5090 by FAWM: "Names On a Wall"

Names On a Wall

10 weeks ago by @jeff9 · @greengrassgirl

Liner Notes

#americana #war #vietnam
My talented lyricist friend Patty won the most recent monthly lyric contest on The Muse Songwriters Forum with this vignette of a Vietnam war vet visiting the memorial wall. Being of an age where I only barely missed being over there myself, it just pierced my heart. So I asked her if I might tackle putting it to music for 50/90. It was quite an emotional experience to sing it.

Note: A "Zippo tank" was a name for one that had flame-thrower capability.

Lyrics

Names On A Wall
Music - Jeff Walker
Lyrics - Patty Lakamp @greengrassgirl

V1
I carry ‘round a bullet from a war long ago
Buried in my leg below the knee
Now and then it rants about the ghastliness of man
Other times it doesn’t bother me

V2
I want to think it mattered, all the blood that was spilled
That war and the war it caused at home
Every time my leg cries out, it takes me back again
The battlefield embedded in my bones

PC
Our war in the jungle
Rotten from the first
Feels like the whole damn thing was cursed

Ch
Fresh out of high school
            (Answered the call)
Sent to da Nang
            (Into the brawl)
Drove a Zippo tank
            (A screaming fireball)
So much bloodshed
(And then the withdrawal)
Our national nightmare
(The hell of it all)
Names on a wall
Names on a wall

V3
Our country turned its back and left us sucking the mop
Strangers cursed us out and called us scum
Now we have a wall that lists the names of the dead
From the war that blew us all to kingdom come

Ch
Fresh out of high school
            (Answered the call)
Sent to da Nang
            (Into the brawl)
Drove a Zippo tank
            (A screaming fireball)
So much bloodshed
(And then the withdrawal)
Our national nightmare
(The hell of it all)
Names on a wall
Names on a wall

Br
I touch that black granite and I’m back in ‘Nam
The jungle, the guns and the blood
The battles still raging inside of me
In my head, my heart and my knee

Repeat Chorus

Comments

@fatboyjamz 5d

This song is beautiful, though a bit hard to listen to. I love Jeff's voice! Great lyrical storytelling and an excellent collab!

@gfandme 5w

Such a beautiful song about such a sad topic. I feel it, the stupidity of war...

@sheslin 5w

Such beautiful story telling, compassion, understanding and insight in these lyrics! The melody and tender, emotive vocals really bring these lyrics to life. The chorus structure is great - with the call and response - and the musical treatment is perfect! I especially like how the title line is sung. Oh wow the bridge is so good. Great instrumental track also - love all those guitars. What a special song, and a wonderful collab!

@nosmoking 8w

Wow, what a song! It just grabs you and doesn’t let go. The lyric is got wrenching and beautiful.

@scubed 8w

This is so powerful! The lyrics are amazing. Fantastic collaboration!

I grew up with our national nightmare: I was in college when the war ended. On my first visit to the Wall, I sobbed uncontrollably as I walked along that interminable list of names.

@newukenewyork 9w

Thanks for letting us know of your personal connection to this lyric -- it definitely comes through the performance. The vocal echoes are effective when they come in I agree that "battlefield embedded in my bones" is a standout lyric, too. Very nice collab!

@robinleaf 9w

Great lyrics - I really love the beginning, especially "The battlefield embedded in my bones." The music fits so well, and to me it seems to convey a sad weariness, somewhat haunted. Love it. Great collab!

@miga 9w

Beautiful, haunting lyrics. The vocals are delivered so believably, with appropriate weariness. Love the guitars and ambiance of the song!

@edward9thstreet 9w

Love the slinky groove on this. Cool guitar too. I really liked the call- response of the chorus in the lyric contest. Great music to do this powerful lyric justice. Nice job Patty & Jeff!

@mctown 9w

Excellent job all around... Reminds me of the time. I didn't go...school deferment ..and then the lottery.. but the war had subsided.. Have heard many stories .. been to the wall. Excellent song and lyric.

@charliecheney 9w

Whoa, super strong work here, so haunting and filled with echoes.

@musicsongwriter 10w

Great lyrics and music, very powerful and coming from your hearts. Fantastic singing and playing. Truly amazing collaboration. Your song should be on radio. Very moving!

@kosch 10w

Well, this stopped me in my tracks.
What a great collaboration - wonderful lyrics, and performed as if the Jeff experienced every painful moment.
The production had a feel to it (maybe the reverb used..idk) but it all fit together so well.
Thank you both 🎶

@seattleyates 10w

What a powerful soldier's lament. Brilliant lyrics, and the music and vocals convey perfectly the image of an old soldier alone with his memories. You hear soldiers speak of how quickly a sound, or just a word, can take them instantly back to the battlefield, and this creates a specific image with the bullet in his leg; flashbacks come "Every time my leg cries out." It's easy to see how these lyrics won an award Patty!

@dr_griff 10w

Painful and powerful. Wow. My parents were the Vietnam generation, and my high-school teachers talked a lot about the war (which ended when I was three years old). But this gives a whole new perspective on it. Amazing lyrics, stunning music. This will echo in my head all day today.

@andrea 10w

A fantastic write about the ugliness and costs of war (Vietnam in particular) with a personal touching nature. Beautiful performance. A powerful song all around!

@davidtaro 10w

Woah, this is incredible, both lyrically (award well-deserved, Patty!) and musically. That bullet in the leg opener is like the start of a really great novel, immediately pulls you in. The ghostly call and response in the chorus is amazing. Love the sloping cowboy americana vibe from Jeff, it works so well with the words. And you can really feel you're putting your heart and soul into the vocal. One of my favourite songs growing up was Goodnight Saigon by Billy Joel (although at the time I didn't really understand what it was about!). This is right up there with that kind of thing. Brilliant work all round.

@vaughan 10w

I joined the military in 1976. So, I barely missed it too. It's songs like these that help people understand war and what it costs. Thank you for keeping it in the conversation. Great work!!

@gwynjones 10w

Patty's tenderly written lyrics have a real sting to them as well deep empathy and I can't imagine a better take on them than Jeff's...a total work of brilliant and important sheer artistry...

@sbs 10w

Brilliant! I remember that era well. I signed up to write to several military men stationed there when I was in high school. I’ll never forget the time years later I flew over Viet Nam on my way to Bangkok. Younger people think nothing of traveling there, but, for me, seeing it from the sky was surreal.

@paul_pedersen 10w

And this is why I follow Jeff and Patty! The lyrics carry the story with a combination of regret and sensitivity and the music captures it all.

@billwhite51 10w

one of the strongest vietnam songs i have heard. patty's lyric tells it all, and i believe in jeff as the one who is remembering it with every syllable he sings. i love the choice of using a vocal effect on every other line of the chorus. it seems like a memory device. i lucked out on the lottery draw and wasnt called to go. i did visit the wall in DC and it was a powerful experience. I cant even imagine how it affected those who did go and lost some of their friends there,..but the song goes a long way towards putting us in their shoes.