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Old 08-04-19, 00:53
Lang Lang is offline
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Default I was only 19

This will probably only be of interest to Australians (and Americans). It is an Australian icon song that arose out of the Vietnam war.

I was reminded of it in a newsletter from the Scheyville Officer Training Unit in which the writing of the song is described.

The song is here:

One of the general myths about this song is it is about a National Serviceman- Nasho -(draftee/conscript) but the draft age was 20 so Frankie, in the song, being 19 must have been regular army as were 2/3 of the Australian soldiers who went to Vietnam. It makes no difference to the message as they all were mixed and indivisible regardless of their enlistment origin.

All the shots of soldiers are Australians. Some of the helicopters are American and some Australian


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfZilfZahcA

For those interested the story is here:

Neil Leckie (3/68) wrote: As a Nasho who did all of his Recruit Training at 2 RTB Puckapunyal before
attending Scheyville, I have always thought that there were a few factual errors in the song ‘I was only
19!’ I asked a good mate, Bill Akell, a Regular Army soldier who was the Admin Coy Net Signaller for D
Company 6 RAR at the Battle of Long Tan what the song was about. Bill said that the song was about
Frankie Hunt, a member of 6 RAR who stood on a mine. Frankie was 19! Bill said: ‘When I went back
to Vietnam in 2016 with (1/65) David Sabben’s tour for the 50th Anniversary of Long Tan we actually
visited the site where Frank stood on the mine. The group gathered around as David gave a brief on the
incident then our Vietnamese guide played the song ‘I was
only 19!’ A few tears especially from the ladies present.’

Redgum's John Schumann was the right age to fight in
Vietnam, but his number didn't come up. He never forgot
how close he came, and when those who did fight
returned, he paid attention to their struggles. "They were
fundamentally altered," he said. "I started to think about
what it would be like to come back from a very unpopular
war and not be welcomed home."
Schumann decided to write a song about Australia's
involvement in Vietnam, but he didn't write fiction.

One night, Schumann's girlfriend Denise, also known as ‘Denny’ (in the song), brought her older brother
Mick Storen to a Redgum performance. "I remember being told that Mick had been to Vietnam (Recruit
Training at 2 RTB Puckapunyal and 6 RAR second Tour 8 May 69 – 12 May 70) and had been involved
in an awful mine incident," Schumann said. "I also knew that he didn't talk about it to his family."
After the gig they went out for a few drinks. "I was probably flying on adrenalin and I just remember
plucking up my courage and asking if he would talk to me about what happened," he said. "To my
surprise, he said that he would."

Schumann and Storen spent a few hours with the veteran's photos, a
tape recorder and a couple of beers. Later, on tour, as his bandmates
used their new ‘Walkmans’ to listen to music, Schumann played the
tapes back. Back at home, he woke up one day, walked into his North
Carlton backyard with a coffee, a pad and a biro, and wrote the words.
"It's as simple and as complicated as that," he said. But Storen had only
agreed to share his Vietnam war experiences on the basis that he could
hear the song first.

The approval: Schumann told Storen the song was ready at a family
function. He pulled out his guitar and started to sing. After the intimate
performance, the room was silent. "He looked at me," Schumann said,
"he didn't say anything. He just stared at me. "By this stage I'm pretty
sure Denny and I were engaged and I'm thinking: this guy's going to be my brother in-law and I've really
trodden in it." But when Storen was finally able to speak, his decision was made. "It was just incredible,"
Schumann said.

Storen's story had made the song real. There was one thing Storen wasn't happy about, though.
In the original lyrics Schumann wrote: "Tommy kicked the mine." The name was made up, and Storen,
who didn't know any ‘Tommy’, thought the line was weak. "I didn't really understand why," said
Schumann. "For me names were immaterial, it was the story. But it was important to Mick."
Who kicked the mine? A real
Australian soldier did step on a mine on
July 20, 1969, though. That soldier was
Storen's skipper, Peter Hines (Lt 6
RAR), who died the day after the
incident. "Peter" suited the rhythm of the
song but Storen didn't want the name
used out of respect for Hines's wife and
child. So they went through the names of
those in Storen's platoon. They hit
"Frank": Frank Hunt had been badly
wounded in the same mine incident.

