I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag (Mono)

Annotation

His body of songs referencing the Vietnam War is significant in both themes and volume [currently 20 identified]: "The Willing Conscript" on the album Broadside Ballads Volume 2 (1963); "Beans in My Ear", "King Henry", and "The Draft Dodger Rag" on the Dangerous Songs!? (1966); "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy" and "Down By the Riverside" on the album Waist Deep in the Big Muddy and Other Love Songs (1967); "Backlash Blues", "Talking Ben Tre", and "The Torn Flag" on the album Pete Seeger Now (1968); "Anti-Vietnam Songs / Waist Deep in the Big Muddy / Arts in a Changing Society / Violence and Protest" featured on the live album Sings and Answers Questions (1968); "Bring Them Home" and "Ballad of the Fort Hood Three" on the album Young vs. Old (1969); "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (1970) [promo single-only]; "Last Train to Nuremberg", "Uncle Ho", and "Our Generation" on the album Rainbow Race (1971).The song "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (Columbia Records # 4-45257) - a cover of the Country Joe & The Fish track - one of the most well known and key of the Vietnam protest songs. Joe McDonald wrote the song in the summer of 1965 in just 30 minutes, after being discharged from the US navy, and subsequently released it on this EP in October. McDonald performed the song live at the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, one of the standout performances of the motion picture Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music. According to McDonald, the Seeger, Columbia only released a few promo copies of this, but it was later pulled:"In 1970, Pete Seeger recorded a version of "Fixin' to Die Rag" for a 45 release. We know that at least a few advance DJ copies were produced, like the one pictured here. But something went wrong. The details are unclear, but Pete did mention once that the distributors refused to handle it"1Sources1A Pete Seeger Discography: Seventy Years of Recordings (David King Dunaway, 2010)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Peace, Protest, & Anti-War Songs

The song "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (Columbia Records # 4-45257) - a cover of the Country Joe & The Fish track - one of the most well known and key of the Vietnam protest songs. Joe McDonald wrote the song in the summer of 1965 in just 30 minutes, after being discharged from the US navy, and subsequently released it on this EP in October. McDonald performed the song live at the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, one of the standout performances of the motion picture Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music. According to McDonald, the Seeger, Columbia only released a few promo copies of this, but it was later pulled:"In 1970, Pete Seeger recorded a version of "Fixin' to Die Rag" for a 45 release. We know that at least a few advance DJ copies were produced, like the one pictured here. But something went wrong. The details are unclear, but Pete did mention once that the distributors refused to handle it"1Sources1A Pete Seeger Discography: Seventy Years of Recordings (David King Dunaway, 2010)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Pete Seeger Songs

The song "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (Columbia Records # 4-45257) - a cover of the Country Joe & The Fish track - one of the most well known and key of the Vietnam protest songs. Joe McDonald wrote the song in the summer of 1965 in just 30 minutes, after being discharged from the US navy, and subsequently released it on this EP in October. McDonald performed the song live at the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, one of the standout performances of the motion picture Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music. According to McDonald, the Seeger, Columbia only released a few promo copies of this, but it was later pulled:"In 1970, Pete Seeger recorded a version of "Fixin' to Die Rag" for a 45 release. We know that at least a few advance DJ copies were produced, like the one pictured here. But something went wrong. The details are unclear, but Pete did mention once that the distributors refused to handle it"1Sources1countryjoe.com: the "Suppressed" Seeger recording↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: Come on all of you big strong men / Uncle Sam needs your help again / He's got himself in a terrible jam / Way down yonder in Viet Nam / Put down your books and pick up a gun / We're gonna have a whole lotta fun / And it's one, two, three, what are we fighting for? / Don't ask me, I don't give a damn, next stop is Viet Nam / And it's five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates / Ain't no time to wonder why, whoopee we're all gonna die / Come on generals, let's move fast / Your big chance has come at last / Now you can go out and get those reds / Good commie is the one that's dead / And you know that peace can only be won / When we've blown 'em all to kingdom come... Hey come on wall street don't be slow / Why man this war is a go-go / There's plenty good money to be made by supplying the army with the tools of its trade / Let's hope and pray that if they drop the bomb / They drop it on the Viet Cong... / Come on mothers throughout the land / Pack your boys off to Viet Nam / Come on fathers, don't hesitate / Send your sons off before it's too late / And you can be the first ones on your block / To have your boy come home in a box / And it's one, two, three, what are we fighting for? / Don't ask me, I don't give a damn, next stop is Viet Nam, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Libanon, Angola / Ain't no time to wonder why, whoopee we're all gonna die

Notes

Columbia 4-45257, 45 RPM, "Not for Resale – Radio Station Copy", issued as a mono/stereo promo pair: white label "Mono Version", side JZSP 154099, and teal label overprinted "Stereo", "Stereo Version", side JZSS 154097. Both labels: "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (J. McDonald), intro :06, 2:17, publisher Tradition Music Co. (BMI); produced by John Hammond & Mike Kropp. [From the record sleeve and labels]

About the artist

Iconic American contemporary folk singer, Pete Seeger (born 3 May 1919 in Manhattan, New York, USA, died on 27 January 2014, same location) played a key role in the 1950s contemporary folk revival and the 1960s anti-war and Civil Rights movement. He often wrote political songs, protesting against war, segregation, and calling for environmental protection. His body of songs referencing the Vietnam War is significant in both themes and volume: "The Willing Conscript" on the album Broadside Ballads Volume 2 (1963); "Beans in My Ear", "King Henry", and "The Draft Dodger Rag" on Dangerous Songs!?…

Themes

Anti-War

In collections

Peace, Protest, & Anti-War Songs [War Years] · Pete Seeger Songs