Soldiers Prayer

Annotation — P.O.W. / M.I.A. Songs

Hoyt Scoggins ("Rev. William Hoyt Scoggins") - born 9 January 1926 in Lafayette, Georgia, he started his recording career in the 1950s, writing and playing country music. He held, along with his wife Jessie Mae, several pastorates in churches across North Georgia, including his last known location in Rome, Georgia. (1) (2) (3) His two sons served in the Vietnam War, Robert Dolan Scoggins and Ty Scoggins. (4) This single, from Atlanta, Georgia, probably released in the early 1970s, contained two Vietnam-related tracks, both of which contained strong religious elements. The first song "Prisoner of Vietnam" (Gaye Records # 3037) addressed the P.O.W. issue. Narrated in the first person from the perspective of a soldier "captured by the guerrillas", he described how his captors tortured and tried to brainwash him. But he told the listener that with the help of god he resisted "their ways". He then said that the North Vietnamese "beheaded my buddy" (Note: there were a few cases of people being beheaded during the war). The soldier managed to escape the prison, hiding in the jungle and foxholes. The second song on the single "Soldier's Prayer" told the story of a US army captain who…

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — US 'Patriotic' / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest Songs

Hoyt Scoggins ("Rev. William Hoyt Scoggins") - born 9 January 1926 in Lafayette, Georgia, he started his recording career in the 1950s, writing and playing country music. He held, along with his wife Jessie Mae, several pastorates in churches across North Georgia, including his last known location in Rome, Georgia. (1) (2) (3) His two sons served in the Vietnam War, Robert Dolan Scoggins and Ty Scoggins. (4) This single, from Atlanta, Georgia, probably released in the early 1970s, contained two Vietnam-related tracks, both of which contained strong religious elements. The first song "Prisoner of Vietnam" (Gaye Records # 3037) addressed the P.O.W. issue. Narrated in the first person from the perspective of a soldier "captured by the guerrillas", he described how his captors tortured and tried to brainwash him. But he told the listener that with the help of god he resisted "their ways". He then said that the North Vietnamese "beheaded my buddy" (Note: there were a few cases of people being beheaded during the war). The soldier managed to escape the prison, hiding in the jungle and foxholes. The second song on the single "Soldier's Prayer" told the story of a US army captain who…

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

About the artist

Born 9 January 1926, Lafayette, Georgia, USA

Themes

Patriotic · Religion · Soldier's Perspective · Foxhole · Anti-War

In collections

P.O.W. / M.I.A. Songs · US 'Patriotic' / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest Songs