Army Man in Vietnam
1969 · Arhoolie 1053 · El Cerrito, California
- Artist
- Big Joe Williams
- Title
- Army Man in Vietnam
- Release
- Thinking of What They Did To Me
- Year
- 1969
- Label
- Arhoolie # 1053
- Format
- LP · Album
- Language
- English
- Country
- El Cerrito, California, USA
- Songwriter
- Big Joe Williams
- Genre
- Blues · Blues
- Primary theme
- Peace, Protest & Anti-War
Annotation
Big Joe Williams (1903-1982), delta blues guitar player, born Joseph Lee Williams, in Crawford Mississippi, used a nine-string acoustic guitar, giving his delta style an interesting, unique sound. In the track "Army Man in Vietnam" (Arhoolie Records # 1053) he expressed a desire to "stop the war in Vietnam" because he feared that the government might "drop that atom bomb", a reflection of Cold War tensions. The song also showed concern for young men, at the age of eighteen, drafted into the army and given a gun. Note the minor reference to Christmas: "some will be home for Christmas, some will hurt real bad". Chris Strachwitz (founder of Arhoolie) recorded the song on 14 December 1969 at Arhoolie House in Berkeley, California. It featured Charlie Musselwhite on harmonica. (1)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation — Blues songs
Big Joe Williams (1903-1982), delta blues guitar player, born Joseph Lee Williams, in Crawford Mississippi, used a nine-string acoustic guitar, giving his delta style an interesting, unique sound. In the track "Army Man in Vietnam" (Arhoolie Records # 1053) he expressed a desire to "stop the war in Vietnam" because he feared that the government might "drop that atom bomb", a reflection of Cold War tensions. The song also showed concern for young men, at the age of eighteen, drafted into the army and given a gun. Note the minor reference to Christmas: "some will be home for Christmas, some will hurt real bad". Chris Strachwitz (founder of Arhoolie) recorded the song on 14 December 1969 at Arhoolie House in Berkeley, California. It featured Charlie Musselwhite on harmonica. (1) This song, as discussed above, is an updated version of his 1962 track "Army Man Blues" on the album Blues for Nine Strings (Bluesville Records # BV 1056) which referred to being "in the European country" rather than Vietnam.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
Born 16 October 1903, Crawford, Mississippi, USA. Died 17 December 1982, Macon, Mississippi, USA
Themes
In collections
Blues songs · Christmas Songs · Draft Songs · Peace, Protest, & Anti-War Songs