Long Black Wall

Annotation

Country pop song "Long Black Wall" (Country Showcase America # CSA 191) by Johnny Anthony, an obscure artist, who featured on the ...Next Stop Is Vietnam (The War on Record: 1961-2008) compilation, which said in the booklet: "Anthony, from the Laurel, Maryland area, was a frequent performer on the CSA Jamboree, a live country music internet radio show hosted for many years by Francis Gosman".1 The record label was formed in 1971 in Beltsville, Maryland, USA, founded by Frank Gosman, who also produced this song. This one certainly leans towards an anti-war perspective: "to die for reasons they didn't understand, these innocent lambs...victims of the times". Yet, of course, it fully praised the soldier's bravery and patriotism: "bravely they answered their nation's call". The song referenced well-known Vietnam War locations Khe Sanh, Da Nang, and Pleiku.Sources1Next Stop is Vietnam Booklet↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Veterans Memorial Wall Songs

Country pop song "Long Black Wall" (Country Showcase America # CSA 191) by Johnny Anthony, an obscure artist, who featured on the ...Next Stop Is Vietnam (The War on Record: 1961-2008) compilation, which said in the booklet: "Anthony, from the Laurel, Maryland area, was a frequent performer on the CSA Jamboree, a live country music internet radio show hosted for many years by Francis Gosman".1 The record label was formed in 1971 in Beltsville, Maryland, USA, founded by Frank Gosman, who also produced this song. This one certainly leans towards an anti-war perspective: "to die for reasons they didn't understand, these innocent lambs...victims of the times". Yet, of course, it fully praised the soldier's bravery and patriotism: "bravely they answered their nation's call". The song referenced well-known Vietnam War locations Khe Sanh, Da Nang, and Pleiku. Sources1Next Stop is Vietnam Booklet↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: These are the men on the long black Wall / Some went down in a fire fight, some were ambushed in the middle of the night / Bravely they answered their nation's call / These are the men on the long black Wall / They were at Khe Sanh, Da Nang, and Pleiku / They fought the battles for you and me / They sacrificed the ultimate, they gave their all / These are the men on the long black Wall / They were sent to a far off land, to die for reasons they didn't understand / These innocent lambs were slaughtered / All these are the men on the long black Wall / The bodies came back in boxes of pine / They were the victims of the times / They beg us not to forget from the grave... / These are the men on the long black Wall / The cry out for sanity, for no more unjust wars / The silently plea for killing no more / They're praying for peace at their final role call / These are the men on the long black Wall

Notes

Country Showcase America Records CSA-191A (U-27326M), label with the CSA logo over a U.S. flag; "Long Black Wall" (Tomich/Stamm), 2:49, Country Showcase America BMI; producer Frances Gosman. [From the record sleeve and labels]

About the artist

Johnny Anthony (Johnny Ray Anthony, born about 1955 in Baltimore, Maryland) was an American country singer who was regarded as a child prodigy and, by his own label's account, was discovered at the age of seven while shining shoes; he signed a long-term contract with Country Showcase Records in 1973 and recorded prolifically for Country Showcase America through the 1980s and 1990s, cutting sides including 'Carolina Blue', 'Wave the Flag (Sing Our Song)' and, later, 'USS Cole (A Hole in My Soul)'. "Long Black Wall", a song about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial written by Tomich and Stamm and…

Themes

Patriotic · Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall · K.I.A. · Vet · Combat · Khe Sanh · Da Nang · Pleiku

In collections

Veterans Memorial Wall Songs