Don't Burn It
1966 · Brownfield BF-1035 · Fort Worth, Texas
- Artist
- Barons, The
- Title
- Don't Burn It
- Release
- Don't Burn It / I Hope I Please You
- Year
- 1966
- Label
- Brownfield # BF-1035
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- Fort Worth, Texas, USA
- Genre
- Garage Rock · Garage Rock
- Primary theme
- Home Front Perspective / Soldier's Perspective
Annotation
Garage rock band the Barons, from Fort Worth, Texas, dealt with the issue of draft card burning, as suggested in the title of the song "Don't Burn It" (Brownfield Records # BF-1035). Burning draft cards often took place at the early anti-war demonstrations. President Johnson (LBJ) subsequently prohibited the destruction of draft cards in an amendment to the Universal Military Training and Service Act in August 1965. The arrest of David O’Brien in 1966 for burning his draft card led to a Supreme Court Case on the First Amendment (see David Paul O’Brien v. USA, US Court of Appeals). (1) So in this song the narrator received the call-up, who considered his options: "we either fight or go to school". He went to the draftboard, who classified him as "1A" - military classification for those eligible for military service. It ended with the narrator in Vietnam with "bullets flying around like flies", wishing he had continued to study. Song written by J. Nitzinger.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation — Garage Rock Songs
Garage rock band the Barons, from Fort Worth, Texas, dealt with the issue of draft card burning, as suggested in the title of the song "Don't Burn It" (Brownfield Records # BF-1035). Burning draft cards often took place at the early anti-war demonstrations. President Johnson (LBJ) subsequently prohibited the destruction of draft cards in an amendment to the Universal Military Training and Service Act in August 1965. The arrest of David O’Brien in 1966 for burning his draft card led to a Supreme Court Case on the First Amendment (see David Paul O’Brien v. USA, US Court of Appeals). (1) So in this song the narrator received the call-up, who considered his options: "we either fight or go to school". He went to the draft board, who classified him as "1A" - military classification for those eligible for military service. It ended with the narrator in Vietnam with "bullets flying around like flies", wishing he had continued to study. Song written by J. Nitzinger.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
Fort Worth, Texas garage band fronted by singer-guitarist John Nitzinger, who became a local star with the Barons on singles for the Torch and Brownfield labels in 1965-66 before the group broke up; 'Don't Burn It' (Brownfield BF-1035, 1966) was a Nitzinger composition. Nitzinger later wrote for Bloodrock and recorded for Capitol. [Source: Wikipedia; Discogs]