Customer Reviews

In Country: Folk Songs of Americans in the Vietnam War

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I listen to some folk and listen to about any genre of music. I picked this up to see what it was about after seeing it was written by soldiers during the Vietnam War and was amazed by the disc. It spreads across humor to service rivalry to deeper reflections. I also like the reworking of some of songs such as King of the Trial and I've Been Everywhere.

Personally I think it's a must have for history, Vietnam War buffs and those who appreciate folk music.

That line from the wistful Boony Rat Song gives you some sense of the fragile beauty of some of these Nam Vet classics.

One of my Army Nurse friends bought me this album as a gift and I cannot thank her enough.

There isn't one dud track on the entire CD and some of the songs, such as Cobra Seven, really capture the die-for-each-other heroism that makes it all the more disgusting that these brave men and women were never honored for their sacrifice.

If you are a Vet you will understand what I am about to say, if not, please trust me, that if you meet a Vietnam Vet, whether it be a combat vet or a Nam Nurse, the most important words they can ever hear are 'Welcome Home'. Because they never heard it when they came back from Vietnam.

Blessings to Lydia and the boys for sharing this stunning collection with us all.

More than collection of folk songs, these are the songs that were writen by U.S. service men fighting in Vietnam. Ground troops and pilots wrote these songs to the tunes of popular songs. They are performed on the cd by Vietnam veterans. Extremely well done. The songs tell the stories of specific battles, air combat, and the hardships of fighting the war in South East Asia. Dr. Lydia Fish, Director of Anthropology at Buffalo State College, N.Y., collected these treasures and recorded them in 24 track stereo. The cd is part of the "Vietnam Veterans Oral History and Folklore Project." You won't find any Jane Fonda stuff here! No matter how you felt about the war, this cd is a must for anyone with an intrest in history, folk music, and of course the Vietnam War.

outstanding cd.recommend to any vietnam vet to bring back the good times or the bad depending on your outlook at the war.

In Country gives a side of the Vietnam War that few Americans who weren't there can imagine or appreciate... until you hear the music. Americans who served in Vietnam -- and in the skies over Vietnam and Laos -- had their music, and In Country captures the best of it. For those of us who were there, listening to the cuts that address the parts of the war we experienced is like stepping into a time machine. This isn't the Hollywood version; it's the real thing, with understated courage, humor and forebearance to balance the death, destruction and misery. In fact, come to think of it, that was why a lot of the songs were written. They range from tear-jerkers, to serious, to cynical, to hilarious. Listening to them you can sense the change in attitudes toward the war as it ground on. I can remember hearing some of them for real in Air Force officers club bars in Thailand in '65-66 and in '75, and Flying Fish -- and Lydia Fish, the lady who put the whole collection together -- got it right! I teach an undergraduate college course on the Vietnam War nowadays, and the CD is worth its weight in gold. Highly recommended!

J. Guilmartin

This is a definate must for anyone who studies or did time in Vietnam!! Written by the soldiers who were there, set to tunes that were popular for the time, they tell the stories that no one else can tell.

I was fortunate to take Dr. Fish's anthropology course were the tape was required for the class. I never thought I would use it again until I began teaching and searching for music from the Vietnam War. I used the tape to illustrate the hardships as well as the companionship the men found in Vietnam. I then complimented the lesson with Anti war protest songs to leave the students with a well rounded outlook at both sides of the Vietnam Era. I strongly recommend this tape/CD.

excellent cd. No protest songs here and will surely bring back some memories.

These are GI songs from Vietnam. They're sung by some great voices, among them Bull Durham and Chuck "Jeep" Rosenberg. They performed these songs on the PBS television program, Austin City Limits, a good number of years ago, and then created this album.

It's not for everybody. Folks who today like to say that they hated the war but supported the troops--which is not what I remember at all, I mean the part about supporting the troops--might not like to hear from GIs who didn't think of themselves as victims then, or now. But some people who were there might enjoy it and so might folks who are interested on how some smart, sharp guys came to view themselves and the war in songs.

I heard most of these songs before--Ba Mui Ba is on Barry Sadler's album, I think, and many others were avilable on 1/4" tapes from the service club at Da Nang AB. The songs on those tapes were probably performed by the guys who wrote them; Messrs. Durham, Rosenberg and Co., have done them proud.

Also recommended is Singing the Vietnam Blues: Songs of the Air Force in Southeast Asia (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series).

This collection of songs will bring back memories of the time spent in Charlie's land. I am especially fond of the cut entitled "Six Clicks" although that is just me. I haven't found a single cut that I don't like. I wish there were more songs, or a companion CD. I would buy it in a heartbeat.