A few months later Schumann was
passing through Hunt's home town of
Bega on the south coast of NSW. "I have
to say Frank was not all that keen on opening the door to a long-haired, left-wing pinko," said Schumann.
Schumann got out his guitar and Hunt's reaction was the same as Storen's. "He wanted to hear it again and
again until I begged him to allow me to play it into a cassette so I could stop playing it."
After the song's release Hunt helped Schumann promote the song. "Obviously they had some pretty deep
and meaningful conversations, otherwise he would not have come out with a ripper of a song like that,"

Welcome home: On 3 October 1987, 25,000 Vietnam Veterans marched through the streets of Sydney in
a belated ‘Welcome Home Parade’. It was four years after the release of ‘I was only 19’ and 15 years
after Australia's involvement in the Vietnam
war ended. After the march, Schumann played
‘I was only 19’ at a concert in the Domain.
Frank Hunt was beside him, on stage in his
wheelchair. Friends jumped on the stage to hug
Hunt as men in the audience cried and
embraced each other.

"Very few Australian songwriters get to write
anything that's had the lasting effect of ‘I was
only 19’," Schumann said. "But it's a great
responsibility. You know in all the important
ways it's owned by the people about whom I
wrote it. "I have to be very careful and guard its
integrity. It's a hymn

Last edited by Lang; 09-04-19 at 09:12.
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  #2  
Old 08-04-19, 01:18
Lang Lang is offline
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Australia seems to specialise in these sorts of songs. This one is probably the best known - about WW1 - but pretty timeless in its meaning. I like this rendition by Eric Bogle, who wrote it. Recorded in a crowded club on a Saturday night rather than his usual clean studio recording.

Usually you can not hear yourself think in these places but the song has such an impact that the noisy start quickly subsides into a low background hum (I suspect mainly young women).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E22gszljklc

While I am at it may as well put up another Australian Vietnam anthem Khe Sanh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTjvG4WJD_A

Last edited by Lang; 08-04-19 at 11:38.
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Old 08-04-19, 11:56
Allan L Allan L is offline
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Weirdly I coincedently listened/ watched both on You Tube yesterday. Both brought tears to the eyes (although I never served, was one who missed the birthday draft.)

Edit: The Eric Bogle one I saw was pretty 'clean' although still live, maybe different occasion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnFzCmAyOp8


PS. your link takes me to a livelier version by John Williamson??
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Last edited by Allan L; 08-04-19 at 12:05.
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Old 08-04-19, 12:14
Lang Lang is offline
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Allan

Absolutely right about John Williamson. I must have pressed the save link after Eric Bogle's rendition had finished and Youtube ratcheted to the next clip. Just as good. I will leave mine up and yours, while pretty morbid, gives Eric's words.

To give Eric Bogle a more upbeat reputation here is a song - absolutely nothing to do with military vehicles, but it is about trucks, and I have heard it sung in an Officers Mess - that I love to play for cat lovers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcXzdq9kMw0

Lang

Last edited by Lang; 08-04-19 at 12:23.
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Old 08-04-19, 12:33
Allan L Allan L is offline
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Equally poignant is the medley of the Last Post with Waltzing Matilda. I first heard it played at the funeral of a mate (a former bandsman.) I then tracked it down to a compilation CD of Macca's, by I think the 3MD band (they did just the one song amongst a heap of other artists.)
There is a You Tube version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsTkaAWPCb4
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Last edited by Allan L; 08-04-19 at 12:44.
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Old 08-04-19, 16:16
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Tony Smith Tony Smith is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lang View Post
While I am at it may as well put up another Australian Vietnam anthem Khe Sanh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTjvG4WJD_A
Here's a cover, I think FAR, FAR better that the original Chisel version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-1bdGIM7BU
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Old 08-04-19, 20:00
Matthew P Matthew P is offline
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Thank you for that. The kind of song that you just have to sit there and absorb for some moments afterwards. Phew.

