Sam Stone

Annotation

Soul singer Swamp Dogg, born Jerry Williams, Jr. in 1942 in Portsmouth, Virginia, across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk - a navy seaside town in which the 'Norfolk Sound' soul music developed in the early 1960s. He also recorded under the name Little Jerry Williams. He adopted the name Swamp Dogg in 1970: "I became Swamp Dogg in 1970 in order to have an alter-ego and someone to occupy the body while the search party was out looking for Jerry Williams, who was mentally missing in action due to certain pressures, mal-treatments and failure to get paid royalties" - from the linear notes of the 2005 compilation The Best of 25 Years of Swamp Dogg.1 In 1971 he released the politically charged album Rat On! - with included several reference to Vietnam, in the songs "Do You Believe", "God Bless America (For What)", and "Remember I said Tomorrow", discussed above. Also in 1971, he released the song "Sam Stone", a cover of the John Prine song (found on his 1971 self-titled country album John Prine, Atlantic # SD 8296). This version was released on Cuffed, Collared and Tagged (Elektra Records # EKS 74089). The song told the plight of a Vietnam veteran returning home from the "conflict overseas", who turned to drugs: "morphine eased his pain". The song ended with his death: "Sam Stone was alone when he popped his last balloon". Thus, this presented another Vietnam-Drugs representation. The song made a small reference to the Purple Heart - a US military decoration.Sources1brinkster.com (archived copy)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Soul, Gospel, & Funk Songs

Soul singer Swamp Dogg, born Jerry Williams, Jr. in 1942 in Portsmouth, Virginia, across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk - a navy seaside town in which the 'Norfolk Sound' soul music developed in the early 1960s. He also recorded under the name Little Jerry Williams. He adopted the name Swamp Dogg in 1970: "I became Swamp Dogg in 1970 in order to have an alter-ego and someone to occupy the body while the search party was out looking for Jerry Williams, who was mentally missing in action due to certain pressures, mal-treatments and failure to get paid royalties" - from the linear notes of the 2005 compilation The Best of 25 Years of Swamp Dogg.1 In 1971 he released the politically charged album Rat On! - with included several reference to Vietnam, in the songs "Do You Believe", "God Bless America (For What)", and "Remember I said Tomorrow", discussed above. Also in 1971, he released the song "Sam Stone", a cover of the John Prine song (found on his 1971 self-titled country album John Prine, Atlantic # SD 8296). This version was released on Cuffed, Collared and Tagged (Elektra Records # EKS 74089). The song told the plight of a Vietnam veteran returning home from the "conflict overseas", who turned to drugs: "morphine eased his pain". The song ended with his death: "Sam Stone was alone when he popped his last balloon". Thus, this presented another Vietnam-Drugs representation. The song made a small reference to the Purple Heart - a US military decoration. Sources1brinkster.com (archived copy)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: Sam Stone came home to his wife and family / After serving in the conflict overseas / And the time that he served had shattered all his nerves... / But the morphine eased the pain and the grass grew 'round his brain / And gave him all the confidence he lacked / With a Purple Heart and a monkey on his back / There's a hole in daddy's arm... / Sam Stone was alone when he popped his last balloon... / While the room smelled just like death with an overdose hovering in the air / But life had lost it's fun

Notes

Cream 1021 (CR-131-S), stereo, Bennett Ent. Inc., Los Angeles, Calif.; "Sam Stone" (J. Prine), Walden Music/Sourgrapes Music (ASCAP), 3:57; produced and arranged by Jerry Williams, Jr. [From the record sleeve and labels]

About the artist

Born 14 July 1942, Portsmouth, Virginia, USA

Themes

Mistreatment of Vet · Drugs · Medals · Purple Heart · Home Front Perspective · Religion

In collections

US Domestic Perspective Songs [War Years] · Soul, Gospel, & Funk Songs