Johnny Willow

When I was a kid I dug through my Dad's 45 rpm collection.  He had a decent collection, but two that stood out to me were the "Balad of the Green Beret" and "Johnny Willow."  The former I have seen various places, the latter, until today, I have only found in its original format, by Fred Darian.  The Johnny Willow I sing is different from this 1943 version that Darian sings.  The one I know is by Frankie Laine.  Well, I found it today.

It and The Ballad of the Green Beret are considered by some as the only two Pro-Vietnam songs.  I don't know if you can call them that, since they seem to be songs that celebrate the virtues found in American Fighting Men, rather than celebrating a particular war or action.

Here, for your listening pleasure, is Frankie Laine's Johnny Willow.

   

and here, just in case you aren't familiar with it, is The Ballad of the Green Beret.