The Battle of Long Tan

Annotation — Australian & New Zealand Songs

Country musician from Queensland, Australia. Retiring as an ambulance driver in the 1990s, he turned to music, releasing dozens of country albums, with "Australia and Australians as the major themes for his ballads", and a focus on the "traditions cemented into our culture by the late Slim Dusty".1 He wrote and released several songs about the Vietnam War, which were: "The Battle of Long Tan", "The Battle of Coral", "Missing in Action", and "Fifty Thousand Australian Sons". On this album featured the song "The Battle of Long Tan" about the famous and iconic battle that took place on 18 August 1966. A small number, approximately 108 Australian and New Zealand servicemen, defended their position against a force of around 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars, possibly preventing an attack against Nui Dat, the base of the 1st Australian Task Force.23 Note that other songs about this battle are the classical composition "The Battle of Long Tan" (2005) by Gary Nicholas and Phill Knight, the classical score to the motion picture Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan, by Caitlin Yeo, and "Tell Carmelita" by Lee Kernaghan, discussed below.4 The song set-out the scene from the Australian perspective, with the Australian forces in 1966 new to the Nui Dat base, when "the VC decided...they'd humble the Aussies". He noted that as the battle began on the rubber plantation "our blokes were outnumbered 30-1". The lyrics provide some fairly accurate stats: "108 soldiers from Delta 6", and "3000" from the other side. The narrator described the fierce combat, but "the Aussie held on, never giving an inch". It presented the battle as a symbol of Australian national pride: "they fought for our country with honour and pride". The song also provided a 1960s pro-government interpretation of the war, that Australia, and its ally the US, were defending an independent, non-communist South Vietnam that was fighting for freedom: "you were fighting for those who dared to be free", thus ignoring the North Vietnamese perspective. This can be categorised under the 'patriotic' song theme. Sources1grahamrodger.com.au↩2historynet.com: Battle of long tan how australians and new zealanders beat odds↩3Wikipedia: Battle of Long Tan↩4Australian War Memorial↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: In 1966 the Australia were new to the Nui Dat base in the numbers were few / The VC decided they'd be easy to beat / They'd humble the Aussies with a crushing defeat / For the 18th of August they planned their attack / With 3,000 troops to wipe out Nui Dat / But 108 soldiers from Delta 6 were patrolling that day and stood in their path / As daylight was fading the battle began / In that rubber plantation known as Long Tan / Our blokes were outnumbered by 30-1 / But nearly 500 would fall to their guns / Well the fighting was fierce as VC pushed in / But the Aussie held on, never giving an inch / With the angel of death close by their side / They fought for our country with honour and pride / As storm raged our choppers made a fresh ammo drop / The APCs charged, they just couldn't be stopped / While our artilleries tore the plantation apart / And then the enemy fled under cover of dark / In the rain sodden hell hole they countered the cost / 24 wounded, and 18 men lost / We paid a hard price to receive victories hand / So here's to the soldiers who fought at Long Tan... / And to all other battles in South Vietnam / You were fighting for those who dared to be free / Your deeds will live on in our memories...

Notes

Self-released. The song is credited to A. MacPherson (on the 2016 album They Answered the Call, where it reappears).

About the artist

Graham Rodger - country singer-songwriter from Queensland; a former ambulance officer who turned to music in the 1990s and has released dozens of albums in the Slim Dusty tradition.

Themes

Combat · Battle of Long Tan · VC · Patriotic · ANZUS · Pro-Government

In collections

Australian & New Zealand Songs