Ballad of the Green Berets

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"Ballad of the Green Berets"

Single by Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler
from the album The Ballad Of The Green Berets
Released	1966
Genre	Ballad, Patriotic
Label	Design Records
Writer(s)	Robin Moore and Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler
Chart positions
#1 (U.S. Billboard Hot 100) 5 weeks #24 (UK Singles Chart) #21 song of the 1960's

"Ballad of the Green Berets" is a patriotic song in the ballad style about the Green Berets, an elite special force in the U.S. Army. It is one of the very few songs of the era to cast the military in a positive light and yet become a major hit.

The song was written by Robin Moore and Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, while the latter was recuperating from a leg wound suffered as a medic in the Vietnam War. Moore wrote a non-fiction book, The Green Berets, about the force.

1 Popularity
2 In film
3 Parodies
4 External links

[edit] Popularity

The recording of the song was the number one hit in the United States for five weeks in 1966 and was the number twenty-one song of 1960s, despite the later unpopularity of the Vietnam War.

It has sold over nine million singles and albums. It was the top single of the year in which the British Invasion, led by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, dominated the U.S. charts.

It is currently used as one of the four primary marching tunes of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band.^[1]

[edit] In film

The song is heard in the 1968 John Wayne film The Green Berets, which was based on Moore's book. The score of the movie was never released as an album until Film Score Monthly released it in 2005.

It also appears in the film More American Graffiti.

[edit] Parodies

The Residents parodied the song on their Third Reich & Roll album. Another parody was used on Saturday Night Live in 1986, "Ollie North, The Mute Marine" as a satire of Oliver North and his then-current refusal to speak up about his participation in the Iran-Contra Affair.

Rhodesian singer-songwriter John Edmond recorded the "Ballad of the Green Berets" with reference to the soldiers of the Rhodesian Light Infantry (RLI), commando-style fireforce units of Rhodesian Security Forces who wore berets of green color. Also, in South Africa, the "Ballad of the Green Berets" was recorded as the "Ballad of the Maroon Berets". The Maroon beret is a symbol of the South African Special Forces Brigade and the South African 44 Parachute Regiment.

The song is used to humorous effect in Michael Moore's film Canadian Bacon as ill-informed Americans prepare for an invasion by Canada.

A German version (Hundert Mann und ein Befehl), sung by Freddy Quinn and later again by Heidi Brühl had considerable success in Germany. The German version is a song against the war. It rejects any sacrifice, not only for the son, but not even for the father. Freddy Quinn sings the song from the point of view of the reluctant but forced soldier, Heidi Brühl from the point of view of the crying girlfriend of the soldier.

In the movie Wag the Dog the fictitious unit 303 Special Forces has song created titled The Men Of The 303 that is played to the same tune.

In the film Caddyshack, Carl Spackler, played by Bill Murray, mumbles the song under his breath, dragging a water hose as he prepares for final battle with his gopher nemesis.

Preceded by "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" by Nancy Sinatra	Billboard Hot 100 number one single March 5, 1966	Succeeded by "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" by The Righteous Brothers

[edit] External links

Patriotic music of the United States
"America the Beautiful" • "Ballad of the Green Berets" • "Battle Cry of Freedom" • "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" • "Columbia, Gem of the Ocean" • "Eternal Father, Strong to Save" • "For The Dear Old Flag, I Die" • "God Bless America" • "God Bless the USA" • "Hail, Columbia" • "Hail to the Chief" • "The Liberty Bell" • "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" • "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" • "Over There" • "PT-109" • "Stars and Stripes Forever" • "The Star-Spangled Banner" • "There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving" • "This is My Country" • "This Land Is Your Land" • "Yankee Doodle" • "The Yankee Doodle Boy" • "You're a Grand Old Flag" • "Fifty Nifty United States" • "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" Armed services: "The Army Goes Rolling Along" • "Anchors Aweigh" • "The U.S. Air Force" • "Marines' hymn" • "Semper Paratus"

Patriotic music of the United States