You're In The Army Now
1982 · CBS 85742 · Sweden
- Artist
- Bolland & Bolland
- Title
- You're In The Army Now
- Release
- The Domino Theory
- Year
- 1982
- Label
- CBS # 85742
- Format
- LP · Album
- Language
- English
- Country
- Sweden
- Genre
- Electronic · Synthpop · Electronic
- Primary theme
- Post-War
Annotation
The single "You're in the Army Now" (CBS # A-2200) took an anti-war position - it featured on the 1982 concept album The Domino Theory discussed above. It started with the story of a man being draft and being told that he will become a local hero: "a vacation in a foreign land, Uncle Sam...the draft-man said...you'll be a hero of the neighborhood". He soon found himself on his "way to 'Nam". It then described the battle scene, with bullets, grenades, and missiles flying overhead, the sounds of war and fear of death. As the soldier prepared to fire his weapons, he said "it don't seem right", thus indicating an anti-war stance. It reached # 1 in the Norwegian single charts, staying there for six weeks. It also topped the chart in Finland, reach # 2 in Sweden, and # 9 in South Africa. (1) The British pop/rock band Status Quo covered the song, changing several verses, such as "smiling faces on the way to 'Nam" to "smiling faces as you wait to land". They also changed the anti-war content: "a vacation in a foreign land, Uncle Sam does the best he can" became "you're on your way to a foreign land, now's the time to do what you can"; "your finger's on the trigger but it don't seem right"…
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation
The Domino Theory (CBS # CBS 85742), a synth-pop concept album which took an anti-war position, included several references to the Vietnam War. Bolland, also known as Bolland & Bolland featured the two brothers Ferdi Bolland and Rob Bolland who originally came from South Africa, but based their career in the Netherlands. The most famous song on the album, "You're in the Army Now", is discussed immediately below. The song "Heart of Darkness" captured the tone of the album, presenting the despair of war: "I was afraid to face the day, nothing could take my fear away...my fate's no longer in my hands". The title of the song came from the Joseph Conrad book Heart of Darkness (about a British ivory trader sailing down the Congo River in Central Africa). Francis Ford Coppola also took inspiration from this book for his 1979 Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now. The song "Dogs of War", narrated in the first person, provided the perspective of a soldier fighting in the jungle. The soldier already displayed signs of psychological stress: "night is filled with shadows...it all seems a nightmare...I'm going insane" - this followed in-line with the 1980s trend of portraying veterans / soldiers as…
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
Dutch duo of brothers Rob Bolland (born 17 April 1955) and Ferdi Bolland (born 5 August 1956), both born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa; the family later moved to the Netherlands. Songwriters and producers; released You're in the Army Now (1981), later a hit for Status Quo. Based in the Netherlands. [Source: Wikipedia]