The Vietnam War remains one of the most divisive and studied conflicts in American history, and music was central to how people processed it. From scathing protest songs about the war to tributes to soldiers, artists used their platforms to give voice to people’s complex feelings.
This list of Vietnam War songs features music that opposed the draft, honored those who served, and told the stories that history books often overlooked.
Be sure to check out the Vietnam War Songs Playlist at the bottom of this page.
Best Vietnam War Songs
1. “Fortunate Son” – Creedence Clearwater Revival
Lyric Sample: “It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t no senator’s son.”
This 1960s rock classic became one of the most famous protest songs about the Vietnam War, calling out the unfairness of who actually went to fight. It voiced the anger of young Americans who saw politicians and the wealthy avoid the draft.
Related: “Fortunate Son” Song Meaning
2. “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy” – Pete Seeger
Lyric Sample: “Now every time I read the papers, that old feeling comes to me.’”
Seeger uses a fictional military exercise as an allegory for the growing, seemingly endless quagmire of the war. The folk singer suggests that leaders keep moving forward despite obvious poor choices.
3. “Draft Morning” – The Byrds
Lyric Sample: “Today was the day for action, leave my bed to kill instead.”
“Draft Morning” is about young men being torn from peaceful lives to face military service. It’s a reminder of how the draft upended an entire generation.
4. “Goodnight Saigon” – Billy Joel
Lyric Sample: “We said we’d all go down together.”
Billy Joel gave voice to the soldiers with this 1980s ballad. Instead of politics, he focused on the brotherhood and trauma experienced by those who fought in Vietnam.
5. “The Unknown Soldier” – The Doors
Lyric Sample: “Breakfast where the news is read, television children fed.”
The Doors’ song is a protest against the media’s coverage of the Vietnam War and the way soldiers were being treated. Jim Morrison linked the faceless casualties overseas to the numbing effect of the nightly news.
6. “I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag” – Country Joe & The Fish
Lyric Sample: “Yeah, come on all of you, big strong men, Uncle Sam needs your help again.”
Part protest, part dark comedy, this track became one of the most recognizable Vietnam protest songs. It sarcastically lists reasons why people should be enthusiastic about going to fight.
7. “Sky Pilot” – The Animals
Lyric Sample: “He smiles at the young soldiers, tells them it’s all right.”
This psychedelic rock song tackles the role of military chaplains and the contradictions of blessing soldiers before sending them to kill. It’s one of the more unusual but memorable songs about the war in Vietnam.
8. “Ballad of the Green Berets” – Barry Sadler
Lyric Sample: “Fighting soldiers from the sky, fearless men who jump and die.”
Unlike most songs of the Vietnam era, this 1966 hit celebrated American soldiers. Written and sung by Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, “Ballad of the Green Berets” became a patriotic anthem for supporters of the war.
9. “8th of November” – Big & Rich
Lyric Sample: “Now he’s 58 and his pony tail’s gray, but the battle still plays in his head.”
This modern country song tells the true story of a soldier in Vietnam who survived a devastating ambush. It honors both his sacrifice and the lasting scars carried by veterans.
10. “Bring the Boys Home” – Freda Payne
Lyric Sample: “Can’t you see ’em march across the sky, all the soldiers that have died.”
In this 1970s Motown hit, Payne begs for the end of the conflict and the immediate return of American soldiers. It’s about the growing impatience and frustration among the American public regarding the extended engagement.
11. “Galveston” – Glen Campbell
Lyric Sample: “Galveston, oh Galveston, I still hear your sea winds crashing.”
Written by Hall of Fame songwriter Jimmy Webb, this country hit tells the story of a soldier longing for home while serving overseas. Though subtle, many listeners connected it to Vietnam.
Related: Best Songs About Texas
12. “I Ain’t Marching Anymore” – Phil Ochs
Lyric Sample: “It’s always the old who lead us to the wars, always the young to fall.”
Ochs wrote some of the most famous protest songs of the ’60s, and this was his signature piece. It rejected the idea of fighting in unjust wars and became a rallying cry against Vietnam.
13. “Born in the U.S.A.” – Bruce Springsteen
Lyric Sample: “Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand.”
