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19 (Paul Hardcastle)
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A song against war.

In 1965 Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war
but it wasn't
It was different in many ways, and so were those who did the fighting
In World War II the average age of the combat soldier was 26
In Vietnam he was 19
In inininininin Vietnam he was 19
In inininininin Vietnam he was 19
In inininininin Vietnam he was 19
n n n n nineteen

The heaviest fighting of the past two weeks continued today
25 miles north-west of Saigon
I wasn't really sure what was goin' on

Nininini Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen 19
19,19,19,19

In Vietnam the combat soldier typically served a twelve month tour of duty
But was exposed to hostile fire almost every day
Ninininininininininin 19 nininininninin 19
Ninininininininininin 19 nininininninin 19

In Saigon a U.S military spokesman said today more than 700 enemy troops
Were killed last week in that sensitive border area
Throughout all of South Vietnam the enemy lost a total 2689 soldiers

All those who remember the war
They won't forget what they've seen
Destruction of men in their prime
Whose average age was 19
Dedededededede-Destruction
Dedededededede-Destruction

According to a Veteran's Administration study
Half of the Vietnam combat veterans suffer from what psychiatrists call
Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder
Many vets complain of alienation, rage, or guilt
Some succumb to suicidal thoughts
Eight to ten years after coming home almost eight hundred thousand men
Are still fighting the Vietnam War

None of them received a heroes welcome

Nineteen
Saigon, Saigon, SSSSSaigon, Saigon
Nininininininininin Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen 19
19,19,19,19
Nininininininininin Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen 19
19,19,19,19

Vietnam S S Saigon
Vietnam S S Saigon
Vietnam S S Saigon
Vietnam S S Saigon
Purple heart, Saigon
Purple heart, S S S Saigon
I wasn't really sure what was goin' on
I wasn't really sure what was goin' on

SAIGON= The old capital of Vietnam until after the Vietnam War. Later renamed Ho Chi Minh City, being the new capital of the country Hanoi.

GOING ON= Happening.

TYPICALLY= Usually, most of the times.

HOSTILE= (adjective) unfriendly, related to the enemy. HOSTILE FIRE is what you get when the enemy shoots you with guns and bombs.

SPOKESMAN= A man officially speaking in the name of a country or organization.

TROOP= A group of soldiers.

SENSITIVE AREA= An area with a very difficult situation where troubles are easy to appear. In a war, a sensitive area is a region with a lot of conflicts and very dangerous.

BORDER= Frontier.

THROUGHOUT= /θru:t/  Everywhere. Throughout a place = in all parts of that place, everywhere in that place.

IN THEIR PRIME= At it's best moment. The prime of a person is the years when they have reached all their physical and intellectual potential (usually from 18 to 30 more or less, though that's disputable)

PSYCHIATRIST= /saɪkətrɪst/ a doctor specialised in mental problems. A psychologist /saɪkɒləɪst/is not a doctor and they will try to solve your mental problem in sessions of talking and advising. A psychiatrist is a doctor and they will try to cure your symtoms using medicines.

POST-TRAUMATIC-STRESS-DISORDER= A mental disorder caused by a past experience that was very traumatic, for example, a war.

VETS= Veterans = A person who has served in the armed forces.

ALIENATION= (in psychiatry) a state in which a person's feelings are inhibited so that eventually both the self and the external world seem unreal

RAGE= violent, explosive anger.

GUILT= Remorseful awareness of having done something wrong.

SUCCUMB= To submit to an overpowering force or yield to an overwhelming desire; give up or give in. If you succumb to suicidal thoughts, after thinking a lot about committing suicide you finally give in and do it.

PURPLE HEART= A United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military.

The song features authentic dialogue by television narrator Peter Thomas, and a strong anti-war message. First released in 1985 by British composer Paul Hardcastle.

The title "19" comes from the documentary's claim that the average age of an American combat soldier in the war was nineteen, as compared to the claim of World War II's 26. The song incorporated bits of interviews from soldiers as well.

The message of the song is quite plain: A war is not a place of honour, but a place of destruction where people die, and this war was especially horrific because most of the soldiers who died there were so young. It also emphasizes the idea that for most soldiers a war never ends, because they will always have to live with the memories of what they did or saw.

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