Thank you
Matthew
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Old 08-04-19, 21:31
Mike Cecil Mike Cecil is offline
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Interesting thread, and I have to agree with Lang that 'Frankie', at 19, could not have been a Nasho (National Serviceman - NS). NS were men who had turned 20 years of age and were ordinarily resident in Australia at the time of their registration for NS.

Of those actually called up, about 70% of NS were aged 20 years, and 18% were already 21 years at the time of their enlistment. 8% were 22 years old at enlistment. A small number - around 4% - were 19 years at enlistment, having volunteered for NS, rather than being conscripted. These men, after a year of training, were at least 20 years of age before being sent to SVN.

As the majority of NS then underwent a full year of training before posting to SVN, it can be seen that most NS had turned 21 years of age before heading to SVN. Indeed, the commonly held view that Aust troops in SVN were 'awash' with 21st birthday celebrations is incorrect: 95% of NS and 80% of regular Army soldiers were 21 (and older) before leaving for SVN.

Across the whole Aust force in SVN, about 63% were regular army, and 37% NS. The figures fluctuate a little in both directions as a result of postings in and out of country. For the RAAC, the proportion was about 56% regular to 44% NS.

(extracted from my article 'Posted to Vietnam: A Profile of RAAC Personnel', published in Ironsides 2007 edition)

Mike
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Old 08-04-19, 23:11
Lang Lang is offline
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Mike

The ages were very different as you say. Quite a few Nashos were deferred (mainly to complete university) and appeared in uniform as late as 22 or 23.

When I joined up I was still 19 and turned 20 during officer training. My first posting was to 3 Recruit Training Battalion at Singleton as a platoon commander. I had 60 diggers (twice the size of a normal platoon).

Do you think that was a steep learning curve being the youngest person in a platoon of blokes, many of whom did not want to be there!!! Luckily my flying course was brought forward and I went off to Point Cook after only two intakes and six months at Singleton.

But I learned a hell of a lot more, and faster, than the soldiers. The Colonel was a bloody tyrant and the young officers were in fear of their very lives which put huge pressure on us
unbeknownst to the soldiers. Looking back I now realize the CO (WW2 and Korea) knew that 75% of his lieutenants would be fighting a war as platoon or troop commanders within 6-9 months just as we realised our soldiers would also be getting shot at. The vast majority of soldiers tried to be the best they could and few regret their time in the army 50 years on. For me, as a regular officer, it was sink or swim and I fall back on what those blokes unwittingly taught me, every day of my life.

The system was really good and I loved the way the army had of getting everybody equally to the starting line.

We would go to Brisbane and pick up a few hundred Nashos and bring them back in a flock of chartered aircraft. Arriving at the camp we would put them in mixed lines of blokes out of university in suits, mechanics in shirt sleeves, farmers in jeans and in those days, not a few long haired hippies in leather sandals. Every barber in the district would be there and the boys just sat in the chair, got a complete all-over #3 blade head shearing then gathered on the other side of the building.

Unbelievable transformation! On one side of the building was a bunch of unconnected people from all walks of life while on the other side was a bunch of bristle brained stunned mullets. They all suddenly looked the same, all were in shock and all instantly bonded by this outrage committed on their persons by the bloody army.

The concept was brilliant and immediately made them realise they were all in the same boat and got them talking to each other on equal terms.

Probably could not do this today or if you did, the barber would have to be Laurence of Paris who would show them a photo board of styles and ask if they wanted a blow dry.

Lang

Last edited by Lang; 09-04-19 at 02:45.
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  #10  
Old 10-04-19, 00:17
Lang Lang is offline
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Here is a song I have never heard "Nashos"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKfPlgAJGn4
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