Often misunderstood as a patriotic song, Springsteen’s 1980s hit actually tells the story of a Vietnam veteran returning to hardship and neglect. Its mix of frustration and pride made it one of the most discussed Vietnam songs in rock history.
Related: “Born in the U.S.A.” Song Meaning
14. “Uncommon Valor: A Vietnam Story” – Jedi Mind Tricks
Lyric Sample: “I don’t know why I’m over here, this job is evil, they send me there to Vietnam to kill innocent people.”
This 2006 hip-hop track is one of the rare modern retellings of Vietnam through rap. It depicts a soldier’s experience on the battlefield and the lasting trauma afterward.
15. “I’m Your Captain (Closer to Home)” – Grand Funk Railroad
Lyric Sample: “Am I in my cabin dreaming, or are you really scheming to take my ship away from me?”
Grand Funk Railroad’s rock epic is interpreted by many as an appeal from the soldiers to their leaders to bring them home. The ship’s captain is unsure of the mission and asks his crew for guidance, which parallels the public’s confusion about the war.
Related: “I’m Your Captain (Closer to Home)” Song Meaning
16. “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” – Arlo Guthrie
Lyric Sample: “I mean I’m sittin’ here, on the Group W bench, ’cause you want to know if I’m moral enough join the army.”
This 18-minute talking blues satire pokes fun at the draft process during the Vietnam War. Guthrie turned a personal story into a broader critique of bureaucracy and the absurdity of conscription.
17. “Dear Uncle Sam” – Loretta Lynn
Lyric Sample: “I really love my country, but I also love my man.”
Released in 1966, Loretta Lynn gave country music one of its earliest Vietnam protest songs. Told from the perspective of a wife losing her husband, it showed the fear and sacrifice made by the families of those serving overseas.
18. “Walking on a Thin Line” – Huey Lewis and the News
Lyric Sample: “Don’t you know me? I’m the boy next door.”
This ’80s rock track describes the struggles of a veteran trying to readapt to civilian life after returning home from Vietnam. It addresses the emotional scars and continued difficulties faced by those who served.
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19. “Camouflage” – Stan Ridgway
Lyric Sample: “I was a PFC on a search patrol, hunting Charlie down, it was in the jungle wars of ’65.”
“Camouflage” is about a young soldier in Vietnam who encounters a mysterious giant marine named Camouflage that saves his life. The twist ending reveals Camouflage was a ghost, turning the track into both a war tale and a supernatural ballad.
20. “Chicago” – Graham Nash
Lyric Sample: “We can change the world, rearrange the world.”
Written about the Chicago Seven, this 1971 protest song also tied into broader opposition to the Vietnam War. Nash urged listeners to get involved and speak out against injustice.
21. “Eve of Destruction” – Barry McGuire
Lyric Sample: “You’re old enough to kill, but not for votin’.”
This folk-rock hit became one of the earliest and most popular songs about the Vietnam War. McGuire delivered a grim take on war, civil rights, and the state of the world.
22. “Who’ll Stop the Rain” – Creedence Clearwater Revival
Lyric Sample: “I went down Virginia, seekin’ shelter from the storm.”
Often interpreted as a Vietnam War song, this 1970s track spoke to both the chaos of the era and the futility many felt. Its ambiguity allowed it to resonate as both protest and lament.
Related: Best Songs About Rain
23. “Khe Sanh” – Cold Chisel
Lyric Sample: “Well the last plane out of Sydney’s almost gone.”
This Australian rock song focused on a Vietnam veteran struggling to adjust after returning home. It describes the veteran’s struggle with finding work and dealing with the psychological fallout.
24. “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” – John Lennon & Yoko Ono
Lyric Sample: “Let’s hope it’s a good one, without any fear.”
Though it speaks broadly against all war, this track was largely viewed as a protest against the ongoing conflict in Vietnam. Lennon used the holiday season to deliver a call for peace.
Related: Best Songs About December
25. “Orange Crush” – R.E.M.
Lyric Sample: “Another one came on the waves tonight, coming in, you’re home.”
This 1980s rock hit referenced the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. The track uses stream-of-consciousness lyrics to show the confusion and fear a soldier felt in the field.
