rowe, looked at the negative impact of the war, containing anti-war sentiment: "when will they learn?". Eric Bogle's influential song "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" recalled the famous Gallipoli battle in the First World War. But the young, faced with the Vietnam War, "ask: what are they marching for?".

A few songs took a novelty / comedy approach. This is seen in Don Henderson's "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old", in which the protagonist accidently burned his draft card, which was misinterpreted as a deliberate act, by both the anti-war movement and the hawks. "The Army's Appeal to Mothers" by Glen Tomasetti suggested mothers teach their children to "hate each foreign name, colour, race or tongue".

Also of particular interest are two songs in the country music genre, by New Zealand-born Tex Morton, based in Australia, which leaned toward the anti-war side, by presenting the devastating impact of the war back home in Australia. The song "21st Birthday" looked at the parents of a soldier killed in action (K.I.A.): "our boy full of love has died now of hate", while in the song "The Widow Next Door" (performed in collaboration with Sister Dorrie), we learn about the widow of a soldier, who pondered that "maybe those students were right after all" when they protested against the war.

Song Summary: "Patriotic" / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest

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Australian Vietnam veterans marching in Sydney, 1968.
11 of the 69 songs identified from Australia and New Zealand, during the war years, fall under the "patriotic" / pro-government / anti-protest category, in that they include expressions of patriotism, opposition to the anti-war movement (anti-protest), support for govt. policies, anti-communism (in the Cold War context), and pro-soldier or military sentiment. Hawkish songs are often referred to as "patriotic" in music literature, although this implies that perhaps anti-war songs were "unpatriotic", which is misleading and incorrect. However, this term is well-known, so used here for categorisation.

Country artist Reg Lindsay released one of the first songs, "Jungles of Vietnam", narrated from the perspective of a soldier wanting to "do my duty" for Australia. Previous conflicts were used as patriotic symbols as presented by The Thin Men in "The Sons of the Anzacs", which, as can be seen from the title, recalled the First World War Gallipoli campaign, while expressing the need to fight in the current conflict: "we're gonna fight for what is right.. freedom's fighting sons".

Contemporary folk group, The Twiliters released the song "With You All the Way, LBJ" in time for the US president Lyndon B. Johnson's visit to Australia in October 1965 - the song emphasised the alliance between Australia and the US, referencing the World War Two Battle of the Coral, and the current conflict, the Vietnam War: "at the Battle of the Coral Sea.. we've been there all the way", as well as "Vietnam today".

Anti-communism featured heavily in the track "Shadow Valley and Iron Triangles" by The Young Australians, which propagated the domino theory: "how long will Australia be free when the red cancer of communism is eaten through Asia". George Hill, in "To the Boys in Vietnam" remarked that the soldiers fighting "will keep all Aussie free". Digby Richards, in the "The Aussie Bush Hat" told of a "Viet Cong..trap" which resulted in a young South Vietnamese girl being killed, which was "why we have to be here" - to protect South Vietnam. Wally White also focused on the the justification for the war on his record "Home From Vietnam": "Aussie boys are fighting.. for our freedom".

Song Summary: Post-War

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Vietnam Forces National Memorial, Canberra, Australia, dedicated on 3 October 1992.
85+ songs have been identified from Australia & New Zealand in the post-Vietnam period. Themes particularly seen in the post-war period are lyrics about the treatment of veterans, post-traumatic stress disorder, and remembering those that died. While very few "patriotic" songs were released during the war years, the post-war period saw many tracks praising the soldier, their role in fighting for their country, and recalling specific battles and incident involving Australian and New Zealand forces. Anti-war / peace sentiment continued to be found in songs, especially amongst contemporary folk artists. Another theme was using Vietnam as a point of comparison to contemporary conflicts, such as the First Gulf War.

Very few songs were released in the mid-70s, in the aftermath of the war. One of those was the Skyhooks' "Whatever Happened to the Revolution", which lamented the lack of protest and contemporary apathy: "we all got stoned and it drifted away.. everyone's a bit older, we're gettin' richer".

The late 70s - 80s saw a revival of songs in Australia looking back at the Vietnam War. This trend coincided with the US, and with other cultural outcomes, especially in film, as seen with the first peak of Hollywood production of Vietnam War films, in 1978-1979 with The Deer Hunter (dir. Michael Cimino) and Apocalypse Now (dir. Francis Ford Coppola). These early films sought to understand the meaning and nature of war, while coming to terms with American involvement in Vietnam. Likewise this is seen in Australian film, with the release of The Odd Angry Shot in 1979.

One of the first song, as part of this wave, was Cold Chisel's "Khe Sanh" (1878), centred around the 1968 Battle of Khe Sanh between US Marines and the North Vietnamese Army. It looked at a disillusioned Australian veteran: "there were no V-day heroes in 1973". The vet suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): "car parks make me jumpy, and I never stopped the dreams". A similar theme was found in Redgum's "I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green)" (1983), composed by John Schumann, who would go on to release several more Vietnam-related songs. It contained references to PTSD: "barking M16.. I can still hear.. screaming in the jungle". It recalled the previous generation, and the difference between nostalgia and the realities of war : "the Anzac legends didn't mention mud and blood".

The troubled Vietnam vet theme continued in the late 1980s and early 90s, featuring in a number of songs. This included "Safe Behind the Wire" by John Schumann: "living on your nerves". It also criticised the government treatment of vets, which would become more prominent in the 90s: "look back in sickness and anger, Australia didn’t honour her debt". Post-punk band The Mark of Cain released a couple songs, focused on the vet and PTSD. "Battlesick" (1989) noted a vet "torn apart inside", while in "Viet Vet" (1994), the protagonist "rides the subway, he's all alone".

Vietnam veteran Noel Watson recalled his own personal experience in the conflict, with the song "Vietnam" (1988): "bamboo houses burning" and "a wounded man.. screaming". Vietnam vet Normie Rowe also had a couple releases: "Somewhere Tonight" (1987), the picture sleeve of which had a picture of him in Vietnam, and the Vietnam-themed album containing 14 songs: "Missing in Action" (2002).

On the protest side, the post-war period saw several titles in the contemporary folk field. Phyl Lobl released "Seasons of War" (1980) (written during the war years): "glory gone", the "war is grey", and the soldier "wonders what he's won". Eric Bogle's "War Correspondent" (1980) took a critical look at the news industry: "objectively you watch the war.. not being paid to moralize". Eric Bogle also released "Welcome Home" (1993) which paid tribute to the veterans, while also criticising the war: "when a nation goes to war, everyone's a casualty". The song "F-111" (1983) by Lyell Sayer was satire / protest about the US-made F-111c fighter bomber, known to have technical problems: "it is a lovely plane.. it's a pity that it isn't safe to take it off the ground". Judy Small's "Mothers, Daughters, Wives" (1984) looked at the impact of the war on the home front, as men "marched away with drums and guns". Warren Fahey, Australian contemporary folk artist, folklore collector, and cultural historian, who founded the label Larrikin Records, played an important role in releasing many of these songs. He later released a compilation of 60 Australian war songs in the 1990s: Diggers - Songs of the Australians at War.

The late 2000s and into the 2010s saw another surge in songs, with the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign in 2015 reviving interest, with many artists returning to the theme of wars fought by people from Australia and New Zealand, including the Vietnam conflict. Classical composer Matthew Hindson focused on the impact of the war on the veterans, as well as the Vietnamese in his piece "A Symphony of Modern Objects: IV. Vietnam War Memorial". Country artist Graham Rodger focused on specific battles, containing patriotic sentiment: "The Battle of Coral" (2008) and "The Battle of Long Tan" (2012). His 2016 patriotic album "They Answered the Call" also contained the Vietnam songs "Missing in Action", and "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons". Lee Kernaghan's album "Spirit of the Anzac" also contained several Vietnam patriotic tributes.

A special song to note is "Man From Vietnam" (2015) by Dennis Marsh, a New Zealand artist, with Ngāpuhi and Ngati Hine iwi affiliations. The song contained several verses in the Māori language - the Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of New Zealand - the only Vietnam War song to do so.

War Years: 1964-1972

Front page of the Australian, 30 April 1965, "Menzies says it - we fight in Vietnam".
Released during the key war years, the songs included mention Vietnam, or the lyrics deal with war-related themes, such as the draft, napalm, prisoners of war, demonstrations, references to soldiers and veterans, war & peace, and expressions of patriotism.

While the war goes back to the 1954 Geneva conference, following the Gulf of Tonkin incident (1964), the US significantly expanded its presence in the region and its defence of South Vietnam, and thus using this date as the beginning of the core war years. These run to the collapse of South Vietnam (30 April 1975), in two periods: (a) 1964-1972, the years of major US combat involvement, up to the peace agreement; (b) 1973-1975, from the Paris Peace Accords (27 January 1973), which brought US troops and prisoners of war home, to the collapse of South Vietnam.

As referenced above, to date, the VWSP has identified 69 songs from Australia and New Zealand released during the war years. Of these, 32 contained some anti-war / peace sentiment, 9 featured patriotic / pro-government views, while the others looked at the domestic and servicemen's perspective.

1964

#1 Gary Shearston It's On 1964 · Single · We Want Freedom / It's On · CBS # BA-221124 · Australia
Annotation
Contemporary folk artist Gary Shearston, born 9 January 1939 in Inverell, NSW, Australia. He died 1 July 2013, Tenterfield, NSW, Australia, prominent on the scene, who wrote and recorded many political, social, and economic protest songs. This included several Vietnam War-related songs: "Twenty Summers" and "The Conscription Romp" on his 1965 album Australian Broadside. He also released the song "The Lost Soldier" on his 1966 album Sings His Songs.

On this single, featured the anti-war song "It's On" (CBS # BA-221124), composed by Don Henderson, who wrote many Vietnam War-related songs, discussed below. While the Vietnam conflict was well underway in 1964, very few Australians participated until the Menzies government upgraded its commitment in April 1965 - so this is more of a Vietnam-era protest song, not specifically mentioning the conflict, but a representation of the early 60s anti-war movement in Australia. The lyrics revolved around the absurdity of conflict as two people get into a fight: "reason and logic are gone, winning the fight won't prove that you're right" . The final verse criticised governments / politicians that "save on education and spend on defence" . Melbourne artist Trevor Lucas also recorded a version, on his 1966 album Overlander, and Raymond Crooke, on his YouTube channel.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
A sad story you'll hear if you listen to me
About two men who could never agree
What one said was white, the other called black
They'd argue a while ands then they'd step out the back
And it's on, and it's on
Reason and logic are gone
Winning the fight won't prove that you're right
It's sad, but it's true, it's on
And when it was over they'd come back then
The argument would become heated again
Who won the first round they couldn't decide
To one asked the other, would he step outside, and it's on...
They'd been fighting so long they could neither recall what in the first place started it all
But they keep at day in and day out
Now they're fighting to see what they're fighting about
It's on...
Well can you imagine if intellectuals came to an agreement by Queensberry rules
It could easily be argued that the square root of 4 was 15 less 3, plus a smack in the jaw, and it's on...
And when government thinks that it makes better sense to save on education and spend on defence
It could also be argued, that on the same grounds, that elections should be the best of ten rounds
It's on, and it's on
Reason and logic are gone
Winning the fight won't prove that you're right
It's sad, but it's true, it's on
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾

1965

#2 The Norfolk Singers Nasho Service 1965 · Single · Nasho Service / Bonnie Jess · CBS # BA-221156 · Australia
Annotation
Based in Sydney, Australia, The Norfolk Singers featured Terry Rouhan (vocals), Dave McNamee (guitar), and Brian Stitt (banjo). They released a couple of rare singles, including one of the earliest Vietnam War draft songs, the satirical track "Nasho Service" (CBS # BA-221156), one of the first Australian songs recorded to specifically mention 'Vietnam': "they say it's hot in Vietnam... with Viet Cong..." . The term "Nasho" was a colloquialism for "National Service". The song referenced a few ways to get out of national service, "why didn't we go to uni?... I wouldn't be here if I had a wife" , similar to the well-known US song "Draft Dodger Rag" (1964) by Phil Ochs.

The song is referenced in the international edition of Billboard, on 27 February 1965, "In the local field, Sven Libaek has produced another up-to-date folk song by the Norfolk Singers, who have enjoyed tremendous success with their last single, 'The Opera House Is Falling Down'. The title of the new single is 'Nasho Service', which refers to all those young Australian's views about being called up for the National Army Training Service".123
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
One of the earliest Australian draft songs; "Nasho" = National Service. Produced by Sven Libaek; April Music; matrix MX145551. CBS BA-221156, 45, matrix MX145551, April Music; "Nasho Service" (The Norfolk Singers), 2.15, produced by Sven Libaek; "Made in Australia by a registered user of the trade marks"; red label in a CBS company sleeve ("CBS is a trademark of the Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc., U.S.A."). [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Why didn't we go to uni?
They give you a gun and make you a man
They say it's hot in Vietnam... with Viet Cong...
They send you away for a year or so
Don't eat so well, don't get much summer
I wouldn't be here if I had a wife...
One, two, three, four...
Please remember when I'm gone I'll be somewhere in Saigon
So all you young folk take note, we haven't got the right to vote...
#3 Gary Shearston Twenty Summers 1965 · Album · Australian Broadside · CBS # BP-233186 · Australia
Annotation
Contemporary folk artist Gary Shearston, born 9 January 1939 in Inverell, NSW, Australia. He died 1 July 2013, Tenterfield, NSW, Australia. This album, recorded in 1965 in Sydney, Australia, and produced by Sven E. Libaek (CBS # BP-233186), contained two anti-war songs related to the Vietnam War. According to the album notes, written by Edgar Walter (1965), the first song "Twenty Summers" was composed by Mona Brand: "Twenty Summers: Mona Brand's words were written as a comment on the recent decision to conscript young Australians for military service overseas. But they are a protest not so much against that decision in itself, as against all warfare. The melody is by Gary Shearston". Mona Brand was a theatre playwright, who taught English in Hanoi with her husband Len Fox in the 1950s.1 It told the story of a young man, 20 years old, drafted to war: "Johnny is called for a soldier today" . His father died in a previous war: "rain in the jungle when Johnny was born, the day that his father lay dying at dawn" .
Sources
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Twenty summers passing away
Johnny is called for a soldier today
Twenty summers, see how they pass
Johnny was earning his earning at last
Johnny must shoulder a gun
And be going and fighting some people he'd rather be knowing
Twenty summers the tree by the wall
Heavy with blossoms were starting to fall
One night when his mother did
Johnny can see that spring when his father came home for some leave
Now Johnny must shoulder a gun
And be going...
Rain was falling softly to earth
The day of the autumn that gave Johnny birth
Rain in the jungle when Johnny was born
The day that his father lay dying at dawn
Now Johnny must shoulder a gun and be going...
Twenty summers look how they've flown
Johnny was planning...
How many summers await Johnny?
Show full lyrics (21 lines) ▾
#4 Gary Shearston Conscription Ramp 1965 · Album · Australian Broadside · CBS # BP-233186 · Australia
Annotation
The second song "The Conscription Romp" dealt with the Australian draft. The album notes said: "Conscription Romp: This is Shearston's own comment on conscription. The words owe something to an Irish song, The Recruiting Sergeant...The tune owes a great deal to one of the fairly numerous Australian versions of an English folk song, The Derby Ram. Marriage brings exemption from conscription. So it is quite likely that a lot of nineteen-year-old Australians will be winking at ladies passing by"1 The lyrics of this song featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

So in this song the protagonist is walking down the street when a recruitment agent said the "government is in need of men" , and it "will be a fine vacation" . The protagonist wondered "if I'm old enough to carry a gun, am I old enough to vote" - representing draft inequality, a topic which often came up in North American songs as well. He also pondered if he would be sent to fight in a "foreign land not warring with Australia" - obviously a reference to Vietnam. Interestingly, the narrator said that "if Australian soil we must defend then lets all volunteer" - which is a similar message to the Pete Seeger song "Bring Them Home", thus not a pacifist, but saying that the Vietnam War was not justified.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Also issued in the UK on the four-track EP Australian Broadside (CBS EP 6062, 1965; Sydney Town / Son of Mine / Roar of the Crowd / Conscription Ramp), with Les Miller (banjo, 6 and 12 string guitar) and Richard Brooks (harmonica); produced by Sven E. Libaek; April Music.

The EP label prints the title as "Conscription Ramp", its sleeve as "The Conscription Camp". The pictures are of the UK four-track EP: CBS EP 6062, "Extended Play", 45, side B, April Music, production Sven E. Libaek, ℗ 1965, made in England; "Roar of the Crowd" (Dennis Kevans) / "Conscription Ramp" (Shearston); Gary Shearston, acc. Les Miller (banjo, 6 & 12 string guitar), Richard Brooks (harmonica).

The front cover, "Australian Broadside – Contemporary songs from the Australian Folk Song Revival", shows Shearston against a stone wall beside the title cut into a map of Australia.

The back lists Side 1: Sydney Town; Son of Mine, Side 2: Roar of the Crowd; Conscription Camp, with notes by Edgar Waters calling "The Conscription Camp" "Shearston's own comment on conscription"; its words owe something to the Irish song 'The Recruiting Sergeant', first heard from Declan Affley, and its tune to an Australian version of the English folk song 'The Derby Ram'. [From the record sleeve and labels]
#5 Denis Gibbons National Service Blues (Draft Dodger Blues) 1965 · Single · National Service Blues (Draft Dodger Blues) / Oleanna · W&G # WG-S-2594 · Australia
Annotation
Folk musician Denis Gibbons, born 1932 in Port Elliot, South Australia. He released the song "National Service Blues (Draft Dodger Blues)" (W & G Records # WG-S-2594), a cover of the Phil Ochs novelty about avoiding the draft. According to Warren Fahey, Australian folklore collector and cultural historian, Gibbons was a "life-long conservative voter", who in 1999 "claimed to have no recollection of ever having recorded the song". Fahey suggested the protest songs may have had "money-making potential".12
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I'm just a typical American boy from a typical American town
I believe in God and Senator Dodd and an keepin' old Castro down
And when it came my time to serve I knew better dead than red
But when I got to my old draft board, buddy, this is what I said
Sarge, I'm only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen and I always carry a purse
I got eyes like a bat, and my feet are flat my asthma's getting worse
Consider my career, my sweetheart...
My poor old invalid aunt
Besides, I ain't no fool, and I'm goin' to school
And I'm workin' in a defense plant
I've got a dislocated disc and a racked up back
I'm allergic to flowers and bugs
And when the bombshell hits, I get epileptic fits
And I'm addicted to a thousand drugs
I got the weakness woes, I can't touch my toes...
I hate Chou En Lai, and I hope he dies
But I think you gotta see that if someone's gotta go over there, that someone isn't me...
And if you ever get a war without any gore, well, I'll be the first to go
Show full lyrics (19 lines) ▾
#6 Doug Ashdown Universal Soldier 1965 · Album · This Is Doug Ashdown · CBS # BP 233283 · Australia
Annotation
Singer/songwriter / pop folk artist, born in 1942, Adelaide, Australia. He covered of the famous contemporary folk anti-war song "Universal Soldier" (CBS # BP 233283), composed by Buffy Sainte-Marie, and released on her 1964 album It's My Way!. Covered by dozens, if not hundreds, of artists, this version, released in 1965, as Australia was sending troops to Vietnam, is a good representation of the contemporary protest, anti-war scene.12 The lyrics take a critical view of the individual soldier, who justified the war, as "fighting for Democracy and fighting for the Reds" . Many protest songs took a different perspective, placing the blame on the government and military, while viewing the soldiers as innocent pawns. Jan Berry wrote a well-known patriotic and anti-protest response / answer record to this song in 1965: "The Universal Coward".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
He's five feet two and he's six feet four
He fights with missiles and with spears
He's all of 31 and he's only 17
He's been a soldier for a thousand years
He's a Catholic, a Hindu, an atheist a Jain
A Buddhist and a Baptist and a Jew
And he knows he shouldn't kill
And he knows he always will
Kill you for me my friend and me for you
And he's fighting for Canada
He's fighting for France
He's fighting for the USA
And he's fighting for the Russians
And he's fighting for Japan
And he thinks we'll put an end to war this way
And he's fighting for Democracy
And fighting for the Reds
He says it's for the peace of all
He's the one who must decide
Who's to live and who's to die
And he never sees the writing on the walls
But without him how would Hitler have
Condemned him at Dachau
Without him Caesar would have stood alone
He's the one who gives his body
As a weapon to a war
And without him all this killing can't go on
He's the universal soldier and he really is to blame
His orders come from far away no more
They come from him, and you, and me
And brothers can't you see
This is not the way we put an end to war
Show full lyrics (33 lines) ▾
Theme: Anti-War
#7 Ken Mansell The S.S. Vancouver 1965 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Australian contemporary folk artist Ken Mansell, active in the protest and labour movement in Melbourne, in the 1960s and 70s. He later wrote several scholarly articles about the history of the movement, including "The Yeast Is Red: A History of the Bakery (Off-Campus Centre of the Monash University Club 1968-71)", for Labour History Melbourne, published April 1994, and "Taking to the Streets against the Vietnam War: A Timeline History of Australian Protest 1962-1972", also for the Labour History Melbourne, published 8 May 2020.

Mansell composed the song "The S.S. Vancouver" , although no recording has been identified at the moment. The lyrics of this song featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

According to the notes in the book: "this song was written in 1965 on the arrival of the U.S.S. Vancouver in Australia". The title dropped the "U", leaving just the "S.S.", a reference to the infamous Nazi paramilitary group. The U.S.S. Vancouver (LPD-2) was an amphibious transport dock, commissioned on 11 May 1963, and deployed at various point in the Vietnam War. In April, 1965, it departed Huế, South Vietnam, having off-loaded marines there.1 It arrived in Sydney on 1 May 1965, taking part in the The Battle of the Coral Sea commemoration, which recalled World War Two naval engagements off the north-east coast of Australia (4-8 May 1942), between the US and Australia, against the Japanese.2

The song took an anti-war position, arguing that "our army boys are used as pawns" and "foreign mercenaries". The lyrics noted the historical importance of the alliance during World War Two: "on our own we could not have saved the Coral Sea". However, the song-writer believed that the situation in Vietnam was "another kind of war". So, while the ship docked in Australia "to celebrate...this anniversary", people must "protest if you can", to stop "bombs...showered in our name".

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
There's commotion at the wharf
All to see a warship off
That seeks a small assistance in the escalation game
They promised in our name
There's commotion at the wharf
All to say they won the battle
For our land of the Wattle
So at Canberra great commitments are promised in our name
Bombs are showered in our name
Who doesn't feel shame?
Don't listen to what these Yankees say
Protest if you can
We'll drive them from our land
Demand negotiations or we'll all be blown away.
Some say there was a time of a bravery sublime
For on our own we could not have saved the Coral Sea
But the years have passed and gone
Another kind of war is on
Now they say that we should stabilize
Dictator Marshall Ky
The Vancouver will be floating across the Southern Ocean
While many of our countrymen couldn't give a damn
They say us folks down under shouldn't stop to wonder
About the nature of relations that we have with Uncle Sam
They're here to show their strength
With this vessel of great length
To celebrate amongst us this anniversary
Meanwhile, our army boys are used as pawns and toys
To stem a revolution as foreign mercenaries
Show full lyrics (30 lines) ▾

1966

#8 The Masters Apprentices Wars or Hands of Time 1966 · Single · Undecided / Wars or Hands of Time · Astor # A-7071 · Australia
Annotation
The well-known song "Wars or Hands of Time" (Astor # A-7071), by The Masters Apprentices, a psychedelic rock band, formed in 1965 in Adelaide. With a strong reverberating guitar and hard drumming, this song grew in popularity in Australia, reaching # 4 in the Australian charts, after 14 weeks in the top 40. Inspiration for the song came partly from the experience of the lead vocalist and guitarist Jim Keays, who had been selected in the Australian conscription for the Citizen's Military Force (the army reserve) in September 1966 - only two months before the release of this single. He did not serve in Vietnam. It is largely considered to be an anti-war song, although it is really about a soldier leaving for the war, and saying goodbye to his sweetheart: "at dusk we said goodbye" . The soldier asked his girl to "wait for me, I'll be back some day" . While away, the soldier would be "dreaming of your love" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
B side of Astor A-7071; Apollo Music. Astor A-7071 (B), "Unbreakable", 45; "Wars or Hands of Time" (Michael Joseph Bower), (2.50), Apollo Music; vocal The Masters Apprentices. Astor company sleeve: "Pressed by the manufacturers of Astor Radio, TV, Appliances". [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
When I turn cold, I will be thinking of you
When I'm far away, try to remember what I said
The day I live, I'll still be dreaming of your love
Wait for the clouds to pass your way
Wait for me I'll be back some day
At dusk we said goodbye, you said you'd try hard not to cry
But I could feel a chill fall lonely on my shoulder
In the wind on a beach where someday I'll return
Wait for the clouds to pass your way
Wait for me I'll be back some day
Wars or hands of time will not destroy our dreams of days
That are to come, our tears were shed with understanding
Don't be sad, I'll catch the wind on home to you
#9 Reg Lindsay Jungles of Vietnam 1966 · EP · Festival # FX-11,178 · Australia
Annotation
Australian country singer Reg Lindsay (1929-2008), from Sydney, released the patriotic song "Jungles of Vietnam" (Festival Records # FX-11178) on this EP, as well as on a single: Jungles of Vietnam (Festival # FK-1249). While Lindsay managed to reach the Australian top 100 on five occasions, including # 8 with the song Armstrong (about the moon landing), he also had success in Nashville, USA. The message of this song took a very similar approach to many US country songs about Vietnam. The track, narrated from the perspective a soldier "off to Vietnam" , said that he would "do my duty" for his country and follow in the footsteps of his father.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Four-track EP (Jungles of Vietnam / Highwayman / Life of a Poor Boy / Shade of the Blues); Greenfields Music; matrix MX20595. Festival FX-11,178, 45 rpm Extended Play, monaural, "Made in Australia by Festival Records Pty. Limited"; side 1 label: "Jungles of Vietnam" (Aust. Comp.) (Lindsay-Horgan) Greenfields (2.47) and "Highwayman" (Curtis Leach) Control (2.38). The green-tinted front sleeve shows a photograph of Reg Lindsay smiling with an acoustic guitar; the back lists side two as "Life of a Poor Boy" and "Shade of the Blues" and advertises other Festival EPs by Herb Alpert's Tijuana Brass, We Five, the Baja Marimba Band and Lucille Starr. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
I left my home around the track
And I'm off to Vietnam...
I'll leave the old shores of my native land
I'll try to do my duty like a man
And if folks should stop you and ask where I am
You can probably say the jungles of Vietnam...
My father was a soldier too...
I will follow in his steps while there is a job to do
Because I love this land I'm from
#10 The Thin Men The Red Beret 1966 · Single · Sons of the Anzacs / The Red Beret · His Master's Voice # EA-4800 · Australia
Annotation
Pop group The Thin Men, formed in 1962, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Members included: Johnny Edwards (tenor), Tony Lee (bass), Ron Patrick (baritone), Adrian Ussher (baritone, 1962-63), Johnny Florence (baritone, 1963-?). This single contained two patriotic, pro-military songs. Of course the title "The Red Beret" referred to the military divisions that wore the beret, the title of which recall the famous US song "The Ballad of the Green Berets" by Barry Sadler. The lead song "Sons of Anzacs" (His Master's Voice # EA-4800) looked back into history, recalling the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), from the First World War, an army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, active in the Gallipoli campaign. Here the sons threw "down our shears for a gun" , as the "jackeroo" (an Australian term for a young man working on a sheep or cattle station to gain experience), to join the "fight for what's right" . The narrtor described them as "freedom's fighting sons" , and "Australia's favourite sons" . So ultra-patriotic, and pro-government song of the Vietnam War era.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Both sides of EA-4800 are marked A. Composer credited on the label as "J. T. Hamilton, Ex-Australian Paratrooper"; Leeds Music; matrix 7XAA1963. Title recalls the military units that wear the red beret, in the manner of "The Ballad of the Green Berets". His Master's Voice EA-4800, 45 R.P.M., "Made by E.M.I. (Australia) Limited, Sydney, N.S.W."; both sides are marked A: "The Red Beret" (J. T. Hamilton, Ex-Australian Paratrooper), Leeds Music, matrix 7XAA1963, 1.43; "Sons of the Anzacs" (J. McFarland), Castle Music, matrix 7XAA1962, 2.14; The Thin Men.

Red HMV company sleeve, its reverse "Made and distributed in Australia by E.M.I. (Australia) Limited" with advertisements for "Clendisc" record cleaner and "Fredorec" cleaning sponge. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Look out here we come, the sons of the Anzacs
Fighters everyone
The sons of the Anzacs
We throw down our shears for a gun
Look out enemy, here we come
We're gonna fight for what's right
The sons of the Anzacs
Look out here we come
The sons of the Anzacs
Australia's favourite sons
The sons of the Anzacs
We'll be there 'til the battle is won
Look out enemy, here we come
We're gonna fight for what is right
From city and bush town we'll come
With...jackaroos
We knew it was our turn this time...
Look out here we come
The sons of the Anzacs
Freedom's fighting sons
The sons of the Anzacs
We'll be there till the battle is won...
Show full lyrics (23 lines) ▾
#11 The Thin Men Sons of the Anzacs 1966 · Single · Sons of the Anzacs / The Red Beret · His Master's Voice # EA-4800 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Red Beret” above (same release).
Lyrics
English
Look out here we come, the sons of the Anzacs
Fighters everyone
The sons of the Anzacs
We throw down our shears for a gun
Look out enemy, here we come
We're gonna fight for what's right
The sons of the Anzacs
Look out here we come
The sons of the Anzacs
Australia's favourite sons
The sons of the Anzacs
We'll be there 'til the battle is won
Look out enemy, here we come
We're gonna fight for what is right
From city and bush town we'll come
With...jackaroos
We knew it was our turn this time...
Look out here we come
The sons of the Anzacs
Freedom's fighting sons
The sons of the Anzacs
We'll be there till the battle is won...
Show full lyrics (23 lines) ▾
#12 The Twiliters With You All the Way, L.B.J. 1966 · Single · With You All the Way, L.B.J. / Waltzing Matilda · RCA Australia # 101735 · Australia
Annotation
Formed in Perth, Western Australia, the contemporary folk group The Twiliters, featuring Jim Maguire, Kerry White, and Hans Stampfer, released the patriotic song "With You All the Way, L.B.J." (RCA Australia # 101735), which praised the Australian-US relationship. The title was of course a play on LBJ's election slogan, "all the way with L.B.J.". The song noted the famous Battle of the Coral Sea, the World War Two naval engagements off the north-east coast of Australia (4-8 May 1942), between the US and Australia, against the Japanese: "at the Battle of the Coral Sea... we've been there all the way" , as well as "Vietnam today" .1

Australian Women’s Weekly on 30 November 1966 discussed the song, with the headline 'On Way to Top with LBJ Pop', which wrote "Six months ago The Twiliters, a folk singing trio from Perth were almost unknown on the Sydney scene. However, after their voices were heard all over Australia singing 'We're With You All the Way, L.B.J.' they suddenly had many offers of jobs... The trio's luck changed last month when the youngest member, Kerry White, 19, received his National Service draft deferment... the recording company with which they have a contract asked them to record the LBJ song, which was being hurriedly rushed into production for President Johnson's visit".2
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Recorded for President Johnson's October 1966 visit to Australia; the title plays on the slogan "All the way with LBJ".

