Below is the contents page of Singing the Vietnam Blues: Songs of
the Air Force in Southeast Asia by Joseph F. Tuso.
SINGING THE VIETNAM BLUES:
SONGS
OF THE
AIR FORCE
IN
SOUTHEAST
ASIA
By Joseph F. Tuso
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY PRESS
COLLEGE STATION
8
Copyright © 1990 by Joseph F. TUso
Manufactured in the United States of America
All rights reserved
First Edition
The paper used in this book meets the minimum
requirements of the American National Standard for
Permanence of Paper for Printed Library materials,
Z39.48-1984. Binding materials have been chosen for
durability. ©
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Tuso, Joseph F.
Singing the Vietnam blues : songs of the Air Force
in Southeast Asia / by Joseph F. TUso. - 1st ed.
p. cm. - (Texas A&M University military his-
tory series ; no. 19)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-89096-383-5 (alk. paper)
ISBN 0-89096-455-6 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961-1975-Poetry. 2. United
States. Air Force-Songs and music-Texts. 3. Air pilots,
Military-United States-Songs and music-Texts. 4. Air
pilots' writings, American-Vietnam. 5. Songs, English -
United States-Texts. 6. American poetry-20th century.
I. Title. II. Series: Texas A&M University military history
series : 19.
PS595.V5T87 1990
782.42'i64'i599~dc20 89-20529
CIP
Paperback cover art from a photo provided courtesy of
Don Kilfoyle
Cflfiteats
Preface
Overture
The Songs
Air Force Lament 21
Armed Recce 24
The Ballad of Bernie
Fisher 26
The Ballad of Heinz E.
Coordes 27
The Ballad of Jeb Stewart 29
The Ballad of Machete Two 33
The Ballad of Robin Olds 35
The Ballad of the C-l 30 37
The Ballad of the Green
Brassiere 38
The Ballad of the PIO 39
Banana Valley 42
Bat Song 44
Battle Hymn of the 85-mm
Gunner 45
Battle Hymn of the Ranch
Hands 46
Battle Hymn of the Red
River Rats 46
The Battle of Doumer
Bridge 48
The Battle of 18.23 50
Bear of the Sky 51
Beside a Laotian Waterfall 52
page xi
3
B-52 Takeoff 54
Bien Hoa Lullaby 54
Blowing in the Wind 55
Blue Four 56
Bronco Song 59
Brown Anchor 60
The Bunker Song 62
Call Out the Reserves 63
Charlie Went A-Running 64
Chocolate-covered
Napalm 65
Cloudy Night, No
Moonlight 67
Come and loin the Air
Force 68
Cruising over Hanoi 70
Dashing through the Sky 71
Dingbat 72
Don't Send Me to Hanoi 73
Down the Lazy Valley 74
Downtown I 75
Downtown II 77
Early Abort 78
Escorting a Spectre 80
F-4 Serenade 81
Fighter Pilots 82
Viii CONTENTS
Fighter Pilot's Christmas 84
F-105 Alma Mater 85
GIB Named Richard 86
GIB's Lament 89
Hallelujah I 91
Hallelujah II 92
Hallelujah III 96
Hallelujah IV 97
Hello, Cam Ranh Tower 99
Here's to Old Bien Hoa 101
The Ho Chi Minh TYail 102
I 'Druther Be an F-4 lock 103
I Fly the Line 104
If You Fly 106
I'm a Young Ranch Hand 107
In-Flight Refueling 108
The Inventory 109
I've Been Everywhere 111
I Wanted Wings 114
loy to the World 117
Just Give Me Operations 117
King of the TYail 119
Let's Get Away with It All 120
Little Town Up North 122
MiG-19 123
TheMiG~21 124
Mu Gia Pass 127
My Darling F-4 127
My Jolly Green 128
Napalm 129
Never Fly in the A Shau
on Sunday 131
The New DCO 132
Night on the Town 133
Night Owls 134
Nimrod 135
Normandy's Sand 136
Northward Ho 137
Number One Clismas
Song 137
Ode to a Great Fuckin'
SAR Effort 139
Old 97 the 0-1E 141
Old Smoky 143
Old Weird Harold 144
O Little Town of Ho Chi
Minh 146
One Hundred Missions 147
One Hundred Sixty VC in
the Open 148
On Top of Old Thud Ridge 149
On Top of the Pop Up 151
Our Leaders 152
The Panther Pack Is
Prowling 154
Parties, Banquets, and
Balls 155
The Phu Cat Alert Pad 156
Phu Cat Star 157
Pop Goes the Weasel 158
Puff 159
Puff, the Magic Dragon 160
Pull the Boom from the
Gashole 162
Put Your Beeper on the
Air 163
The Red River Valley 165
Republic's Ultra Hog 166
Saigon City 167
Sammy Hall 168
Shootin' Guns and
Droppin' Bombs 170
Sittin' in the Cab of My
TYuck 171
Sixteen Tons 172
Skoshi Tiger 173
So Long, John 176
Song of the Wolf Pack 177
