Song picture
Poppa Flew Away
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War through the eyes of a 4 yr old boy
war vietnam poppa
Artist picture
Singer-Songwriter with a Folkish vein of music
Born James Chapman Polhemus in Stuttgart Germany and brought up in the deep south (now residing in Hoover, AL), Chapmans insights into the development of a Folk Songwriter are unique. Whether it's the journey of a human trotting across the prairie, the epic life of a tree, the loneliness one needs to combat garden gnomes or a view of war through the eyes of a 4 year old boy; Chapman's songs are honest and simple. Three things stand out when he describes his music 1. The Inspiration for the Song: "A writer is not necessarily the one that shouts 'Hear Me!' (that's the performer talking) , but the one that listens and seems to whisper 'I heard you'." 2. Responsibility for the Song: "Just write what haunts you. If the song is good, the genre doesn't matter! Choosing among frames for artwork has never been my passion, that's for the talented producers & cover artists" 3. Reason for Writing the Song: "After having written my first song at the age of 12, I have finally found so many decades later the exact reasons I write songs. I write to remember. Once I have learned either a complex idea that I think is important to answer back to life, or a humorous perspective I want to recall to bring some levity to the insanity, I make a song out of it... selfish as it may seem I do it for me so this is why I share it and welcome everyone to the therapy session I call a 'Live Performance'. I write so the things I've learned become personal mantras instead of ending up lost like so many raindrops in an ocean. And, just maybe they'll shed a little light on what is to be expected from this seemingly insignificant species called human"... Feel free to record and/or rearrange these songs yourself....the more interpretations the merrier. Just like the shareware days of old, try to remember the creator if the creation brings you good fortune
Song Info
Genre
Country Americana
Charts
Peak #148
Peak in subgenre #18
Author
Chapman James
Rights
1990Polhemusic
Uploaded
November 17, 2023
Track Files
MP3
MP3 7.4 MB 192 kbps 5:25
Meta Data
Beat
3/4
Key
G maj
Vocals
Male
Character
Energy
relaxed, cool
high-energy
Danceable
coffee-place
dancefloor
Positivity
dark, sad, angry
happy
Appeal
unique
radio-friendly
Story behind the song
A story related to me by a Viet Nam vet at a pub in 1990
Lyrics
Poppa Flew Away Words and music by Chapman James Deep smiling eyes over whiskers Big hands that kept stealing my nose Spicy scent of a big-brown-bear-bathrobe Are as far as my memory goes Momma called Poppa our hero when the army called Poppa away There was a sad thing they called war over yonder And Poppa went off to be Brave Each night I was empty for answers of Poppa the war and the why So Momma would fill me with wonderful stories And sing me a soft lullaby. She sangPoppa flew today in his bird under heaven He chased the bad away in a land called Nam And when they are free, we’ll all be together Here where we..belong I remember one morning in winter Momma sat at the foot of my bed With Poppa’s brown bathrobe hugged tight round her shoulders And a shake in her voice as she said “Poppa can’t come back to see us. He has to stay up in the sky” I said “If Nam’s not free, they can come and live with us?” Then she hugged me real tight and she cried. She said.Poppa flew away in his bird up to heaven He’s going there to stay and rest his wounds And when you are grown just try to remember He gave his all for you Now the dead must bury the dead And what’s left alive goes ahead To learn to love others as much as themselves And live for their children instead Now I keep Poppa’s robe close beside me and I’ve seen his name there on the wall And my anger is gone for the ones who scoffed at him Cause I know that he gave me his all. So when someone cries out for their freedom I pray that the heavens will hear And spare them the pain that we all must go through When a war is apparently near You seeMy Poppa flew away in his bird up to heaven I’ll meet him there one day between the skies Once in a dream he told me that wars were but. Tears in God’s own eyes Copyright 1990 Polhemusic
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