Recorded in Australia; Associated Music; matrix TPKM-1359. B side: "Waltzing Matilda". RCA 101735 (A), matrix TPKM-1359, "Popular 45 RPM", black label with the Associated Music Pty. Ltd. "am" logo; "Product of RCA of Australia Pty. Ltd. • Made from master recording of RCA"; "With You All the Way, L.B.J." (Bryan Conway), The Twiliters.

The picture sleeve ("RCA Records 101735") shows, on an orange ground, two clasping white hands, one sleeved in the Stars and Stripes and the other in the Australian flag; the back lists "With You All the Way L.B.J. * Waltzing Matilda" and advertises other RCA singles under "Have you got these other great RCA hit singles?", including three earlier Twiliters releases ("Where I'm Bound" / "This Little Light of Mine", 101641; "Creamsleeves" / "Dismal Currency", 101688; "Chilly Winds" / "Thanks for the Hand to Hold", 101703). [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
From Alice Springe to New Orleans, were with you all the way
Were with you all the way, L.B.J....
From Bomera to Omaha, were with you all the way...L.B.J.
And we send this word to you, were gonna see it through
At the Battle of the Coral Sea...
We've been there all the way
Vietnam today, were with you all the way...
#13 Gary Shearston The Lost Soldier 1966 · Album · Sings His Songs · CBS # BP-233320 · Australia
Annotation
Contemporary folk artist Gary Shearston, born 9 January 1939 in Inverell, NSW, Australia. He died 1 July 2013, Tenterfield, NSW, Australia. He released the 1965 album Australian Broadside, which contained two Vietnam War songs: "Twenty Summers" and "The Conscription Romp". On this album was the song "The Lost Soldier" (CBS # BP-233320). The album notes by Sven Libaek (1966) said that the song was "written from a newspaper report of the death of an Australian soldier in Vietnam. The song finishes with some of the statements made by his young wife about his participation in the Vietnam war. The tune for this song is adapted from a traditional song known as "Lord Franklin"". The lyrics of this song featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

So the song told of a young man, recently married, being drafted to "that foreign land across the sea". However, his wife received a letter, informing her that her "soldier boy was in battle slain, oh in Vietnam in a field he died". It ended with an anti-war note, saying that he was not a violent man, and could not kill, and that he should never have fought "in this terrible war".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
In December 1964
In a foreign land there waged a war
But here at home a young man wed
And a Windsor town, his young life led
Six months did pass to the month of June
When the bands did play a marching tune
From his loving wife he was forced to go
The reason why, he was soon to know
A soldier boy he was to be
In that foreign land across the sea
To fight a war that was not his own
To leave his young wife all alone
He was soon transported overseas
And into battle he went most cautiously
He was not afraid, he was brave and strong
But he hoped the war would not be long
Then to Windsor Town there came one day
A photograph from far away
And with...a message came
And the young girl smiled as she read his name
Then the weeks did pass and it was Spring
And another lettter they did bring
But for his name she searched in vain
For a soldier boy was in battle slain
Oh in Vietnam in a field he died
He was not a violent man she cried
He never was a true soldier
And she held his picture close to her
Oh they made him carry a gun
She knew he never could kill anyone
And she told us all, as she closed her door
He should never had fought in this terrible war
Show full lyrics (33 lines) ▾
#14 Trevor Lucas It's On 1966 · Album · Overlander · Reality # RY 1002 · Australia
Annotation
Contemporary folk artist Trevor Lucas, born 25 December 1943 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He died on 4 February 1989 in Sydney, NSW, Australia. This album featured the anti-war song "It's On" (CBS # BA-221124), composed by Don Henderson, who wrote many Vietnam War-related songs, discussed below. As discussed above, Gary Shearston released a version in 1964, prior to Australia's major involvement in the Vietnam War: It's On. Raymond Crooke recorded a version on his YouTube channel.

While the Vietnam conflict was well underway in 1964, very few Australians participated until the Menzies government upgraded its commitment in April 1965 - so this is more of a Vietnam-era protest song, not specifically mentioning the conflict, but a representation of the early 60s anti-war movement in Australia. The lyrics revolved around the absurdity of conflict as two people get into a fight: "reason and logic are gone, winning the fight won't prove that you're right" . The final verse criticised governments / politicians that "save on education and spend on defence" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
A sad story you'll hear if you listen to me
About two men who could never agree
What one said was white, the other called black
They'd argue a while ands then they'd step out the back
And it's on, and it's on
Reason and logic are gone
Winning the fight won't prove that you're right
It's sad, but it's true, it's on
And when it was over they'd come back then
The argument would become heated again
Who won the first round they couldn't decide
To one asked the other, would he step outside, and it's on...
They'd been fighting so long they could neither recall what in the first place started it all
But they keep at day in and day out
Now they're fighting to see what they're fighting about
It's on...
Well can you imagine if intellectuals came to an agreement by Queensberry rules
It could easily be argued that the square root of 4 was 15 less 3, plus a smack in the jaw, and it's on...
And when government thinks that it makes better sense to save on education and spend on defence
It could also be argued, that on the same grounds, that elections should be the best of ten rounds
It's on, and it's on
Reason and logic are gone
Winning the fight won't prove that you're right
It's sad, but it's true, it's on
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
Theme: Anti-War
#15 Willow Mackey Ballad of William White 1966 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · New Zealand
Annotation
Contemporary folk artist Willow Macky, born 25 June 1921 in New Zealand. She died 10 December 2006. She wrote the song "Ballad of William White" (1966), which was unrecorded, but featured in the "The Vietnam Songbook", published by Irwin Silber and Barbara Dane in 1969, who both also started the record label Paredon Records, which released many Vietnam War songs from around the world. This song told the true story of Sydney-based school teacher William "Bill" White, who defied the Australian draft, as a conscientious objector. He was arrested an dragged from his home by Australian police, which was famously captured on photo by John Fairfax in 1966. He was jailed in 1966. The song started with a straight forward statement: "a conscript for the Vietnam war, he did refuse to fight" . The narrator called him a "brave Australian boy, the hero of my song" - and thus this was a strong anti-war song, showing solidarity with William White. In the songbook, Macky said that the song was based on a folk tune called "Wild Colonial Boy". She said: "the original Wild Colonial Boy was an Australian immigrant who became an outlaw and shot three policemen. William White was a solid young citizen who became an outlaw because he wouldn't shoot anyone!"
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Unrecorded, lyrics featured in "The Vietnam Songbook"
Lyrics
English
There was a young Australian boy, his name was William White
A conscript for the Vietnam war, he did refuse to fight
They've raised no hand against our land
This war is cruel and wrong
Declared this brave Australian boy, the hero of my song
Now William was a teacher in a Sydney suburb school
And to the children in his charge he taught the Golden Rule
Do unto others as you would that they should do to you
And William thought that he should live as though these words were true.
Conscription for the Vietnam war then to Australia came
But William White refused to go and register his name
That meant the end of his career - and none could him employ
An outcast in his country was this young Australian boy
Three times he stood before the courts: each time the judge said
No I cannot grant you this appeal; to the army you must go
Said William White, "Then drag me there! - and home he went to wait
While pickets with their placards stood on guard around his gate.
At length they came - four stalwart men - and dragged young White away
But in the army, steadfastly, he still would not obey
That conscience clearly was his guide, they all at last agreed
And 'round the world there flashed the news that William White was freed
Now there are many others who believe, like William White
This is a dirty, brutal war, in which we have no right
So let them stand throughout the land and say, with pride and joy
"A hero of his country is this brave Australian boy
Show full lyrics (26 lines) ▾
#16 Clem Parkinson Kevin Conway 1966 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Clem Parkinson, contemporary folk artist, born in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He wrote the song "Kevin Conway" , about the first Australian casualty in the Vietnam War. Conway, born 11 December 1928, in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, was a Warrant Officer Class 2, with the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam. He was killed in action (K.I.A.), in the Battle of Nam Dong, South Vietnam on 6 July 1964, aged 35 years, buried at Kranji War Cemetery in Singapore. His remains were repatriated to Australia 2nd June 2016.123

There is a recording of the song at the National Library of Australia, dated 1966, under the title: "Clem Parkinson sings his own contemporary folk songs in the Norm O'Connor folklore collection".4 The lyrics of this song featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand. Notes in the book said "the first Australian casualty of the Vietnam War was a young warrant officer by the name of Kevin Conway. He was killed in July of 1966. About myself: I am 37 years of age, a member of the New Theatre Drama Group and also a member of the Victoria Folk Music Club in Melbourne". The book dated the lyrics "1968", while the National Library of Australia, as mentioned above, provided the date "1966", so there is a discrepancy.

This song, while reflecting on the first Australian death in the Vietnam War, took the opportunity to present a strong anti-war position, on the grounds that it was an unjust war: "he who dies for tyranny has thrown his life away" . Looking at the North Vietnamese side-of-the-story, the narrator noted that the "peasants fought for freedom" , and that "a hundred billion dollars" could not stop them. The US and its allies (such as Australia), may "call themselves advisors, but they're killers" . On Conway, the narrator pondered if he did "curse the men who sent him to meet his tragic death" .

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Kevin Conway was a soldier who left his native shore
He travelled off to Vietnam where there waged a savage war
And in that rugged country far from his land of birth
The blood of Kevin Conway soaked into the soft brown earth
But when a people hunger to be free
No power on earth can say their destiny.
The peasants fought for freedom throughout the countryside
And a hundred billion dollars couldn't buy a people's pride
So men from foreign countries use the Pound to kill and maim
And call themselves advisors, but they're killers just the same.
And what of Kevin Conway, as he drew his final breath?
Did he curse the men who sent him to meet his tragic death
Were his masters filled with sorrow when they learned about his fate?
Is there such a thing as sorrow in who thrive on hate?
A man should be a brother to all men
For we shall never pass this way again
Now in a mine disaster, a bushfire or a flood
Me risk their lives for others
It's in the human blood
Men give their lives for others, it happens every day
But he who dies for tyranny has thrown his life away
Show full lyrics (22 lines) ▾
#17 Unknown Artist Onward Conscript Soldiers 1966 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Anonymous, to the tune of "Onward Christian Soldiers"; read out in Federal Parliament on 21 April 1966 and printed in the book Conscription Yes or No. Printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
Onward conscript soldiers
Marching as to war
The comrades you are leaving
Were lucky in the draw
Fight like Christian soldiers
It's okay with God
The past you tread, ten million dead
In ages past have trod
Onward then ye conscripts
On to Viet-nam
Why and what you're there for
You could not care a damn
Slay the yellow heathens
Burn their fields of rice
But by this feat we'll send them wheat
At twice the normal price
Earth's foundations quiver
To bombs on Viet-nam
A full class dress rehearsal
For Mao and Uncle Sam
Flourish freedom's banners
Praise dictator Ky
One in faith and politics
And in democracy
Onward conscript soldiers
Through the smoke and flame
Hide the cross of Jesus
Lest he blush with shame
Forward then ye conscripts
Fear not Holt nor Ming
And day by day with LBJ
Your requiem we'll sing
Show full lyrics (33 lines) ▾

1967

#18 The Young Australians Shadow Valley and Iron Triangles 1967 · Single · Shadow Valley and Iron Triangles / Too Many Twisted Trails · Festival # FK-1828 · Australia
Annotation
The song "Shadow Valley and Iron Triangles" (Festival Records # FK-1828) by The Young Australians, is in fact a spoken-word, patriotic fanfare narration by conservative Australian politician Andrew Jones, (26 May 1944 – 2 December 2015), the Victor Lundberg of Australia. The narration contained strong anti-communist sentiment, as well as propagating the "domino theory": "how long will Australia be free when the red cancer of communism is eaten through Asia - this is the theory that the collapse of South Vietnam into the control of the communist north would trigger the collapse of democracy in other countries, the idea of which came from US President Eisenhower, during a press conferences on 7 April 1954.1

The narrator then criticised Australian apathy: "wake up Australia" - suggesting that people were either not patriotic, or ignorant of the threat posed by communism to free speech etc.

The monologue then spouted nationalistic rhetoric, using previous conflicts to stir patriotic feelings: "show the spirit of Gallipoli...and Korea, we must defend Australia" - of course, Gallipoli being a reference to the First World War battle involving Australia, and the US conflict in Korea, in which Australia also contributed.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Spoken patriotic narration over music by the politician Andrew Jones, in the manner of Victor Lundberg.

The label credits the narration to Allen Stewart and Martin Christmas, with "Waltzing Matilda" (Cowan-Paterson) as background music; Alan's; matrix MX23179. Festival FK-1828, matrix MX23179, 45, white-and-turquoise Festival label with the Allan's logo; "*Shadow Valley and Iron Triangles", narration (Allen Stewart–Martin Christmas), background music "Waltzing Matilda" (Cowan–Paterson), 3.20, The Young Australians, "*All Rights Reserved"; "Made in Australia by Festival Records Pty.

Ltd." Supplied in a clear Festival Records company sleeve printed "Festival has the HITS!" with outline maps of Australia and New Zealand. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
People today have money and good times, things seem to be going pretty well, but is our greatest asset apathy, is our religion complacency, and our motto, let someone else do it? There's always the fool, someone to do the work, the sucker to do the sweating, and the dying. So what if the war go on another five years, there's always America, good old Uncle Sam. But how long will Australia be free when the red cancer of communism is eaten through Asia. Will we still sing with our hearts when we look at our flag with pride? Just try it, you may be beaten, tortured, even shot... you know there is only one colour on the red flag. There aims are simple, to destroy our heritage for theirs, to cast out hope for fear., and to crush the spirit, manhood, and dutiful pride of our nation".
English
Wake up Australia! Can't you see the warning signs, the danger, why sleep in the past, get out of your bed of apathy! Don't you realise what wer'e fighting for? Have you lost your love of freedom? Our fathers opposed different enemies, yet the same, oppression and terror. Are we blind to them today? Can we not see, what true Australian would prevent freedom of speech? The shame to see our leaders pushed and shoved, and spat upon. Must we resort to terror tactics to prevent free speech? Can't we see, there turning us, the one against the other? Have we lost our national pride, love of country? Do we look the other way?
English
You say, what can we do? Australia is weak, insignificant, dead from the neck up, we couldn't give a damn, the old Aussie spirit is dead. Well fella, now is the time to wake up, show them what we're made of, show the spirit of Gallipoli...and Korea. We must defend Australia against all who would take away our liberties, and rights, and freedom. We shall stay free. Young Australia, let your voice be heard, speak up, express your views, but remember your heritage, and honor your country. We are the blue skies of prospertiy, the new light in Asia. We are the nation of great promise. Let you heart beat gladly, let your pulse quicken, let your pride well up as you look upon your flag. Never forget what it stands for. When you hear the anthem, lift up your head, remember our past, see our glorious future, and let your voice sing out. And friend, thank god you're free
#19 George Hill To the Boys in Vietnam 1967 · Single · To the Boys in Vietnam / Our Boys Are Over There · AFS # W4KM 0061 · Australia
Credited on the record as George Hill with Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers.
Annotation
Two country patriotic songs, released by Australian Forces Songs (# W4KM 0061), by George Hill, alongside the Garry Maiden Trio, and Don Lewers. Not much is known about this artist at the moment. There is a reference to a "George Hill" on the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, referred to as a "blind Indigenous musician" who also lost a hand in a childhood accident - this would seem to be a different George Hill.1 The November 1969 edition of the Rotarian provided more information about this record, saying that it raised funds, nearly $7,000, to help send artists to perform for the troops in Vietnam. It referred to George Hill as a popular Australian comedian and country singer:

The song "To the Boys in Vietnam" was about an Australian entertainment group performing to Australian (and American) troops in Vietnam: "it was good to hear the Aussie slang all the time we roamed" . It took a patriotic, pro-government perspective, suggesting that Australia's involvement in Vietnam was keeping their country free: "the spirit of our fighting cause will keep all Aussie free" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
With the Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers.

Produced for the Rotary Club of South Brisbane, which sold copies to pay for a concert tour entertaining Australian troops in Vietnam (The Rotarian, November 1969). This copy is inscribed on the label "Good luck fellows, from George Hill, 1968". AFS "Australian Forces Songs", 45 RPM microgroove, red labels marked "All Rights Reserved".

Side 1 "To the Boys in Vietnam" (G. Hill), 3.07, Control; side 2 "Our Boys Are Over There" (G. Hill), 2.28, Control; both credited to George Hill with Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
We were the Easter Show Review for the Aussies and the Yanks
And everywhere in Vietnam those boys they gave us thanks...
Their hearts were filled with happiness as they shook our spider hands
And then they stopped and wonder a while about our Aussie land
It was good to hear the Aussie slang all the time we roamed
And everywhere the boys just rang, remember us to home
Best regards from our troop who entertained the men
And if we get another chance we'll be back again
So until we see you Aussie mate, do the best you can
Our hearts go out to all the boys out there in Vietnam...
We are proud of all our boys, each one a fighting man
And some have many months to go out there in Vietnam...
The spirit of our fighting cause will keep all Aussie free...
We went to see our task force but they were in combat
In action well out there on the field...
We'd have liked to see you Aussie mate
But you'll understand why we couldn't get you with our Aussie show
Show full lyrics (18 lines) ▾
#20 George Hill Our Boys Are Over There 1967 · Single · To the Boys in Vietnam / Our Boys Are Over There · AFS # W4KM 0061 · Australia
Credited on the record as George Hill with Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers.
Annotation
A single of two country patriotic songs, released by Australian Forces Songs (# W4KM 0061), by George Hill, alongside the Garry Maiden Trio, and Don Lewers. The November 1969 edition of the Rotarian provided more information about this record, saying that it raised funds, nearly $7,000, to help send artists to perform for the troops in Vietnam. It referred to George Hill as a popular Australian comedian and country singer:

The song "Our Boys Are Over There" , tells of Australian battalions fighting the Vietcong: "a battalion from Australia, brave and strong... put an end to Charlie-cong" - of course a reference to the "VC", the National Liberation Front (NFL), the political and military resistance to the US and South Vietnamese government from within South Vietnam. The song noted that there is R&R: "there's rest and recreation, but only for a while" . The song referenced, and paid tribute to the nurses, doctors, and the Red Cross, not just the fighting soldier: "there's doctor and there's nurses, who have answered to the call, and the Red Cross" .

Also of note: is the line "in Nui Dat, our battalions from Australia" , where the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) was based in South Vietnam, and "beaches of Long Hais" , a small township nearby. The hills by this beach would later be the scene of a major battle involving Australian and New Zealand troops versus the Vietcong in 1970, after this record was released.12 The song also referred to "a diggers slouch hat" . Digger is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology.34 A slouch hat, also known as Aussie bush hat is a distinctive Australian hat that has one side of the brim turned up or pinned to the side of the hat, often used in the military.5
Quote
"A rousing musical interlude by performers imported direct from home, lifted the spirits of a large group of Australian troops on duty in Vietnam. The concert was financed by the Rotarians of South Brisbane, who raised $7,000 for transportation costs primarily by peddling copies of a special phonograph recoding performed and produced for the club by Geore Hill, a popular Australian comedian and country singer. As a bonus, the fund raiser also shipped a full kit of drums as a gift to the soldiers' base in Saigon - so that future concert performers won't have to lug their drums along. Nifty?" (2)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
With the Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers.

Produced for the Rotary Club of South Brisbane, which sold copies to pay for a concert tour entertaining Australian troops in Vietnam (The Rotarian, November 1969). AFS "Australian Forces Songs", 45 RPM microgroove, red labels marked "All Rights Reserved".

Side 1 "To the Boys in Vietnam" (G. Hill), 3.07, Control; side 2 "Our Boys Are Over There" (G. Hill), 2.28, Control; both credited to George Hill with Garry Maiden Trio and Don Lewers. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
There's a roll of barbed wire on the beaches of Long Hais
There's a lot of Aussies swimming there today
There's rest and recreation, but only for a while...
And not so many miles away up there in Nui Dat, our battalions from Australia, brave and strong
There sneaking through the rubber trees, the enemy to meet
They've got to put an end to Charlie-cong
Our boys are over there, from Saigon to Da Nang...
And they meet old Charlie-cong, we know he hates to see aircrew from Australia, or a diggers slouch hat
Skies are blue today out there in Vietnam
They've never been as blue so they say
But the skies they'd like to see
As blue as blue can be - are the ones above down Aussie way...
The aircrew in their kangaroo, the perimeter they do fly, they drop their bombs on Charlie ever night
There's doctor and there's nurses
Who have answered to the call, and the Red Cross girls, the boys all understand...
Show full lyrics (16 lines) ▾
#21 Dig Richards The Aussie Bush Hat 1967 · Single · The Aussie Bush Hat / You Don't Know Me · CBS # BA-221372 · Australia
Annotation
Dig Richards, rock and roll artist born 12 September 1940 in Dunedoo, NSW, Australia. He died 17 February 17, 1983, in Sydney, NSW, Australia. He did a tour of South Vietnam in 1966, performing for the troops. On his return, he wrote and released the patriotic song "The Aussie Bush Hat" (CBS # BA-221372), in which he told a story of his visit, as stated in the final line of the song: "this story is true, it happened to me in South Vietnam were I was with an AFO show on June 22nd, 1966" . The Aussie bush hat, also known as the slouch hat, is a distinctive Australian hat that has one side of the brim turned up or pinned to the side of the hat, often used in the military.1

The story told of a soldier who approached Dig Richards, and recalled how is friend died, while trying to help a child in a village, used as "Viet Cong bate" - referring to the "VC" - the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (Vietnamese: Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng Miền Nam Việt Nam) (NLFSV or NLF), the political and military resistance to the US and South Vietnamese government from within South Vietnam. He gave Dig Richard "his mate's bush hat" , to remind him of the "little girl and the soldier at Bar Ria" , and "why we have to be here" . Ba Ria was a reference to the base Nui Dat, by the city of Bar Ria, in Ba Ria–Vung Tau province, Vietnam, where the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) were stationed.2

Note: the line "the digger told me" - Digger is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology.34
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Produced by Robert Iredale; matrix MX151820. CBS BA-221372, orange label, 45, marked "Control"; "The Aussie Bush Hat" (Watson - Weston), 2.53; "Made in Australia by a registered user of the trade marks". [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Over a sad land, ridden with fear, a chopper lifted us to a place called Ba Ria
And as I climbed on the stage and the men cheer
I wonder why had I come to sing my songs here
And after the show in a tent with a beer
A soldier from Sydney started to bend my ear
With a story of his mate who wasn't here to see the show, in a place called Ba Ria
The digger told me, my mate was looking forward to seeing the show
Not so much you, the girls, you know
Nothing against you, but there's no place to go, and all the boys wanted to see the show
Then last night we got escort duty, take the doc into the village you
Where a child had been hurt, she was only aged three
Just another job for my mate and me
When the doc saw the kid it was already too late
You could see by what they'd done it was Viet Cong bate
He yelled, get out, it's a trap, don't wait
Doc and me got out, but the zapped my mate
Until then the soldier's voice was steady and set, then it broke
And I saw that his eyes were red
Before I left he told me that he wanted me to have his mate's bush hat
Flying back over this land of fear
The bush hat in my hand still wet with tears
I thought of the little girl and the soldier at Bar Ria
And now I know why we have to be here
This story is true
It happened to me in South Vietnam were I was with an AFO show on June 22nd, 1966
And to remind of it always, I have the Aussie bush hat
Show full lyrics (27 lines) ▾
#22 Tex Morton 21st Birthday 1967 · Single · The Cream in Between / 21st Birthday · Columbia # DO-4785 · Australia
Annotation
Artist background
Tex Morton, a country artist born Robert William Lane on 30 August 1916 in Nelson, New Zealand. He died 23 July 1983 in Sydney, NSW, Australia.1 He released several records under the nickname The Yodelling Boundary Rider. The song "21st Birthday" (Columbia (EMI) # DO-4785) dealt with the Vietnam War, looking at the home front perspective, of the parents of a soldier killed in action (K.I.A.). The song told of the soldier's friends arriving at his parents house to celebrate his 21st birthday, unaware of what had happened. A closer look at the shelf with letters and "you'll see a draft card... the nice letter and the medal they sent" . The father concluded that: "our boy full of love has died now of hate" - which perhaps leans towards the anti-war side of the debate.

This song also appeared on a few compilations, such as Encores (1970) - the back of the sleeve, with regards to this song, said that: "I knew the people involved in this real life story. Like many country songs, it tells a story which is self-explanatory".1 Note that Tex Morton also released the Vietnam War song "The Widow Next Door" in collaboration with Sister Dorrie, discussed below. Thanks to Andrew Smith for the suggestion and providing a digital copy of the song.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
You'd thought you'd surprise him
You'd been out of town
You brought some old school friends
You just dropped around
You remembered his birthday
Oh yes you have the date right
Come in you're all welcome on this happy night
His 21st birthday
These are his friends
And even the kid who would not make amends
So come my old sweetheart dry up your tears
We've waited for this day for 21 tears
Yes this is the day now for laughter and joy
This is the day when he's no longer a boy
This is the day when you've done all you can
This is the day when you boy is a man
Yes those are the cards there at the end of the room
A couple from sweethearts, I like the perfume
Sending gay greetings
But look close you'll see a draft card
And some that express sympathy
Oh yes that's his picture, somewhere he went
There's the nice letter and the medal they sent
Oh I'm proud of the metal, nice shiny toy
But god up in heaven, could you not spare my boy
So here's to his memory, here's to our son
Here's to the soldiers not yet 21
Oh not one is weeping, but how can I say I'm not bitter on this cursed day
When I grow up mom, I'm gonna to buy you a car
Take you on journeys near and the far/ I'll always protect you and keep you from harm
I'll make lots of money, buy daddy a farm
The last time I saw him smiling and tanned
He put down his mother and took up my hand
I'll try to be brave dad, and be a good son
They say the best soldiers are not 21
He borrowed my razor then
Just like a man he said 'if I must go I'll do all I can'...
It's got to be done, we'll have a swell party when I'm 21
For 21 years we have the weight of this day
But he won't be with us, he sleeps far away
They say he died well, whatever that means
For I'm just a grown man, not a boy in his teens
Empty long years now, no use to wait
For our boy full of love has died now of hate
Oh we have the nice letter, he died not in vain
A medal, and a picture, and our hearts full of pain
Show full lyrics (47 lines) ▾
#23 Peter Wright House of Bamboo 1967 · Single · House of Bamboo / Clown Tears · Festival # FK-1973 · Australia
Annotation
Australian pop / psychedelic rock artist from Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia, he wrote and recorded the song "House of Bamboo" (Festival Records # FK-1973), in October 1967. It received moderate success in Sydney, making "the 2UE chart and Ward ‘Pally’ Austin’s Top 30 on 2UW, where it reached # 3".1 While not mentioning the conflict in Vietnam, it was narrated from a soldier's perspective in the "jungle" , with "war...all around me" , missing his sweetheart: "my heart, longing for you" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Does not name the war; a soldier in the jungle with "war all around me". Reached no. 3 on 2UW Sydney, October 1967.
Lyrics
English
Gone to the steamy jungle, in my heart, longing for you
War is all around me, reaching high touching the sky
House of bamboo
If my love could fly
Spread my wings, be truly free, and fly
The morning dew do ya
Evening due do ya...
#24 Maggie Saigon Warrior 1967 · Archival · ...Next Stop Is Vietnam (The War on Record: 1961-2008) · Bear Family # BCD 16070 · Australia
Annotation
The ultimate Vietnam War compilation, released by Bear Family Records, it includes 13 discs, 334 tracks, and a 304 page booklet. In fact you can spend 16 hours and 49 minutes listening to Vietnam War songs if you like. Hugo Keesing, a popular music collector and teacher (formerly at the University of Maryland) produced the compilation, and help to find, select, and evaluate most the songs included - his personal collection of Vietnam War songs stretches into the thousands. Also see The Keesing Collection on Popular Music and Culture.1 It is split into various themes, such as veterans, the patriotic, the draft, the protest movement, the plight of the soldiers etc.

The compilation included a few songs from Australia. One of those is particularly significant - "Saigon Warrior" performed by Maggie, an unknown Australian artist, recorded in-country during the war - one of the rare female performances from the Vietnam War. According to the article "Songs of the Vietnam War: An Occupational Folklore Tradition", by Dr. Les Cleveland (1986)1:

According to the 1991 compilation In Country: Folk Songs of Americans in the Vietnam War, compiled Lydia Fish, which featured a version by US veteran Saul Broudy:
Booklet notes
A song called "Saigon Warrior" (Broudy 1969) sung to the tune of "Sweet Betsy From Pike" is a variant of a World War 2 composition which could be used to complain about base camps, training establishments, or headquarters anywhere in the world. For instance, a version sung in the New Zealand Army during World War 2 (and still in circulation in 1986) was entitled "Waiouru's a Wonderful Place"... The "Saigon Warrior" variant of this song collected in Vietnam by Broudy... Broudy states that the text was transcribed from a tape-recorded performance by Maggie, an Australian woman. This suggests that it may either have been part of some Australian-inspired entertainment, or it may have originated with the ANZAC forces in Vietnam. Dinky dau is a corruption of the Vietnamese die cai dau, literally sick the head, hence, meaning crazy. This makes no sense unless it is related to a traditional Australian folk ballad, current in World War 1 and 2, entitled "The Lousy Lance-Corporal" (Cleveland 1959, 1961, 1975, 1982; Tate 1982) which makes repetitive use of the expression "dinky die" as a chorus. This is a slang term meaning truly, emphatically, indisputably
Booklet notes
There are many military folksongs about rear echelon personnel. This one is descended from a British Army World War I song entitled "The Lousy Lance-Corporal." It circulated widely in Southeast Asia in both Army and Air Force tradition. It was sung by an Australian woman named Maggie as part of a song competition which provided the entertainment at a commanders' conference held at the Nha Trang headquarters of the 17th Aviation Group, in April, 1967. A tape of the concert was given to Saul Broudy by helicopter pilot and singer Gene Easley, who was later killed in action. (2)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Disc 7, track 6 of the 13-CD box (Germany, 2010; produced by Hugo Keesing). Recorded in-country in April 1967 from a tape given to Saul Broudy by the pilot Gene Easley; one of the rare female performances from the war. To the tune of "Sweet Betsy From Pike"; a variant of "The Lousy Lance-Corporal".

