Tons of Vietnam War anthems, both pro-war and anti-war protest songs, dropped in the year 1969. Many Vietnam War veterans heard them at some point, but only a handful really resonated with soldiers who actually went overseas. The following three songs are likely still remembered by Vietnam War veterans to this very day.
“Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival from ‘Willy And The Poor Boys’
There’s no way we’d leave this iconic, incredibly memorable veteran-focused anthem off our list. “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival makes it to Vietnam War documentaries and movies to this very day for a reason. This upbeat roots rock classic is a powerful anti-war song. And it makes sense that it made it all the way to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It’s still getting tons of streams, too, more than half a century later.
“Okie From Muskogee” by Merle Haggard and The Strangers from ‘Okie From Muskogee’
This isn’t an anti-war song. On the contrary, “Okie From Muskogee” lends support to Vietnam War veterans while also being more of a conservative, pro-war take on the conflict. Some veterans connected to it over the anti-war protest anthems of the time. Merle Haggard, on the other hand, would say decades later that he was looking at things “through the eyes of a fool” at the time.
“It was the photograph that I took of the way things looked through the eyes of a fool…” Haggard told American Songwriter in 2010. “And most of America was under the same assumptions I was. As it’s stayed around now for 40 years, I sing the song now with a different attitude onstage. […] I’ve become educated. […] I play it now with a different projection. It’s a different song now. I’m different now.”
“To Susan On The West Coast Waiting” by Donovan from ‘Barabajagal’
How about a little bit of a deep cut? The track from Donovan’s Barabajagal record follows the narrative of a man who loves his dear Susan but is forced to leave her because of the Vietnam War draft. The song is sung as if it’s being read from a letter, likely sent from the narrator Andy to Susan from a world away. “To Susan On The West Coast Waiting” is actually quite a heartbreaking song among the other Vietnam War anthems from 1969 on this list.
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