Ballads of Green Berets

Ssgt. Barry Sadler | Format: Audio Cassette

Product Details

• Audio Cassette (May 19, 1998)
• Label: Collector's Choice
• ASIN: B000007OLF
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #476,881 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Ballad of the Green Berets

2. I'm the Lucky One

3. Letter from Vietnam

4. Badge of Courage

5. Saigon

6. Salute to the Nurses

7. I'm Watching the Raindrops Fall

8. Garet Trooper

9. The Soldier Has Come Home

10. Lullaby

11. Trooper's Lament

12. Bamiba

13. The A-Team [*]

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Barry Sadler drove a sharp spike into the already polarized American psyche with his unabashedly patriotic and pro-Vietnam War chant "Ballad of the Green Berets," which rocketed to the top of the charts in 1966. Supporters of the war in Southeast Asia embraced "Ballad of the Green Berets" as an anthem; antiwar activists derided it as jingoistic, machismo garbage. In retrospect, they were both right. Sadler, a wounded and decorated Vietnam veteran, possessed a thin, stilted baritone better suited to recitations than actual singing (which there is actually very little of herein). As a songwriter, he was little more than one-dimensional. And, sadly, like so many veterans, Sadler's life seemed to slowly unravel after the war, and after the fleeting taste of fame that "Green Berets" afforded him. Though he continued to record and write soldier-of-fortune-style pulp war novels, he never had another hit. He died in 1989 after being shot in the head near his home in Guatemala, under mysterious and somewhat seedy circumstances. Oddly, though, when heard today, far removed from its emotion-charged original context, this scant, musically inconsequential collection of guts-and-glory odes and reminiscences takes on new meaning as a slender but vivid historical document from one of America's most divided and tumultuous epochs. --Bob Allen --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Product Description

A genuine 60s artifact! This album sold two million copies in five weeks, includes Barry's chart toping single 'The 'A' Team' as a bonus track. Also includes liner notes. Collector's Choice. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Moving words from one who was there!, October 5, 1999

By 

M. Graves ([e-mail]) (Leesville, LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ballads of the Green Berets (Audio CD)

I bought the original LP Album by SSG Sadler about six months before I enlisted in the service. I loved the songs then, and love them even more after my sixteen months in Vietnam and Thailand. My original LP is just about worn out, so I was estatic to find it available on CD. I have long since retired from active duty, but still greatly enjoy the album. The memories, good and bad, that these songs bring back are an important part of my life. They also remind me of the pride that I have for my fellow service men and women, who sacrificed so much to serve. Today, I work with a military intel unit as a support contractor, and we provide intel support to units under going realistic combat training at the Joint Readiness Training Center. The young soldiers I work with enjoy "Ballads of the Green Berets", which shows the timelessness of the songs, as well as reminding me that "all made sacrifices, some sacrificed all".

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Essential for Your Complete Collection, July 25, 2004

By 

David L Hutchins "Music Lover" (Mesa, AZ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ballads of the Green Berets (Audio CD)

Just for the historical significance alone, this album is worth owning. The title song was extremely popular and sold over 9 million singles and albums. It is still very listenable, even though the war it was about was over also 30 years ago. As far as the quality of the music, the Amazon review describes Sadler's voice as thin, stilted baritone. I don't know what that means exactly, as I find his voice clear and smooth and very easy to listen to. He ennunciates very well and you don't have to read the lyrics to know what he is singing. Okay, he is not the greatest singer who ever lived, but who cares? He can sing and does a more than passable job of it. Those who are anti-war may not like this album much, but mainly it's about a soldier's experiences in the war and isn't really political in nature--at least most of the songs aren't. Very listenable and enjoyable whether you are a dove or a hawk. The A-Team song is a nice bonus track. Great sound quality. Well worth owning. Tragically Barry Sadler died young under suspicious circumstances.

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most important albums and singles of the 1960's, July 19, 2001

By 

Bradley Olson (Bemidji, MN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ballads of the Green Berets (Audio CD)

This is the album that Vietnam veterans describe as the definitive album of the era and for good reason. Barry was a Green Beret himself during the Vietnam era and these are songs of courage, his life, war, patriotism, making sacrifices, serving the country, and other important things in this world. Barry sang this song on the Ed Sullivan Show and it soon became a #1 pop hit for 5 weeks and also became a #2 country hit in 1966. As you listen to the album, you will soon learn what he was singing about, who he was singing for, and sings from his heart with pride and conviction. Just like Barry's life was dramatic, the album is very dramatic as well and it holds out very well with time. This does contain the entire album, plus as a bonus track, it includes The "A" Team". Although the album is in stereo on this reissue, The "A" Team is in mono so for those who are looking for it in stereo have to keep the "A" Team album. RCA or someone should reissue the other 2 Sadler albums, which are The "A" Team and "Back Home."