1968

#25–27 Glen Tomasetti The Ballad of Bill White 1968 · Single · MP # 57 · Australia
All 3 songs from this single in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
Glen Tomasetti, contemporary folk artist born 21 May 1929 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. She died 25 June 2003. This EP contained three anti-Vietnam War songs. The first song "Ballad of Bill White" (MP 57) told the true story of a Sydney-based school teacher William "Bill" White, who defied the Australian draft, as a conscientious objector. He was arrested an dragged from his home by Australian police, which was famously captured on photo by John Fairfax in 1966. He was jailed in 1966. Several other songs were written about William White, by Willow Macky and Don Henderson, see the note below, which displays the importance of this case to the Australian anti-war movement. So in this song, the narrator told of William White receiving the draft card, and then going before the judge, saying: "I cannot go against the things I have been taught, violence leads to violence" . The judge threw out the case, and ordered William White to fight.
The second song "Do Not Sing the Old Songs" was a more generic protest songs, which contained some anti-war sentiment, regarding the old sending out the young to fight and die: "the young are still sent out to fight and die, for the lust and lies of the old, when the bodies lie stiffning, still the heroe's dreams grow cold" . The final song "The Army's Appeal to Mothers" took a comedy / novelty approach in presenting an anti-war position, in which the army appealed to mothers, to teach the children to "hate each foreign name, colour, race or tongue" , because it will make him a better soldier. The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#25 Glen Tomasetti The Ballad of Bill White 1968 · Single · The Ballad of Bill White · MP # 57 · Australia
Annotation
Glen Tomasetti, contemporary folk artist born 21 May 1929 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. She died 25 June 2003. This EP contained three anti-Vietnam War songs. The first song "Ballad of Bill White" (MP 57) told the true story of a Sydney-based school teacher William "Bill" White, who defied the Australian draft, as a conscientious objector. He was arrested an dragged from his home by Australian police, which was famously captured on photo by John Fairfax in 1966. He was jailed in 1966. Several other songs were written about William White, by Willow Macky and Don Henderson, see the note below, which displays the importance of this case to the Australian anti-war movement. So in this song, the narrator told of William White receiving the draft card, and then going before the judge, saying: "I cannot go against the things I have been taught, violence leads to violence" . The judge threw out the case, and ordered William White to fight.
The second song "Do Not Sing the Old Songs" was a more generic protest songs, which contained some anti-war sentiment, regarding the old sending out the young to fight and die: "the young are still sent out to fight and die, for the lust and lies of the old, when the bodies lie stiffning, still the heroe's dreams grow cold" . The final song "The Army's Appeal to Mothers" took a comedy / novelty approach in presenting an anti-war position, in which the army appealed to mothers, to teach the children to "hate each foreign name, colour, race or tongue" , because it will make him a better soldier. The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Matrix MP-57-A; "composed and sung by Glen Tomasetti", copyright Glen Tomasetti. MP 57, 45, picture labels with a black-and-white photograph of Glen Tomasetti holding a guitar. Side 1 (MP-57-A): "The Ballad of Bill White" (4.08). Side 2 (MP-57-B): "Do Not Sing the Old Songs" (2.26) and "The Army's Appeal to Mothers" (1.11); both sides "Composed and sung by Glen Tomasetti", copyright Glen Tomasetti. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
In New South Wales there lives a man, a teacher young and true
Who would not be conscripted in the ballot of the few
When first they called him up to serve, he went along to court
And said I cannot go against the things I have been taught
Violence leads to violence, and pain and useless tears
Each war has spawned a bigger war these last ten thousand years.
Said the judge, would you refuse to fight, the strangler of your mother
Come on sir, this one question of the court will have no other
I cannot call my enemies a people far away
Who've waited now for peace through many a weary night and day
And the day of peace will never come, the terrors never end
If a government says who must be my foe and who my friend.
The judge said William White, into the army you must go
Though your case has not convinced me, you in action might be slow
As a cook or as a slushy, or as an orderly you'll serve
And help the front line boys who have a different kind of nerve
An army is not an army except in time of war
Destruction is the purpose, it was created for.
I cannot help the military, my flag of hate is hurled
My work is teaching children of the wonders of this world
His case and his appeal dismissed, then came the intake day
To the school, and not the barracks, he early made his way
And when they came to sack him, his living to deny
He said I want to go back to the class to say goodbye
You'll never go back William White into that room again
You will not farewell them, you will not explain
Since you will not carry out for us the plans we call defence
Any man who gives you work will be committing an offence.
Have you heard of politicians says war is the only course
Have you heard a mad philosopher preach the mind and hearts divorce
Have you heard the dreadful logic of a hanging man's speech
Then you know the man to whom you'd say, take this child and teach
Show full lyrics (33 lines) ▾
#26 Glen Tomasetti The Army's Appeal to Mothers 1968 · Single · The Ballad of Bill White · MP # 57 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Ballad of Bill White” above (same release).
#27 Glen Tomasetti Do Not Sing the Old Songs 1968 · Single · The Ballad of Bill White · MP # 57 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Ballad of Bill White” above (same release).
#28 Don Henderson Boonaroo 1968 · Album · One Out · Union # US-2 · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , "Was War For Those Who Want It" , and "It's On".2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics.

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.4

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Oh, who will man the Boonaroo?
Who will sail her, be the crew
Sailing on the Boonaroo?
Is there food and is there store
To feed the hungry, clothe the poor?
In this world their number isn't few
In her cargo would you find
Any way for one mankind
Sailing on the Boonaroo
Is there bandage by the reel?
Is there medicine to heal?
Christ knows, there's healing work to do
In her cargo would you find
Any way for one mankind
Sailing on the Boonaroo?
Would the hull be filled with material to build
Perhaps a bridge for a world that's split in two?
In her cargo would you find
Any way for one mankind
Sailing on the Boonaroo?
Or jam packed in the hold
Is there grief and death untold
And asked "why?" have to answer true
In her cargo would you find
Any way for one mankind
Sailing on the Boonaroo?
Show full lyrics (27 lines) ▾
#29 Mike Leyden Chessboard of Vietnam 1968 · EP · Music by Mike Leyden · Mutual · Australia
Annotation
Rare Australian record, featuring contemporary folk protest songs, including "Chessboard of Vietnam" (Mutual Records), with words by Jim Allen, and music by Mike Leyden. A copy is available in the Papers of Warren Fahey.1 The lyrics of this song featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand. The song was written in 1968 according to this book - but there is no date on this vinyl record.1 The song focused on the soldiers "shipped on board the Sidney, going overseas to fight" . The men "were young and proud" , but "did not wonder was it wrong or was it right" , as they were "caught up in this giant war machine" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
So we shipped on board the Sidney, going overseas to fight
But few had stopped to wonder was it wrong or was it right
We were young and proud and virile men, eager now to test our skill
For our soldier games were serious now, yes now we shoot to kill
But the men that move the pieces, they'll never give a damn
If you and I left to die, oh the chessboard of Vietnam.
Well amidst the songs and joking and the pennies flying high
Well that's part of tradition and tradition never dies
Well I noticed there a man I knew standin', gazin' at the scene
So I wondered over to him and he turned and said to me...
Well all I know is how to kill, not how to grow and breed
All I've produced is wars that thrive on bitter hate and greed
And now I've got to go and shoot at men I've never seen
For now both sides are caught up in this giant war machine
Show full lyrics (15 lines) ▾
#30 Abdullahs' Regime Silver Ship (Dedicated to Those Services Active in Vietnam) 1968 · Single · Sally, I Do / Silver Ship · Ode Ode # 1 · New Zealand
Annotation
Garage rock group formed in Wellington, New Zealand. Members featured: Mark Dalley (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Robert Coulter (rhythm guitar), Greg Cobb (bass), and Mark Hansen (drums). The song "Silver Ship (Dedicated to Those Services Active in Vietnam)" (Ode Records # Ode 1) was narrated from a soldier's perspective, "far away from my home...across the sea" , missing home: "I still sit and cry" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Silver ship on the sea, won't me carry me please, carry me home
Two years, maybe three, foreign country, a soldier I am
A soldier ?...far away from my home and my love
Silver ship won't you carry me home
Time is passed in this land, broken down here by man...
I remember my home, little doggy has gone, and I still sit and cry
Far across the sea is the home I love
But I'll probably, will it be, will it be
Oh no no, how much can I take
Oh no no, I must not break
'Til next I see you, 'til next I see you, my love
#31 The Executives Dedicated to the One I Love 1968 · Album · The Executives · Festival # SFL-932813 · Australia
Annotation
Australian pop group, formed in 1966 in Sydney, NSW, Australia, which recorded a cover of the well-known 60s pop songs "Dedicated to the One I Love" (Festival Records # SFL-932813), composed by Lowman Pauling and Ralph Bass, and especially made famous by The Mamas & The Papas - the video released for this version featured documentary images of Australian soldiers in the Vietnam War.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
The song has no war content; its film clip used documentary footage of Australian soldiers in Vietnam.
Genre: ♪ Pop

1969

#32 Axiom Arkansas Grass 1969 · Single · Arkansas Grass / Samantha · Sire # 45-4117 · USA
Annotation
Axiom, rock pop band, formed in 1969, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. They disbanded in 1971. Members were: Glenn Shorrock (vocals), Brian Cadd (organ), Doug Lavery (drums, 1969), Don Lebler (drums, 1969-71), Don Mudie (bass), and Chris Stockley (guitar). The song "Arkansas Grass" (released in Australia on Parlophone # A-8909, and in the US on Sire Records # 45-4117), took a generic anti-war position in the Vietnam-era, narrated from a soldier's perspective, who wondered what would happen if the general "gave up the wars" . The soldier wanted to "throw down his gun, to run to be free" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
US promotional copy; Angle Music; produced by June Productions of Australia. Sire 45-4117, CL 7776, orange-and-cream sunburst label with lion logo, "Made in U.S.A."; time 3:05; credited writers (Cadd-Mudie). [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
If General MacAllister gave up the wars
And all of the people went back to their chores
The all the King's horses and all the King's men could go home
If all of the people were on the same side
There'd be no need to run and no need to hide
Then all of us here in our grey tattered coats could go home
If you'd just listen sir once again
To the reasons of one of your men /You could make all these things come to pass
Where I could lay on Arkansas grass
Home, goin' alone to the sound of the military brass...
So gaily we marched with the Grey and Red
To lick 'em first time like the good General said
With nary a thought that so very few would go home
If it weren't so wrong for a soldier like me
To throw down his gun, to run to be free
Then all of us here with the fear in our eyes could go home
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
#33 Ronnie Burns Smiley 1969 · Single · Smiley / Jodie · Spin # EK-3380 · Australia
Annotation
The track "Smiley" (Spin Records # EK-3380) is another Australian Vietnam War song - it referred generically to "the Asian war" . Released in 1969 by Ronnie Burns (member of the pop group The Flies). This single sold more than 50,000 singles, reaching # 3 in the Melbourne charts, bringing Ronnie Burns a Gold Record.1 It reached # 2 in the Go-Set National Top 40. On 30 May 1970 Billboard noted the success of the single. (2) It is written by Johnny Young, who based it on the Australian pop singer Normie Rowe, a conscript in the Vietnam conflict. Johnny Young said on ABC-TV’s Love Is In The Air that "before he left, he was really happy-go-lucky, fun-filled young fella. When he came back, he changed".3 Vocal and orchestral arrangement were by John Farrar (member of the Melbourne band The Strangers).

The theme, about the trauma of war, is typically found in post-Vietnam war songs. By looking at the negative effects of the war on veterans, it does suggest an anti-war stance, or at least provides a representation of disillusionment in Australia. It included anti-war sentiments, such as "when will they learn?" and "there is peace to bring" . However, it is more personal than political, dealing with the plight of the soldier / veteran, as a smiley young boy goes off to fight a war, no longer laughing, and radiating tension. As Ronnie Burns said, "it has a slight protest flavour about it, but it doesn't really have any social significance. Its really aimed at the mums - losing their sons to army conscription".4
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Sample copy. Produced by Ian, Ronnie & Johnny; matrix MX33095. Spin EK-3380 (MX33095), 45, orange and black label with a red "Sample Record – Not for Sale" sticker; "Smiley" (Aust. Comp.) (J. Young) (Morris), vocal, 3.30; "Made in Australia by Festival Records Pty. Ltd." [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Smiley, you're out in the world today
Smiley, you're all on your own
Smiley - hey, they say you're a man today
Boy how you've grown
Yesterday there was laughter and songs to sing
Yesterday we had loving to burn /Yet today there is peace to bring
When will they learn? Smiley, you're off to the Asian War
And we won't see you smile no more...
No more laughter in the air...
Feel the tension in the air, where is love?...
The Family said to say wish you were home
Theme: ANZUS
Genre: ♪ Pop
#34 Frank Lewis Year of War 1969 · Single · Year of War / Indianapolis · Festival # FK-3116 · Australia
Annotation
Frank Lewis, Sydney-based folk rock artist, released the song "Year of War" (Festival Records # FK-3116), which contained a generic anti-war, anti-atomic message, released during the Vietnam War-era. The narrator noted that World War One came and went, and that people hoped that war would not come again: "1914 year of war... war like this won't come again" . However, the wars keeps coming, and with the atomic bomb, "you won't even know its been" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Also issued in the US on Beverly Hills 45-9358 (promotion copy; Markari Music; matrix BH-6255; time 2:56); produced by Pat Aulton. White Beverly Hills label 45-9358, promotion copy marked "Not for Sale"; "Year of War" (F. Lewis - Castle), Markari Music Ltd. (BMI); Beverly Hills Record Company, Inc., 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California 90230. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
1914 came and went, I had not been born yet...
The song goes on and on
The song that men had eased their heart
When they had won the world war
And although that's years ago
The song goes on and on
Men stood up and stood up, and said my friends
War like this won't come again
And although that was years ago, the song goes on and on
1914 year of war, and greater war she never saw
That what's worst, is that the first, perhaps more is yet to come
All we need is one more war
You won't get up and fight
For although you'll want to go
You won't even know its been
Show full lyrics (16 lines) ▾
#35 Doug Ashdown The Day They Freed the Noise 1969 · Single · I've Come to Save the World / The Day They Freed the Noise · Sweet Peach # SP-001 · Australia
Notes
"The Day They Freed the Noise" - general / generic anti-war protest, contemporary folk
Notes
Ownership & image is US issue Fontana F-1664 DJ (1-45778), "Pre-Production Copy", 45 rpm, light-blue label, "Fontana Records — Vendor: Mercury Record Corporation"; "The Day They Freed the Noise", 3:50, Doug Ashdown. Housed in a Fontana Records, Chicago, USA company sleeve. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Theme: Anti-War
#36 Tommy Tycho Army Training 1969 · Soundtrack · You Can't See Round Corners · Festival # SFL-933,141 · Australia
Annotation
Soundtrack to the 1969 Australian-made Vietnam War film You Can't See 'round Corners, directed by Sydney, Australian-born David Cahill.1 The composer, Tommy Tycho, was born on 11 April 1928 in Budapest, Hungary. Of Jewish heritage, his family were put into camps during World War Two. After the war, he fled, first to Iran (1948-51), and then emigrated to Australia (1951). He died on 4 April 2013 in Sydney, NSW, Australia.

The film was based on the 1947 novel of the same name, "You Can't See 'Round Corners", by Australian author, John Clearly, but updated to the Vietnam War.2 There was also a television version, broadcast in Australia, from 12 July 1967, also going by the same name, set during the Vietnam War.3 It tells the story of Frankie McCoy from Newtown, Sydney, drafted during the Vietnam War, and trying to sleep with his girlfriend before they are married. It included scenes of basic training at Kapooka, near Wagga Wagga. This album contained the songs "Army Training" and "Awol" (Festival Records # SFL-933,141).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Soundtrack to the 1969 film You Can't See 'Round Corners (dir. David Cahill), about a Sydney conscript; basic-training scenes at Kapooka.
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#37 Tommy Tycho Awol 1969 · Soundtrack · You Can't See Round Corners · Festival # SFL-933,141 · Australia
Annotation: see “Army Training” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#38 Sister Joan Davies Vietnam Voices 1969 · Single · Australian Inter-Church Aid # CC1166 · Australia
Credited on the record as Sister Joan Davies and the children of Vietnam.
Notes
- Australian, narration
- Featured Vietnamese children singing
- Christian in Vietnam, refugee team, medical work

- One-sided 33 rpm flexi disc issued by Australian Inter-Church Aid for the Christmas Bowl appeal as a Sunday School teachers' aid, bringing the comic strip "Vietnam Nurse" to life: Joan Davies talks about her work, and Vietnamese children sing folk songs and a Vietnamese Lord's Prayer. Manufactured by Ambassador Records, Sydney. Year from the sleeve text (she returned to Vietnam early in 1969; "she's still there today").

Australian Inter-Church Aid one-sided black flexi disc, speed 33⅓ r.p.m., "Manufactured in Australia by Ambassador Records, Sydney"; gatefold-style sleeve titled "Vietnam Voices — Sister Joan Davies and the children of Vietnam — A Sunday School Teachers' Aid", with the "Give to the Christmas Bowl" emblem (two hands holding a bowl) and photographs of Joan Davies tending a boy's eye and of four Vietnamese boys.

Inside, under "A Comic Strip Comes to Life", the text explains that this year's Christmas Bowl message reaches Sunday School children as the comic strip "Vietnam Nurse", the adventures of Sister Joan Davies in Vietnam, and that the record, used with the Christmas Bowl children's poster, has Joan herself talking about healing and caring in an active war zone, with Vietnamese children singing folk songs and a Vietnamese version of the Lord's Prayer; a comic panel shows her saying "Lie back now — we'll soon have you feeling better!" with the caption "But as soon as she was better, Joan went back to work.

She's still there today — helping and healing the people of war-torn Vietnam."

The back describes her as the widow of a Methodist minister and a nursing sister with an Asian Christian Service refugee team, wounded in a Viet Cong mortar raid in 1968 and back at work early in 1969, and says the Christmas Bowl supports agricultural, refugee resettlement, disaster relief and evangelistic projects in developing nations. [From the record sleeve and labels]

1970

#39 Martin Wesley-Smith Vietnam Image 1970 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Electronic classical composer and musician Martin Wesley-Smith was born on 10 June 1945 in Adelaide, Australia. He died on 26 September 2019 in Kangaroo Valley, NSW, Australia. He was conscripted to the Vietnam War, but avoided service through studying.1 He originally composed the song "Vietnam Image" in 1970, which clocked in at 20 minutes. He submitted a tape recording of it as partial fulfilment for his degree of Master of Music at the University of Adelaide, in January 1971, which is stored at the National Library of Australia.23 A version of the song featured on his 1995 compilation Wattamolla Red: Electronic Music (Tall Poppies Records # TP072).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
He was conscripted to the Vietnam War, but avoided service through studying. He originally composed the song "Vietnam Image" in 1970, which clocked in at 20 minutes. He submitted a tape recording of it as partial fulfilment for his degree of Master of Music at the University of Adelaide, in January 1971, which is stored at the National Library of Australia.
Theme: Anti-War
#40 Roger Thwaites Child of Vietnam 1970 · Album · North by North West · Columbia # SOEX-9698 · Australia
Annotation
Roger Thwaites, Australian contemporary folk artist, composed and released the song "Child of Vietnam" (Columbia (EMI) # SOEX-9698), which started off with gunfire sound-effects, and took an anti-war perspective. The back of the LP said: "Child of Vietnam is the story of a little girl and a soldier in the land of tears, your land, child of Vietnam". Narrated from the perspective of the soldier, who said "how can I help her" , as the child rests "on the bloody ground" , and the "streets full of pain" . It concluded by calling on people to "help...around the world" to stop the war and suffering, for the "helpless children of Vietnam" .

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Sample copy.

Produced by Eric Dunn, musical direction Ron Martin; matrix YTX1223.

The sleeve note describes the song as the story of a little girl and a soldier in the land of tears. Columbia "Long Playing Microgroove" SOEX-9698, stereo, 33⅓ R.P.M., made in Australia by E.M.I. (Australia) Ltd., blue-green Magic Notes label with an orange "Sample – Not for Sale – Record" sticker; side 1 lists North by North West, Where Flies the Boomerang, Drums in My Heart, Child of Vietnam, The Wool Comes Rolling on Down and Why Can't We Find a Better Way, each published by Castle, "(All Composed by Roger Thwaites)".

The front cover shows an armillary sphere on a seahorse stand resting on an old map of Australia; the back carries a portrait photograph of Thwaites, his own note on each song ("Child Of Vietnam — is the story of a little girl and a soldier in the land of tears, your land, child of Vietnam"), side two (High Walls, Legend of the Quill, Henry Lawson, Norfolk Island, Eureka Stockade) and "Cover originated in Australia by E.M.I." [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
How can I tell her with fear in her eyes...
How can I tell her with pale trembling face
To be glad she is a member of the human race
To walk by her tiny side, through jungle in the green
To see the smoking... where once her home has been
How can I help her, the soldier that I am
How can I help that child of Vietnam
For the sound of laughter her ears have never heard
And the cloud of full of thunder, for fear, just no word
And the streets of full of pain, and the air is full of tears
And that's the way it's always been throughout her tender years
For when she lays her head to rest on the bloody ground
A wisdom born of suffering, there on her face is found
For it's lies and greed and jealousy, yes all these things I damn
I wish that I could help that child of Vietnam
For someday, somewhere suffering must end
So won't you help it happen around the world my friend
For children are not born to be sacrificial lambs
So lets all help those helpless children of Vietnam...
Show full lyrics (20 lines) ▾
#41 Wally White Letter From Vietnam 1970 · EP · CM Twin City # CMEP-510 · Australia
Credited on the record as Wally White with Judy White.
Annotation
Country artist Wally White, from Australia, released the song "Letter From Vietnam" (CM # CMEP-510), which as suggested in the title, took a letter format, from a soldier to his mother, about life in Vietnam, with the hot jungle: "the Aussie boys are dug in, the cold and muddy ground, as they faced the other side:" "it is eerie in the jungle when the Viet Cong are around" - Vietcong (or "VC") - the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (Vietnamese: Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng Miền Nam Việt Nam) (NLFSV or NLF), the political and military resistance to the US and South Vietnamese government from within South Vietnam. He recalled seeing singer Johnny Winter perform: "do you remember Johnny Winter, he joined us in the fall..." . It ended with the soldier looking forward to receiving a letter "from my girlfriend back in Aussie" . Note he also released the EP "Return From Vietnam" (CM # CMEP 505) (although the relevant song was actually titled "Home From Vietnam" ), date unknown, discussed below, which took a patriotic perspective.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
With Judy White.

Recorded by Brian Callcott, 2TM, 18 April 1970; matrix Z4KB-0154. Four-track EP (Letter From Vietnam / Answer to Sweeney / Old Battered Rodeo Boots / Rock Miners in the Mountain); band: Des Whimen (bass), Barry Whimen (lead), Wally White (rhythm), Geoff Cuneo (drums), John Minson (harmonica). CM Twin City Country Sound CMEP-510, gold label, "Australian Made", Box 507, Dubbo and Box 41, West Tamworth; side 1: "Letter From Vietnam" (with Judy White) (W. White) (2.46) C.M.

Control and "Answer to Sweeney" (W. White) (2.34) C.M. Control.

The front cover, printed in green, reads "Presenting Wally White — Letter From Vietnam", with an inset portrait of White in a hat and a photograph of a Gibson guitar, a hat and riding boots on grass.

The back carries a cover note by Geoff Brown (RCA & Hadley Records), who calls this White's first release and says "A Letter From Vietnam" "tells the story of a home-sick soldier reminiscing for the happy days of home"; it also lists other CM records (Carrol County J. Heap CM001, John "Doc" Riley CMEP500, Alan Swanson CMEP501, John Riley CMEP502) and the addresses P.O. Box 41, West Tamworth 2340 and P.O. Box 507, Dubbo 2830. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
I was talking to a mother about her dear son far away
She showed to me a letter that the postman bought that day
As I read through in silence about a foreign, foreign land
I saw a trace of tear stain on the letter from Vietnam
'Dear mum', was how it started, 'all is well with me out here
Though we have our share of troubles...never fear...
I'm always thinking when I'll be home again
How are the sheep and cattle, I've heard you need some rain...
We had a concert here, a singing group from home
And it kind of makes you homesick when you're all alone
Do you remember Johnny Winter, he joined us in the fall...
We often laughed when we kids, of the fights we had, what fools
Now that's all behind us, like the happy days at school
It is eerie in the jungle when the Viet Cong are around
And the Aussie boys are dug in, the cold and muddy ground
But we know the day is coming when we'll come home to our land
It will only be a memory, the war here in Vietnam
So I'll close and wait for a letter I hope will soon come
From my girlfriend back in Aussie
Show full lyrics (20 lines) ▾
#42 Russell Morris Rachel 1970 · Single · Rachel / Slow Joey · Columbia # DO-9102 · Australia
Annotation
Russell Morris, singer/songwriter, born on 31 July 1948 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from the band Somebody's Image, played the anti-war song "Rachel" (Columbia (EMI) # DO-9102), written by British artist Raymond Froggatt (member of The Monopoly). Although it is unknown whether Froggatt wrote the song specifically about Vietnam, it was released by Morris during Australia's involvement in South East Asia and thus interpreted as Vietnam-related. It contained anti-war sentiment, presenting the horrors of war: "men here die like flies... soldiers lie on the floor" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Gather round on ma's knee
To read this weeks letter
I wonder what will be
We hope the news is better
The men here die like flies ma
I bandaged their blinded eyes ma
And the kids with their aching feet
Ain't got nothing to eat ma
The hospital has no door dad
Soldiers lie on the floor dad
Oh I did my best
But I cant take anymore dad
Rachel's coming home
Rachel's coming home
Oh and I don't think she'll go away a gain
Rachel's seen the light
World too big to fight
And I don't think she'll go away again
My dear family
The world and people in it
Go the way they will
But there is not a man
Black or White
Who can never hope
To stop them
Show full lyrics (26 lines) ▾
#43 The Band of the Australian Army Band Corps Action Army 1970 · Album · EMI # SCXO 7924 · Australia
Annotation
A compilation of songs (EMI Records # SCXO 7924) by different parts of the Australian army, including engineers, aviation, artillery, medical, education, ordinance etc., released during the Vietnam War era, with the front cover featuring "Army Public Relations, Operation "Chopper" Vietnam".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Album of songs by the branches of the Australian Army (engineers, aviation, artillery, medical, education, ordnance); the front cover shows "Army Public Relations, Operation Chopper, Vietnam". Title track.
Genre: ♪ Fanfare

1971

#44 Craig Scott Smiley 1971 · Single · Smiley / Where Are You · HMV # HR.441 · Australia
Annotation
New Zealand artist Craig Scott also did a cover of the song "Smiley" (His Master's Voice # HR.441), released on single on 14 June 1971. The line "smiley, you're off to the Asian war, and we won't see you smile no more..." captured the effect of the war on a generation of New Zealand youth who also fought in Vietnam - but rarely receiving attention. It featured on the album of the same name: Smiley.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Smiley, you're out in the world today
Smiley, you're all on your own
Smiley - hey, they say you're a man today
Boy how you've grown
Yesterday there was laughter and songs to sing
Yesterday we had loving to burn /Yet today there is peace to bring
When will they learn? Smiley, you're off to the Asian War
And we won't see you smile no more...
No more laughter in the air...
Feel the tension in the air, where is love?...
The Family said to say wish you were home
Theme: ANZUS
Genre: ♪ Pop
#45 'Doc' Riley The Fighting Side of Me 1971 · Single · The Fighting Side of Me / Big Brother · CM # CM 006 · Australia
Annotation
The country song "The Fighting Side of Me" (CM # CM 006), a cover, composed and performed by the well-known US country artist Merle Haggard, who released it as a single in 1970: "The Fighting Side of Me" . The lyrics contained the patriotic slogan "if you don't love it, leave it" , similar to the slogan "it's American, love it or leave", often seen on placards or spoken by those on the pro-war/pro-government side of the debate.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Cover of Merle Haggard's 1970 single.
Lyrics
English
I hear people talkin' bad about the way we have to live here in this country
Harpin' on the wars we fight an' gripin' 'bout the way things oughta be
An' I don't mind 'em switchin' sides an' standin' up for things they believe in
When they're runnin' down my country, man, they're walkin' on the fightin' side of me
Yeah, walkin' on the fightin' side of me, runnin' down the way of life
Our fightin' men have fought and died to keep
If you don't love it, leave it, let this song I'm singin' be a warnin'...
I read about some squirrely guy who claims he just don't believe in fightin'
An' I wonder just how long the rest of us can count on bein' free
They love our milk an' honey, but they preach about some other way of livin'
Genre: ♪ Country
#46 Myriad Cruel War 1971 · Single · Life Won't Be the Same / Cruel War · AT # 815N-5001 · Australia
Annotation
Contemporary folk duo, based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, also known as Carrl & Janie Myriad, released this anti-war single. The b-side was of course a cover of the famous Peter, Paul and Mary song "Cruel War" about the plight of a soldier and his sweetheart, which leans towards the protest camp.

