# Anti-war songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 28, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699 "2015-04-28T04:08:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/61 "2015-04-29T10:39:10Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Please make sure you do not repost excessive amounts of lyrics. Better to post a snip and link to the remainder. Does that also apply to translations? Because there’s a song I’d like to translate to English. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/62 "2015-04-29T11:15:46Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > _[Sam Stone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl9ZkYViEIs)_, by John Prine. Oooh!, another good Prine one, [Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven Anymore](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgRVNjsuycQ) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/63 "2015-04-29T11:36:47Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > “Waist Deep” is NOT about war - it is a reference to an incident in which a (drunken?) Drill Instructor ordered his fully-loaded troops into the river. > They went, and several died before the mess was over. [It’s an allegory of LBJ’s escalation of the Vietnam conflict.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waist_Deep_in_the_Big_Muddy#Significance) It works equally well for other foolhardy wars and leaders, too. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/64 "2015-04-29T12:52:34Z")
Try this: > [@](#): > > Well, I’m not going to point any moral; > I’ll leave that for yourself > Maybe you’re still walking, you’re still talking > You’d like to keep your health. > > But every time I read the papers > That old feeling comes on; > We’re – waist deep in the Big Muddy > And the big fool says to push on. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/65 "2015-04-29T16:03:31Z")
[Blood on the Risers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWgsdexkv18) - The best antiwar songs are ones you’d imagine sung on a march. The British are the best at [bitching to a tune](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh!_What_a_Lovely_War) ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/66 "2015-04-29T16:03:34Z")
The Ballad of Penny Evans. [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG_vodAl1VU) [Lyrics](http://lyrics.wikia.com/Steve_Goodman:The_Ballad_Of_Penny_Evans) ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/67 "2015-04-29T16:11:57Z")
[Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXcG3tXYNF8) - Paxton isn’t subtitle but it’s catchy. [Irish](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuJzGDzuHBs) by Tonic, not sure if it’s a cover of a traditional tune but it sounds like one. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/68 "2015-04-29T16:15:56Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > And back to Paul Simon: > Listen to both tracks on Scarborough Fair / Canticle The Canticle is a recycling of Simon’s earlier “On the Side of a Hill,” referenced by **janis\_and\_c0** above in message #42. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/69 "2015-04-29T18:02:10Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > “Thresher” was about the USS Thresher - an early nuclear sub (armed) which died when the asshole Commander ordered it to dive below its limit. Why don’t you get your fucking facts straight before you spew shit? The Thresher was on a shakedown cruise (likely unarmed, but why would that even matter?). The sub was slowly diving to check systems, and had what was likely a failure of a water pipe, which caused flooding and a reactor shutdown. The ship sunk below crush depth and was lost. Your ignorant comment is an insult to the (non-asshole) commander, the Navy, and humanity in general. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/70 "2015-04-29T18:04:43Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Why don’t you get your fucking facts straight before you spew shit? Did someone spew shit in your Capt Crunch this morning? Jeez! ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/71 "2015-04-29T18:29:02Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > “Sky Pilot” by the Animals. Beat me to it. Great song. I knew a couple of military chaplains and introduced it to them. Minor correction: Eric Burdon and the Animals. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69zvFnVa03g) ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/72 "2015-04-29T18:45:28Z")
Though inspired by the shootings at Kent State, [Ohio by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68g76j9VBvM) could be considered an anti-war song since the shootings were in response to protesters who were against the Cambodian Campaign during the Vietnam War. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/73 "2015-04-29T19:08:50Z")
From _The Dawn Patro_l (both productions),“Stand to Your Glasses Steady”. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/74 "2015-04-29T19:45:46Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Tom Waits’ song about a young soldier: [Day After Tomorrow](http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/tomwaits/dayaftertomorrow.html)[Joan Baez’s version](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dppUDBJ4b7c) Also from Waits [Hell Broke Luce](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Fju9o8BVJ8) ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/75 "2015-04-29T19:54:57Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Did someone spew shit in your Capt Crunch this morning? Jeez! Yes, it was usedtobe. Sorry about that.☹ ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/76 "2015-04-29T20:08:32Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > [Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXcG3tXYNF8) - Paxton isn’t subtitle but it’s catchy. Tom Paxton’s Jimmy Newman is worth a listen too. ---
**Author:** ![Barrett\_Bonden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@Barrett\_Bonden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barrett_Bonden)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/77 "2015-04-29T20:30:28Z")
[Fortunate Son](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec0XKhAHR5I) by CCR ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/78 "2015-04-29T22:39:10Z")
[Ed McCurdy’s Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_McCurdy), which has a stranger history than I ever knew about till I googled it. The song was written in 1950, long before the current anti-war movement, and has been recorded in _76 languages_. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/79 "2015-04-30T00:02:24Z")
> [@Barrett\_Bonden](#): > > [Fortunate Son](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec0XKhAHR5I) by CCR Several years ago Wrangler used “Fortunate Son” in a jeans ad. They only used the first few lines: _Some folks are born made to wave the flag Oh they’re red, white and blue_ [http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Fogerty-to-Wrangler-Song-in-ad-ain-t-me-2757730.php](http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Fogerty-to-Wrangler-Song-in-ad-ain-t-me-2757730.php) ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699/80 "2015-04-30T00:46:29Z")
Country Joe and the Fish – I Feel Like I’m Fixing To Die Rag Yeah, come on all of you, big strong men, Uncle Sam needs your help again. He’s got himself in a terrible jam Way down yonder in Vietnam So put down your books and pick up a gun, We’re gonna have a whole lotta fun. [https://www.yout](https://www.yout)[404 Not Found | ＵＢＥ株式会社 - UBE Corporation](http://ube.com/watch?v=dATyZBEeDJ4) (broken because its the Woodstock version of the Fish Cheer) Tom Lehrer – So Long Mom This is one of his set-ups for the song This year we’ve been celebrating the hundredth anniversary of the civil war and the fiftieth anniversary of the beginning of world war I and the twentieth anniversary of the end of world war II. All in all it’s been a good year for the war buffs and a number of lps and television specials have come out capitalizing on all this “nostalgia” with particular emphasis on the songs of various wars. I feel that if any songs are going to come out of world war III we’d better start writing them now. I have one here. you might call it a bit of pre-nostalgia. This is the song that all of the boys sang as they went bravely of to world war III. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yrbv40ENU_o/hqdefault.jpg "Tom Lehrer - So Long, Mom (A Song for World War III) - with intro - widescreen") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrbv40ENU_o) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-war-songs/718699.md?page=5)