Vietnamese Blues

Annotation — European Songs

Charged G.B.H., a UK82 group, a sub-genre of Hardcore Punk, with added heavy drum beats and distorted guitar sounds. Members included: Colin Abrahall (vocals), Colin Blyth (guitar), Andrew Williams (drums, 1978-86), and Ross Lomas (bass, 1978-present). Formed in 1978, in Birmingham, West Midlands, UK. The song "Vietnamese Blues" (Clay Records # CLAY LP8) looked at the perspective of a veteran who "just got back from Vietnam". This song referenced several issue often found in post-war songs about veterans. Firstly, it dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "My minds gone it's just not there". Secondly, there is a possible reference to a disabled war veteran: "I got blown to bits by a bomb... I'm really only half a man". Thirdly, it looked at the struggle of the returning veteran: "My wife's left...I got no money". Also note the reference to the veteran receiving a medal: "I fought hard for my Purple Heart" - awarded by the US president to those wounded or KIA, an estimated 351,794 were awarded during the Vietnam War. Additionally, the song referenced the use of napalm: "I got addicted to napalm" - chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123Sources1Napalm: An American Biography (Robert M. Neer, 2013)↩2Times Higher Education: Napalm an american biography by robert m neer↩3Napalm, An American Biography (book website)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — Punk Songs

Charged G.B.H., a UK82 group, a sub-genre of Hardcore Punk, with added heavy drum beats and distorted guitar sounds. Members included: Colin Abrahall (vocals), Colin Blyth (guitar), Andrew Williams (drums, 1978-86), and Ross Lomas (bass, 1978-present). The song "Vietnamese Blues" (Clay Records # CLAY LP8) looked at the perspective of a veteran who "just got back from Vietnam". This song referenced several issue often found in post-war songs about veterans. Firstly, it dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "My minds gone it's just not there". Secondly, there is a possible reference to a disabled war veteran: "I got blown to bits by a bomb... I'm really only half a man". Thirdly, it looked at the struggle of the returning veteran: "My wife's left...I got no money". Also note the reference to the veteran receiving a medal: "I fought hard for my Purple Heart" - awarded by the US president to those wounded or KIA, an estimated 351,794 were awarded during the Vietnam War. Additionally, the song referenced the use of napalm: "I got addicted to napalm" - chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123 Sources1Napalm: An American Biography (Robert M. Neer, 2013)↩2Times Higher Education: Napalm an american biography by robert m neer↩3Napalm, An American Biography (book website)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

About the artist

English punk band formed 1978 in Birmingham, England. [Source: Wikipedia]

Themes

Napalm · Medals · Purple Heart · PTSD · Vet

In collections

European Songs · PTSD Songs · Punk Songs