Story Behind The Song
This is a quite literal retelling of a true story that was told to me by a brave American soldier who survived the Korean war. I've written the song in the first person which an audacious taking of poetic license, but I felt it was necessary to convey the emotion of the narrative. I dedicate this song to the glory of that soldier and all other soldiers...not my own.
Song Description
The year is 1950 and America is bogged down in the Korean war. This song is in the form of a letter written by a very frightened soldier to his Father. The song simultaneously asks the father to lie to the mother about the soldier's condition and safety while it tells the narrative of a very frightening night that saves the soldier's life and sends him home, while other soldiers will never make it home alive.
| Song Length |
6:13 |
Genre |
Folk - Contemporary |
| Tempo |
Slow (71 - 90) |
Lead Vocal |
Male Vocal |
| Mood |
Worried, Anxious |
Subject |
War, Mother |
| Similar Artists |
Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie |
Language |
English |
| Era |
2000 and later |
| |
Lyrics
24 December, 1950
Stuck out on a hilltop coldest winter in history
They took away our sleeping bags so we won't sleep too hard
It's a deadly game of chance to fall asleep while standing guard
We march 13 hours almost at a run
With 40 pounds upon my back and a heavy mortar gun
Running til we're next to dead and never knowing why
My tired body so overwhelmed that I could drop and cry
Tell mamma I'm comin home
And tell her not to cry
Tell mamma I'm safe and warm
Daddy please tell her this lie
Light an extra candle on the Christmas tree tonight
Freezing beneath my heavy coat a sudden warning cry
Massing there to cross that bridge and overtake our side
The roaring of quad 50s ripping through the night
Enemy flesh is torn to shreds with very little fight
200 cold and glazing eyes upon that bridge
A thousand soldiers marching slow across a distant ridge
We take up our positions along that river road
Persistent premonition it leaves me so damned cold
Muffled voices on the road a sudden cry of hault
With hand grenade tensions explode and all hell is breaking out
I never thought I'd shoot a man but survival's a savage need
Two clips empty into the night knowing well it's them or me
Don't know how many I caused to die shooting blind at best
I only know the next GI lies lifeless, faceless, dead
Then turn to realize my fighting friends have all pulled back
Out in no-man's land I face my own outfit's attack
Tell mamma I'm comin home
And tell her not to cry
Tell mamma I'm safe and warm
Daddy please tell her that lie
Daddy I'm so scared tonight
Put an extra candle on the Christmas tree tonight
The aftermath is strangely quiet in dawning of new day
It's only then I realize shrapnel's torn apart my leg
And even as I'm helping in the loading of the dead
My mind is halfway beneath the covers of a warm hospital bed
Tell mamma I'm comin home
And tell her not to cry
Tell mamma I'm safe and warm
Daddy this time it ain't a lie
Daddy I got lucky last night
Put an extra candle on the Christmas tree tonight
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