(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please refer down below)
SSgt. Barry Sadler - "Ballad of the Green Berets"
Hit Number 1: March 5, 1966
Stay at Number 1: 5 Weeks
Some of you might have learned my inspiration for this blog by now. As always, I'll leave a link for it below explaining in full if you don't, but I'll tell you now it was from a guy named Tom Breihan who's doing the exact same thing as me on a website he writes for called "Stereogum.com". When he did his review on "Ballad of the Green Berets", he proclaimed it to be the worst #1 song of all time. Let me clear the air for you guys, "Ballad of the Green Berets" is not the worst #1 song of all time. It's not even among the worst. Opinions can change, but I might have to give that "honor" to "London Bridge" by Fergie. That song is a complete and utter piece of trash that makes "Ballad of the Green Berets" look like an incredible song. Only, it's not an incredible song either.
The main songwriter and artist, SSgt. Barry Sadler, was affiliated with the service himself, and he started writing the song when he was training to be a Special Forces medic. He was helped out by author Robin Moore, who wrote a book called "The Green Berets", and he also got Sadler a recording contract with RCA Records. Sadler mainly wrote the song to honor U.S. Army Specialist 5 James Gabriel Jr., the first native Hawaiian to die in the Vietnam War. Apparently there was a verse that mentioned Gabriel by name, but that verse was left out of the final recording for some reason. Sadler himself would eventually become a Green Beret, as you can tell from the picture above.
Most of the song is honoring the Green Berets, but the last verse tells a little story. A Green Beret is killed in battle, but he was able to send a letter back home to his wife, telling her to help their son follow in his footsteps and become a Green Beret too. With the way soldiers were treated after coming home from Vietnam, and the unpopularity of the violence of war, it's pretty confusing to see how this song was so popular. In fact, it's immense popularity helped it be named the #1 song of 1966. It's one of the more interesting cases, but if you have your own theories on why this song was so popular, I'd love to hear them.
Plus, it's not like it's that great musically. It's just, there. Sadler has a good voice, not a great voice that will blow you away. The drum beat gives it a patriotic feel, but not to the extent of a song like Toby Keith's "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue", a song that truly makes you proud to be an American. (It's a 9) But it's not bad either. It's a song honoring the Green Berets, so I don't understand Breihan's hatred for it at all. But musically, it's a bland, quiet song without a whole lot else behind it. But I'm also open to the fact that it resonates with only a select group of people. Maybe if you or someone you knew were a Green Beret, maybe this song would mean a lot. I'm just a dude reviewing #1 songs, and this song so happened to be one, and a huge one at that. But at the end of the day, I'll probably forget about its existence.
GRADE: 4/10
JUST MISSED:
The Rolling Stones' bluesy, cool song "19th Nervous Breakdown" peaked at #2 behind "Ballad of the Green Berets". It's an 8.
10 ALERT!!!:
The Beatles' deep and lyrically complex banger "Nowhere Man" peaked at #3 behind "Ballad of the Green Berets". It's a 10.
ANOTHER 10 ALERT!!!:
The Mamas and the Papas' amazing ode to California masterpiece "California Dreamin'" peaked at #4 behind "Ballad of the Green Berets". All the leaves are brown, the sky is gray, and it's a 10.
(The Mamas and the Papas will appear in this blog VERY soon with their sole #1 hit)
SONG REFERENCED:
Toby Keith - "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue"
MY INSPIRATION / MORE INFORMATION:
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