Long Black Wall
1989 · Country Star 504 · Franklin, Pennsylvania
- Artist
- Remember When
- Title
- Long Black Wall
- Release
- Long Black Wall / Lone Ranger
- Year
- 1989
- Label
- Country Star # 504
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- Franklin, Pennsylvania, USA
- Songwriter
- Bob Belche
- Genre
- Pop · Fanfare · Pop Rock
- Primary theme
- Post-War
Annotation
Post-war 80s pop rock / fanfare song "Long Black Wall" (Country Star # 504) by a group called Remember When, out of Franklin, Pennsylvania, USA. A promotional sheet which came with the record said: "written and produced by Bob Belche, Viet Nam marine, awarded the Purple Heart and Silver Star. Sounds-effects are the Bulger, Marching, and gun fire of the National Guard at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA". (1) The sound-effects are a reference to about half-way through the track, when the narrator has a flashback to Vietnam, a representation of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The lyrics of the song paid tribute to those those died: "remembering you this way, precious names on a long black Wall". Song is listed in the 1989 edition of Songwriter's Market. (2) The label Country Star, a subsidiary of Process Records, released a bunch of other Vietnam-related records, such as "Missing in Action" by Tom Booker (click on label link for more).
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
Unknown - a near-unsearchable generic band name; no documented act was found, and the Discogs API rate-limited on both attempts. "Long Black Wall" strongly suggests a Vietnam Veterans Memorial tribute, which would place the recording in the 1980s or later - a date fact only. [Source: no admissible match]
Themes
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall · PTSD · Vet · Military · Combat · Patriotic · Home Front Perspective