Son of Satan's Angels 179
Spray On, Spray on
Harvest Rice 181
Spray the Town 182
Springtime on the Red
River 182
Strafe the Town 183
Super Constellation 186
Tales That I Can Tell 189
Tay Ninh Mountain 190
rONTENTS
,X
Tchepone 191
The Thanh Hoa Bridge I 194
The Thanh Hoa Bridge II 197
The 388th 200
The 390th TFW Song 201
Thud Drivers in the Sky 202
The Thud Driver's Theme 203
Thud Pilot 204
TYees 205
Twelve Days in Ranch
Hand 207
TWelve Days of Combat 208
TWelve Days of Tet 208
Uncle's Nephews 209
Up in That Valley 210
The VC Thick Driver's
Blues 211
Waltzing Matilda 212
Wand'rin' Man 214
Way Down South in the
Land of Rice 214
The Weasel Song 215
We've Been Working on
the Railroad 218
Where Have All the
Flowers Gone? 219
Where Have All the Old
Heads Gone? 221
Whispering Death 222
Wild Weasel 224
Will the MiGs Come Out
to Play? 226
Will There Be a Tomorrow? 227
Wingman's Lament 228
Wolf Pack's Houseboy 230
Yankee Air Pirate 233
The Yellow Rose of Hanoi 235
A ZPU Gunner 236
Final Movement
239
Glossary
243
Sources and References
267
Sources & References
Air Force Magazine, May, 1986; April, 1987.
Anders, Greg, ed. "17th Wild Weasel Songbook." 117 songs (un-
publ.). Provided by Paul Orf.
Bentley, Logan, ed. "Stovepipe Serenade: A Collection of Flying
Songs." 1956 ed. Ardmore Air Force Base, Oklahoma. 62 pp.,
115 songs (unpubl.). This edition was prepared after the 1954
limited edition of 75 copies was exhausted; its songs are from
World War II through the Korean War, and it has beautiful origi-
nal illustrations. Provided by Mrs. Charles B. Marshall, Jr.
Durham, James P. ("Bull"). Songs of S.E.A. Dur-Don Enterprises, 1970.
"A Fighter Pilot's Hymnal." Bien Hoa, South Vietnam: 3rd Tacti-
cal Fighter Wing, 90th Tactical Fighter Squadron. 174 pp., 325
songs (unpubl.). Provided by Garry R. Peters.
Fish, Lydia, contributor. Assorted tapes.
Fordham, Henry, contributor. Tapes and assorted songsheets
from the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, Ubon, Thailand, 1968-69.
Getz, C. W ("Bill"), ed. The Wild Blue Yonder: Songs of the Air Force.
San Mateo, Calif.: Redwood Press, 1981. More than 650 songs
from World War I through the Vietnam War, with commentary.
Grathwol, John, contributor. Tape with assorted songs from Phu
Cat Air Base, South Vietnam, 1968-69.
Hesterum, Vernon D. ("Bud"), contributor. Assorted songsheets.
Jonas, Dick. FSH Volume I. Mesilla Park, N.Mex.: Goldust Records,
1969. LP record. 10 original songs. His songs are now avail-
able on cassette tapes from Erosonic, Phoenix, Ariz.
268 SOURCES AND REFERENCES
---------. FSH Volume II, YGBSM. Mesilla Park, N.Mex.: Goldust
Records, 1971. LP record. 12 original songs.
Lax, Roger, and Frederick Smith. The Great Song Thesaurus. New
York: Oxford University Press. 1984.
McLean, Alvin, contributor. Assorted songsheets.
McNeil, W. K. "Foreword." In Folksongs of the American Fighter Pilot
in Southeast Asia, 1967-68, ed. Joseph F. TUso. Bloomington, Ind.:
Folklore Forum Society, 1971.
Pratt, John Clark. Vietnam Voices: Perspectives on the War Years, 1941-
1982. New York: Penguin, 1984.
Sandburg, Carl. The American Songbag. New York: Harcourt Brace,
1927
Sochurek, Howard. "Air Rescue behind Enemy Lines." National
Geographic 134, no. 3 (September, 1968): 345-69.
"35th Tactical Fighter Wing Songbook." Phan Rang Air Base, South
Vietnam, 1969 (unpubl.). Provided by John Carroll.
Tliso, Joseph F, ed. Folksongs of the American Fighter Pilot in Southeast
Asia, 1967-68. Folklore Forum, Bibliographic and Special Series
no. 7. Bloomington, Ind.: Folklore Forum Society, 1971. 39 pp.,
33 songs, all contained in the present volume.
Wallrich, William. Air Force Songs: Songs and Ballads of the United States
Air Force, World War I through Korea. New York: Duell, Sloan, and
Pearce, 1957. 232 pp. with commentary. Provided by Bernard R.
Marsh.
"Yankee Air Pirate." Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand:
355th Tactical Fighter Wing. 83 songs (unpubl.). Provided by
Bill Craig.
