Starts out with an actual tape recording during the Battle of Bien Hoa during the Vietnam War and then kicks in to a full out classic rocker in 1960-70s style.
White River consists of a core of three singer-songwriter musicians, and a host of others, who sometimes play live but who usually record in the studio, delving
White River is not so much a band as it is a recording studio, owned by Brent and Susan Wall. Located near Martinsville, Indiana, White River Recording Studio offers a wide-range of services and deals, and has recorded everything from folk to rock to blues to rap, metal and contemporary Christian. The first full-length CD released from White River in 1998 was entitled "Collective Works," which featured six Indiana song-writers collaborating with over 30 difference musicians. Since then, several other CD compilations have ensued. The core for many White River recordings is (1) Brent Wall, who not only writes songs and sings but also plays a variety of guitars, bass, , mandolin, percussion and keyboards, and does all the engineering and mixing; (2) Larry Vesely, who also writes songs and sings, plays guitar, banjo and bass, but is mostly known for his talent and contributions at the keyboards; and (3) Joe Peters, who also writes, sings and plays guitars, bass and mandolin.
Story behind the song
Born in 1954, I remember vividly images on television of the Vietnam War, the death and destruction and waste of life on both sides. Verse one is a remembrance of the war. Several friends of mine are Vietnam combat veterans, one of whom is Sgt. Huey (so nicknamed after the UH-1 Bell helicopter, or Huey, that he flew in during the war). Verse two is about Sgt. Huey. In 1997 I visited Vietnam for the first time, and I have lived here in Hanoi since 1998, and everywhere have heard stories from Vietnamese about the American War, as they call it. Verse three is their story (Charlie was the name given to the enemy by US forces, as it is short for Victor Charlie, military-speak for VC, which was the abbreviation for the Viet Cong, the communist forces). Verse four is a vision of hope and reconciliation, a vision that has come a long way in the six years I have been here. The chorus is about dealing with the ghosts of the past and moving beyond the pain and loss of war.
Lyrics
Charlie & Huey
Thirty years ago, we waged a war, thousands died, we said no more
But we can’t go back, what’s done is done, let’s not forget, nobody won
The war was fought, in Vietnam, for love of God, and Uncle Sam
Our boys were sent, to kill & die, but they never knew, the reason why
Vietnam, have you finally found your peace
Did the dreams & screams finally cease
Vietnam, have you laid your ghosts to rest
Did you free the pain within your chest
I know a vet, lives down the street, in Vietnam, he took some heat
He’s a little odd, somewhat crazy, out on the edge, where life gets hazy
It took some years, & therapy, to bring him back, from overseas
Now he’s doin’ well, he’s got a life, he hates his job, & loves his wife
Vietnam, have you finally found your peace
Did the dreams & screams finally cease
Vietnam, have you laid your ghosts to rest
Did you free the pain within your chest
On the other side, even more men died, women & kids, nowhere to hide
The Chinese tried, the French were fried, American bombs, couldn’t turn the tide
Their own young men, on the battlefield, gave up their lives, they would not yield
In the jungle green, in fields of mud, they paid their dues, in bright red blood
Vietnam, have you finally found your peace
Did the dreams & screams finally cease
Vietnam, have you laid your ghosts to rest
Did you free the pain within your chest
Have we learned, from this tragedy, this waste of life, across the sea
To bridge the gap, between east & west, could be for all, a vision quest
Brother & sister, reside today, from Mekong Delta, to Halong Bay
From what I hear, we’re welcome too, in Vietnam, let’s start anew