The title track "Life Won't Be the Same" does not mention war, but discusses the death of a man: "part of a game, life without him won't be the same" - in what could potentially be about war. It looked at the perspective of the man's sister: "why her brother isn't there to hold her hand" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
B side; cover of the Peter, Paul and Mary song. AT 815N-5001 (Pepamar, ASCAP; matrix A4KM-2443), pressed by RCA, Indianapolis; time 3:04. AT 815N-5001, lime green and black label; "Cruel War", Myriad, vocal, time 3:04; Pepamar, ASCAP; matrix A4KM-2443. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
The cruel war is ragging, Johnny has to fight
I want to be with him, from morning till night
I want to be with him, it grieves my heart so
Won't you let me go with you, no my love no
Tomorrow is Sunday, Monday is the day
That your captain will call you, and you must obey
Your captain will call you, it grieves my heart so
Won't you let me go with you, no my love no
I'll tie back my hair, men's clothing I'll put on
I'll pass as your comrade, as we march along
I'll pass as your comrade, no one will ever know
Won't you let me go with you, no my love no
Oh Johnny, oh Johnny, I fear you are unkind
I love you far better, than all of mankind
I love you far better, than words can express
Won't you let me go with you, yes my love yes
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
#47 Myriad Life Won't Be the Same 1971 · Single · Life Won't Be the Same / Cruel War · AT # 815N-5001 · Australia
Annotation: see “Cruel War” above (same release).
#48 Gill Roberts No! No! I Just Can't Go 1971 · Single · No! No! I Just Can't Go / Wendy · War # CAPD/ 101 · Australia
Annotation
The song "No! No! I Just Can't Go" (War # CAPD/ 101), from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia-based artist - the narrator expressed reluctance to go to war, as he wants to look after his son.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Label: Evan Jones (Aust. comp.), arranged by Chris Marshall, engineer Graham Owens; time 2.50. War CAPD/ 101, side A, green label with the WAR logo drawn under a soldier's helmet and a wooden sign bearing the artist's name; "No! No! I Just Can't Go" (Evan Jones) (Aust. comp.), time 2.50, Copyright Control; arranged by Chris Marshall, engineer Graham Owens. Rim: "Unauthorised public performance broadcasting and copying of this record prohibited" and "All rights of the manufacturer and of the owner of the recorded work reserved". [From the record sleeve and labels]

1972

#49 Tex Morton & Sister Dorrie The Widow Next Door 1972 · Single · I Like Country Music / The Widow Next Door · RCA Victor # 102109 · Australia
Annotation
Country music collaboration, featuring the well-known Tex Morton, born Robert William Lane on 30 August 1916 in Nelson, New Zealand. He died 23 July 1983 in Sydney, NSW, Australia.1 He released several records under the nickname The Yodelling Boundary Rider. Sister Dorrie, born Dorothy May Ricketts in Warragul, Victoria, Australia on 8 January 1910, died 19 April 1992, toured with Tex Morton in the 1930s and 1940s. Also noted that Tex Morton released the Vietnam War song "21st Birthday" (Columbia (EMI) # DO-4785) in 1967.

Together, they released the song "The Widow Next Door" (RCA Victor # 102109), which started with a narrative from a widow, noting that "the fighting is over" and the "boys will be home... for Christmas" - and thus another song about the holiday season, see the list: . However, the narrator said that while "your boy will be home... not mine" , as her husband was killed in action (K.I.A.). The second part of the song took a strong anti-war position, criticising politicians for sending the young to war: "in Canberra... you make him a soldier, and send him to war" , where he died, and they send an "insult that you call the pension" . The narrator pondered that the anti-war movement may have been on the correct side: "maybe those students were right after all" , and she declared that "I'll never shall vote for no man evermore" . Thanks to Andrew Smith for the suggestion.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Oh say have you heard, the fighting is over
How our great boys will be home anytime
Home once again with their families for Christmas
Maybe your boy will be home, but not mine
See how they stand and salute their dead comrades
See how they pay their respects at the shrine
See how they turn and march into their futures
Maybe your boy has come back, but not mine
So I send his clothes to the Salvation Army
Give all his toys to the kiddies next door
Only old teddy, I'll keep to remember
The smiling young boy you sent off to the war
If you've lost a loved one, by horse or by tractor
As I lost my husband out there on our land
You know the grieving, you know the sorrow
Only the lonely could ever understand.
You can tell those big men when you're down in Canberra
I don't hold no grudge, for the lives that they took
How they framed the words that turned the heads on the youngsters
Now she is alone and I'll never grow old
So send all my clothes to the Salvation Army
Maybe those students were right after all
Only old teddy she have, and a picture of a smiling young fool you sent off to the war
I sent back the insult that you call the pension
I am the widow you chose to ignore
A two worded telegram, no intervention
Now it's too late, I don't care anymore
So I'll move away, I'll go over the mountain
Don't wonder me, just the widow next door
Maybe in time I'll learn to stop the grieving
I'll never shall vote for no man evermore
So I'll send his clothes to the Salvation Army
Here are some toys for the kiddies next door
Oh teddy bear, I'll treasure forever
My darling, my baby, you were sent to your war
You make him a soldier, and send him to war
Show full lyrics (37 lines) ▾
#50 Clive Brandy Sam, You Made the War Too Long 1972 · Single · Suffer the Children / Sam, You Made the War Too Long · Polydor # 2079 014 · Australia
Annotation
The song "Sam, You Made the War Too Long" (Polydor # 2079 014) - adult contemporary / easy listening, Australian, anti-war song, referencing the My Lai Massacre and Kent State shooting. The narrator said the US had it all after World War II, strong dollar etc. But got stuck in Asia, then Kent State at home, and the My Lai massacre in Vietnam.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
B-side (A-side "Suffer the Children"). Label: written by Garrick, produced and arranged by Sandy Garrick; publisher Mountain Music; (P) 1972; distributed by Phonogram Recordings Pty Limited, made in Australia. Polydor 2079 014 (side 2079 014 B), 45 R.P.M., red label; "Sam, You Made the War Too Long" (Garrick), 2:42, Mountain Music; produced and arranged by Sandy Garrick; ℗ 1972; distributed by Phonogram Recordings Pty Limited, made in Australia. [From the record sleeve and labels]

1973-1975: Paris Peace Accords to the Fall of Saigon

Between the Paris Peace Accords (27 January 1973) and the collapse of South Vietnam (30 April 1975). This marked the final end of the Vietnam War, with most American civilians and troops evacuated during the North Vietnamese invasion. The two halves of the country were reunified, and Saigon renamed Ho Chi Minh City, after the North Vietnamese leader Hồ Chí Minh.

1974

#51 Skyhooks Whatever Happened to the Revolution 1974 · Album · Living in the 70's · Mushroom # L-35299 · Australia
Annotation
Glam Rock / Hard Rock group formed in 1973 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. They disbanded in 1994. It had a revolving line-up, but with the mainstays Greg Macainsh (bass), and Freddie Strauks (drums, percussion , backing vocals). This album, "Living in the 70s" also featured Shirley Strachan (vocals), Red Symons (guitar, vocals, mandolin), and Bob Starkie (guitar, vocals). Their debut album, it initially did not have much commercial success, until 1975, when It spent 16 weeks at the top of the Australian album charts, selling 240,000 copies.1 The group often tackled political and social themes, including the song "Whatever Happened to the Revolution" (Mushroom Records # L-35299), which reflected on the apathy of the 60s / 70s protest movement: "we all got stoned and it drifted away" . It recalled the war in Vietnam and opposition to it: "in 1970, the army wanted you... there was a war goin' on" . People were "out in the streets, wearing our badges and stampin' our feet" in protest. However, the movement died, as "everyone's a bit older, we're gettin' richer" . It also noted the end of hippie culture: "don't mean nothin' to have long hair" . It concluded with calling on people to "get off your arses" and "make a stand" .

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Whatever happened to the revolution
We all got stoned and it drifted away
Whatever happened to the revolution
I think it died just yesterday
Whatever happened to the revolution
We all got stoned and it drifted away
Whatever happened to the revolution
I think it died just yesterday
I think it died just yesterday
Well I remember back in 1970
The army wanted you and the army wanted me
There was a war goin' on we were out in the streets
Wearin' our badges and stampin' our feet
There's a hundred thousand people all on my side
We didn't care if we lived or died
Hundred thousand people going to make it come
Hundred thousand people had the man on the run
Whatever happened to the revolution
Everybody thought we could win with a vote
So the band went home without playin' a note
We forgot about that war but it still went on
I'm alright Jack see you round so long
I'm alright Jack see you round so long
And now today everyone's a bit older
We're gettin' richer but we're gettin' colder
We're lookin' for somethin' that just ain't there
And it don't mean nothin' to have long hair
So when you're ready to make a stand
Open your mouth and raise your hand
When you're sick of your parties and sick of your sweets
Get off your arses I'll see you out in the streets
Show full lyrics (32 lines) ▾
#52 David Mitchell My Lai/ Remuera/ Ponsonby 1974 · Compilation · New Zealand Poets Read Their Works · Waiata # NZPRW R 1 · New Zealand
Notes
From "Pipe Dreams in Ponsonby" (1972); recorded within a 6:53 Mitchell segment (D3) on the 2-LP anthology; reissued on "Classic New Zealand Poets in Performance" (2006). Primary location is Auckland (based), birthplace Wellington.

1975

#53 Eureka Smith V.C. Charlie 1975 · Single · V.C. Charlie / He Walked That Lonesome Road · Astor # A-7263 · Australia
Notes
Astor A-7263 (A), Australian recording, 3:25; (Eureka Smith, Aust. Comp.); Gentle Ghost Music; a Sticky Wicket production; engineer Mike Loxton; recorded at Mike Loxton Studios, Melbourne. [From the record label]

Aussie, patriotic, country music Old vet, drunk, died. Once a youthful soldier in WW1 and WW2, won the Victoria Cross (VC not the Vietcong)! Digger Aussie - now it's time we showed some pride. Old soldiers never die, simply fade away. Old soldiers never die, they simply fade away / But listen and I'll tell you, of one who died today / He was just the drunken wino that hung around our town, he had no one that ever loved him and I know that got him down / But he was once a youthful soldier, and he served in two world wars, he'd won a V.C. cross, that no one ever saw / He's a drunkerd he's a soap he's a boozer at his throat / But life for him hasn't always been this way / From the bottles then in the can he's a hard and lonely man, and its hard to find someone who'll understand / Although he served his country well, he's seen the other side of hell, and he lived through it here everyday / From the wineyard to the churchyard and scars upon his face he dreamed of mates he left asleep, in a far and foreign place / He's a digger of the old world, he's an Aussy through and through, now its time we show some pride in the things he had to do / And they called him V.C. Charlie and life's cross he has to bear, but now the lord has taken Charlie unto his loving care / He's a drunkerd he's a soap he's a boozer at his throat / But life for him hasn't always been this way / From the bottles then in the can he's a hard and lonely man, and its hard to find someone who'll understand / Although he served his country well, he's seen the other side of hell, and he lived through it here everyday / From the wineyard to the churchyard and scars upon his face he joined the mates he left asleep, in a far and foreign place / They were diggers of the old world, they were Aussy through and through, now its time we show some pride in the things they had to do / They were diggers of the old world, they were Aussy through and through, now its time we show some pride in the things they had to do / Well old soldiers never die, they simply fade away" [From Justin A. Brummer notes from RYM]
Themes: Vet WW1
Genre: ♪ Country

Post-War: 1976-present

Poster of Australian film "The Odd Angry Shot" (1979), about Australia's participation in the Vietnam War. The poster read: "cry a little, laugh a lot, Aussies being Aussies".
Themes especially found in the post-Vietnam War era are lyrics about post-traumatic stress disorder, prisoners of war and the missing in action, the plight and treatment of veterans, and agent orange.

The 1980s especially saw a revival of interest in the Vietnam War, which had subsided in the mid to late 70s following the US withdrawal. Both films and music sought to reflect on the impact the war had on society and to ask "why did the North win?"

1978

#54 Cold Chisel Khe Sanh 1978 · Album · Cold Chisel · WEA # 600038 · Australia
Annotation
Cold Chisel formed in September 1973, in Elizabeth, South Australia, featuring the members Don Walker (keyboards), Jimmy Barnes (vocals, guitar), Ian Moss (guitar, vocals), Steve Prestwich (drums, 1973-2011), and Phil Small (bass, 1975-present). The group released the song "Khe Sanh" (Atlantic #600038-1), one of the most well-known Australian Vietnam War songs, named after the 1968 Battle of Khe Sanh between US Marines and the North Vietnamese Army.1 Some Australian forces were directly involved, mainly through air cover. It reached # 41 in the Australian charts.

The song looked at a disillusioned Australian veteran, referencing several themes often found in post-war songs. It started with a soldier noting that they were not welcomed home, like the World War Two generation: "long forgotten dockside... there were no V-day heroes in 1973" . The vet struggled to find a job: "hours long, pay packets lean... held a job on an oil-rig, flying choppers when I could" . It noted drug addiction: "growing need for speed and novocaine" . The vet also suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "car parks make me jumpy, and I never stopped the dreams" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I left my heart to the sappers round Khe Sanh
And the soul was sold with my cigarettes to the black market man
I've had the Vietnam cold turkey
From the ocean to the Silver City
And it's only other vets could understand
About the long forgotten dockside guarantees
How there were no V-day heroes in 1973
How we sailed into Sydney Harbour
Saw an old friend but I couldn't kiss her
She was lined, and I was home to the lucky land
And she was like so many more from that time on
Their lives were all so empty
Till they found their chosen one
And their legs were often open
But their minds were always closed
And their hearts were held in fast suburban chains
And the legal pads were yellow
Hours long, pay packets lean
And the telex writers clattered where the gunships once had been
Car parks make me jumpy
And I never stopped the dreams
Or the growing need for speed and novocaine
So I worked across the country from end to end
Tried to find a place to settle down, where my mixed up life could mend
Held a job on an oil-rig
Flying choppers when I could
Oh but the nightlife nearly drove me round the bend
And I've travelled round the world from year to year
And each one found me aimless, one more year the worse for wear
And I've been back to South East Asia
But the answer sure ain't there
But I'm drifting north, to check things out again, yes I am
Well the last plane out of Sydney's almost gone
And only seven flying hours, and I'll be landing in Hong Kong
There ain't nothing like the kisses
From a jaded Chinese princess
I'm gonna hit some Hong Kong mattress all night long
Well the last plane out of Sydney's almost gone...
And it's really got me worried
I'm goin' nowhere and I'm in a hurry...
Show full lyrics (41 lines) ▾
Theme: ANZUS
#55 Craig Wasson Here I Am 1978 · Unreleased · The Boys in Company C [Film] · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Starred in 1978 Vietnam War film The Boys in Company C, as Private Dave Brisbee, nicknamed "Jesus" by his military superiors because of his long hair and beard, and hippie ideals. He played the guitar throughout the film, including the song "Here I Am" in the closing credits. They never released an official soundtrack, so it is a film-only song.

"Uncle Sam I’m in Vietnam
It’s a jungle it’s a prison, but here I am
Dreaming of the outside and freedom, planning my get away
Far away from this one ship bay
In the south-east tip of Asia. Where I lay
Dreaming of the outside and freedom, planning my getaway
Weapon drawn I got my web gear on,
I'm crawling on my belly near Khe Sanh
Dreaming of the outside and freedom planning my getaway
But there is a guard on the inside with a rifle in hand
And a guard on the outside on this government land
Uncle Sam I’m in Vietnam
It’s a jungle it’s a prison but here I am, here I am"
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

1979

#56 Spare Change Saigon 1979 · Album · Lonely Suits · Cleopatra # CLP 202 · Australia
Annotation
Spare Change, obscure power pop group from Adelaide, Australia. They relocated to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia in 1975, and recorded this in 1977. But the band broke up. Lead vocalist, John Dowler, went on to join Australian power pop group Young Modern. This album was released after they broke up, on a Melbourne, Australian record label.12

It featured the song "Saigon" (Cleopatra Records # CLP 202) about a Vietnam veteran feeling nostalgic about the fun times in Saigon, possibly visiting prostitutes, although that's not explicitly stated: "girls with the slits... walk the bright streets at night in Saigon... everyone sinned in Saigon" . But now the war is over "nobody has any fun" . As time passed, the vet travelled the world from Paris, to Berlin, China, Egypt, and Afghanistan. He then tried to get back into Vietnam, noting that Saigon changed its name: "they say its called Ho Chi Minh City" , but they wouldn't let him in. The narrator also criticised the justification for the war: "so much for the Domino Theory" - that the collapse of South Vietnam into the control of the communist north would trigger the collapse of democracy in other countries and threaten the US - the idea of which came from President Eisenhower, during a press conferences on 7 April 1954.1
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Recorded 1977, released 1979.
Lyrics
English
The killers gone from old Saigon
But it doesn't seem so long ago
When the girls with the slits and the dresses so sweetly walk the bright street at night in Saigon...
Soldiers... as girl in the bar spoke in French
Nobody thought they'd grow old over there
Nobody used any sense
But now you say its growing so dram and dreary
And nobody has any fun
I remember back then you called it low life and dirty, and just everyone sinned in Saigon
Oh not like it was in the 30s when everyone tried to get on
It was ruled by the winds and the tropic chins of the colonial guard in Saigon
I've been down and out in Paris, I've been boogieing in Berlin...
I fell in love with Shanghai too...
From the Cal to the Bay of Bengal
From the pyramids of Egypt to the Great China Wall
I was captured in Kabul with Timothy Leary
And the whole of Kolkata I can see it so clearly
They went too far...
I heard the thunder of guns from Hanoi
I just had to find out for myself now
Now they wouldn't let me in anymore
Now they say its called Ho Chi Minh City
They play dice with their friends in the North
So much for the Domino Theory
Oh how the fortunes changed hands in Saigon
Oh no it's not quite the same as the old days now the black market has gone underground
Those stocking are now black pajamas
I bet they all look the same in Saigon
Show full lyrics (29 lines) ▾

1980

#57 Eric Bogle And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda 1980 · Now I'm Easy · Larrikin # LRF 041 · Australia
Annotation
Eric Bogle composed the track "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" in 1972. Born in Scotland, he moved permanently to Australia in 1969. The title of the song was of course a play on the well-known Australian bush ballad "Waltzing Matilda", composed in 1895, published in 1903, and probably first recorded in 1926.1 The title was slang for traveling on foot, with belongings in a bag slung over the back.2

Bogle's "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" centred around the 50,000 Australian troops, under ANZUS, who died fighting with the British at Gallipoli in the First World War. Many interpreted this as a parallel story to Vietnam. It protested the romanticism of war, and argued that the new generation, faced with Vietnam, viewed it from a new perspective. It began with a man carrying his pack in the bush when in "1915, my country...gave me a gun" , and "we sailed off for Gallipoli" . It then described the combat zone in brutal detail: "our blood stained the sand and water" , as Australians were "butchered like lambs" . The "crippled, the wounded, the maimed" were then shipped back home. The narrator then observed that every April, on ANZAC Day, the "old comrades... proudly... march" , with "old dreams of past glory" . However the young, faced with the Vietnam War, "ask" "what are they marching for?" . Note: Bogle also wrote and released the Vietnam song "The War Correspondent" on the 1980 album Now I'm Easy, discussed below.

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Now when I was a young man, I carried me pack
And I lived the free life of the rover
From the Murray's green basin to the dusty outback
Well, I waltzed my Matilda all over
Then in 1915, my country said "son
It's time you stopped rambling, there's work to be done"
So they gave me a tin hat, and they gave me a gun
And they marched me away to the war
And the band played Waltzing Matilda
As the ship pulled away from the quay
And amidst all the cheers, the flag-waving and tears
We sailed off for Gallipoli
And how well I remember that terrible day
How our blood stained the sand and the water
And of how in that hell that they called Suvla Bay
We were butchered like lambs at the slaughter
Johnny Turk, he was waiting, he'd primed himself well
He showered us with bullets and he rained us with shell
And in five minutes flat, he'd blown us all to hell
Nearly blew us right back to Australia
But the band played Waltzing Matilda
When we stopped to bury our slain
We buried ours, and the Turks buried theirs
Then we started all over again
And those that were left, well we tried to survive
In that mad world of blood, death and fire
And for ten weary weeks, I kept myself alive
Though around me the corpses piled higher
Then a big Turkish shell knocked me arse over head
And when I woke up in me hospital bed
And saw what it had done, well I wished I was dead
Never knew there was worse things than dyin'
For I'll go no more waltzing Matilda
All around the green bush far and free
To hump tent and pegs, a man needs both legs
No more waltzing Matilda for me
So they gathered the crippled, the wounded, the maimed
And they shipped us back home to Australia
The legless, the armless, the blind, the insane
Those proud wounded heroes of Suvla
And as our ship pulled into Circular Quay
I looked at the place where me legs used to be
And thanked Christ there was nobody waiting for me
To grieve, to mourn, and to pity
But the band played Waltzing Matilda
As they carried us down the gangway
But nobody cheered, they just stood and stared
Then they turned all their faces away
And so now every April, I sit on me porch
And I watch the parades pass before me
And I see my old comrades, how proudly they march
Reviving old dreams of past glories
And the old men march slowly, old bones stiff and sore
They're tired old heroes from a forgotten war
And the young people ask, "what are they marching for?"
And I ask myself the same question
But the band plays Waltzing Matilda
And the old men still answer the call
But as year follows year, more old men disappear
Someday no one will march there at all
Waltzing Matilda...
Show full lyrics (62 lines) ▾
Theme: ANZUS
#58 Phyl Lobl Seasons of War 1980 · Album · Broadmeadow Thistle · Larrikin # LRF-051 · Australia
Annotation
Phyl Lobl, a contemporary folk singer, who wrote and performed in the 1960s under the name Phyl Vinnicombe, based in Melbourne. Lobl helped to establish the National Folk Festival Movement. She later married, becoming Phyl Lobl, and moved to Sydney Australia.1 On this album featured the anti-war song "Seasons of War" (Larrikin Records # LRF-051), written during the Vietnam War era, but not released until this album. Lobl said: "written in the summer of the Vietnam War, I hoped this song would not be relevant any more. I no longer have such youthful optimism. The chorus works as a round sung behind the verses".2 It was released on Warren Fahey's Paddington, NSW-based record label. Note that this song also featured on the 1985 compilation "Come Listen to Australia" (Teldec # 6.30127), which contained three Vietnam War-related songs, discussed below.

The song used the seasons to describe the cycle of a youthful, innocent soldier off to war to fight for freedom, who becomes disenchanted after experiencing the horrors of war. Starting in Spring, the soldier "knows just what he's fighting for" , as he had been "told...many times" - it was "for his freedom" . By the summer, the soldier felt "pain and hate" . In Autumn, the "bombs rain down" , and "friends begin to fall" . By winter time, with "glory gone" , the "war is grey" , and the soldier "wonders what he's won" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Written during the Vietnam War, first released on this album; also on the 1985 compilation Come Listen to Australia (Teldec 6.30127).
Lyrics
English
Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter
War has all the seasons
One and two, three and four
Man will give the reasons
Soldier in the Spring of war
Knows just what he's fighting for
Told so many times before
Fighting for his freedom...
Come the Summer all is growing
And the fruit of war is showing
Pain and hate he will be knowing
Fighting for his freedom....
When his friends begin to fall
And the bombs rain down on all
Then he hears the Autumn call
Fighting for his freedom...
Winter finds the glory gone
War is grey to look upon
Soldier wonders what he's won
Fighting for his freedom
Show full lyrics (21 lines) ▾
#59 Eric Bogle The War Correspondent 1980 · Album · Now I'm Easy · Larrikin # LRF 041 · Australia
Annotation
Eric Bogle, a contemporary folk artist born in Scotland, who then moved permanently to Australia in 1969. He is especially well-known as the composer of "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda", an anti-war track, which looked back at the Australian war experience in the Gallipoli campaign in 1915 (World War One), while making a contemporary note about the younger generation, in reference to the Vietnam War. A recording of this song featured on this album.

Also on this album was the track "The War Correspondent" (Larrikin Records # LRF 041) which looked at the perspective of an Australian war journalist. It started with the news anchor introduction: "our special correspondent in Saigon, says three Australian soldiers have died in Vietnam" . The lyrics were somewhat critical of the journalist for not taking a moral stand: "objectively you watch the war... not being paid to moralize" . Soldiers were dying, yet the newspersons were presenting a program: "see the show, T.V. soldiers in a row... watch them run, see them die" , as the reporter learned "how to live with death, suffering and fear" . But the narrator pondered on the actual impact: "the man that was before Vietnam can never be again" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Good evening ' I'm Ross Symons, with the news from A.B.C.
A record profit's been announced by the Board of B.H.P.
In the second cricket test in Perth, the Aussies face defeat
Whilst the drought in Western New South Wales means dearer cuts of meat
And our special correspondent in Saigon
Says three Australian soldiers have died in Vietnam
The special correspondent sat in a Saigon bar
With the help of Johnny Walker he pushed away the war
And questions with no answers that had rattled round his head
Had lost their urgent clarity and were faded round the edge
Thought tomorrow they'd again be sharp and clear
Tonight they had been lost amongst the bar girls and the beer
Ask a silly question, like why the hell we're here
Learning how to live with death, suffering and fear
War's a game for soldiers; it's not for men like you
Is there something that you have to find, or something you must prove
Or are you hooked upon the adrenaline
That living on the edge of dying brings
But here you are in Vietnam; you're a long way from home
Doing what you're paid to do, the best way that you can
Objectively you watch the war, never taking sides
And what you feel, what you really feel, is hidden deep inside
You're not being paid to moralize
And anyway, a can lose his reason asking why
And if you ever get back home, you'll never be the same
The man that was before Vietnam can never be again
But in ten years when you look back to weigh and count the cost
Perhaps you'll find that Vietnam gave you back more than you lost
And from it, if you learn nothing else
Perhaps you may get to know yourself
Roll up, roll up and see the show, T.V. soldiers in a row
Hear them laugh, hear them cry, watch them run, see them die
It's not in color, but that's all right
War's better viewed in black and white
White for us and black for them
With no gray shadows in between
Show full lyrics (37 lines) ▾

1981

#60 Negative Reaction Vietnam 1981 · Album · Negative Reaction · Dogfood # Dogmat#3 · Australia
Annotation
Negative Reaction, an Australian experimental Industrial group formed by Michael "Mick" Kingham, Milan Stojanovic, and Jim Bodnar in 1978. This album featured the instrumental song "Vietnam" (Dogfood Productions # Dogmat#3), surrounded by other songs with poetic lyrics.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

1982

#61 Simon Townsend Bring 'em Home: Conscientious Objector, Simon Townsend, at a Sydney Anti-Vietnam Demonstration, 1969 1982 · Compilation · The Big Broadcast 1932-1982 · ABC Classics # 2ABC L 8206 · Australia
Credited on the record as Various Artists.
Annotation
This is an Australian documentary record (ABC Classics # 2ABC L 8206), featuring spoken-word tracks, including two related to the Vietnam War. The first included an interview with a conscientious objector at an anti-war protest in Sydney. The second was a news report on the collapse of South Vietnam in 1975.

.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
Lyrics
English
Bring 'em Home: Conscientious Objector, Simon Townsend, at a Sydney Anti-Vietnam Demonstration, 1969"
"ABC News Bulletin Read by Kevin Chapman: Surrender of South Vietnam, 30.4.1975
#62 Kevin Chapman ABC News Bulletin Read by Kevin Chapman: Surrender of South Vietnam, 30.4.1975 1982 · Compilation · The Big Broadcast 1932-1982 · ABC Classics # 2ABC L 8206 · Australia
Credited on the record as Various Artists.
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
#63 Ronnie Hughes Vietnam 1982 · Album · A Day Begins With Ronnie Hughes · Axent # YPRX 1929 · Australia
Annotation
Ronnie Hughes, a pop singer, whose last known address was Labrador, Queensland, Australia. He released the song "Vietnam" (Axent Records # YPRX 1929) on a Kogarah, NSW-based record label. The narrator focused on his son, who "died in a field in Vietnam... we don't know what for" . It noted that his family received medals, which they did not want: "we don't want your medals, we just want our sons" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Side 1, track 6 of the LP.

Produced by Ross McGregor and Anthony Vadala, musical arranger Anthony Vadala, recorded at Axent Studios, Kogarah, NSW; backing vocal Rita Scott. Axent YPRX 1929, 33⅓ rpm, yellow label marked "Side 1 AMCO", Made in Australia; "Vietnam (Ronnie Hughes)" is side 1 track 6, one of seven songs on the album marked "By Ronnie Hughes".

The front cover shows Hughes in a blue satin shirt and black waistcoat against a sunset over the sea. Back-cover band credits: keyboards Anthony Vadala and Ross McGregor, guitar Vince Lombardo, steel guitar Lance Clarke, trumpet Kevin Dubber, saxophone Mark Dennison, bass Roy Delfino, drums Jess Zappia; recording engineer Ross McGregor (Axent Studio Kogarah), photography Errol Pinkerton.

Hughes's sleeve note thanks his family, friends and the band, quotes his verse "We have all experienced sadness and fears, love and happiness and sometimes tears…", and dedicates the record to "my darling wife Shirley"; contact address 10 Willow Street, Labrador, Gold Coast 4215. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Our son died, we don't know what for
Our son died, for he went to war
Our son fought in a far distant land
Our son died in a field in Vietnam
The letters he wrote tell of the war
The fighting, the killing, we don't know what for
There was blood on the soil, and blood on the sand
Our son died in a field in Vietnam
Vietnam, Vietnam, our sons answered the call
Vietnam, Vietnam, they died for nothing at all
Why did we kill, can't be fun
If a man dies he's somebody's son
They've love him and nursed him from a boy to a man
Our son died in a field in Vietnam
Medals... but the damage is done
We don't want your medals, we just want our sons
If you had a son you'd understand
Our son died in a field in Vietnam
Vietnam, Vietnam, our son answered the call
Vietnam, Vietnam, they died for nothing at all
Yes they died for nothing at all
Show full lyrics (22 lines) ▾
Genre: ♪ Pop
#64–66 Various Artists Rebel Chorus: A Concert of Contemporary Political Song 1982 · Compilation · Larrikin # LRF2053 · Australia
All 3 songs from this compilation in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
Double-LP of political songs and poetry, released in 1982 by the Amalgamated Metal Workers & Shipwrights Union, on Larrikin Records (# LRF2053), the record label founded by folk collector and performer Warren Fahey.1 This contained three anti-war tracks related to Vietnam. This included the song "F111" , performed by the The Larrikins, and composed by Lyell Sayer, who recorded his own version, discussed immediately below.

The other two tracks are poems, by Denis Kevans (15 January 1939–2005), from Canberra, Australia. The first was "The Great Prawn War" . The second title was the "Slouch of Vietnam" , said to have been published and set to music in 1962, before Australia's major troop commitment in 1965, according to Kevans. The poem was recited at anti-war demonstrations in the 1960s/70s.23 Both poems mentioned featured in his 1982 book The Great Prawn War and Other Poems. A slouch hat, also known as Aussie bush hat is a distinctive Australian hat that has one side of the brim turned up or pinned to the side of the hat, often used in the military.4

The poem recalled previous wars: "far-off fields of Flanders... brave Gallipoli" . However, these were different from the Vietnam conflict: "why should I share the napalm-guilt of blundering Uncle Sam" - a reference to chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.567 The narrator noted "peasant kids, who fight for rights and rice" , thus arguing that the war was unjustified, and that the North Vietnamese were fighting for independence. The poem also contained the line "blinded the diggers' eyes" . Digger is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology.89
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#64 The Larrikins F111 1982 · Compilation · Rebel Chorus: A Concert of Contemporary Political Song · Larrikin # LRF2053 · Australia
Annotation
Double-LP of political songs and poetry, released in 1982 by the Amalgamated Metal Workers & Shipwrights Union, on Larrikin Records (# LRF2053), the record label founded by folk collector and performer Warren Fahey.1 This contained three anti-war tracks related to Vietnam. This included the song "F111" , performed by the The Larrikins, and composed by Lyell Sayer, who recorded his own version, discussed immediately below.

