Courage

At Vietnam

1986 · D&S Recording ‎D&S 002 · Germany: West [FRG]

Artist
Courage
Title
At Vietnam
Release
Gold and Ivory
Year
1986
Label
D&S Recording # ‎D&S 002
Format
12" · EP
Language
English
Country
Germany: West [FRG]
Genre
Metal · Metal
Primary theme
Post-War

Annotation

Heavy Metal group formed in Hattigen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, in the 1980s, with the members Sven Strzyso (vocals), Andreas Sieling (guitar), Manfred David (guitar), Uwe Dinsing (bass), Holger Feist (drums). The song "At Vietnam" (D&S Recording # DS 002) leans more into the Hard Rock genre, tooking an anti-war perspective, firstly focused on the combat scene and the deaths: "at Vietnam, were a million people died". The narrator then looked at the impact on the veteran: "late at night he remembers all those things" - a reference to 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. The lyrics also noted "napalm bombs were dropped" - 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. (1) (2) (3)

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — European Songs

Formed in Hattigen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, in the 1980s, with the members Sven Strzyso (vocals), Andreas Sieling (guitar), Manfred David (guitar), Uwe Dinsing (bass), Holger Feist (drums). The song "At Vietnam" (D&S Recording # DS 002) leans more into the Hard Rock genre, tooking an anti-war perspective, firstly focused on the combat scene and the deaths: "at Vietnam, were a million people died". The narrator then looked at the impact on the veteran: "late at night he remembers all those things" - a reference to 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. The lyrics also noted "napalm bombs were dropped" - 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. (1) (2) (3)

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

About the artist

German band from Hattingen, North Rhine-Westphalia. [Source: Discogs]

Themes

Anti-War · Vet · Napalm · PTSD

In collections

European Songs · Metal Songs