Why did Billy Joel write Goodnight Saigon?
Saigon is a city in Vietnam where major combat operations took place during the Vietnam War. Joel wrote the song as a tribute to many of his friends who had served in the war. He composed it after he was asked to write a song by a veterans’ group.
Did Billy Joel fight in Vietnam?
Billy Joel did not fight in the Vietnam War. He thought about fleeing to Canada when the draft lottery came around, but he snagged a very high number and didn’t wind up getting called. “A lot of my friends did go,” he said. “They said, ‘We’ll tell you what happened to us and you write a song about it,’” Joel recalled.
Is Goodnight Saigon an anti war song?
“Goodnight Saigon” is a song written by Billy Joel, originally appearing on his 1982 album The Nylon Curtain, about the Vietnam War. It depicts the situation and attitude of United States Marines beginning with their military training on Parris Island and then into different aspects of Vietnam combat.
What is Bruce Springsteen’s most famous song?
Top 10 Bruce Springsteen Songs
- ‘Born to Run’ From: ‘Born to Run’ (1975)
- ‘Thunder Road’ From ‘Born to Run’ (1975)
- ‘Badlands’ From: ‘Darkness on the Edge of Town’ (1978)
- ‘Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out’ From: ‘Born to Run’ (1975)
- ‘Atlantic City’ From: ‘Nebraska’ (1982)
- ‘Jungleland’
- ‘Born in the U.S.A.’
- ‘Point Blank’
When did Billy Joel write the song Goodnight Saigon?
The song “Goodnight Saigon” was written by Billy Joel in 1983 as a tribute to soldiers who served in the Vietnam War.
Is the song Goodnight Saigon a metaphor for war?
Add to that the over 300k who were physically wounded, plus the uncountable amount of mentally wounded. We all – together – salute them. War is indeed, Hell. Lon from Wisconsin Those of you making comments about “We had no soft soap”. That is a metaphor. Peter from California I was WRONG about the war! I was posted stateside.
How did Billy Joel feel about the Vietnam War?
Joel never served in the war himself, but he had many friends that did. Upon returning home from the Vietnam War, soldiers were not welcome for what they had been sent across the world to do. Many soldiers had difficulties functioning outside of the war, and were not able to find jobs.
When did Joan Baez sing Goodnight Saigon?
Capitol Records included a rendition of “Goodnight Saigon” sung by Joan Baez in 1991 on her compilation album called Brothers In Arms . Irish band Aslan covered the song on their 2009 album ‘Uncase’d’.