Starla Parrish & the Parrish Bros.
Is There a Santa Claus in Vietnam
Parrish · USA
- Artist
- Starla Parrish & the Parrish Bros.
- Title
- Is There a Santa Claus in Vietnam
- Release
- Is there a Santa Claus in Vietnam / Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy
- Label
- Parrish
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- USA
- Songwriter
- Shirley Barrett
- Genre
- Country · Country
- Primary theme
- Home Front Perspective / Soldier's Perspective
Annotation
Starla Parrish took the lead vocal on the song "Is There a Santa Claus in Vietnam", one of the children of The Parrish Brothers, a group with a strong following in the local music scene of Rochester, Minnesota since the 1960s. The record is credited to Shirley Barrett. The very young Starla narrated a letter to Santa Clause, wondering if he visited Vietnam. She thought that her father, fighting over there "may have to die for me and you". Thus it took a patriotic theme. In a spoken-word section, Starla told the listener that she prayed everyday for her father.&
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation — Children on Record
Starla Parrish took the lead vocal on the song "Is There a Santa Claus in Vietnam", one of the children of The Parrish Brothers, a group with a strong following in the local music scene of Rochester, Minnesota since the 1960s. The record is credited to Shirley Barrett. The very young Starla narrated a letter to Santa Clause, wondering if he visited Vietnam. She thought that her father, fighting over there "may have to die for me and you". Thus it took a patriotic theme. In a spoken-word section, Starla told the listener that she prayed everyday for her father.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English: Dear Santa I'm writing this letter to you, I hope it gets there okay / There is something I'd like to know, I'd like to know right away / Is there a Santa Claus in Vietnam? / Does he look like you? / Does he have reindeer and a sleigh? / Can he fly through the air like you do?... / For I know that daddy would like a nice gift, he needs a Santa Claus too / I know that he fights in the jungles, he may have to die for me and you / Well Santa I'm tired and a bit sleepy too, I'll close my letter to you / I guess you are wondering why I want to know, my dad, he's over there / Oh he won't be home for Christmas, this holiday we cannot share / Oh I miss him more and more everyday and I don't forget to pray / Oh god please bring my daddy home safely, I can hardly wait for that day
Notes
Parrish, red label, 45 RPM, no catalogue number printed; "Is There a Santa Claus in Vietnam" (Shirley Barrett), Parrish Music, BMI, time 3:05; credited to Starla Parrish and the Parrish Bros. [From the record sleeve and labels]
About the artist
From Rochester, Minnesota, USA
Themes
In collections
US Domestic Perspective Songs [War Years] · Children on Record · Christmas Songs · US 'Patriotic' / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest Songs [War Years]