Ten Favorite Soldier Songs: Some Gave All (#9)

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Yesterday I started a countdown of songs about soldiers, which was inspired by @TRBRocks420 doing a series of "patriotic songs." We're matching on this song! Here's the next song on my list of favorites. #9: Some Gave All - Billy Ray Cyrus It's funny how that first impression makes or breaks someone. My first encounter with Billy Ray Cyrus was the same as most people's: "Ac*y Brea*y He*rt." Dang, I hate that song. It made my "songs that make me cringe" list, and honestly, when a song rubs you the wrong way that much you're not usually going to give someone a second shot. Then I heard this song. I still can't stand "Ac*y Brea*y He*rt", but this song is so different from the "big hit" you'd almost swear it's not the same person. There was a time in America when being a veteran wasn't a cool thing. The aftermath of the anger toward the Vietnam War lingered and was spewed not on the politicians who started and perpetuated the war (they kept getting re-elected), but on the men who were just obeying orders. That attitude generally fell with the World Trade Center on 9/11 (although some still hold it -- I remember reading an editorial a couple of years ago blasting Americans for "idolizing" soldiers ). But when this song came out we were pre-9/11 and facing the prospect of becoming involved in a war (following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq) that would be unpopular. Cyrus looked at a man who served his country and saw someone who'd endured two wars: the one he fought in, and the one for acceptance and reassimilation into his own country. It's also a poignant reminder that our freedom isn't free. As the chorus says, "All gave some, some gave all." The men who lived on a ship, having no private space and only a seven-by-three foot bunk to sleep in (which they had to learn to sleep in while aircraft were taking off on the deck above them, or while the ship was rolling in stormy seas, or any other emergency that was just part of day-to-day life in the military), deployed for a month that turned into a year when a crisis happened somewhere; or the soldiers who knew mud for a mattress for months testify that it wasn't easy. Most people, if they knew all of the issues, would never volunteer for the service. But some do, foresaking their family, friends, and facing the possibility of death or life-changing injury. And some gave us our freedoms at the expense of their lives. God bless our men and women in the military. They are giving some. May none of them have to "give all" to preserve our freedoms. Some Gave All Written by Billy Ray Cyrus and Cindy Cyrus Recorded by Billy Ray Cyrus From Some Gave All, 1992 If you ever think of me, think of all your liberties: