3 Forgotten Country Songs That Embodied the Spirit of the Vietnam War Protest Era

The following three songs about the Vietnam War were some of the most poignant country tunes of the era. And one of them still feels like a punch in the gut to me, decades later.

“My Son” by Jan Howard from ‘Jan Howard’ (1968)

This one always gets me. Jan Howard penned this Nashville classic after having a nightmare about her son dying in the Vietnam War, as he had been drafted. While overseas, she wrote him a letter, and that letter served as the basis for the song. “My Son” was a No. 15 hit on the Hot Country Songs track and has become somewhat of a cult classic. The song is often used in Vietnam War documentaries.

Tragically, after sending the completed song to her son, Howard never heard back from him. Her nightmare came true, and her son had died in the conflict. Her story was, unfortunately, not a unique one. Countless mothers lost their children during the Vietnam War, and Howard’s country tune is one of the few classics written by a mother about the unique horrors of losing one’s child to war.

“Singing In Viet Nam Talking Blues” by Johnny Cash from ‘Man In Black’ (1971)

Man In Black was a protest record of sorts, which saw Johnny Cash fully embody his Man in Black persona. At the time, not a huge number of country musicians were singing about the Vietnam War, outside of the few patriotic tracks supporting it. “Singing In Viet Nam Talking Blues” was Cash’s boldest song yet. It was inspired by traveling to Vietnam to perform for the soldiers there. He detailed the horrors that he witnessed and the sorry state many of the soldiers were in. The song is, more or less, a song about hope for a future where those soldiers would return home, and the war would be over.

“Dear Uncle Sam” by Loretta Lynn from ‘I Like ‘Em Country’ (1966)

Loretta Lynn was never one to shy away from tackling touchy subjects. “Dear Uncle Sam” was actually one of the first country songs of the era to really touch on the Vietnam War. Recorded in 1965, “Dear Uncle Sam” tells the story of a wife whose husband has been drafted. She implores the embodiment of the United States to spare him: “But you don’t need him like I do.” It’s so haunting, even today. This song would become Lynn’s second song composed on her own to enter the charts, where it peaked at No. 4 on the country charts.

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