3rd ARRG Vietnam

[Bluehawk]

[This was sent to me by a trusted old Gunny friend. I apologize not knowing exactly how to credit the originator, but the names of those involved are part of the text]

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This is a small collection of songs and skits that my father (Major Donald L. White) recorded while stationed in Vietnam from 1968 until 1969. He was stationed with the 3rd Areospace Recovery and Rescue Group in Tan Son Nhut Vietnam. The recordings themselves are sourced from from Tuy Hoa (Vietnam), Udorn (Thailand), Korat (Thailand), and NKP (Nakhon Phanom - Thailand) . The transcriptions he made were done using a old battery powered powered 3 inch reel-to-reel tape deck (I have the deck still) and were further transcribed from there. This tape deck was also used to send taped letters to and from my dad while he was in country.

 

The recordings here are not the best quality, but I like them because I spent a good portion of my life listening to them in this quality. Most of these songs, or ones similar to them are avaliable in commercial collections expecially the ones by Irvine Levine (sp). I will put in links to these and other song resources as soon as I can. I highly recommend purchasing professionally released versions of these songs. Follow the followinglinks form more information and to get CDs and more:

 

 

 

Erosonic - Home of America's foremost military aviation song writers and balladeers.

Vietnam Veterans Oral History and Folklore Project - The Vietnam Veterans Oral History and Folklore Project is engaged in an ongoing undertaking to collect, preserve and make better known the folklore, especially the folksongs, of Americans in war.

Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association - Home of the greatest fighter pilots in the world.

Immortalia.com - John Mehlbergs' site dedicated to traditional bawdy songs, erotic toasts and other recitations. This link sends you to his section on military bawdy songs, etc.

 

Enjoy!

Kenneth G. White

 

 

Volume 1 Contents:

 

Recce Jocks [2:30.35] - Fighting Owl Production (Udorn)

99 Missions to go [1:49.51] - Fighting Owl Production (Udorn)

Jolly Green (incomplete) [1:50.69] - Unknown (Udorn)

Cloudy Night [2:14.26] - Unknown (Udorn)

It Takes a Worried Man [2:45.56] - Unknown (Udorn)

Ashau Tower [3:24.21] - Ron Barker (Pleiku or Bien Hoa 1966)

The FAC Who Never Returned [3:26.21] - Ron Barker (Pleiku 1966)

The Ballad of the Green Brassiere [2:30.02] - Ron Barker (Pleiku or Bien Hoa, 1966)

Try and Get Some More [2:13.22] - Ron Barker (Pleiku or Bien Hoa, 1966))

Strafe the Town and Kill the People [1:01.45] - Ron Barker (NKP)

Stand to Your Glasses [2:16.55] - Ron Barker (Bien Hoa, 1966)

I love this song. I have sung it so many times to my daughter at bed time that she refers to it as her baby song.

NIMROD [2:28.54] - Unknown (NKP)

Lance Cpl Smedge (skit) [6:51.39] - Unknown

Malaujia [8:25.72] - Unknown (Korat)

I don't like this song much. It is long, ponderous, and the sound quality is so poor that it is really hard to get anything from it. Don't take my word for it though, check it out for yourself.

Silver Wings [6:43.23] - Unknown (NKP)

There are a lot of aircraft mentioned in this song. To try and help you understand the roles of each and to visualize them I will give an overview of each and a link to a picture for each so that you know what is being talked about in the song.

F-4C Phantom - Fighter bomber

T-28 Trojan - Trainer or the Nomad - Ground attack, . This confuses me because the song implies it is used for some type of ECM operation, e.g.: How does a ground attack aircraft tell the VC that "we are not even there"? Help? Answer: I was informed that this is a reference to the fact that this aricraft "was not officialy" attacking VC supply lines in Cambodia.

F-105 Thunder Chief aka: "The Thud". Fighterbomber, interdiction.

A1-E/H Sky Raider aka: "Super Spad", "Sandy" - Close air support. Commonly flew support for rescue missions alongside the "Jolly Greens".

HH-3e Sea King aka: "Jolly Green" - Rescue Helicopter.

HH-34 Huskie aka: "Pedro" - Rescue Helicopter.

HH-53 "Super Jolly Green" - Rescue Helicopter.

KC-135 Stratotanker - Air-refuelling tanker.

EB-66B Destroyer- Electronic Counter measures.

F-104 Starfighter - Daytime interceptor.

A-26 Invader - Was used for ground attack. I am not sure exactly what is meant by the verse in the song. Maybe it is just to point out that it is a ground attack version of the aircraft. Web research indicates that this aircraft was used as a night operations "truck killer" along the ho-chi-min trail in Laos.

DC-3 "Gooney Bird" - I know it was still used a a puddle jumper transport cargo plane in Vietnam. Was it really made a fighter bomber?

RF-4 Phantom - Recon variant of the phantom.

RF-101 Voodoo - Recon.

B-52 Stratofortress - Strategic Bomber.

EC-121R Constellation aka: "Connie", "Lockheed Flying Speed Break" - Flying command post. Directs/coordinates rescue mission and other operations.

F-102 Delta Dagger - Interceptor.

The Thud Song [3:02.69] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

The Battle of Domer Bridge [2:40.50] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

This is a great song. The way its arranged and performed under the direction of Irv LeVine makes it always a pleasure to listen to.

 

 

Volume 2 Contents:

 

Where in the Hell [1:46.46] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

Exmacamaflagalistic-Super-Constillation [4:00.04] - Unknown (Korat)

EC-121 Pilot Interview [6:13.36] - Unknown (Korat)

To get some of the jokes here you really need to see what one of these BUFs (Butt Ugly F**ckers) actually looks like. Click here for an image.

Downtown [2:11.68] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

Golden Jockstrap [2:52.01] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

Thud Ridge [2:06.49] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

Intro to 100mission party for Irv LeVine [1:03.58] - Various (Korat)

This is just the introduction to the 100 mission party tape. The mission party tape itself, from what I understand spans a few hours. Only a few items were pulled off of the original, or one of the copies of the original tapes, for inclusion in my dads collection.

Uncle Hos' Party [2:25.03] - Irv LeVine (Korat)

Aye Yi Yi Yi [7:48.06] - Irv LeVine and Frenchie (Korat)

Aloutte [4:03.25] - Irv LeVine and Frenchie (Korat)

Mayday/Crown Song [4:41.01] - Unknown (Tuy Hoa or NKP)

In the Valley of the Jolly Green [3:07.00] - Sam Waite and Mac McCormick (Tuy Hoa or NKP)

Sandy Cannonball [3:56.00] - Sam Waite and Mac McCormick (Tuy Hoa or NKP)

Song For the Thud Pilots [2:43.37] - Sam Waite and Mac McCormick (Tuy Hoa or NKP)

What the Captain Means [5:28.06] - Unknown (NKP)

This is an interesting sketch. Note that when the "captain" is asked if he has flown any missions other than in North and South Vietnam part of his answer is cut out. This was not an error in the tape the actual answer was edited out. I can only assume that since the "captains" answer is translated to "missions in the extreme western DMZ" that a reference to Cambodia or Laos was censored out.