Letter From a Boy in Vietnam

Annotation

"Letter From a Boy in Vietnam" (Parkwood Records # 100). Spoken-word, to traditional-pop background, 'American the Beautiful'. Narrated from perspective of a soldier. Patriotic, attacked the protest movement, draft card burning. Warned against the 'evils' of communism, its threat to the American way of life (religion, schools, freedom of press, holidays). Supported government position in Vietnam and Cold War. Reference to Christmas. "Dear mom and dad, as I'm sitting here writing this letter / I'm beginning to realise the sadness this war has brought you / I try to remember that I'm part of a big job that must be done / And when it's over we're all have many years to spend together / There are a lot of people these days marching, protesting, criticising our government / Asking what are we doing over here and what are we fighting for / Well, we're fighting to stop the spread of communism, we're fighting for an American way of life / I know how you both like to keep up with the latest news... / In a communist takeover you never know what it is to read the truth in a daily newspaper / Or whatever you read or hear on the radio are just communist lies / The guys over here were talking…

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Christmas Songs

"Letter From a Boy in Vietnam" (Parkwood Records # 100). Spoken-word, to traditional-pop background, 'American the Beautiful'. Narrated from perspective of a soldier. Patriotic, attacked the protest movement, draft card burning. Warned against the 'evils' of communism, its threat to the American way of life (religion, schools, freedom of press, holidays). Supported government position in Vietnam and Cold War. Reference to Christmas. "Dear mom and dad, as I'm sitting here writing this letter I'm beginning to realise the sadness this war has brought you I try to remember that I'm part of a big job that must be done And when it's over we're all have many years to spend together There are a lot of people these days marching, protesting, criticising our government Asking what are we doing over here and what are we fighting for Well, we're fighting to stop the spread of communism, we're fighting for an American way of life I know how you both like to keep up with the latest news... In a communist takeover you never know what it is to read the truth in a daily newspaper Or whatever you read or hear on the radio are just communist lies The guys over here were talking about some of the…

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Themes

Patriotic · Demonstration · Draft Card Burning · Religion · Christmas · Soldier's Perspective · Anti-Communism · Anti-Protest · Draft

In collections

Christmas Songs · Draft Songs · US 'Patriotic' / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest Songs