The other two tracks are poems, by Denis Kevans (15 January 1939–2005), from Canberra, Australia. The first was "The Great Prawn War" . The second title was the "Slouch of Vietnam" , said to have been published and set to music in 1962, before Australia's major troop commitment in 1965, according to Kevans. The poem was recited at anti-war demonstrations in the 1960s/70s.23 Both poems mentioned featured in his 1982 book The Great Prawn War and Other Poems. A slouch hat, also known as Aussie bush hat is a distinctive Australian hat that has one side of the brim turned up or pinned to the side of the hat, often used in the military.4

The poem recalled previous wars: "far-off fields of Flanders... brave Gallipoli" . However, these were different from the Vietnam conflict: "why should I share the napalm-guilt of blundering Uncle Sam" - a reference to chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.567 The narrator noted "peasant kids, who fight for rights and rice" , thus arguing that the war was unjustified, and that the North Vietnamese were fighting for independence. The poem also contained the line "blinded the diggers' eyes" . Digger is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology.89
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Double LP recorded live at the Teachers' Federation Auditorium, Sydney, for the Amalgamated Metal Workers & Shipwrights Union; label number LRF 2-053, matrix MX191707. Larrikin Records LRF 2-053, stereo double LP, 33⅓ RPM, cream labels with the red Larrikin "Real Music" logo, Larrikin Records Pty. Ltd., P.O. Box 162 Paddington, N.S.W. 2021, Australia, and the union emblem; record one side one MX191707, record two side one MX191709.

Record one side one: Freedom on the Wallaby (Henry Lawson), Terania Creek (Kathy O'Sullivan), F111 and Life Wasn't Meant to Be Easy (both Lyell Sayer-Clem Parkinson) by The Larrikins, and Pot Pourri by Dennis Kevans, whose medley on the back cover includes "The Slouch of Vietnam"; side two is Red Gum, side three Dennis Kevans and John Dengate, side four Eric Bogle.

The front cover, red with a pattern of guitar-playing figures under a broken chain, reads "Rebel Chorus — A Concert of Contemporary Political Song — The Larrikins, John Dengate, Dennis Kevans, Redgum, Eric Bogle", recorded live at The Teacher's Federation Auditorium Sydney by The Amalgamated Metal Workers & Shipwrights Union, 136 Chalmers Street Surry Hills 2010.

The back-cover note "About Rebel Chorus" says the title comes from Lawson's poem "Freedom on the Wallaby" and hopes the songs become part of "a continuing tradition of working class music", quoting "Life wasn't meant to be easy … And that goes for Fraser as well" and Redgum's "Critique in G"; Larrikin Record Distributing Company sticker. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Now, Sir Robert Menzies was walking down the street
And thinking of our air force which was mostly obsolete
Our Canberra bombers are getting old as hell
We better call up Uncle Sam and see what he can sell
Well he said to Uncle Sammy, "We want to buy a plane
To save our lovely country from going down the drain
We want to scare some Asians, so see what you can do
The answer was, Bob, buddy, we've got just the thing for you /Oh, the F-one-double one it is a lovely plane
It flies at twice the speed of sound and scatters bombs like rain
It's wings go back and forward, it's the latest thing around
It's a pity that it isn't safe to take it off the ground.
Bob said, "We'll take two dozen"
The plane they had to make
And soon they had one ready, its first flight for to take
Well it whistled down the runway with a dreadful roaring sound
And then broke up in little bits and fell back on the ground
They sent some off to Vietnam, the country to defend
To wipe out all the Viet Cong and cause the war to end
But Ho Chi Minh said
"Comrades, don't waste our precious shells
These brand-new planes the Yankees have all fall down by themselves....
They want crazy old age pensions
The cost will be too high
They'd rather buy an aircraft that is allergic to the sky
But still I can't help thinking, wouldn't it be nice
If they didn't waste our taxes on that flying opera house
After due consideration, I found a proper use
They should take one from the hanger and fill it up with juice...
Show full lyrics (29 lines) ▾
#65 Denis Kevans The Slouch of Vietnam 1982 · Compilation · Rebel Chorus: A Concert of Contemporary Political Song · Larrikin # LRF2053 · Australia
Credited on the record as Dennis Kevans.
Annotation: see “F111” above (same release).
Lyrics
English
Why should I wear that new slouch hat, the slouch of Vietnam
Why should I share the napalm-guilt of blundering Uncle Sam
Why should I hunt down peasant kids, who fight for rights and rice
Why should I spill this hard-earned blood in a sucker's sacrifice? I think of my old Uncles, and their mates, who lie bone-white
On the far-off fields of Flanders, now who promoted that fight?
They'll teach you that life is precious, then they'll brush it aside like dust
But I won't give my life away 'cause a brass-hat says I must /A chilly dusk is falling here, the boxtrees' shadows stretch
And through the ring-barked clumps I see the vanished soldiers fetched
The tall plume on the horseman, the slant brim down below
As through the mists of memory, the slaughtered slouches go There's young Mick, the cricketer, from frosty Eucumbene
And "Pally" Tom, the skinner, from the southern Riverine
And, troop on troop, the squadrons pass, the sun across their cheeks
Clay-cold, and pale as cellar grass, and not one soldier speaks /The slouch of brave Gallipoli, that blinded the diggers' eyes
The slouch of bloody Passchendaele, where the shell-shock case still cries
The martyrs hanged in Changi, the heroes killed at Lae
But the slouch of jungle paddies is a slouch I cannot pay...
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
#66 Denis Kevans The Great Prawn War 1982 · Compilation · Rebel Chorus: A Concert of Contemporary Political Song · Larrikin # LRF2053 · Australia
Credited on the record as Dennis Kevans.
Annotation: see “F111” above (same release).

1983

#67 Lyell Sayer F-111 1983 · Album · Two Up · Larrikin # LRF-109 · Australia
Credited on the record as Lyell Sayer & Clem Parkinson.
Annotation
This LP was a split release, between two Australian contemporary folk artists, that wrote many political and socially conscious songs, especially regarding labour rights. It included the well-known anti-Vietnam War song "F-111" (Larrikin Records # LRF-109), written, and performed here by Lyell Sayer.

Lyell Sayer wrote on the back of the LP: "One of my earliest songs, and certainly the most popular. My best claim to having written a 'folk' song as it has been recently collected from Vietnam veterans, by Graham Seal. The last two verses written later by Clem to keep the song current, are gratefully acknowledged".1 Released on Warren Fahey's record label, he wrote on the back of the LP: "Both Lyell and Clem enjoy taking the 'mickey' out of our politicians and why not! I have always felt that these contemporary folk songs play a real role in continuing the tradition of the folk song as the voice of the people. Long may the likes of Lyell Sayer and Clem Parkinson write and sing songs about us".

The song was a reference to the US-made F-111c fighter bomber. The Australian government ordered a number, for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in 1963.2 However, the final version of the aircraft were not delivered until 1973, because of technical problems, which included unexplained loses during its use in the Vietnam War in the late 60s and early 70s - or as said in the chorus of this song: "it is a lovely plane... it's a pity that it isn't safe to take it off the ground" . The narrator started with the Australian Prime Minister, Robert Menzies, pondering that "our Canberra bombers are...old as hell" . He called up "Uncle Sammy" to purchase planes, to "scare some Asians" . The narrator noted that the government "sent some off to Vietnam" to "wipe out all the Viet Cong" - a reference to the "VC" - the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (Vietnamese: Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng Miền Nam Việt Nam) (NLFSV or NLF), the political and military resistance to the US and South Vietnamese government from within South Vietnam. However the North Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh ordered his comrades not to waste bullets etc., because "these brand-new planes the Yankees have all fall down by themselves" .

The song had an alternative verse, used on some versions of this songs, such as by Johnny Lad.3 The narrator said here that the price of the aircraft keep increasing, and so suggested that if "Sir Robert was still here" , then "we'd make him pay the bill" . Continuing with the satire, the narrator also said that at "the present rate of accident" , Australia had about "a week's supply" of the aircraft.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Split LP with Clem Parkinson, who wrote the last two verses; on Warren Fahey's Larrikin label. Written in the 1960s about the RAAF's F-111 order.
Lyrics
English
Now, Sir Robert Menzies was walking down the street
And thinking of our air force which was mostly obsolete
Our Canberra bombers are getting old as hell
We better call up Uncle Sam and see what he can sell
Well he said to Uncle Sammy, "We want to buy a plane
To save our lovely country from going down the drain
We want to scare some Asians, so see what you can do
The answer was, Bob, buddy, we've got just the thing for you /Oh, the F-one-double one it is a lovely plane
It flies at twice the speed of sound and scatters bombs like rain
It's wings go back and forward, it's the latest thing around
It's a pity that it isn't safe to take it off the ground.
Bob said, "We'll take two dozen"
The plane they had to make
And soon they had one ready, its first flight for to take
Well it whistled down the runway with a dreadful roaring sound
And then broke up in little bits and fell back on the ground
They sent some off to Vietnam, the country to defend
To wipe out all the Viet Cong and cause the war to end
But Ho Chi Minh said
"Comrades, don't waste our precious shells
These brand-new planes the Yankees have all fall down by themselves....
They want crazy old age pensions
The cost will be too high
They'd rather buy an aircraft that is allergic to the sky
But still I can't help thinking, wouldn't it be nice
If they didn't waste our taxes on that flying opera house
After due consideration, I found a proper use
They should take one from the hanger and fill it up with juice...
English
Now years have come and years have gone, and we all still depend
On our nice old Canberra bombers our country to defend
The plane's prices double every time one takes a spill
And if Sir Robert was still here, we'd make him pay the bill
And when they are all ready, and we have paid the fee
Our Generous Uncle Sammy will make delivery
But I doubt if it will be much good to him or you or I
At the present rate of accidents we've got a week's supply
Show full lyrics (39 lines) ▾
#68 Denis Kevans Vietnamese Revolutionary Talks to Jesus 1983 · Album · I Called Him a Worship Your Bastard! · Currency Folk # YPRX 2125 · Australia
Credited on the record as John Dengate & Denis Kevans.
Annotation
Denis Kevans (15 January 1939–2005), a poet from Canberra, Australia, active in the Australian 60s/70s protest movement, taking part in several prominent demonstrations. He wrote, recited, and recorded the anti-Vietnam War poems "Slouch of Vietnam" and "The Great Prawn War", discussed above. On this album, he recited the poem "Vietnamese Revolutionary Talks to Jesus" (Currency Folk # YPRX 2125), which as suggested in the title, was centred around a dialogue between Jesus and someone involved in the Vietnam War. As Jesus recalled his mother standing by the cross, the revolutionary remembered: "I stooped to see my mother's jellied flesh" , a reference to chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123 As Jesus noted that his friends carried him to a grave, the revolutionary said that "I was shallow-buried with forty others" , thus recalling the massacres of the Vietnam War.4
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Poem recited by Kevans on the album shared with John Dengate.
Lyrics
English
You say you were six hours on the Cross?
That's true, six hours of sun and dust and sweat
I am still young, and I have been a score
Of years in battle, I was born upon a battlefield
You say your mother stood beneath your Cross?
Yes, my mother and her sister and their friends
I stooped to see my mother's jellied flesh
And passed her sparse long hair across my hands
You say your true friends bore you to your grave?
And placed you there inside with balms and spice? They did, it's true.
I wore the balm of phosphorus
And gas was my incense, and I was shallow-buried with forty others
How long the crown of thorns was on your head?
One night and one day
So short a torment?
I have worn the coronets of wire and steel
For thirty years, and now they bind my nervous flesh
And how much vinegar was thrust into your mouth?
A dab upon a pointed spear
A dab, brother? I have coughed it
By the rusty cup-full
In the torture-rooms at night where men who wear
The Cross you bore, coax life from those like me
Whose arms are pinned, whose mouth is prised
Whose thin legs cannot flail for dull fatigue
How long the scourging that the Romans gave?
Three sessions of thick leather and sharp chunks of lead
Three sessions, brother?
My back is worn
From belting all these years, and now they thrash me on the clotted skin
Show full lyrics (31 lines) ▾
#69 Redgum I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green) 1983 · Single · I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green) / Yarralumla Wine · Epic # ES 844 · Australia
Annotation
The track "I Was Only 19" (Epic Records # ES 844) reached # 1 in the Australian singles chart (Kent Music Report), one of the most successful Australian Vietnam War songs. It dealt with the negative impact of war on the soldier. Written by John Schumann, born 18 May 1953 in Adelaide, Australia, leader singer of Redgum, formed in 1975, Adelaide, and disbanded in 1990. Other member included on this record were: Hugh McDonald (violin, vocals), Brian Czempinski (drums), Trevor Lucas (backing vocals), and Peter Coughlin (bass guitar).1

John Schumann based it largely on the experiences of the Vietnam war veteran Mick Storen (his brother-in-law). Schumann noted as a teenager in the late 1960s his friends being drafted to fight the war: "They left as wide-eyed, grinning Australian lads, pushing and shoving and joking at their embarkation leave parties. They were returned to us as damaged goods - sullen, disconnected and with the trade-mark thousand yard stare". He soon developed an anti-war perspective in the early 1970s: "the popular movement against the Vietnam war gained traction. It wasn’t too long before a clear majority of Australians, including me, opposed it". But not into the late 1970s and early 1980s did attention grow to the plight of the veterans. At which point, Schumann said that "I entertained the idea of writing these blokes a song".2 The royalties of the song go to the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia. The group also recorded a live version on the 1983 album Caught in the Act (Epic # ES 864).

Narrated in the first person, it started with a young, innocent nineteen year old taking part in a military march in Australia, just before being shipped to Vietnam, and then "in and out of choppers" across the land, where "each step could mean your last one on two legs" . This seemed a long way from the stories of the previous generations, who fought in the First and Second World Wars: "the Anzac legends didn't mention mud and blood" . So after the war, back in Australia, the veteran started to suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), unable to sleep, thinking of the dark jungles and "barking M16... I can still hear... screaming in the jungle" . He also recalled drinking with his friend Frankie at the Grand Hotel in Vung Tau, a seaside city in South Vietnam during R&R, before being shot and killed in the jungle. There was also a reference to the use of Agent Orange: "Agent Orange sunset through the scrub" - the herbicide used by the US government, which had long-term negative health affects, an issue that gained more attention in the 1980s.

Other references to note: the line "parade at Puckapunyal... we did Canungra and Shoalwater before we left" - Puckapunyal is a training facility in Victoria, Canungra is a small town in Queensland, with a large military base, while Shoalwater is a bay, also in Queensland, a major military training area during Vietnam. The line "there's me in me slouch hat with me SLR" . A slouch hat, also known as Aussie bush hat is a distinctive Australian hat that has one side of the brim turned up or pinned to the side of the hat, often used in the military.3SLR was the L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle, used by Australian forces in Vietnam.4 The line "from Vung Tau to the dust at Nui Dat" - Nui Dat was where the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) was based in South Vietnam, and Vung Tai was where the 1st Australian Logistics Support Group was headquartered, and popular for R&R.

This song provided an important representation of the loss of innocence for a nineteen year old, whose life changed because of the war. It brought attention to the plight of the Australian Vietnam veteran.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Produced by Trevor Lucas; Redgum Music; matrix MX202514. The label notes that artist royalties were donated to the Vietnam Veterans of Australia. Epic ES 844, side A, 45 R.P.M., blue label, ℗ 1983 CBS Records Australia Limited; marked "Australian Performance – Australian Composition"; "Sound recording made by CBS Records Australia Limited — first published ℗ in Australia 1983"; "Made in Australia". [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Mum and Dad and Denny saw the passing out parade at Puckapunyal
It was a long march from cadets
The sixth battalion was the next to tour and it was me who drew the card
We did Canungra and Shoalwater before we left
And Townsville lined the footpaths as we marched down to the quay
This clipping from the paper shows us young and strong and clean
And there's me in me slouch hat with me SLR and greens
God help me - I was only nineteen
From Vung Tau riding Chinooks to the dust at Nui Dat
I'd been in and out of choppers now for months
And we made our tents a home, V.B. and pinups on the lockers
And an Asian orange sunset through the scrub
And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep?
And night time's just a jungle dark and a barking M.16?
And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means?
God help me - I was only nineteen
A four week operation, when each step can mean your last one on two legs
It was a war within yourself
But you wouldn't let your mates down 'til they had you dusted off
So you closed your eyes and thought about somethin' else
And then someone yelled out "Contact", and the bloke behind me swore
We hooked in there for hours, then a God almighty roar
And Frankie kicked a mine the day that mankind kicked the moon
God help me - he was goin' home in June
And I can still see Frankie, drinkin' tinnies in the Grand Hotel
On a thirty-six hour rec. leave in Vung Tau
And I can still hear Frankie, lying screaming in the jungle
'Til the morphine came and killed the bloody row
And the Anzac legends didn't mention mud and blood and tears
And the stories that my father told me never seemed quite real
I caught some pieces in my back that I didn't even feel
God help me, I was only 19
And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep?
Any why the Channel Seven chopper chills me to my feet?
And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means?
God help me - I was only 19
Show full lyrics (37 lines) ▾
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs

1984

#70 Judy Small Mothers, Daughters, Wives 1984 · Album · Redwood # RR3100 · Australia
Annotation
Judy Small, contemporary folk artist, born in 1953 in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia. This album featured the song "Mothers, Daughters, Wives" (Redwood Records # RR3100), which looked at the impact of the war on the home front, as men "marched away with drums and guns" . She said that: "written in 1982, I wrote this song for my mother... and for all the women of her generation who, it seemed to me, spent a large part of their lives waiting for their menfolk to come home from war. They were the women whose work during World War II showed us that women could do any kind of job and were perfectly capable of independence" - from the Judy Small Songbook.1

The narrator first experienced war as a daughter, has her father went to war, and her mother scoured the "papers... and lists of dead" . Next, she had grown-up, and married, and it was her husband off to war. In the final section of the song, "daughters grew to women, and your little boys to men" , and they "bravely waved goodbye" , marching off to war. There are several cover versions of this song, including by John Schumann on the album Behind the Lines (2008), and by Danny Spooner on the album Emerging Tradition (2007).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Written 1982; covered by John Schumann (Behind the Lines, 2008) and Danny Spooner (Emerging Tradition, 2007).
Lyrics
English
The first time it was fathers
The last time it was sons
And in between your husbands
Marched away with drums and guns
And you never thought to question
You just went on with your lives
'Cause all they taught you who to be
Was mothers, daughters, wives
You can only just remember the tears your mothers shed
As they sat and read their papers through the lists and lists of dead
And the gold frames held the photographs that mothers kissed each night
And the doorframe held the shocked and silent stranger from the fight.
It was twenty-one years later with children of your own
The trumpets sounded once again, the soldier boys were gone
So you made their guns and drove their trucks and tended to their wounds
And at night you kissed their photographs and prayed for safe returns
And after it was over you had to learn again
To be just wives and mothers when you'd done the work of men
So you worked to help the needy and you never trod on toes
The photos on the pianos struck a happy family pose.
Then your daughters grew to women and your little boys to men
And you prayed that you were dreaming when the call-up came again
But you proudly smiled and held your tears as they bravely waved goodbye
The photos on the mantelpiece, they always made you cry
And now you're getting older, and in time the photos fade
And in widowhood you sit back and reflect on the parade
Of the passing of your memories, how your daughters changed their lives
Seeing more to our existence than just mothers, daughters, wives
Show full lyrics (29 lines) ▾
#71 John Williamson Only 19 1984 · Album · The Smell of Gum Leaves · Gum Leaf # L-38245 · Australia
Notes
Live cover of the Redgum song, recorded at the Vicar of Wakefield Bush Bar, Dural, NSW, 28 April 1984; Gum Leaf / Festival. Reissued on CD as Home Among the Gum Trees (EMI, 1997).
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs

1985

#72 Judy Small Our Best Friend 1985 · Album · One Voice in the Crowd · Redwood # RR8503 · Australia
Annotation
Judy Small, contemporary folk artist, born in 1953 in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia. This album contained the song "Our Best Friend" (Redwood Records # RR8503), which contained the line "When America meant Vietnam, LBJ, and Uncle Sam, freedom rides and protest songs and marching in the streets..." . Full analysis coming soon.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
When America meant Vietnam, LBJ, and Uncle Sam, freedom rides and protest songs and marching in the streets...
#73 Arthur Calwell, Lyndon B. Johnson & Nguyễn Cao Kỳ The Vietnam War 1985 · Compilation · The Times of Our Lives · Telmak # TMAK 137 · Australia
Annotation
Australian documentary record (Telmak # TMAK 137), which included a few clips about the Vietnam War, including comments from Australia's Opposition leader Arthur Caldwell, US President Lyndon B. Johnson, and the South Vietnamese leader.
Notes
Track B5: The Vietnam War (Comments from Australian Opposition Leader Arthur Caldwell, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, and South Vietnam Premier Ngyuen Cao Ky, 1966)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation: see “Our Best Friend” above (same release).
Themes: LBJ ANZUS
#74 The Samuel Pepys Show Missing Saigon 1985 · Album · Pepys in the Park · Triffique # YPRX 2325 · Australia
Annotation
Australian radio sketch comedy show, featuring Kev Golsby, Robyn Moore, and Ross Higgins, recorded live in the Fairfax Auditorium Sydney, and the Albert Park Amphitheatre Brisbane, with post production in Top Spots Studios, Sydney. This 1985 show contained the track "Missing Saigon" (Triffique Records # YPRX 2325), presumably a sketch about Vietnam veterans.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Theme: Vet
#75 LeGarde Twins Sad Eyes (Tribute to Vietnam Veterans) 1985 · Single · Australia's Country Hall of Fame / Sad Eyes (Tribute to Vietnam Veterans) · Interfusion # K-9910 · Australia
Annotation
Australian country duo, formed in Mackay, Queensland, Australia, and currently based in Nashville, Tennessee, USA - with Ted LeGarde (guitar, vocals) and Tom LeGarde (guitar, vocals). They released the country song "Sad Eyes (Tribute to Vietnam Veterans)" (Interfusion # K-9910), which looked at the perspective of Vietnam veterans. The narrator recalled soldiers being sent to "a jungle, Vietnam was the name" . It described the conflict as "a no win situation" . The soldiers came back with "sad eyes" , and the narrator said that "we're proud and... grateful to you" . Released on a Sydney, NSW, record label.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Produced by Ted and Tom LeGarde, Dave Signs, Bernie Vaughn, Brian Fisher and Gene Breeden; Gum Tree Music / Max Music; matrix MX-65762. Interfusion K-9910, 45 RPM; ℗ 1985 Max Music Pty. Limited, © 1985 Festival Records Pty. Limited, Australia; "Sad Eyes (Tribute to Vietnam Veterans)" (Sharon B. Legarde), 3:45; "Made in Australia by Festival Records Pty Ltd".

Label artwork shows pink capsule shapes over a desert grid; in a Festival "no. 1" company sleeve ("Give the gift of music"). [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Sad eyes, sad cries, nobody will ever know the price they paid
Proud men, brave men, the pain that they all knew
Only sad eyes know
Can you explain the politician, who send men's hearts to break
In a no win situation, it was so hard to take
We wait for years to pass
And try to mend them
And then wipe the tears from their sad eyes again
Sad eyes, sad cries...
I crossed the ocean
A jungle, Vietnam was the name
Their lives and years were given...
Inside, today, war is still the same
Sad eyes have honoured again
Sad eyes are you listening while I'm singing to you
I want you to know that our feelings are true
We're proud and understand, and grateful to you
Want to help your sad eyes smile again
Sad eyes, sad cries...
Show full lyrics (20 lines) ▾
#76 Various Artists Come Listen to Australia: A Selection of 28 Original Songs From the Land "Down Under" 1985 · Compilation
Annotation
German released compilation (Teldec # 6.30127) of Australian music, it contained three Vietnam War songs, all discussed above.

Lyell Sayer - "F111"

Phyl Lobl - "Seasons Of War"

Eric Bogle - "And the Band Played Waltzing Mathilda"
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

1987

#77 Normie Rowe Somewhere Tonight 1987 · Single · Somewhere Tonight / Help Yourselves to Each Other · Not On Label # NOR001 · Australia
Annotation
Normie Rowe, pop rock artist and Australian Vietnam War veteran, born 1 February 1947 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He served in Vietnam from January 1969 to February 1970. Rowe was reported to have been the protaganist in the song "Smiley" by Ronnie Burns, conscripted to fight in the Vietnam War. Johnny Young, the songwriter, said on ABC-TV’s Love Is In The Air that "before he left, he was really happy-go-lucky, fun-filled young fella. When he came back, he changed".1 This song, "Somewhere Tonight" (# NOR-001), was a cover of a Bob Seger song. The picture sleeve (PS) featured a picture of Rowe, on the front, in the Vietnam War, with the logo "Vietnam Veteran Parade, Sydney 1987, Australian Vietnam Forces". The back of the PS had a contemporary picture of Rowe. In 2002 he released an album of Vietnam War-related tracks, presenting the veteran / soldier's experience, discussed below: Missing in Action (# TCLB-833036).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Cover of the Bob Seger song (Side One).

The picture sleeve shows Rowe in Vietnam with the badge "Vietnam Veterans Parade, Sydney 1987, Australian Vietnam Forces"; the back has a contemporary portrait. Self-released, NOR001. NOR001 picture sleeve; the front shows a close-up photograph of Normie Rowe in a tank crewman's helmet with headset microphone, the name "Normie Rowe" running down the left edge, and the shield badge "Vietnam Veterans Parade, Sydney 1987 — Australian Vietnam Forces" (Australian flag, map of Australia, stars and medals).

The back has a smiling present-day portrait with Side One "Somewhere Tonight" (Bob Seger) and Side Two "Help Yourselves to Each Other" (Allen Reynolds & Bob McDill). [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Somewhere tonight
Someone's reachin' out to someone who's refusin'
Someone's tired of all the reasons someone's using
Someone doesn't understand
Somewhere tonight
Someone's thinkin' back to someone who got closer
Someone's realizin' something's really over
Someone's thinkin' it's too late...
There's a cold wind blowin' from the north
And the summer birds are leavin'
As the sun slips ever further south
The lakes will soon be freezin'
And the ice will claim the empty shores
Where the one's in love went walkin'
And the hard blue skies will shiver
As the winter clouds come stalkin'
And unless you find someone to hold
Unless someone starts carin'
Unless you find the warmth you need
Unless someone starts sharin'
When the long, dark nights come closin' in
And the winter winds come howlin'
You don't know if you'll make it
Without someone you can count on
Somewhere tonight /Someone's packin' up and someone's really leavin'
Someone's not quite sad - only disbelievin'
Someone's walkin' out the door...
Show full lyrics (28 lines) ▾
Theme: Vet
#78 John Schumann Safe Behind the Wire 1987 · Single · Safe Behind the Wire / He's Got the Money · CBS # 651353 7 · Australia
Annotation
Australian post-war song "Safe Behind the Wire" (CBS # 651353 7) looked at the impact of the war on the veteran. It featured on the 1987 album Etched in Blue (CBS # 460271 1), by John Schumann, born in Adelaide, South Australia (18 May 1953). It also featured on the 2008 album Behind the Lines which focused on war, containing First and Second World War songs, as well as some other well-known Vietnam tracks, including Schumann's famous composition I Was Only 19, which he performed as a member of the group Redgum (1983). The album also featured a cover of "Khe Sanh" by Cold Chisel. The narration started by describing the end of the war, the soldiers at the airport in Saigon waiting to go home. It referenced the government's justification for the war: "fighting for freedom in South-East Asia....speeches about a domino falling from China into Vietnam" , thus referencing the "domino theory" - that the collapse of South Vietnam into the control of the communist north would trigger the collapse of democracy in other countries - the idea of which came from President Eisenhower, during a press conferences on 7 April 1954.1 The narrator then criticised the government for not looking after the veterans. It also referenced Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): "living on your nerves" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
From the LP Etched in Blue (CBS 460271); produced by Peter Cobbin, mixed by Peter Cobbin and Jim Taig, recorded at Music Farm Studios; matrix MX250217.

The sleeve is dedicated to Phillip Thomson O.A., national president of the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia, who died on 23 November 1986. Promotional copy. CBS 651353 7, Side A, 45 R.P.M.; "Safe Behind the Wire" b/w "He's Got the Money", both (J. Schumann), published by Gilbey; mixed at Studios 301; "Australian Performance/Australian Composition"; ℗ 1987 CBS Productions Pty.

Limited, made in Australia by CBS Records Australia Limited.

