# Music for crusin' in a helicopter gunship? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 22, 2003, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742 "2003-05-22T04:24:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/1 "2003-05-22T04:24:21Z")
As many of you know, one of the sacred laws of the movies dictates that whenever a Huey helicopter is shown flying low over the rice paddies of Vietnam, either “Fortunate Son” or “For What It’s Worth” has to be playing on the soundtrack, or even from a radio on the Helo itself. Other non-Vietnam movies, such as Predator, have even followed a version of this rule for themselves, and make sure to play a “peppy” pop/rock song whenever they have a troop laden chopper flying open-doored over a steaming jungle or sweltering wasteland battlefield. That said, can anyone else here think of any other favorite songs that would be appropriate for such a scene? My personal suggestions: “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” by the Tokens “Day-o” by Harry Belafonte And maybe “San Francisco” by The Mamas and the Papas, and/or just about anything by Warren Zevon. Anyone else? ---
**Author:** ![pilot141](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e0b2c6/32.png) [@pilot141](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pilot141)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/2 "2003-05-22T04:36:16Z")
“Bodies” by _Drowning Pool_ has already been merged with some impressive military footage. Seems like it would work. Or are we limited to songs of the Vietnam era? And “peppy”? I think that “hard-edged” works better. Listen to the original music in **Blackhawk Down** when the helicopter assault takes places - it works very well. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/3 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/4 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/5 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/6 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/7 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/8 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/9 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/10 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/11 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/12 "2003-05-22T04:48:28Z")
Hmmm, I always thought the standard helicopter music was _Paint It Black_. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/13 "2003-05-22T04:50:40Z")
Sweet holy crap! What the freaking hell just happened? ---
**Author:** ![pilot141](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e0b2c6/32.png) [@pilot141](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pilot141)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/14 "2003-05-22T05:01:28Z")
I just got 10 e-mails of “New Replies!!!” to this thread - so the hamsters must have been completely confused. ---
**Author:** ![d\_redguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@d\_redguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/d_redguy)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/15 "2003-05-22T05:09:49Z")
Color me a traditionalist, but I prefer “Flight of the Valkyries”. - d\_“Charlie don’t surf”\_redguy ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/16 "2003-05-22T06:09:15Z")
Here’s my personal 'Nam mix for riding a Huey into a hot LZ: Groovin’ - The Rascals Surfin’ Bird - The Trashmen Wooly Bully - Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs Nowhere to Run - Martha Reeves I Got You (I Feel Good) - James Brown Fortunate Son - CCR Suzie Q - Flash Cadillac American Woman - The Guess Who War - Edwin Starr ---
**Author:** ![widdershins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f0a364/32.png) [@widdershins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/widdershins)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/17 "2003-05-22T12:15:03Z")
Wow, a decapost. Vietnam era: Spirit In The Sky - Norman Greenbaum Eve Of Destruction - Barry McGuire The Shape Of Things To Come - Max Frost and The Storm Troopers Trouble Everyday - Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention Lover Of The Bayou - The Byrds Masters Of War - Bob Dylan It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleedin’) - Bob Dylan or Byrds version Any time: Supernaut - Black Sabbath Snowblind - Black Sabbath Red - King Crimson Coda: Marine 475 - King Crimson Needles In The Camel’s Eye - Brian Eno Blank Frank - Brian Eno Broadway Melody of 1974 - Genesis Shadow On The Sun - Audioslave Waiting - Daniel Lanois Little Canary - Pulnoc I Hear Voices - Screamin’ Jay Hawkins Villains - Verve Pipe Karma Police - Radiohead O’Sullivan’s March - The Chieftains Stamping Ground - Moondog with Orchestra Dirty - Johnny Winter ---
**Author:** ![Wyld\_Stallyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8dc957/32.png) [@Wyld\_Stallyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wyld_Stallyn)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/18 "2003-05-22T13:43:52Z")
If I was the one flyin’ in to kill everything in sight, it’d have to be to the following soundtrack: “Run to the Hills” Iron Maiden “Seek and Destroy” Metallica “Angel of Death” Slayer ---
**Author:** ![Kombucha\_ShroomPerson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7c8e57/32.png) [@Kombucha\_ShroomPerson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kombucha_ShroomPerson)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/19 "2003-05-22T15:23:14Z")
“Feel Good Hit of the Summer” - Queens of the Stone Age. “Bombs Over Baghdad” - Outkast (Zack de la Rocha remix). “The Fight Song” - Marilyn Manson. “Tribe” - Mad Capsule Markets. “Release the Dogs” - boysetsfire. “I Will Be Heard” - Hatebreed. “Aenema” - Tool. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742/20 "2003-05-22T15:34:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ogre \* > \*\*Sweet holy crap! What the freaking hell just happened? \*\* Your hands, rendered shaky by years of indulgence in Trade Gin, rattled the “Enter” button like a telegraph key, that’s what. Good job, man. New SDMB record. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/music-for-crusin-in-a-helicopter-gunship/176742.md?page=2)