A Letter to Dad

Annotation

On 11 November 1967 the surprise hit song "An Open Letter to My Teenage Son" (Liberty Records # 55996) entered into the Billboard charts, selling over 1 million records in six weeks. Narrated by Victor Lundberg, a conservative American, the record heavily criticised draft dodgers and the counter-culture. Most memorable of all, Lundberg had told his son that if he burned his draft card, then he might as well burn his birth certificate, because from that moment onwards "I have no son". Soon afterwards several "answer records" appeared, including the track "A Letter to Dad" (Buddah Records # BDA 25), entering the charts on 25 November 1967 (just 13 days later). Billboard reported that "this teen rebuttal of the Victor Lundberg smash comes off as a well-thought-out answer, performed and arranged in the best of taste. It represents the young idea and should be given equal air time with the original with sales following the same successful pattern".1 Written by Bill Dean and Ron Marshall, and narrated by Jim McCurdy, a 19 year old recording engineer, it addressed each point that Lundberg had raised. McCurdy told the Daily Record on 18 November 1967 that he played the record for his dad, and "he agreed with the sentiments expressed".2 However, it did not come even close to matching the sales of Lundberg, as predicted by Billboard (reaching only # 93 in the charts). Moreover, describing it as "the best of taste" may seem inappropriate to those who viewed it as an attempt to cash in on a popular issue, as well as the specially created name of the group, Every Father's Teenage Son - an attempt to represent all those on the anti-war side of the debate. The narrator of the song explained to his father that his love for the country meant that he would not use violence.Sources1Billboard, 25 November 1967↩2Daily_News_1967_11_18_202 - Victor Lundberg clip (photo)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: You used the phrase, 'fight for the right' two times in your letter / I pose that this one phrase is to blame for millions of lives and endless pain and suffering / It is not the lack of pride for my country but an abundance of respect for my fellow man which demands that I must promise myself not to use violence, no matter what... / And understanding the dangers of a too hardened patriotism / I choose to burn my draft card, then, Dad, it will be you who will have to burn my birth certificate, and although you stopped calling me son, I'll never stop calling you Dad You used the phrase, 'fight for the right' two times in your letter / I pose that this one phrase is to blame for millions of lives and endless pain and suffering / It is not the lack of pride for my country but an abundance of respect for my fellow man which demands that I must promise myself not to use violence, no matter what... / And understanding the dangers of a too hardened patriotism / I choose to burn my draft card, then, Dad, it will be you who will have to burn my birth certificate, and although you stopped calling me son, I'll never stop calling you Dad

Notes

Buddah Records BDA-25 (BUD 5047), multicoloured psychedelic label, "Promotional Copy – Not for Sale"; "A Letter to Dad" (Bill Dean & Ron Marshall), time 2:40, Bob-Len Music B.M.I.; "Produced by Inherit Productions for Kama-Sutra Productions." [From the record sleeve and labels]

Themes

Draft · Anti-War · Answer to Open Letter

In collections

Lundberg's "An Open Letter" & Answer Songs · Draft Songs · Peace, Protest, & Anti-War Songs [War Years]