The front sleeve shows a sepia photograph of a young soldier in a netted helmet behind strands of barbed wire, with the dedication ending "Phill was dusted off for the last time in the early hours of Sunday 23/11/86. A good mate and a great Australian... goodbye and God bless Phill..."; the back sleeve carries a "Promotion Only – Not for Sale" stamp. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
When the bodies were bagged and the telegrams sent
And the very last chopper had gone
And you looked out the window of the 707 on the airfield in Saigon
Some of us thought that the war was over
Some of us couldn’t care less
But you came home and threw a stay-behind party to try to clear up the mess
I don’t know where you are tonight.. I’m down here in a firefight…
But where-ever you are, I hope you’re safe behind the wire
We were fighting for freedom in South-East Asia…. That’s how the story ran
Windy speeches about a domino falling from China into Vietnam…
But look back in sickness and anger
Australia didn’t honour her debt
And non-commission Officer Thompson learned that the war wasn’t over yet
Living on your nerves, living on the phone and sleeping in airports far from home…
Dusted off now and safe behind the wire
Well he have and he gave and he kept on giving, till he just couldn’t give anymore
And he gave it away one morning in Sydney in a rust-red Commodore...
And I remember Phill best talking on the phone
With a cheeky grin on his face…
Because Royal Commissioners and Knights of the Realm
Thought that Phill didn’t know his place
Primis Player Placeholder
And the’re still bagging bodies, Phill, though fourteen years have gone
And the mums and the dads and the wives and the kids still have to soldier on
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs
#79 La Sect Rouge Saigon to El Salvador 1987 · Album · Viva La Sect Rouge · Big Home # BHP 994 · Australia
Annotation
Obscure Australian underground Garage Punk group from the 80s, based on the Sydney scene.1 This album contained the following credits: Chris Beaky (bass), Adam Spleen (drums), and Tont Shakin Bones (aka A.C. Pavey) (guitar, vocals). It contained the song "Saigon to El Salvador" (Big Home Productions ‎# BHP 994) which opposed US interventions under Ronald Reagan, as indicated in the title of the song, a reference to US involvement in the Salvadoran Civil War.2 The narrator noted that "America's fighting another bloody war" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
BHP 994, made in Australia; hand-lettered red label and sleeve, "All songs L.S.R ©87", label code "MX300239". Tracklist: Everbody, Junk Baby, King Cane Toad, Saigon to El Salvador (track 4), Zombie Bar-B-Q, Prisoner, Bundle 'O' Joy, Mad Dog, Bin Thinkin, Dreams Turn to Dust, Death Row, God Bless America. Front cover "Viva La' Sect Rouge" with a high-contrast live photo of the band; back with a red-tinted band photo framed by drawn totem designs. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
From Saigon to El Salvador, America's fighting another bloody war
Some kind of witch-hunt to even some old score
I seen and heard your word before
The rivers runs red...
From Saigon to El Salvador...
This time be the last time
Seems I've heard those word before...
Round and round, around the world...
America fighting a bloody war

1988

#80 Noel Watson Vietnam 1988 · Single · I'm Falling / Vietnam · Big Time # BTS 25 · Australia
Annotation
Musician from Avoca, NSW, Australia, who was a Vietnam veteran. He gained much attention when he performed "Waltzing Matilda" at the 1988 VFL Grand Final. He died in 2013.1 He released the song "Vietnam" (The Big Time Phonograph Record Company # BTS 25) about his experience in that conflict, as a witness to violence, including: "bamboo houses burning" and "a wounded man... screaming for someone" . All the while, he "watched it happen, and didn't care" . He reflected that he was "playing games on the wrong side of 'Nam" .
Sources
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
B side; from the album Noel Watson (Big Time BT 7087).

Produced by Kevin Kerr, recorded at Silkwood Sound Studios, North Fitzroy; July Music; signed copy. Big Time BTS 25 (BTS 25 B, Side 2), green label, ℗ 1988 Big Time Records (Australia) Pty. Ltd.; "Vietnam" (Watson) (July), 5:29, from the album "Noel Watson" BT 7087; recorded at Silkwood Sound Studios, North Fitzroy, for Opal Music/Vaec; manufactured for and distributed by BMG Arista/Ariola Limited in Australasia. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Spent much longer than I should have in Vietnam
Playing games on the wrong side of 'Nam
But I saw it happen, I was there, watched it happen, and didn't care
Watch the sun rising on a village on fire
Bamboo houses burning in the morning light
I watched it happen
I stood around and watch it happen, and I didn't care
I saw it happen
I stood around and watched it happen, and I didn't care....
Saw the bomb fall...
Saw the building fall, and felt the ground move
I felt it happen, I stood around and felt it happen...
Heard a wounded man cry another night
Screaming for someone called mother, and a drink of water
I listened to it happen
I stood around and heard it happen, and I didn't care...
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
#81 Judy Small Home Front 1988 · Album · Redwood # RR8808 · Australia
Annotation
Judy Small, contemporary folk artist, born in 1953 in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia. This album contained the song "Home Front" (Redwood Records # RR8808), which starts with the line "I've seen them march on Anzac Day... They look as though Vietnam left no stain upon their lives..." . Further analysis coming soon.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I've seen them march on Anzac Day... They look as though Vietnam left no stain upon their lives...
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs

1989

#82 1927 Compulsory Hero 1989 · Single · Compulsory Hero / Propaganda Machine · Trafalgar # 7-257619 · Australia
Annotation
Pop rock group formed in 1987 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, featuring James Barton (drums, backing vocals, 1987-92), Eric Weideman (vocals, guitar, keyboards, 1988-93), Bill Frost (bass, backing vocals, 1988-93), Garry Frost (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, 1988-90), Charlie Cole (keyboards, backing vocals, 1989-92), Dave Dwyer (guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, 1990-93), and Phillip Campbell (drums, 1992-93).

The title of the song "Compulsary Hero" (Trafalgar Records # 7-257619), from the album ...ish (Trafalgar Records # 255968.2), was a reference to military conscription, reintroduced in 1964 by the Australian government, with 18-25 year old males eligible. The song started with children playing war games, when at the end of the day, everybody would go home safely: "we were kids playing war games in your yard... night would fall... all go home" . Then they were grown up, and "a man came on the TV, talking 'bout war" . The narrator said "its war without a choice" . The song recalled the previous generation: "Grandpa heard the call... a war to end all wars" - a reference to World War One. His "dad went off to do his bit" as well. Now it was "one more crazy war" . It leaned towards the anti-war side.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Produced by Charles Fisher for Minute / Trafalgar Productions, engineered by Jim Bonnefond; Warner Bros. Music; matrix MX302357; label time 4:34. Promotional copy. WEA / Trafalgar 7-257619, side 1, 45 R.P.M., ℗ 1989 Trafalgar Music Pty. Ltd., "Australian Recording" kangaroo logo, "A Trafalgar Production", "Australian Performance April 1989", manufactured and distributed by WEA Records Pty.

Limited; "Compulsory Hero" (G. Frost). Front sleeve: red-and-dark-teal artwork of silhouetted soldiers with packs and rifles walking past bare trees against a red splatter, titled "compulsory HERO" and "1927". Back sleeve: handwritten credits on torn lined paper for side 1 "Compulsory Hero" and side 2 "Propaganda Machine", both produced by Charles Fisher and engineered by Jim Bonnefond, with a "Not for Sale – Promotion Use Only" sticker. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Remember the times when we were kids
Playing war games in your yard
Everybody had to be a hero
And get one in the heart
Night would fall and we'd call a truce
And all go home
Years went by we were average guys
Playing life by the rule of thumb
Till a man came on the TV
Talking 'bout war like he wanted one
He said "everybody put your backs to the wall
Till your numbers called"
You've gotta go and be a hero
I've got a new game for all you boys
Its war without a choice
Compulsory hero
Just try and make it home
Grandpa heard the call to all
For a war to end all wars
And your dad went off to do his bit
And he had to go one more
You've really got no say in it
You have to fight
And that's the law
You've gotta go and be a hero
They made a law you had to go fight
One more crazy war
Compulsory hero
Just try and make it home
So all that had to be heroes
Went off to do their chores
None of them really wouldn't of known
How far a bloody war goes
They're dying to make it home
Then I think back on all those times
Playing war games in your yard
Everybody had to be a hero
Back then that wasn't hard
Night would fall on the battle zone
And we could all go home
You had to go and be a hero
They made a law that you had to go and fight
One more crazy war
Compulsory hero
Just try and make it home...
Show full lyrics (46 lines) ▾
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#83 The Mark of Cain Battlesick 1989 · Album · Dominator # DOMA006 · Australia
Annotation
Australian Post-Punk group formed in August 1984, in Adelaide, South Australia. The core members were the brothers John Scott (guitar, vocals) and Kim Scott (bass), accompanied by a rotating line-up. They released the song "Battlesick" (Dominator Records # DOMA 006), also the name of the album, about a Vietnam veteran suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - frequently referenced in post-war 1980s songs about US veterans, often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "torn apart inside...our head in your hands" . The image on the front cover was a David Hume Kennerly portrait of an American soldier in Vietnam.1 The group also released the song "Viet Vet" on the 1994 single Tell Me ( Insipid Vinyl # IV-27).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Feeling like a man
Wanna go for a ride
Sweet memories will fade
When you're torn apart inside
Welcome home hero
Battlesick loner
With your head in your hands
Could be no-one understands
Well it's gone the wrong way
I don't want to be saved
Seeing what you see
Stoned in your dreams
Going home alone
Always the same song
Well it's gone the wrong way
I don't want to be saved...
Welcome home hero
Battlesick loner
Everything will burn
I can't breathe, I can't breathe
I don't wanna be afraid
I don't wanna be saved
I'm in Hell
Let's go!
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
Themes: PTSD Vet

1991

#84 The Dubrovniks Saigon Rose 1991 · Single · Mushroom # D11031 · Australia
Annotation
Power Pop group formed in 1988 in Sydney, NSW, Australia. The line-up consisted of Boris Sujdovic (bass, guitar, vocals), Peter Simpson (guitar, piano, vocals), Roddy Ray'da (guitar, bass), Chistopher Flynn (guitar, vocals), James Baker (drums, percussion), and Glen Armstrong (guitar, backing vocals). They released the song "Saigon Rose" (Mushroom Records # D11031), which appeared on the 1992 album Chrome, about a Vietnam soldier who had an affair with a Vietnamese woman: "can't remember her name, he can't forget those eyes" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Also on the 1992 album Chrome.
Lyrics
English
You've never see her again
You've never seen her before
She was a sweet little...
She moved so fast, she took him by surprise
He can't remember her name, he can't forget those eyes
She might have been a one night stand...
Oh yeah, can't forget that night
She somebody, nobody knows
She's a Saigon rose
She likes take him on, she liked to take it slow...
#85 Peter Dasent Vietnam 1991 · Meet the Feebles · Q.D.K. # QDK LP 003 · New Zealand
Theme: Film

1993

#86 Eric Bogle Welcome Home 1993 · Album · Mirrors · Larrikin # LRF 282 · Australia
Annotation
Eric Bogle, a contemporary folk artist born in Scotland, who then moved permanently to Australia in 1969. He is especially well-known as the composer of "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda", an anti-war track, which looked back at the Australian war experience in the Gallipoli campaign in 1915 (World War One), while making a contemporary note about the younger generation, in reference to the Vietnam War. He also wrote and released the Vietnam War song "The War Correspondent", which featured on the 1980 album Now I'm Easy.

On this album featured the song "Welcome Home" (Larrikin Records # LRF 282), which paid tribute to Vietnam War veterans, considered to have been neglected in Australian society and culture - the Australian Vietnam Forces National Memorial was only dedicated on 3 October 1992, commemorating the 60,000+ Australians who served in Vietnam, located on Anzac Parade, in Canberra. Bogle's other Vietnam songs are strongly anti-war, but this one is focused on the impact of war on soldiers and the home front, arguing that "when a nation goes to war, everyone's a casualty" . He also returned to the theme of "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda", referencing an ANZAC parade: "on a sunny Sydney morning I... watched the boys come marching" . Previously, in the 1971 song, he remarked "what are they marching for?" . But in this song, he was focused on the welfare of the veterans, hoping that "the day helped to heal some wounds" , and "for them the war was over, at last" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Written around the 1992 dedication of the Australian Vietnam Forces National Memorial, Canberra.
Lyrics
English
Now when the boys came home, Annie cried and Annie cheered
She'd been on her own for a long and lonely year
Living for his letters from far away Vietnam
And dreading the official telegram
So she was waiting at the station when his train came rolling in
She ached with anticipation of holding him again
And suddenly he was standing there in his crumpled uniform
In a heartbeat she was in his arms.
Welcome home, boys, welcome home
Don't you know, you've been gone too long
Did you wonder, over there
When you were tired, when you were scared
If your country really cared, welcome home
When a nation goes to war, everyone's a casualty
Some are maimed and scarred, most have wounds you cannot see
So in place of the man that she had known
Annie found instead, a sick and troubled stranger in her bed
But she was stubborn, she was lovin', so she stayed all through the years
The hard times and the drinking, the nightmares and the tears
For where hate is muddy quicksand, love is tempered steel
Annie waited for his wounds to heal.
Welcome home, boys, welcome home....
So on a sunny Sydney morning, I heard old war drums beat
And watched the boys come marching, down the city street
To claim their place in the nation's heart
That their blood and pain had earned
A nation that rejoiced in their return
And if the day helped to heal some wounds is a matter of debate
For some it had come none too soon, for others far too late
But I found myself hoping, as the boys went marching past
That for them the war was over, at last
Welcome home, boys, welcome home....
May you find some kind of peace, welcome home
Show full lyrics (34 lines) ▾

1994

#87 The Mark of Cain Viet Vet 1994 · Single · Tell Me / Viet Vet · Insipid # IV-27 · Australia
Annotation
Australian Post-Punk group formed in August 1984, in Adelaide, South Australia. The core members were the brothers John Scott (guitar, vocals) and Kim Scott (bass), accompanied by a rotating line-up. They released the song "Viet Vet" (Insipid Vinyl # IV-27), which was a cover of an Alan Vega song. It dealt with the mistreatment of a Vietnam veteran: "he rides the subway, he's all alone" . His father and mother have died, his sweetheart had left him: "where are you ma...pa, they're gone, and his girl...Dear John" . The song noted that he had won the Purple Heart - medal awarded by the US president to those wounded or killed in action (K.I.A.). An estimated 351,794 were awarded during the Vietnam War. The group also released the song "Battlesick" , on the 1989 album Battlesick ( Dominator Records # DOMA 006), discussed above.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
B side, 33⅓ rpm 7" on grey marbled vinyl.

Recorded August 1993 at Big Sound Studio, Adelaide, mixed by Darren McBain and David Lokan; ℗ 1993 The Mark of Cain, sleeve © 1994. Insipid Vinyl IV-27, 33⅓ rpm, red label marked "A (This Side)" and "B (Other Side)", ℗ & © 1993 The Mark of Cain; side A "Tell Me" (The Mark of Cain), 4:23; side B "Viet Vet" (Alan Vega), 7:53.

The front of the picture sleeve shows a pale, battered combat helmet against black under the band name in stencil lettering, with "Tell Me / Viet Vet".

The back credits words & music for each side, recording in August 1993 at Big Sound Studio Adelaide and mixing by Darren McBain and David Lokan, prints "© Control 1994" with the Insipid Vinyl logo, and gives management as In-Tense, PO Box 812, Newtown NSW 2042, Australia. [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
Glory, glory, hallelujah, glory, glory, hallelujah
Oh the truth comes marching in
He's a twisted flyer....he loves his country
It's the greatest, he's just another regular guy
Or he was, Viet vet...four purple hearts...
Forget it, he's looking for his home, forget it
Where are you ma, where are you pa, they're gone
And his girl, forget it, dear john to death
What you're gonna do, there ain't no jobs
You gotta bleed and stomp for an arm...
He rides the subway, he's all alone...
They're alone, forever, forever...
Also in: ▤ Punk Songs
#88 Warren Fahey Diggers - Songs of the Australians at War 1994
Annotation
Compiled by Warren Fahey, Australian contemporary folk artist, folklore collector, and cultural historian, born 3 January 1946 in Sydney, NSW, Australia. He founded the label Larrikin Records, based in Paddington, NSW. He also established and runs the Australian Folklore Unit, and has released many books and albums regarding Australian folk music. This album is performed by Fahey in collaboration with Mic Conway, born 15 February 1951 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. This album contained 60 songs related to various wars (Larrikin Records # CD LRF 344).

Digger, used in the title of the album, is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology.12 Fahey's notes on the album said that "Australians have fought in 11 wars... we have marched away to the sound of the bugle" . This included "the horrors of Vietnam" . Most of the songs on this compilation were relation to World War One and World War Two.
Notes
Australians have fought in 11 wars. It seems incredible but 11 times we have marched away to the sound of the bugle and every time it was a call to join our allies and 'mates' at arms. We fought in the famed Maori Wars of Taranaki and the Waikato, a contingent of gallant lads travelled to the Sudan wars and then our Lighthorsemen galloped into the Orange Free State and the Boer War. Next came the so called 'Boxer Rebellion' and then the First and Second World Wars. We glibly believed that the Second World War was the 'war to end all wars' but we were wrong and our troops were once again called to battle in lands too close to the home front - Malaya, Malta, Korea and Indonesia and these were all followed by the horrors of Vietnam. As if to remind us that war is always 'just around the corner' our troops rallied in 1990 to confront the threat of yet another uprising in that war-torn zone known as the Middle East. 16 years later, they're there again. This recording is a unique oral history of the songs that the Australian soldiers sang.
Notes
War is always a frustration and the songs, ditties, parodies, poetry and stories serve many well-earned roles as a morale booster to facilitate camaraderie, to educate and to assimilate 'new recruits' and to allow that necessary ongoing de-fusing of tension. As with other periods of history when all is not well, like times of economic recession and depression, the songs tend to be short and not so sweet, and, army songs being what they tend to be very much to the point - boots and all!
Notes
This collection mainly comes from the First and Second World Wars however, there is no doubt that many of these same songs were sung by the 'Diggers' who marched away to Korea, Malaya and Indonesia. As our entertainment patterns changed so too have our soldier songs and the collected material from the Vietnam War tends to be songs about air fighter planes, raids and gas bombs. The later songs still use parodies however, they are chiefly American popular songs. Warfare has also changed dramatically and this might explain why there are so few songs from the Gulf War. I guess it's hard to sing when you're sitting alone in a computerised fighter plane with one finger cocked on a button"
Liner notes
Down through the years the Australian soldier became respected as a reliable fighter, a mate when a mate was the difference between life and death and, above all, the Australian soldier was considered to be a ‘larrikin’ who saluted but would not doff his hat to no man. He was an Aussie, he was Cobber, he was Pongo, he was Curley and Bluey and he was Digger.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
#89 Warren Fahey & Mic Conway Diggers - Songs of the Australians at War 1994 · Album · Larrikin # CD LRF 344 · Australia
Annotation

Compiled by Warren Fahey , Australian contemporary folk artist, folklore collector, and cultural historian, born 3 January 1946 in Sydney, NSW, Australia. He founded the label Larrikin Records , based in Paddington, NSW. He also established and runs the Australian Folklore Unit , and has released many books and albums regarding Australian folk music. This album is performed by Fahey in collaboration with Mic Conway , born 15 February 1951 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. This album contained 60 songs related to various wars ( Larrikin Records # CD LRF 344). Also see Vietnam War: Australian & New Zealand Songs . Digger , used in the title of the album, is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One, although some sources indicate it may have been used since the 1850s. Digger probably originally referred to a miner - extensive research has been conducted on the etymology of the term and its introduction into military terminology. (1) (2) Fahey's notes on the album said that "Australians have fought in 11 wars... we have marched away to the sound of the bugle" . This included "the horrors of Vietnam" . Most of the songs on this compilation were relation to World War One and World War Two. "Down through the years the Australian soldier became respected as a reliable fighter, a mate when a mate was the difference between life and death and, above all, the Australian soldier was considered to be a ‘larrikin’ who saluted but would not doff his hat to no man. He was an Aussie, he was Cobber, he was Pongo, he was Curley and Bluey and he was Digger. Australians have fought in 11 wars. It seems incredible but 11 times we have marched away to the sound of the bugle and every time it was a call to join our allies and 'mates' at arms. We fought in the famed Maori Wars of Taranaki and the Waikato, a contingent of gallant lads travelled to the Sudan wars and then our Lighthorsemen galloped into the Orange Free State and the Boer War. Next came the so called 'Boxer Rebellion' and then the First and Second World Wars. We glibly believed that the Second World War was the 'war to end all wars' but we were wrong and our troops were once again called to battle in lands too close to the home front - Malaya, Malta, Korea and Indonesia and these were all followed by the horrors of Vietnam. As if to remind us that war is always 'just around the corner' our troops rallied in 1990 to confront the threat of yet another uprising in that war-torn zone known as the Middle East. 16 years later, they're there again. This recording is a unique oral history of the songs that the Australian soldiers sang. War is always a frustration and the songs, ditties, parodies, poetry and stories serve many well-earned roles as a morale booster to facilitate camaraderie, to educate and to assimilate 'new recruits' and to allow that necessary ongoing de-fusing of tension. As with other periods of history when all is not well, like times of economic recession and depression, the songs tend to be short and not so sweet, and, army songs being what they tend to be very much to the point - boots and all! This collection mainly comes from the First and Second World Wars however, there is no doubt that many of these same songs were sung by the 'Diggers' who marched away to Korea, Malaya and Indonesia. As our entertainment patterns changed so too have our soldier songs and the collected material from the Vietnam War tends to be songs about air fighter planes, raids and gas bombs. The later songs still use parodies however, they are chiefly American popular songs. Warfare has also changed dramatically and this might explain why there are so few songs from the Gulf War. I guess it's hard to sing when you're sitting alone in a computerised fighter plane with one finger cocked on a button"

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Album line, contains a Vietnam reference; specific track not known. [From Justin A. Brummer notes from RYM]
Theme: ANZUS

1995

#90 Broderick Smith Rose of Vietnam 1995 · Album · Songster · ABC [Australia] # 4798332 · Australia
Notes
The release prints "Rose of Vietnam". ABC Songwriters' Series, October 1995.
#91 Martin Wesley-Smith Vietnam Image 1995 · Compilation · Wattamolla Red: Electronic Music · Tall Poppies # TP072 · Australia
Notes
He was conscripted to the Vietnam War, but avoided service through studying. He originally composed the song "Vietnam Image" in 1970, which clocked in at 20 minutes. He submitted a tape recording of it as partial fulfilment for his degree of Master of Music at the University of Adelaide, in January 1971, which is stored at the National Library of Australia.
Theme: Anti-War

1998

#92 Elixir Saigon Battle Children 1972 1998 · Album · Elixir · Festival Mushroom # 336362 · Australia
Annotation
Jazz group formed in 1997 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The line-up featured: Katie Noonan (vocals), Nick Stewart (guitar), River Petein (alto saxophone), Martin Challis (poetry), and Isaac Hurren (tenor saxophone). This album featured the anti-war song "Saigon Battle Children 1972" (Festival Mushroom Records # 336362), in which the narrator made a comparison to their daily life with that of a child in the Vietnam War. As the narrator enjoyed the taste of "cashew and walnut" , the child ate "the bones of your neightbours' dog" . As the child "went without feet, a landmine exploding" , the narrator "sprained an ankle at basketball" . The line "while your skin seared from the heat of warfare" may be a reference to chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123 As the child suffered from a napalm attack, the narrator was "feeling the warmth of a shopping centre" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
While I was learning to saviour the new taste of cashew and walnut in the autumn of that year
You were learning to eat the bones of your neightbours' dog as you fled from an earth gone moist
The leaves of war were torn from the jungle as a cavalry of shrapnel burnt away the air
You were learning to hold your breath while I was doing the same in a suburban swimming pool
When the dust of your family filled the lids of your eyes
Being left to see for yourself held quite a different meaning
While your skin seared from the heat of warfare
I was feeling the warmth of a shopping centre in winter
When you went without feet, a landmine exploding your underneath world underneath
I sprained an ankle at basketball
The words of an American god spat forth from automatic weapon
And you saw the tongues of the lamb inviting you to feast in a foreign language
And while I drew in crayon on the kindergarten wall
You were drawn in the crosshairs just before the smell of cordite
While your skin seared from the heat of warfare
I was feeling the warmth of a shopping centre in winter
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
Genre: ♪ Jazz

2001

#93–96 Roger Mason Australians at War 2001 · Soundtrack · ABC Classics # ABC 461 800-2 · Australia
All 4 songs from this soundtrack in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
Soundtrack to Australian "eight-hour television series that examines the effects of war on the lives of Australians and how this nation has been shaped by those experiences".1 Roger Mason was a composer based in Sydney, Australia, accompanied by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, formed in 1948 from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Several wars were covered in the documentary and this soundtrack, including World War One, World War Two, and Korea. The Vietnam War-related songs on this soundtrack were: "Special Forces in Vietnam" , "Vietnam Vets" , "Conscription 1969" , and "Vietnam Protests" . Episode seven dealt with the Vietnam War, which "looks back at the issues surrounding the Vietnam War" .
Liner notes
Episode Seven of Australians at War, “Trying not to remember”, looks back at the issues surrounding the Vietnam War, including the protest movement and the conscription debate, but most importantly provides first-hand accounts from individuals who risked everything to fight in a “dirty war” they either believed to be right or were conscripted to serve in. Tragically, returned servicemen all too often continued to suffer upon their return home, where Australia’s citizens had become deeply divided over key aspects of the war. But their trauma was not always the result of anti-war sentiment, the stress of combat, the effect of injury or exposure to defoliants such as Agent Orange". (2)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#93 Roger Mason Special Forces in Vietnam 2001 · Soundtrack · Australians at War · ABC Classics # ABC 461 800-2 · Australia
Credited on the record as Roger Mason, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Stanhope.
Annotation
Soundtrack to Australian "eight-hour television series that examines the effects of war on the lives of Australians and how this nation has been shaped by those experiences".1 Roger Mason was a composer based in Sydney, Australia, accompanied by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, formed in 1948 from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Several wars were covered in the documentary and this soundtrack, including World War One, World War Two, and Korea. The Vietnam War-related songs on this soundtrack were: "Special Forces in Vietnam" , "Vietnam Vets" , "Conscription 1969" , and "Vietnam Protests" . Episode seven dealt with the Vietnam War, which "looks back at the issues surrounding the Vietnam War" .
Liner notes
Episode Seven of Australians at War, “Trying not to remember”, looks back at the issues surrounding the Vietnam War, including the protest movement and the conscription debate, but most importantly provides first-hand accounts from individuals who risked everything to fight in a “dirty war” they either believed to be right or were conscripted to serve in. Tragically, returned servicemen all too often continued to suffer upon their return home, where Australia’s citizens had become deeply divided over key aspects of the war. But their trauma was not always the result of anti-war sentiment, the stress of combat, the effect of injury or exposure to defoliants such as Agent Orange". (2)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Score to the eight-part ABC television series Australians at War (2001); episode seven covers Vietnam. 2-CD set.
#94 Roger Mason Vietnam Vets 2001 · Soundtrack · Australians at War · ABC Classics # ABC 461 800-2 · Australia
Credited on the record as Roger Mason, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Stanhope.
Annotation: see “Special Forces in Vietnam” above (same release).
#95 Roger Mason Conscription 1969 2001 · Soundtrack · Australians at War · ABC Classics # ABC 461 800-2 · Australia
Credited on the record as Roger Mason, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Stanhope.
Annotation: see “Special Forces in Vietnam” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#96 Roger Mason Vietnam Protests 2001 · Soundtrack · Australians at War · ABC Classics # ABC 461 800-2 · Australia
Credited on the record as Roger Mason, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Stanhope.
Annotation: see “Special Forces in Vietnam” above (same release).

2002

#97 Normie Rowe Missing in Action 2002 · Single · Australia
Annotation
Normie Rowe, pop rock artist and Australian Vietnam War veteran, born 1 February 1947 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He served in Vietnam from January 1969 to February 1970. Rowe was reported to have been the protaganist in the song "Smiley" by Ronnie Burns, conscripted to fight in the Vietnam War. Johnny Young, the songwriter, said on ABC-TV’s Love Is In The Air that "before he left, he was really happy-go-lucky, fun-filled young fella. When he came back, he changed".1 Rowe released this collection of post-Vietnam songs, presenting the veteran / military soldier's perspective, which according to his website was "14 tracks relating to Normie’s experiences as a Vietnam war veteran".2 This included a cover of "Smiley", and a cover of "Still in Saigon" by The Charlie Daniels Band. The title song "Missing in Action" was about the impact of the war on a veteran back in Australia: "he's changed... he's not the same... thirty years have past" , probably containing some biographical elements.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Though he was a still young man
When he came back from the Asian war...
He's changed they said, he's not the same...
His eyes told stories...
He went missing in action
From the time he got home...
Nobody understood...
Thirty years have past
Theme: ANZUS

2005

#98 James Blundell Postcards From Saigon 2005 · Single · Revenge · Australia
Annotation
Singer/songwriter James Blundell, born on 8 December 1964 in Australia, released the song "Postcards From Saigon" (Revenge Records), as a tribute to Australian veterans of the Vietnam War, inspired by the US invasion of Iraq, ongoing at that time.1 The back of the CD single said that the proceeds from this release would be donated to the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia, stating that: "The VVAA NSW Branch is a welfare charity group which provides welfare support and claims assistance to all veterans and their dependents. The proceeds of the sale of this CD are being used to help build the new National Museum at Philip Island, and to establish the 'James Blundell' Veteran's Children Bursary Fund".2 The narrator told of his brother who "went to Vietnam for Harold Holt and Uncle Same" - Holt being a reference to the Australian Prime Minister (1966-67). His brother's "best friend faded in his arms" , and so "he felt guilty coming home" . His brother struggled in the post-war period: "can you help to ease the pain" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Charity single for the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia (NSW Branch); inspired by the Iraq war. Narrated by a veteran's brother.
Lyrics
English
My brother had a a dream
My brother wore the jungle green
My brother went to Vietnam
For Harold Holt and Uncle Sam
He sent postcards from Saigon
I'm alright but it's all wrong
Three postcards from Saigon
My brother kissed the face of death
My brother drew the deepest breath
His best friend faded in his arms
He felt guilty coming home
He sent postcards from Saigon
I'm alright but it's all wrong
Three postcards from Saigon
In the killing fields the bullets sing
Purple Haze in the pouring rain
It's a military tattoo from Abel and Cain
Why must history repeat itself time and time again
My brother divorced and remarried
One summer, but two miscarried
Can you help to ease the pain
Close the circle, make him whole again
Get to know him by his name...
He sent postcards from Saigon...
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
#99 The Herd I Was Only Nineteen 2005 · Album · The Sun Never Sets · Elefant Traks # ACE021 · Australia
Annotation
Hip Hopcover of the song "I Was Only Nineteen" (Elefant Traks # ACE021). This group formed in 2001, Sydney, NSW, Australia. The line-up featured: Ozi Batla (MC), Urthboy (MC), Berzerkatron (MC), Unkle Ho (drum programming), Traksewt (drum programming, accordion, clarinet), Sulo (drum programming, guitar), Toe Fu (guitar), Rok Poshtya (bass), Jane Tyrell (vocals), Alejandro (laptop, vocals), and Snapsuit (production). The song dealt with the negative impact of war on the soldier. Written by John Schumann, born 18 May 1953 in Adelaide, Australia, leader singer of Redgum, formed in 1975, Adelaide, and disbanded in 1990. As discussed above, John Schumann based it largely on the experiences of the Vietnam war veteran Mick Storen (his brother-in-law).1 This song provided an important representation of the loss of innocence for a nineteen year old, whose life changed because of the war. It brought attention to the plight of the Australian Vietnam veteran.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Cover of the Redgum song (1983).
Lyrics
English
Mum and Dad and Denny saw the passing out parade at Puckapunyal
It was a long march from cadets
The sixth battalion was the next to tour and it was me who drew the card
We did Canungra and Shoalwater before we left
And Townsville lined the footpaths as we marched down to the quay
This clipping from the paper shows us young and strong and clean
And there's me in me slouch hat with me SLR and greens
God help me - I was only nineteen
From Vung Tau riding Chinooks to the dust at Nui Dat
I'd been in and out of choppers now for months
And we made our tents a home, V.B. and pinups on the lockers
And an Asian orange sunset through the scrub
And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep?
And night time's just a jungle dark and a barking M.16?
And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means?
God help me - I was only nineteen
A four week operation, when each step can mean your last one on two legs
It was a war within yourself
But you wouldn't let your mates down 'til they had you dusted off
So you closed your eyes and thought about somethin' else
And then someone yelled out "Contact", and the bloke behind me swore
We hooked in there for hours, then a God almighty roar
And Frankie kicked a mine the day that mankind kicked the moon
God help me - he was goin' home in June
And I can still see Frankie, drinkin' tinnies in the Grand Hotel
On a thirty-six hour rec. leave in Vung Tau
And I can still hear Frankie, lying screaming in the jungle
'Til the morphine came and killed the bloody row
And the Anzac legends didn't mention mud and blood and tears
And the stories that my father told me never seemed quite real
I caught some pieces in my back that I didn't even feel
God help me, I was only 19
And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep?
Any why the Channel Seven chopper chills me to my feet?
And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means?
God help me - I was only 19
Show full lyrics (37 lines) ▾
Genre: ♪ Hip Hop
#100 Gary Nicholas & Phill Knight The Battle of Long Tan 2005 · Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Sheet music only (Australian War Memorial library, Sheet music 892); no recording found.

