This second Peace Songlist gathers works that confront conflict from every angle: the soldier who came home broken, the one who never returned, the civilian who watched leaders march men into disaster, and the artist who refused to accept official narratives. Folk, punk, metal, and country all meet here with one shared purpose — to expose the human cost of war and the stories that survive long after the battles end.
THE SONGS
Broken Heroes – Saxon
A heavy‑metal lament for soldiers abandoned after conflict. Saxon confront the hypocrisy of governments that celebrate heroism but neglect the wounded and traumatised. Raw, direct, and unmistakably anti‑war.
Waist Deep in the Big Muddy – Pete Seeger
A Vietnam‑era parable about blind leadership. Seeger warns how obedience to authority can lead men into disaster, and how those in charge often insist everything is fine until it’s too late. Waist Deep in the Big Muddy is a parable about blind, authoritarian leadership—a captain who ignores warnings and leads his men into danger—used by Pete Seeger as a metaphor for Lyndon Johnson’s escalation of the Vietnam War. It’s about how nations get dragged into disaster when “the big fool says to push on.”
I Was Only Nineteen – Redgum
A stark, plainspoken account of the Vietnam war from an Australian perspective. Trauma, memory, and the long shadow of conflict are laid out without sentimentality, making it one of the most authentic anti‑war songs ever recorded.
Where Have All the Flowers Gone – Pete Seeger
A circular folk lament tracing the cycle of youth, war, and death. Its structure reinforces the idea that humanity keeps repeating the same mistakes, generation after generation.
And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda – The Pogues version
Shane MacGowan’s cracked, weary vocal adds a bruised edge to Bogle’s story. The Pogues turn the song into a bitter folk‑punk elegy for the forgotten wounded.
The Fighting 36th – Ruefrex
A Northern Irish punk track exposing the senselessness of violence and the emotional destruction it leaves behind. Its portrayal of conflict as dehumanising and pointless places it firmly in the anti‑war tradition.
What Is Truth – Johnny Cash
Cash challenges political hypocrisy and asks why society ignores young people who question war. A sharp, articulate protest song from the Vietnam era that still resonates.
I Don’t Believe in If Anymore – Roger Whittaker
A reflective critique of the comforting hypotheticals people use to rewrite the past. Whittaker rejects the idea that conflict can be justified by imagining different outcomes, even referencing “the one they call the foe” to highlight how societies manufacture enemies. Not a traditional anti‑war song, but a thoughtful challenge to fatalism and the narratives that sustain conflict, making it a fitting philosophical addition to the peace list.
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