26. “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” – The Animals
Lyric Sample: “We gotta get out of this place, if it’s the last thing we ever do.”
The Animals’ 1965 hit became an unofficial anthem for American soldiers desperate to escape the brutal reality of their deployment. Although written about escaping a dreary life in London, the song’s sentiment of wanting to leave a miserable situation resonated with soldiers in Vietnam.
27. “Sam Stone” – John Prine
Lyric Sample: “Sam Stone’s welcome home didn’t last too long.”
Prine’s folk ballad looked at the struggles of a veteran returning from Vietnam with drug addiction. It describes his family’s devastation as he succumbs to his addiction, showing a different side of the war’s cost.
Related: Songs About Death and Dying
28. “Still in Saigon” – Charlie Daniels Band
Lyric Sample: “My younger brother calls me a killer, and my daddy calls me a vet.”
This country song tells the story of a veteran who physically returned home but psychologically remains in the war. The character describes his flashbacks and his inability to escape the horrors he witnessed in Vietnam.
29. “Rooster” – Alice in Chains
Lyric Sample: “Ain’t found a way to kill me yet.”
Jerry Cantrell wrote this ’90s grunge classic about his father’s experiences serving in the war. “Rooster” was Cantrell Sr.’s nickname, and the song shows the psychological burden of a soldier in combat.
Related: “Rooster” Song Meaning
30. “19” – Paul Hardcastle
Lyric Sample: “In Saigon, a US military spokesman said today, more than seven hundred enemy troops were killed last week.”
Hardcastle used news clips and statistics in this ’80s synth-pop track to highlight how young most American soldiers in Vietnam were. The mix of music and documentary made it one of the more unique anti-war songs.
31. “Draft Dodger Rag” – Phil Ochs
Lyric Sample: “Sarge, I’m only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen, and I always carry a purse.”
Ochs lists the ridiculous and often false medical excuses young men concocted to avoid military service. The song satirizes the desperation many felt to escape the draft for the war in Vietnam.
32. “Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation” – Tom Paxton
Lyric Sample: “Well, here I sit in this rice paddy wondering about Big Daddy.”
Paxton wrote this folk song about President Johnson’s escalating commitment to the conflict despite campaign promises to avoid a major war. He accuses Johnson of deceiving the American public about the extent of the involvement in Vietnam.
33. “Travelin’ Soldier” – The Chicks
Lyric Sample: “Waitin’ for the love of a travelin’ soldier, our love will never end.”
The Chicks’ 2000s country hit tells the sad story of a girl who falls for a soldier before he ships out to fight in Vietnam. The ballad ends with a gut-wrenching twist when the girl learns of his death.
34. “Ohio” – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Lyric Sample: “Tin soldiers and Nixon comin’, we’re finally on our own.”
This 1970 protest song was written after the Kent State shootings. The folk-rock track is an enraged response to the violence and the escalating war in Vietnam.
35. “Agent Orange” – Sodom
Lyric Sample: “Assault against the population, suppress by military arms.”
Released in the late ’80s, this German thrash metal track graphically details the devastating effects of the chemicals used by the U.S. military in Vietnam. It’s about the physical suffering caused by the weapon and the rageful response to it.
36. “War” – Edwin Starr
Lyric Sample: “War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.”
This Motown classic is one of the most definitive anti-war statements of the era. It leaves no ambiguity about its anti-conflict message and became an iconic protest song about the Vietnam War.
Related: Best Songs About Peace
37. “The Wall” – Bruce Springsteen
Lyric Sample: “I remember you in your Marine uniform laughing, laughing at your ship-out party.”
Springsteen wrote this tribute to a friend who died in Vietnam. Unlike “Born in the U.S.A.,” this track is stripped down and personal.
Conclusion
The Vietnam War changed music in ways few other events could. From folk to rock to country, these songs told the stories of soldiers, families, and protesters who lived through that turbulent time. Whether they were calling for peace, criticizing leaders, or honoring the fallen, these songs about the Vietnam War show how the music became part of history itself.
If you enjoyed this list, you might also like our picks for Songs About Peace, Songs About Trains, or Songs About Jail.