2007

#101–113 Normie Rowe Missing in Action 2007 · Album · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
All 13 songs from this album in the archive are in this collection
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#101 Normie Rowe Living Underneath the Southern Cross 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#102 Normie Rowe Smiley 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#103 Normie Rowe Twenty Years Ago 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#104 Normie Rowe Still in Saigon 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs
#105 Normie Rowe Scots of the Riverina 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#106 Normie Rowe Old Soldiers Die Hard 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#107 Normie Rowe Wanna Go Home 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
#108 Normie Rowe Sent Here to Die 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
#109 Normie Rowe I Remember the Spirit 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#110 Normie Rowe It Ain't Changed None 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#111 Normie Rowe What've You Done For Australia 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
#112 Normie Rowe Rock 'n' Roll Travellin' Man 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#113 Normie Rowe Say Goodbye 2007 · Album · Missing in Action · Not On Label # NR 001 · Australia
Annotation: see “The Battle of Long Tan” above (same release).
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#114 Backsliders Vietnam People 2007 · Album · Left Field Holler · Shock # BS6 · Australia
Annotation
Blues group formed in 1988 in Sydney, NSW, Australia, with a revolving line-up, but led throughout by Dom Turner. Featured on this album was the song "Vietnam People" , which in typical blues style, repeated each line of the lyrics, below. It paid tribute to the Vietnamese people, who for "a thousand years" have been "fighting for their rights" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Tribute to the Vietnamese people; Dom Turner plays the Vietnamese dan nguyet on the album.
Lyrics
English
The Vietnam people sure know how to fight...
A thousand years fighting for their rights...
The Vietnam people know education is the answer...
Got to teach the young mind, won't take any chances...
The Vietnam people sure do treat you fine
From Hai Phong to the... city line...
Genre: ♪ Blues
Also in: ▤ Blues songs

2008

#115 Warhorse Saigon 2008 · EP · Gun$ · Timberyard # T4928 · Australia
Annotation
Australian psychedelic rock group formed in December 2005, currently based in Sydney, NSW, Australia. Member line-up: George-Alex Nagle (bass), Jasper Harry Valentine Fenton (drums), Jackson Singleton (guitar), Oscar Clifford-Smith (guitar), and Jasper Pieter Clifford-Smith (guitar, vocals). The song "Saigon" (Timberyard Records # T4928) is narrated from the perspective of a soldier in the combat zone: "I'm in pain but I can talk...brace my bleeding" . The soldier was hoping to "get out of here alive" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I'm not tired, I am nowhere close
I'm alive, I'm not a ghost
I'm in pain but I can talk
Brace my bleeding, just can't walk, just can't walk, just can't walk, just can't walk
The kid is about to pack it in
My heart is still beating
Yeah I'm really alright
If I get out here alive
Stop and take me seriously, just not as much the old ladies
Just not as much as the...
It's not like I need brain surgery...
Yeah I'm not really alright
But I'll get out of here alive
#116 Mariana Bell Vietnam 2008 · Album · Book · Not On Label · USA
Annotation
Mariana Bell, singer-songwriter born in Australia, but raised in Charlottesville, Virginia, and now based in Los Angeles, California. In the song "Vietnam" , a veteran recalled the war: "he recalls Vietnam was painless, but she remembers it was endless" . The narrator asked "what did the system make you do" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
He recalls Vietnam was painless
But she remembers it was endless
You haven't let it go
Let it go...
The politics of glamour see us through the weight of what is heinous
That is the dearth of your pursuit
But that is not what I would choose if I were you
Still I think it's in my head, in my head
I got it wrong
And what did the system make you do
You'd never dare ask for help
I'm afraid the onus lies with you...
Theme: Vet
#117–121 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew Behind the Lines 2008 · Album · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
All 5 songs from this album in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
John Schumann, born in Adelaide, South Australia (18 May 1953), released this album which focused on war, containing First and Second World War songs, as well as some other well-known Vietnam tracks, including Schumann's famous composition "I Was Only 19", which he performed as a member of the group Redgum (1983). The album featured a cover of "Khe Sanh", originally by Cold Chisel. However, it was renamed "Long Tan Version", as the reference to Khe Sanh was historically inaccurate - Australian forces were not involved in that battle. Thus Schumann changed it to Long Tan, the site of the famous battle involving Australian and New Zealand forces on 18 August 1966. The composer of the song, Don Walker, said that: "he rang me up one day a long time ago and asked if I minded if he did that... I said not only was it absolutely okay with me but good on you" .12

Also on the album were covers of "Mothers, Daughters, Wives" by Judy Small, "Band Played Waltzing Matilda" by Eric Bogle, and "Rachel" by Russell Morris. Other members of the Vagabond Crew are Hugh McDonald, Dave Folley, Kat Kraus, & Mark Kraus. The front cover featured a photo of an Australian First World War era soldier.1 Note that Schumann also released the Vietnam War song "Safe Behind the Wire" (1988) as a solo artist. While discussing this album, Schumann said that:
Liner notes
We don't leave people behind. Dead or alive or injured, when it's home time, everybody gets on the chopper....We had 50,000 men and women who served in Vietnam and we had six MIAs. The Americans had thousands - what does that tell you?" (3)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#117 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew Band Played Waltzing Matilda 2008 · Album · Behind the Lines · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
Annotation
John Schumann, born in Adelaide, South Australia (18 May 1953), released this album which focused on war, containing First and Second World War songs, as well as some other well-known Vietnam tracks, including Schumann's famous composition "I Was Only 19", which he performed as a member of the group Redgum (1983). The album featured a cover of "Khe Sanh", originally by Cold Chisel. However, it was renamed "Long Tan Version", as the reference to Khe Sanh was historically inaccurate - Australian forces were not involved in that battle. Thus Schumann changed it to Long Tan, the site of the famous battle involving Australian and New Zealand forces on 18 August 1966. The composer of the song, Don Walker, said that: "he rang me up one day a long time ago and asked if I minded if he did that... I said not only was it absolutely okay with me but good on you" .12

Also on the album were covers of "Mothers, Daughters, Wives" by Judy Small, "Band Played Waltzing Matilda" by Eric Bogle, and "Rachel" by Russell Morris. Other members of the Vagabond Crew are Hugh McDonald, Dave Folley, Kat Kraus, & Mark Kraus. The front cover featured a photo of an Australian First World War era soldier.1 Note that Schumann also released the Vietnam War song "Safe Behind the Wire" (1988) as a solo artist. While discussing this album, Schumann said that:
Liner notes
We don't leave people behind. Dead or alive or injured, when it's home time, everybody gets on the chopper....We had 50,000 men and women who served in Vietnam and we had six MIAs. The Americans had thousands - what does that tell you?" (3)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
#118 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew Mothers, Daughters, Wives 2008 · Album · Behind the Lines · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
#119 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew Khe Sanh (Long Tan Version) 2008 · Album · Behind the Lines · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs
#120 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green) 2008 · Album · Behind the Lines · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs
#121 John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew Rachel 2008 · Album · Behind the Lines · ABC [Australia] # 1778130 · Australia
Annotation: see “Vietnam” above (same release).
Theme: Vet
#122 Matthew Hindson A Symphony of Modern Objects: IV. Vietnam War Memorial 2008 · Album · Modern Objects · Trust · Australia
Credited on the record as Matthew Hindson, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Young.
Annotation
Matthew Hindson, a classical composer, born 12 September 1968 in Wollongong, NSW, Australia. On this album he worked with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, which included the song "A Symphony of Modern Objects: IV. Vietnam War Memorial" . It was commissioned by the Ars Musica Australis, a not-for-profit community-based arts organisation. Hindson wrote program notes, which discussed the mistreatment of veterans, conscripted at the age of 19, but on their return to Australia were "ignored at best, or reviled and abused at worst" . The country needed to recognise "the sacrifices made by these men and women" . Yet, he also acknowledged the brutality of the war for the Vietnamese: "the grief-stricken wailing of a mother whose daughter has been sprayed with napalm" .1 This is another interesting post-war Australian song that criticised the country's poor track record of memorialising the war.
Liner notes
Our country’s involvement in the Vietnam War can be viewed in hindsight as an altogether destructive experience. For me, the most disturbing aspect of this war was the way in which the returned soldiers were treated upon their return. I find it difficult to imagine the scenario of a 19 year old, conscripted to fight in an extraordinarily physically and psychologically damaging environment, coming home only to be ignored at best, or reviled and abused at worst. It is only in recent times that the Australian government has publicly and honestly recognized the sacrifices made by these men and women in what was, at the time, the service of their country. The Vietnam War was, of course, traumatic not only to the Australian serving personnel, but also to their families, and to the entire people of Vietnam in general. One need only imagine the grief-stricken wailing of a mother whose daughter has been sprayed with napalm, or of a mother whose son has returned psychologically damaged beyond repair, or of the absolute terror of a soldier or village when ambushed and attacked by opposing forces, to realize that we need to recognize the great and on-going sacrifices that all participants made to this traumatic period of recent history
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Performed by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kenneth Young; Trust Records (New Zealand). Fourth movement of Symphony No. 1.
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs
#123 Graham Rodger The Battle of Coral 2008 · Album · The Fire Within Me · Not On Label # AM005 · Australia
Annotation
Country musician from Queensland, Australia. Retiring as an ambulance driver in the 1990s, he turned to music, releasing dozens of country albums, with "Australia and Australians as the major themes for his ballads", and a focus on the "traditions cemented into our culture by the late Slim Dusty".1 He wrote and released several songs about the Vietnam War, which were: "The Battle of Long Tan", "The Battle of Coral" , "Missing in Action", and "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons".

On this album featured the song "The Battle of Coral" (# AM005), about the Battle of Coral–Balmoral (12 May – 6 June 1968), fought between the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) and the North Vietnamese 7th Division, and Viet Cong Main Force units, outside of Saigon in South Vietnam.2 This is not to be confused with the Battle of the Coral Sea which took place during World War Two. It described the battle in detail, starting with the mission objective: "block Charlie's retreat in and out of Saigon" . The North Vietnamese broke through the line, but the "overrun Aussie's dug in and fought back" , stopping the advance. The song recalled previous wars: "fought like the ANZAC's of old" . The narrator then paid tribute to those killed in action (K.I.A.): "25 diggers who gave up their lives" . As discussed above, the term Digger is a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One.34 Note: this album also featured the patriotic song "You Can't Take Australia From Me" which referenced soldiers and war, but it does not mention Vietnam or any other specific conflict.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released. About the Battle of Coral-Balmoral, 12 May - 6 June 1968.
Lyrics
English
In the jungles of 'Nam the boys from 1RAR
Dug their heels in at F.S.B Coral
Just one mile away our mates from 3RAR
Set up Fire Support Base Balmoral
Our orders were clear, set up mortars and guns
Block Charlie's retreat in and out of Saigon
And if they start causin' problems send 'em home on the run
But fight to hold Coral, Balmoral
On the 13th of May first contact was made
As the enemy broke through our position
With rockets and mortars, guns and grenades
They tried to pound us right into submission
But the overrun Aussie's dug in and fought back
And stopped the North Vietnamese in their tracks
And we turned them around and we hunted them back
In the Battle of Coral, Balmoral...
We cared for our mates just like brothers
And fought like the ANZAC's of old
We died and we bled for each other
And together we did ourselves proud at the Battle of Coral
The 26 days the smoke billowed high
For the hell-holes of Coral, Balmoral
Our senses were honed like the edge of a knife
Always alert for the first signs of trouble
But the courage of the digger is a hard nut to crack
They gave us their all but we answered right back
And we turned up the heat till we pounded them flat
And won the Battle of Coral, Balmoral...
To the 25 diggers who gave up their lives
Your sacrifice won't be forgotten
And to all of the soldiers of 1 and 3RAR
We did us proud at the Battle of Coral
Show full lyrics (33 lines) ▾

2011

#124 Dead City Ruins My Lai Massacre 2011 · Album · Midnight Killer · Impedance # IMP028 · Australia
Notes
The "My Lai Massacre" (Impedance Records # IMP028) - hard rock / heavy metal, formed in the UK, but based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. This record was released in Wollongong, NSW, Australia
Notes
The CD is dated 6 May 2011.
Theme: My Lai

2012

#125 Graham Rodger The Battle of Long Tan 2012 · Album · Muster on the Great Divide · Not On Label # AM003 · Australia
Annotation
Country musician from Queensland, Australia. Retiring as an ambulance driver in the 1990s, he turned to music, releasing dozens of country albums, with "Australia and Australians as the major themes for his ballads", and a focus on the "traditions cemented into our culture by the late Slim Dusty".1 He wrote and released several songs about the Vietnam War, which were: "The Battle of Long Tan" , "The Battle of Coral", "Missing in Action", and "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons".

On this album featured the song "The Battle of Long Tan" about the famous and iconic battle that took place on 18 August 1966. A small number, approximately 108 Australian and New Zealand servicemen, defended their position against a force of around 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars, possibly preventing an attack against Nui Dat, the base of the 1st Australian Task Force.23 Note that other songs about this battle are the classical composition "The Battle of Long Tan" (2005) by Gary Nicholas and Phill Knight, the classical score to the motion picture Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan, by Caitlin Yeo, and "Tell Carmelita" by Lee Kernaghan, discussed below.4

The song set-out the scene from the Australian perspective, with the Australian forces in 1966 new to the Nui Dat base, when "the VC decided...they'd humble the Aussies" . He noted that as the battle began on the rubber plantation "our blokes were outnumbered 30-1" . The lyrics provide some fairly accurate stats: "108 soldiers from Delta 6" , and "3000" from the other side. The narrator described the fierce combat, but "the Aussie held on, never giving an inch" . It presented the battle as a symbol of Australian national pride: "they fought for our country with honour and pride" . The song also provided a 1960s pro-government interpretation of the war, that Australia, and its ally the US, were defending an independent, non-communist South Vietnam that was fighting for freedom: "you were fighting for those who dared to be free" , thus ignoring the North Vietnamese perspective. This can be categorised under the 'patriotic' song theme.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released. The song is credited to A. MacPherson (on the 2016 album They Answered the Call, where it reappears).
Lyrics
English
In 1966 the Australia were new to the Nui Dat base in the numbers were few
The VC decided they'd be easy to beat
They'd humble the Aussies with a crushing defeat
For the 18th of August they planned their attack
With 3,000 troops to wipe out Nui Dat
But 108 soldiers from Delta 6 were patrolling that day and stood in their path
As daylight was fading the battle began
In that rubber plantation known as Long Tan
Our blokes were outnumbered by 30-1
But nearly 500 would fall to their guns
Well the fighting was fierce as VC pushed in
But the Aussie held on, never giving an inch
With the angel of death close by their side
They fought for our country with honour and pride
As storm raged our choppers made a fresh ammo drop
The APCs charged, they just couldn't be stopped
While our artilleries tore the plantation apart
And then the enemy fled under cover of dark
In the rain sodden hell hole they countered the cost
24 wounded, and 18 men lost
We paid a hard price to receive victories hand
So here's to the soldiers who fought at Long Tan...
And to all other battles in South Vietnam
You were fighting for those who dared to be free
Your deeds will live on in our memories...
Show full lyrics (26 lines) ▾
#126 Val Stephen Vietnam Study 2012 · Archival · Electrogenesis · Shame File # sham068 · Australia
Annotation
Dr. Val Stephen, an anaesthetist born in 1919, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, who became an electronic music composer, inspired by European experimental music in the late 1950s. He died 1998. In 2012, Electrogenesis (Shame File Music # sham068) was released, which according to its notes, was a compilation of his experimental music taken from "recordings on nearly one hundred reel-to-reel tapes and twenty-five audio cassettes that formed Stephen's private collection" - examined and catalogued by John Whiteoak and Clinton Green, mastered by Greg Wadley (March 2012). The original tapes are at stored in the National Film and Sound Archive, in Canberra, Australia.1 This included the song "Vietnam Study" , thought to have been recorded around 1973, so during the Vietnam War-era. The song effectively reconstructs the unsettling sounds of war, such as gunfire, intercepted occasionally by a chorus of singing, possibly Vietnamese.
Sources
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Composed 1973; released 2012 on a CDr compilation of his tapes (mastered by Greg Wadley, March 2012). Reconstructs the sounds of war with gunfire and, at moments, singing.
Theme: Combat

2015

#127 Dennis Marsh Man From Vietnam 2015 · Album · Lest We Forget · Sony # 888750852328 · New Zealand
Annotation
Dennis Marsh, aka Dennis Te Uhi Marsh, born on 22 February 1951, Te Kuiti, New Zealand, is a country musician. He has Ngāpuhi and Ngati Hine iwi affiliations. He has released many songs in the Māori language - this is the Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of New Zealand.123

The song "Man From Vietnam" (Sony Music # 888750852328), opened and closed with helicopter sound-effects. It firstly contained lines about combat, looking at the soldier's perspective: "shots rang out in Saigon, smoke cloud... hiding in those foxhole" . Secondly, in featured patriotic sentiment: "fighting for his country... no matter what the cost" . Thirdly, the song was about preserving the memory of the conflict and those that died: "we will remember them... we salute the man from Vietnam" . This song is particularly significant as it included several verses in Māori language (subsequently translated into English, in blocks), the only Vietnam War song to do so.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
The only Vietnam War song with verses in Māori (the Ode of Remembrance). Helicopter sound effects open and close it.
Lyrics
English
November 6th 1965
He's standing on the front line, just trying to stay alive
Shots rang out in Saigon
Smoke cloud filled the air
Hiding in those foxhole, the enemy is here
Fighting for his country, protecting his pride
Some men still remember some of our men died
Vietnam, one nation under god
They fought hand in hand, no matter what the cost
We will remember them
And we salute the man from Vietnam
From Vietnam...
[Māori language spoken]: 'They shall grow old not old... as we grow old' ....
[Māori language spoken]: 'Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn' ...
[Māori language spoken]: 'At the going down of the sun and in the morning' ...
[Māori language spoken]: 'We will remember them'
Fighting for this country, protecting his pride
Some men still remember, some of our men died
In Vietnam, one nation under god
They fought hand in hand no matter what the cost
We will remember them
And we salute the man from Vietnam...
Show full lyrics (23 lines) ▾
#128 Victor Churchill Dale Soldier From Vietnam 2015 · Album · Anzac Journey (Songs & Ballads of Recognition) · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Victor Churchill Dale, also known as Vic Dale, born in 1945 in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, and currently based in Coolgardie, Western Australia, is a poet, who released this tribute to Anzac through history, which included the track "Soldier From Vietnam" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released, recorded at Belltones Studio, Wilson, WA. Dale is credited as writer and narrator; the track is presumed spoken.
Themes: Vet ANZUS
#129–132 Lee Kernaghan Spirit of the Anzacs 2015 · Album · ABC [Australia] # 0602547172938 · Australia
All 4 songs from this album in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
Country artist, born 15 April 1964 in Corryong, Victoria, Australia. He released this album (ABC Music # 0602547172938) to mark the 100th anniversary of the ANZAC landing of Australian and New Zealand soldiers at Gallipoli during the First World War.1 It largely contained songs about the First World War and Second World War, but also Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan. The songs referencing the Vietnam conflict were "Spirit of the Anzacs" , "Tell Carmelita" , and "The Unbearable Price of War" . The deluxe edition of the album came with a cover of "I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green)", originally released by Redgum (1983), composed by John Schumann.

For the title song "Spirit of the Anzacs" , Kernaghan joined forces with Australian-based artists Guy Sebastian, Sheppard, Jon Stevens, Jessica Mauboy, Shannon Noll, and Meg Washington, for the release of a charity single. The song was a patriotic tribute which referenced several wars and roles. In the case of Vietnam, it focused on the nurses: "she's a nurse in Vietnam... she's all of them, she's one of us... the spirit of the Anzacs" .

The song "Tell Carmelita" was narrated from the perspective of a soldier in Vietnam, missing his sweetheart, centred around the famous and iconic Battle of Long Tan that took place on 18 August 1966. A small number, approximately 108 Australian and New Zealand servicemen, defended their position against a force of around 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars, possibly preventing an attack against Nui Dat, the base of the 1st Australian Task Force23: "you've already heard about Long Tan, we stumbled on some VC on patrol" . During the attack he hoped that he would return to Australia: "I wish I was there, Camelita beside me.

The song "The Unbearable Price of War" , a duet with Lisa McCune, kicked-off with helicopter sound-effects, and a soldier writing to his parents from "Vung Tau, at the Australian field hospital", after his APC (a tank) drove over a mine: "I'm lucky to be alive". The narration then moved to a female working at the hospital writing to her parents that it's worse than she thought: "the triage, the chaos, the blood and khaki".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#129 Lee Kernaghan Spirit of the Anzacs 2015 · Album · ABC [Australia] # 0602547172938 · Australia
Credited on the record as Lee Kernaghan with Guy Sebastian, Sheppard, Jon Stevens, Jessica Mauboy, Shannon Noll & Meg Washington.
Annotation
Country artist, born 15 April 1964 in Corryong, Victoria, Australia. He released this album (ABC Music # 0602547172938) to mark the 100th anniversary of the ANZAC landing of Australian and New Zealand soldiers at Gallipoli during the First World War.1 It largely contained songs about the First World War and Second World War, but also Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan. The songs referencing the Vietnam conflict were "Spirit of the Anzacs" , "Tell Carmelita" , and "The Unbearable Price of War" . The deluxe edition of the album came with a cover of "I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green)", originally released by Redgum (1983), composed by John Schumann.

For the title song "Spirit of the Anzacs" , Kernaghan joined forces with Australian-based artists Guy Sebastian, Sheppard, Jon Stevens, Jessica Mauboy, Shannon Noll, and Meg Washington, for the release of a charity single. The song was a patriotic tribute which referenced several wars and roles. In the case of Vietnam, it focused on the nurses: "she's a nurse in Vietnam... she's all of them, she's one of us... the spirit of the Anzacs" .

The song "Tell Carmelita" was narrated from the perspective of a soldier in Vietnam, missing his sweetheart, centred around the famous and iconic Battle of Long Tan that took place on 18 August 1966. A small number, approximately 108 Australian and New Zealand servicemen, defended their position against a force of around 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars, possibly preventing an attack against Nui Dat, the base of the 1st Australian Task Force23: "you've already heard about Long Tan, we stumbled on some VC on patrol" . During the attack he hoped that he would return to Australia: "I wish I was there, Camelita beside me.

The song "The Unbearable Price of War" , a duet with Lisa McCune, kicked-off with helicopter sound-effects, and a soldier writing to his parents from "Vung Tau, at the Australian field hospital", after his APC (a tank) drove over a mine: "I'm lucky to be alive". The narration then moved to a female working at the hospital writing to her parents that it's worse than she thought: "the triage, the chaos, the blood and khaki".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Charity single marking the Anzac centenary; one line on a nurse in Vietnam.
Lyrics
English
He's a drover drifting over Western plains
He's a city lad, a clark down Flinder's Lane
They're in the trenches at Lone Pine
And on the Flander's firing line
A willing band of ordinary men
He's all of them
He's one of us
Born beneath the Southern Cross
Side by side
We say with pride
He is all of them
He is one of us
He's a pilot on a midnight bombing raid
He's an Able Seaman on the Armidale
She's a nurse in Vietnam
They're on patrol in Uruzgan
Sons and daughters rising to the call
She's all of them
She's one of us...
The spirit of the Anzacs
Proud and strong
Spirit of the Anzacs
Will live on and on and on...
Show full lyrics (24 lines) ▾
#130 Lee Kernaghan Tell Carmelita 2015 · Album · Spirit of the Anzacs · ABC [Australia] # 0602547172938 · Australia
Annotation: see “Spirit of the Anzacs” above (same release).
Lyrics
English
You've already heard about Long Tan, we stumbled on some VC on patrol... I wish I was there, Carmelita beside me
#131 Lee Kernaghan The Unbearable Price of War 2015 · Album · Spirit of the Anzacs · ABC [Australia] # 0602547172938 · Australia
Credited on the record as Lee Kernaghan & Lisa McCune.
Annotation: see “Spirit of the Anzacs” above (same release).
#132 Lee Kernaghan I Was Only 19 (A Walk in the Light Green) 2015 · Album · Spirit of the Anzacs · ABC [Australia] # 0602547172938 · Australia
Annotation: see “Spirit of the Anzacs” above (same release).
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs

2016

#133 Consulate Saigon 2016 · Album · Dispatches · Altered States Tapes # AST067 · Australia
Annotation
Consulate is Alex Campbell, currently based in Perth, Western Australia. The song "Saigon" , is an electronic, experimental, largely instrumental piece, intersected with quotes referencing Vietnam. Released on Melbourne-based label Altered States Tapes (# AST067). His music is said to be:
Press release
influenced by football culture, Cold War dread, jungle, EBM, East European ultras, breakbeat hardcore and militarism" (1)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Largely instrumental, with spoken quotations about Vietnam; Melbourne label.
#134 Halcyon Vietnam Diary: Great Bloody Xmas Break 2016 · Album · War Letters: New Music Commemorating WWI · Wirripang # Wirr 074 · Australia
Annotation
Australian and New Zealand commemoration of World War One, using war letters, and placing them to music, which also contained a reference to the Vietnam War. Recorded on 14 and 15 November 2015 at the Western Sydney University (WSU), the project received funding from the Australian Government's ANZAC Centenary Local Grants Program, with support from WSU. The product notes said: "War Letters commemorates through music, the service and sacrifice of Australian servicemen and women in the First World War during the ANZAC centenary. Four Australian composers, representing four generations, have taken excerpts from original letters written during times of conflict, and set the words to music for singers and ensemble...Sydney-based Diana Blom’s piece features letters from three different wars - WWI, Vietnam and Afghanistan".1

Diana Blom is Associate Professor, Music, in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts, at WSU, born in New Zealand, and currently based in Sydney, Australia. Her section of the album contained the song "Vietnam Diary: Great Bloody Xmas Break" (Wirripang # Wirr 074) which recites a 17 December 1969 letter from Australian soldier David Wilkins, fighting in the Vietnam War, over the Christmas period, thus presenting the real life experience of a soldier. Wilkins expressed anger and disappointed at spending Christmas in the jungle: "bloody Xmas... spending all the 'break' in the bush" . He noted that they were about to be sent out on a 7 week operation, writing that "man’s a bloody robot" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Recorded 14-15 November 2015 at Western Sydney University for the Anzac centenary.
Lyrics
English
Great bloody 'Xmas' break we are getting – spending all the 'break' in the bloody bush. The digs are even chiming 'so many killing days to Xmas'. To top it off we are about to embark from this great rest onto our last operation of the tour – and it is to be over longest – 7 weeks
Man’s a bloody robot!". David Wilkins (17 December 1969)
#135 Graham Rodger Missing in Action 2016 · Album · They Answered the Call · Not On Label # AM0012 · Australia
Annotation
Country musician from Queensland, Australia. Retiring as an ambulance driver in the 1990s, he turned to music, releasing dozens of country albums, with "Australia and Australians as the major themes for his ballads", and a focus on the "traditions cemented into our culture by the late Slim Dusty".1 The album "They Answered the Call" had a military / war theme, focused on Australia's role in World War One, World War Two, the Vietnam War, Afghanistan, amongst other conflicts. Specific Vietnam-related songs including a version of "The Battle of Long Tan" and "The Battle of Coral", discussed above, as well as "Missing in Action" , and "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons" . Several songs were about veterans, which did not reference a specific war.

