Paul Lavalle & the Band of America
Ballad of the Green Berets
1966 · RCA Victor LSP-3600 · New York City, New York
- Artist
- Paul Lavalle & the Band of America
- Title
- Ballad of the Green Berets
- Release
- Salute to Our Fighting Men in Vietnam
- Year
- 1966
- Label
- RCA Victor # LSP-3600
- Format
- LP · Album
- Language
- English
- Country
- New York City, New York, USA
- Genre
- Traditional Pop · Traditional Pop
- Primary theme
- US 'Patriotic' / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest Songs
Annotation
Paul Lavallle became the conductor of the Band of America in 1948, performing a weekly radion program on NBC for eight years. From 1964 the band toured extensively and started playing the Barry Sadler song "The Ballad of the Green Beret" and other pro-Vietnam, military style marches. On 4 June 1965 Paul Lavalle received a citation from Major Daniel Baldwin of the U.S. Army Special Forces for being the first non-military band to perform the "Green Beret" march. Lavalle followed up the citation by releasing this collection of 12 Vietnam-related patriotic and pro-government songs (RCA Victor # LSP-3600). Billboard reviewed the album on 23 April 1966: "hinged on the current craze for heroic causes and tunes, this album could provide excellent sales" - although it seems to have failed commercially. (1) Recorded at Webster Hall, New York City, NY. (2)
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Notes
Broadway musical
About the artist
Paul Lavalle (born Joseph Usifer, 6 September 1908, Beacon, New York; died 24 June 1997, Harrisonburg, Virginia), American conductor and composer, led the Band of America from 1948, incl. NBC radio/TV broadcasts and the 'Salute to Our Fighting Men in Vietnam' recording. [Source: Wikipedia / JMU Lavalle Collection]