The song "Missing in Action" provided a post-war look at the impact of the war on a father whose son never returned from the Vietnam War, presumably killed in action (K.I.A.), or as the government / military informed him back then: "missing in action was all they would say... his number and name" . The father was watching a parade, and when "the Vietnam veterans march by" , the memories flooded back: "our young men where called to the 'Nam" , with the narrator noting that "you can't begin to image the horrors of war" . Also note the use of the term "diggers" - as discussed, a military slang term for soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, which came to prominence during World War One.1

The song "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons" focused on the treatment of Vietnam War veterans on their return to Australia, which noted the lack of cheers, and that the "bureaucratic speeches have a darkened sombre tone" . Decades later, in 1987 at the Welcome Home Parade when it was "time to make amends" , finally the "streamers and confetti came down" . The title of the song was of course a reference to the number of Australian that served in the Vietnam conflict, although the number is thought to have been higher, at around 60,000+.2 The song also contained a reference to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "the jungle vines in the.. heat of 'Nam weighed heavy on the minds" .3
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released. A father whose son did not return from Vietnam watches the veterans march.
Lyrics
English
There's a face in the crowd at the edge of the street
Watching the diggers march by
The young moms and dads with the kids at their feet, hardly notice the tears in his eyes
The warm April sun filters down from up above
But the wind sends a chill up his spine
And his solemn old face never shifts in its gaze
For his thoughts are lost somewhere in time
His mind wonders back to a time long ago when our young men where called to the 'Nam
Early adults, with no choice but to go
To fight in that far away land
You can't begin to image the horrors of war
The suffering and shear waste of life
Somewhere out there, on that far distant shore his own son paid the ultimate price
Missing in action, was all they would say
The words cut through his heart like a knife
Missing in action, his number and name, it's not much to show for a life
For the sake of an innocent life
He draws a sharp breath
Pulls is body up straight
As the Vietnam veterans march by
With his cast iron draw, set on his face
He fights back the tears in his eyes
Someone once told him, that he should just let go
Move on and just let the past be
But how can he face what tomorrow may hold when the nightmares just won't set him free
Missing in action...
Show full lyrics (27 lines) ▾
#136 Graham Rodger Fifty Thousand Australian Sons 2016 · Album · They Answered the Call · Not On Label # AM0012 · Australia
Annotation: see “Missing in Action” above (same release).
Lyrics
the jungle vines in the... heat of 'Nam weighed heavy on the minds
Also in: ▤ PTSD Songs
#137 The Sinking Teeth Saigon 2016 · Album · Songs From the Bottom of the Lake · Not On Label # TST02 · Australia
Annotation
Indie rock group, formed in 2011 in Brunswick, Victoria, Australia. Its line-up consisted of Julian Doan, Adrian Van Bloom, and Nick Manuell. The song "Saigon" looked at the impact of the war on a Vietnam vet, suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - frequently referenced in post-war 1980s songs about US veterans, often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "a flash back to youth pulled you away, in a crowded boat you crossed the waves" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released, 11 November 2016.
Lyrics
English
Your hands are weathered and dry
You wiped down the walls
And you bleached the sky
A pain in your back since 87
The roses have since never looked the same
And unpaid service just for the love
Us kids are fine, us kids are fine
You say there's not enough money
And not enough to keep the colour in your eyes
Come back and
Continue to colour
To the outlines
Of our lives
Even though we talk it's not the same
I need to refresh the memory of your face
Dust lies in every crease you made
A flash back to youth pulled you away
In a crowded boat you crossed the waves
Old blood at home, new life was made
They never knew how far you'd stray
Only to return to your birth place
Come back and
Continue to colour
To the outlines
Of our lives
I tried so hard
To make it easier on you
Show full lyrics (28 lines) ▾

2017

#138 Estère Vietnam 2017 · EP · My Design · Not On Label · New Zealand
Annotation
Wellington, New Zealand artist, who combined the genres Neo-Soul, Trip Hop, and Glitch Pop, released the song "Vietnam" on this digital EP. It also appeared on the physical album My Design, on Others' Lives (Rough Peel Records # RPR013). Estère said in an interview, in November 2017, that she wrote the song around a recording she made while in the country: "there were these bamboo trees knocking together, and I sped up the sample to make this kind of percussive, crinkly sound. I was very mindful of how the war had affected the country and its people, so it's a song that considers conflict and war" .1
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Digital EP, 13 October 2017; also on the album My Design, On Others' Lives (Rough Peel RPR013, 2018). Built on a recording of bamboo made in Vietnam.
Lyrics
English
In the northern breeze they fell
Their bodies like a spell
Casting a veil, trail of auburn
I didn’t want to stir
This blanket on the earth
Quick steps as I found my way home
Theme: Anti-War

2018

#139 Civic New Vietnam 2018 · EP · Anti Fade # ANT - 042 · Australia
Annotation
Garage Punk group formed in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its line-up included Jim McCullough (vocals), Lewis Hodgson (guitar), David Forcier (drums), Darcy Grigg (guitar), and Roland Hlavka (bass). This EP had the song "New Vietnam" (Anti Fade Records # ANT - 042), which appears to be about a drug addict - does this have any connection to the war?.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
...Drive by, they teach you how to live for nothing
I'm the new Vietnam
Tell you what I am
We need a friend
And I need a pick me up
The least you could do is fix me up
I need you under my skin baby
I promise not to love another...
I'm the new Vietnam
Tell you what I am

2019

#140 Caitlin Yeo The Battle of Long Tan 2019 · Soundtrack · Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan · Filmtrax · Australia
Annotation
This is a classical music score to the motion picture film Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan by Caitlin Yeo, based in NSW, Australia. The film was about the famous and iconic battle that took place on 18 August 1966. A small number, approximately 108 Australian and New Zealand servicemen, defended their position against a force of around 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars, possibly preventing an attack against Nui Dat, the base of the 1st Australian Task Force.12 It featured 40 tracks, including the title "The Battle of Long Tan". The song titles followed the progress of the battle, from the beginning: "They Were Probing Us", to the battle: "There’s Hundreds of Them", concluding with a tribute to those that died: "In Remembrance".

Other songs about the battle are "The Battle of Long Tan" by Graham Rodger (2012), and classical composition "The Battle of Long Tan" (2005) by Gary Nicholas and Phill Knight.3
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Title track of the 40-track score to the 2019 film; digital release, August 2019.
#141 Cheddar Road All-Stars Vietnam War in Reservoir 2019 · Album · Nowhere Else to Feel Rotten · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Rock group, currently from Reservoir, Victoria, Australia, its line-up included: Leo Francis, Cat Canteri, Justin Bernasconi, Danny Walsh, Emma Peel, and Barry Dickens. They released the song "Vietnam War in Reservoir" , narrated from the perspective of a soldier's brother: "my brother John, he didn't wanna go... sold your body to Uncle Sam" . The brother said that he was relieved to have "dodged a ticket to Ho Chi Minh" . The song also referenced the Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt (1966-67), who died in office, presumed to have drowned: "Harold Holt had no fucking clue" . The song concluded with "don't wanna Waltz Matilda for you, we didn't wanna go to war" - a reference to the well-known Australian bush ballad, composed in 1895, often played at patriotic and military parades. Eric Bogle famously composed "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda", a play on the original, discussed above.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Self-released.
Lyrics
English
Vietnam War was on
I feared the most for my brother John
He didn't wanna go to war
Bad enough living in Reservoir
Reservoir, Reservoir
Bad enough living in Reservoir
All revolved around your birthday
That's when you got that Purple Haze
If you were unlucky in that jam
They sold your body to Uncle Sam
Reservoir, Reservoir
Bad enough living in Reservoir
Didn't wanna go to war
Vietnam War in Reservoir
In the month of John's birthday
We checked the letterbox everyday
If he got the call up card
We'd hide in a foxhole in our backyard
I was in the call up too
Checking the letterbox, checking the letterbox
Dived my frighten paw right in
But dodged a ticket to Ho Chi Minh
Dodged a ticket to Ho Chi Minh
Harold Holt had no fucking clue
Don't wanna Waltz Matilda for you
We didn't wanna go to war
Bad enough living in Reservoir...
Show full lyrics (28 lines) ▾
Genre: ♪ Rock
Also in: ▤ Draft Songs

2020

#142 Mick Harvey Vietnam 2020 · Soundtrack · Waves of Anzac / The Journey · Mute # CDSTUMM448 · Australia
Annotation
Mock Harvey is a singer/songwriter, born on 29 August 1958 in Rochester, Victoria, Australia. He is currently based Melbourne, Australia. He released the modern classical instrumental song "Vietnam" , produced for the ABC Australia documentary titled "Why Anzac?", in which Sydney-based Sam Neill looks at the history of Australia and war.1 A description of the soundtrack said:
Press release
Waves of ANZAC is represented by 13 tracks selected from the score for the ABC documentary on forgotten war stories and lives lost. The documentary is a personal history by the actor Sam Neill (Jurassic Park, The Piano) set against a contemporary increasingly divided political backdrop. ‘Why ANZAC? with Sam Neill’ (Dir. Kriv Stenders, 2015) is named for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who served together in the Gallipoli Campaign, their first engagement in World War I and continued as a military unit until after WW2. The film is a look at this pivotal point in our shared history, and the impact it still has on a personal and on a geopolitical level" (1)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
From the score to the ABC documentary Why Anzac? with Sam Neill (2015, dir. Kriv Stenders); released 17 April 2020.
Themes: Film ANZUS

2024

#143 Just Urbain My Love My Lai 2024 · Compilation · Raw & Alive 78 - 81 · Shake # SM10 · Australia
Notes
- My Love My Lai
- Australian punk, Brisbane
- Archival, recorded 1978-81, but only released in 2024
#144 Just Urbain My Love My Lai (Studio Coda) 2024 · Compilation · Raw & Alive 78 - 81 · Shake # SM10 · Australia
Annotation: see “My Love My Lai” above (same release).

Unknown date

#145 Wally White Home From Vietnam EP · Return From Vietnam · CM Twin City # CMEP 505 · Australia
Annotation
Country artist Wally White, from Australia, released the song "Home From Vietnam" (CM # CMEP 505), despite the title of the EP being "Return From Vietnam" , which took a patriotic, pro-soldier perspective. Note that he also released the single "Letter From Vietnam" (CM # CMEP-510) in 1970, which took the format of a letter from a soldier to his mother, describing combat conditions, discussed above. This one took a more political perspective, saying that the "Aussie boys are fighting in Vietnam" to "bring home a victory" , as they are "fighting for our freedom" , and "to save their mates" . It did refer to the conflict as a "terrible war of strife" , and thus, "we pray to god in heaven for peace" , and so containing some anti-war sentiment. There is no date on the record, but was presumably released after his 1970 EP mentioned above. The record label was from West Tamworth, NSW, Australia.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Musical director Ken Cameron; produced by John Zulaikha at World of Sound; matrix A4KB-0537. From the EP Return From Vietnam (Home From Vietnam / The Grave Down by the River / A Voice From the Town / Hullo & Goodbye). CM Twin City Country Sound CMEP 505, Side 1, gold label, Australian made, Box 507, Dubbo, and Box 41, West Tamworth; 1. "Home From Vietnam" (W. White), 3.13, C.M.

Control; 2. "The Grave Down by the River" (W. White), 2.47, CM Control, printed on a paste-over sticker.

The picture sleeve, "Wally White singing Return From Vietnam", shows a soldier in a slouch hat holding a small boy on a crowded wharf beside a ship, and lists "A Voice From the Town", "Hullo & Goodbye" and "Grave by the River". [From the record sleeve and labels]
Lyrics
English
The sun is slowly setting way out in the west
The twilight softly falling, is the time we love the best
My thought are drifting onwards to a foreign distant land
To where the Aussie boys are fighting in Vietnam
There are men from every walk of life marching side by side
To help bring home a victory to stem this dreaded tide
Through the hills and steamy jungles, on the river plans...
The Aussie boys are fighting in Vietnam
From mountains to the city, from country towns and plain
There fighting for our freedom, they'd do it all again
There are mothers, wives and sweethearts, all waiting in our land
For when the Aussie boys are home from Vietnam
We read in the daily papers of the boys who gave their lives
To save their mates in battle, in this terrible war of strife
So we pray to god in heaven for peace to always stand
When the Aussie boys are home from Vietnam
Show full lyrics (17 lines) ▾
#146 Coral Dasey Vietnam Lullaby Album · Listen to a Country Song · CM # CMLP 015 · Australia
Annotation
Country singer Coral Dasey, from Inverell, NSW, Australia. She died in 2017.1 This album was probably released around 1976, based on single release date, it featured the song "Vietnam Lullaby" (CM # CMLP 015). She was a founding member of the Tamworth Songwriters Association.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Undated. Produced at CM Studios, Dubbo.
Genre: ♪ Country
#147 The Clergy Vietnam Album · Glow · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Pop rock group formed Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, featuring John Busby, Steve Sutherland, Mick Baker, and Cherri Busby. This 90s cassette-only album contained the song "Vietnam" , which according to the linear notes, was "inspired by the Gulf War. This song contains a few of my thoughts on politicians and their policies. I don't know how they sleep".1 This is a great example of a song using the Vietnam War as a benchmark for comparison to contemporary conflicts, in this case the First Gulf War (1991), in which Australia participated as a member of the Coalition force. The narrator here was unhappy with Australia's involvement: "I don't care about Mr. Bush... I'm not going to die for them" - a reference to the US president at the time, George H. W. Bush. It argued that "we're all pawns in... political chess" and a "feather in somebody's political cap" . The chorus stated the position simply: "I don't want another Vietnam" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
1990s cassette-only album; the song was written about the First Gulf War (1991).
Lyrics
English
Well I don't know what I should do
But I'm not happy, well I don't know about you
And I don't care about Mr. Bush's...
But I'm not going to die for them friend
But I can certainly tell you that I don't want another Vietnam
They don't have a chance to capture me...
I don't want another Vietnam
They don't really have a chance
I'm not going to just sit around here and wait
All I want is control over my fate
Get together, darling we don't have to cop this crap
Well I'm not going to be feather in somebody's political cap
I don't want another Vietnam
They don't have a chance capture me...
I'm not listening to the stories...
Only one is the vote for who we can trust
But we're all pawns in some type of political chess
And when these fools have finished playing
Well there's not going to be anything left
I don't want another Vietnam...
Show full lyrics (21 lines) ▾
#148–160 Don Henderson Unreleased Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
8 of the 9 songs from this unreleased in the archive are in this collection
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Show the full entries ▾ · Release page →
#148 Don Henderson It's On Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Henderson's own song, recorded by Gary Shearston (1964) and Trevor Lucas (1966).
#154 Don Henderson Bill White Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Freedom, baby freedom
What does freedom mean
A vague idea that isn't clear
And only might have been
If freedom's why we fight how come they've got the right to take him away?
They're going to take him away
They're going to take him away
He wouldn't go when they told him
So they're going to take him away
Blow the bugle, beat the drum
Wave the banners, here they come
Take him away
Justice, baby, justice
As a judge, a grim disguise
Defected and reflected
In a prison warder's eyes
Law and justice are the same
In uniforms they come to take him away
Justice, baby, justice
The judge, its implement
Has never failed, the blameless jailed are no less innocent
And undefiled, though undefined
Freedom's in the mind
So take him away
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
#155 Don Henderson Draft Card Burner's Song Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I'm an Australian, I am twenty years old
So I went down to the barracks as I've been told
While waiting for the officer in charge to call my name
I lit a cigarette with my Ronson's merry flame
Well something was not right with it
And as the flame grew higher
My call-up papers accidentally caught on fire...
Well it was just a little thing, but create quite a fuss
The C.N.D. embraced me and said 'now you're one of us'
A young man called me 'traitor', and he ranted for a while
This is eyes turned glassy and he screamed 'Sieg Heil'
The officer called me 'conchie' and he said 'are you a sort?
And to all my protestations he said 'tell 'em to the court
English
Then the press took my picture and my name was spread
All across the front page with an article that said
I was one more of a number who emphatically stood for
Australia withdrawing from what was a civil war
Our influence was mounting, as our number grew
I read it in the papers so it must be true.
In court the army said 'this man', and pointed straight at me
'Won't fight for queen and country, church or B.H.P.
The magistrate swore sagely, and turning to me said
What if a Vietcong attacked your mother in her bed?
I said 'well, they ain't here yet, but if perchance they come
I'll run down the T.A.B. and put a spin on mum.
Now the army wants to send me to jail
Old women send me white feathers in the mail
I went down to my girl friend's place, met with her father's fist
Says 'stay 'way from my daughter, you dirty communist'
A spokesman for the R.S.L. said my type should
Be horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good.
Now if at first I would have gone, now I will not go
But since I have found out lots of things I didn't know
And Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong
Three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong
Well, I said to my mate Charlie 'we'll stick around out here
We won't hurt nobody'
And he said 'no fear
Show full lyrics (41 lines) ▾
#156 Don Henderson Peace is Union Business Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
We've seen hardship and hard days
We've been tried a million ways
Hard won was our every gain
Have our trials been all in vain?
We work to build while war destroys
And peace is union business, boys
Peace is union business
Working women, working men
We've been tried and tried again
We are workers every one
Will we see our work undone?
We work to build while war destroys
And peace is union business, boys
Peace is union business
We are linked through toil of hand
Beyond bounds of race or land
United by the work we do
United in our struggle too
We work to build while war destroys
And peace is union business, boys
Peace is union business
Throughout the world in breadth, in length
The union's voice, the union's strength
Will take this fight and only cease
When all can live and work in peace
We work to build while war destroys
And peace is union business, boys
Peace is union business
We have stuck and we have stood
We will make our promise good
We the workers of the world
Will work to see the war flags furled
We work to build while war destroys
And peace is union business, boys
Peace is union business
Show full lyrics (36 lines) ▾
#157 Don Henderson Someone Up There Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
There is someone up there watching down on me
The signs are there and plain for all to see
He's never far away, I'm reminded every day
That there's someone up there watching down on me
Got a letter from the postman yesterday
The stamp was on; the post mark looked O.K.
But the envelope had knife marks in the glue
P.S. and all the best from you know who
A man knocked on my door and I said, 'Yes'
He said, 'Sorry. It's the wrong address'
I shut the door but he had been too quick
A button on his overcoat went 'click'
Well a woman rang me on the telephone
Said, 'Whisper, sweet, and tell me you're alone'
I'll tell the man to cut the jukebox at the plug
I think the bass is interfering with the bug
The students mainly munched in a cheap cafe
So did the K.G.B. and the C.I.A.
There were diners too from B.O.S.S. and D.I.6
And a bloke who ate his baked beans with chopsticks
I went down to Trades Hall to pay my dues
And was talking with a friend, exchanging views
When a bowl of flowers crackled and it spat
And a voice said, 'Speak up please. The battery's flat'
Well, I forget, I leave things everywhere
Can't remember conversations. I don't care
I just write a letter when my memory fails
And Canberra sends me back the full details
Read the paper, going through Sit Vacs
Thought the youth of today must be getting lax
Here's an ad seeking spies for A.S.I.O.
You could find them under stones not long ago
Well you might think that I am paranoid
That's a criticism that I can't avoid
But just you hope that what I say is true
'Cause if they're not watching me, they're watching you
Show full lyrics (37 lines) ▾
#158 Don Henderson Ting-A-Ling Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Not many people realize
That Australia is literally infested with spies
And the only way we can live in peace
Is through the diligent efforts of our secret police
Ting-a-ling, they are listening to your phone
Knock, knock, they are watching at your door
Peek-a-boo, they are reading your letters
Boy, have they got tabs on you
Well, there was a man that they did insist
Had tendencies that were communist
They watched him and they watched his wife
Every minute of his life
They watched him at work, they watched him at home
They peeped through keyholes, they tapped his phone
They found out what you might expect
That the Kinsey report is basically correct
Then one night they got the tip off
That they'd better watch a man called Skripov
And if they followed him to the zoo
They might find out a thing or two
So then our daring secret agent
Into the animals' cage he went
What do you think he found in there?
A koala selling gum leaves to a Russian bear
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
#159 Don Henderson Was War For Those Who Want It Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
Let the manufacturers man the guns they make
Put the politician's own dear life at stake
Sabre rattlers send to battle, generals to the fore
Was war for those who want it, they would want an end to war
The men who build the planes and make the tanks
Are neutral and get payment in Swiss francs
While the rich on both sides prosper, the poor will kill the poor
Was war for those who want it, they would want an end to war
The men who run the land are overjoyed
Here's their chance to cull the unemployed
And they'll face no elections while the killer cannons roar
Was war for those who want it, they would want an end to war
The patriotic zealots cannot wait
They're out there waving flags and preaching hate
While the boys they send are dying, safe at home recruiting more
Was war for those who want it, they would want an end to war
The generals play at charge and counter charge
Bombing raid, artillery barrage
While far behind the front line of their deadly game, keep score
Was war for those who want it, they would want an end to war
Show full lyrics (21 lines) ▾
#160 Don Henderson The Won't-Leave-This-Lander Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Annotation
Don Henderson, a highly-regarded contemporary folk singer, born on 17 January 1937 in Melbourne, Australia. He died in Brisbane, Australia, on 20 August 1991.1 He was particularly known for his political and social songs, with a focus on workers rights. He also composed several Vietnam War titles, although not all were recorded or released on record. The songs are: "Boonaroo" , "The Won’t-Leave-This-Lander" , "Bill White" , "Draft Card Burner’s Song" , "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" , "Peace is Union Business" , "Ting-A-Ling" , "Somone Up There" , and "Was War For Those Who Want It" .2 Thanks to Warren Fahey, Mark Gregory, and Raymond Crooke for identifying titles and providing lyrics..

This 1968 album featured the song "Boonaroo" , the title of which was a reference to the HMAS Boonaroo, an Australian National Line cargo vessel used to support Australian forces in Vietnam. In 1966, members of the Seamen's Union of Australia refused to sail the vessel in protest against the Vietnam War.3 In the lyrics, the narrator wondered "who will man the Boonaroo" , and then questioned the purpose of the ship, was there "medicine to heal...material to build" , or was there "grief and death untold" . The lyrics of this song also featured in The Vietnam Songbook published in 1969, and compiled by Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber (founders of Paredon Records) - containing 100+ Vietnam War protest songs, 9 of which came from Australia & New Zealand.

The song "I'm an Australian – 20 Years Old" also featured in The Vietnam Songbook, dated 1968, although no recording from the time has been found yet. The song took a comedic approach to a 21 year old caught-up in major court case for resisting the draft. It started out with the man going down to the barracks, lighting a cigarette, and his "call-up papers accidently caught on fire" . Misinterpreted as a deliberate act, the "C.N.D. embraced me" - a reference to the protest group the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, while the other side "called me a traitor" .

Soon he was all over the press, on the front page: "I read it in the papers so it must be true" . He ended-up in court, where the judge noted that the man would not "fight for queen and country" . The narrator noted that the "army wants to send me to jail" , while his girlfriend's father called him a "dirty communist" . A spokesman for the Returned Serviceman's League (R.S.L., similar to the American Legion), wanted him to be "horsewhipped and castrated, hanging is no good" . After all this, the man concluded that "Vietnam sounds like a good place to leave to Vietcong" , and that "three million bloody Frenchmen can't be all that wrong" .
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English
I am an Australian and I'm twenty years old
So I went down to the barracks, as I'd been told
While waiting for the officer in charge to call my name
I lit a cigarette with my Ronson Variflame
But something wasn't right with it, and as the flames grew higher
My call-up papers accidentally caught on fire
It was just a little thing but created quite a fuss
The CND embraced me, said, 'Now you're one of us'
A young man called me traitor and he ranted for a while
Then his eyes turned glassy and he screamed, 'Sieg Heil!'
The officer called me 'conshie', he said he knew my sort
And to all my protestations said, 'Tell them to the court'
Then the press took my picture and my name was spread
All across the front page with an article that said
I was one more of a number who emphatically stood for
Australia withdrawing from what was a civil war
And our influence was mounting, as our number grew
I read it in the paper, so it must be true
In court the army said, 'This man', and pointed straight at me
'Won't fight for Queen or country, church or B.H.P.'
The magistrate posed sagely and turning to me said
'What if a Viet Cong attacked your mother in her bed?'
I said, 'They aren't here yet, but if perchance they come
I'll run down to the T.A.B. and put a spin on Mum'
Now if at first I would have gone, now I will not go
For I since have found out lots of things I didn't know
And Vietnam sounds a good place to leave to the Viet Cong
Three million dead Frenchmen can't be all that wrong
When I said to my mate Charlie, 'If we stacked one on out here
Would we want America butting in?' He said, 'No fear!'
Show full lyrics (31 lines) ▾
#149 Unknown Artist Slash Go the Bayonets Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Anonymous protest song to the tune of "Click Go the Shears", from the National Service years; printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
In the middle of the parade ground the grim Nasho stands
Clasping his gun in his mean, bloody hands
War-like is his gaze as he charges down the line
Ghoulish is his frenzy as he shouts 'Commo swine'
Slash go the bayonets, slash, slash, slash
Chortling with glee as the blood goes splash
The war-mongers rake in the dollars with delight
Champagne and caviar on Wall Street tonight
#150 Lyell Sayer Join the RSL Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Written in the 1960s; Sayer: "I wanted to hit at the RSL's pro-war mentality of the time." Tune: "Click Go the Shears". Printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
A young man dressed in an army uniform
Was standing in a hotel looking all forlorn
His unit was ready to leave for Vietnam
When suddenly upon his back a heavy hand did slam
He turned straight around and to his surprise
He looked into a pair of bloodshot eyes
A middle-aged man in a beer-stained suit
Had slapped him on the back and said, 'You beaut!
Now listen to me lad, to you I will tell
Of the gains that are made by enduring shot and shell
If you do your duty and you do it well
Then you will be allowed to join the RSL'
So off went the lad to fight in the war
In the way that many others had done before
Even though in his heart it made no sense
He went to do his duty in our defence
Well he did his duty and he did it well
Till he was torn apart by a mortar shell
As he lay in the mud and his life drained away
He heard again a voice and the voice did say:
'Now listen to me lad, to you I will tell
Of the gains that are made by enduring shot and shell
If you do your duty and you do it well
Then you will be allowed to join the RSL'
Show full lyrics (25 lines) ▾
#151 Unknown Artist The Ballad of Uncle Doug Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
Anonymous song popular at Melbourne demonstrations, about the sports commentator and Labor politician Doug Elliott; tune "Lazy Harry's". Printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
You have seen him on the telly every week on 'World of Sport'
You've endured his boorish manner and the way that he'll cavort
Though he seems an oafish halfwit, I confess that he's no mug
He's a Labor opportunist and they call him 'Uncle Doug'
And he's not content with one job, he holds six or even more
Yet he claims that he's a battler for the underprivileged poor
'I'm a battler', he professes and it makes my heartstrings tug
Till I realise he battles for a cause called 'Uncle Doug'
He's a bosses' politician and it really gets my goat
For he's in the Labor Party so he gets the workers' vote
Yet it's working folk and students who campaign against the war
Who set out to smash conscription and resist an unjust law
But he'll never join the protests with the likes of you and me
He's too busy flogging products for his bosses on TV
But we can't avoid the issue and dismiss it with a shrug
For the Labor Party's riddled with the likes of 'Uncle Doug'
And their parliamentary antics are designed to fool the mob
So if you want socialism then we've got to do the job
You can keep your witless Whitlam and Clyde Holding and Mick Young
As for me I'll stick with Lenin and Karl Marx and Mao Tse-tung
Show full lyrics (21 lines) ▾
#152 Clem Parkinson The Weirdest Dream Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
To the tune of "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream"; written in the late 1960s and handed out in hundreds of copies at Melbourne Moratorium meetings. Printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
Last night I had the weirdest dream
I'd never dreamt before
I dreamt our politicians
All went off to fight the war
It seems they decided
It was time to join the ranks
To do their bit to help save face
For Nixon and the Yanks
And as they marched along the street
The crowd just stood and gasped
'I never thought I'd see the day'
An old ex-digger rasped
'And have you heard the latest news?'
I heard a woman cry
'They're bringing home the conscripts
Not another one need die'
There was Snedden and McManus
Even Santa-strewth-maria
With Peacock, Lynch and Andrew Jones
All bringing up the rear
And as they marched down Collins Street
To sound of drum and flute
His Eminence, Archbishop Knox
Stepped forth to take salute
His hands began to tremble
As he then with courage true
Threw down his crucifix and cried:
'Hey boys, I'm coming too'
'Left wheel', the sergeant shouted
McManus shook with fright
No matter how he tried
He kept veering to the right
They marched down to Port Melbourne
To embark at Station Pier
Where some wharfies, somewhat rudely
Gave a rather loud Bronx cheer
McManus got the jitters
And he beat a quick retreat
He grabbed a wharfie's bicycle
And peddled down the street
'I've left behind my toothbrush'
He mumbled as he fled
Then I awoke and found
That I had tumbled out of bed!
Show full lyrics (45 lines) ▾
#153 Clem Parkinson The Ballad of Gunner Holt Unreleased · Unreleased · Not On Label · Australia
Notes
To the tune of "The Wearing of the Green"; on Harold Holt's five weeks at Puckapunyal in 1940. Printed in Ratbags & Rabblerousers.
Lyrics
English
If you'll gather round me people a story I will tell
About a brave young gunner you should all remember well
It's a legend of our country that mustn't fade away
And a source of inspiration to the young men of today
It was back in 1940 and the War had just begun
Young Harold Holt decided: 'I had better take a gun
I must fight for King and country and the old red, white and blue'
So he put away his speargun and he bid his friends adieu
To the army camp at Pucka young Harold Holt did go
Just itching for the chance to come in contact with the foe
But he felt a proper narna in his khaki pants and shirt
And he even found that once or twice his hands were caked with dirt
So he served at Puckapunyal for five weeks and a day
Then sailed back home to Canberra when his unit sailed away
For it seems that he had developed an allergy to war
As Andrew Peacock has today and Menzies years before
So remember well the story of this five week gunner bloke
And when you get your draft card send the damn thing up in smoke!
Show full lyrics (19 lines) ▾

Lyric theme data

Lyric content themes tagged on the songs in this collection — parent themes with their sub-themes (number of records). Click a theme for its definition and all records carrying it.

Show all 35 themes ▾

Key stats

158 songs · 114 releases · 98 artists · 64 labels · 1964–2024 · 2 more list entries have no record page yet and are not counted here

Time period
  • 2007 is the peak year, with 14 songs.
  • 1966–69 holds 31 of the 142 dated songs — one in five in four years.
  • 69 were released during the war years (to 1975); 89 came after.
  • 16 records are undated.
Artists
  • 98 artists for 158 songs. The most represented is Normie Rowe, with 15.
  • Five of the artists are still unidentified beyond the record: no line-up, no biography.
Songwriters
  • Songwriter gender is recorded for 98 of the 158 songs: 81 by men, 16 by women and one by mixed teams — women wrote 16% of those.
  • By performer: 123 men, 18 mixed groups, 14 women and three not identified (recorded for 158).
  • 86 named songwriters. The most often credited is Don Henderson, with eleven.
Labels
  • 48 of the 64 labels appear exactly once; ABC [Australia] has the most, with ten.
  • 35 sit on a major or well-known imprint — ABC [Australia], CBS, ABC Classics, Columbia, EMI, Epic, Ode Ode, Polydor. The other 123 are on independent, regional or private labels.
  • 44 are private pressings with no label at all.
  • Three 45s put both of their sides into this list.
Locations
  • 150 of the 158 are Australian.
  • Melbourne accounts for 32 records, more than any other city; Sydney has 22, Adelaide ten.
  • Eight come from outside Australia: six from New Zealand, two American.
Themes
  • By perspective: 89 post-war; 49 peace, protest and anti-war; eleven patriotic, pro-government or anti-protest; nine home front or soldier's perspective.
  • 97 distinct sub-themes across 158 songs.
  • ANZUS is the single biggest subject — 85 songs, more than half.
  • Next come Anti-War (55), Vet (38), Draft (27) and Soldier's Perspective (21).