Key statistics
The archive in numbers: every ranked table on the site in one place, counted from the 6,529 records on the site. Every row links to the songs behind it.
The archive
War years and post-war
6,529 recordsOriginal songs and covers
Firsts by country
The earliest dated song in the archive for each of the main countries, as identified to date. Pre-Tonkin songs (1960–63) are often general war or Cold War songs; the record page shows how central Vietnam is to each.
Firsts by theme
The earliest dated song in the archive for some key themes, as identified to date.
| Theme | Earliest song in the archive | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Draft Card Burning | Happy Fats — “Birthday Thank You Tommy, From Viet Nam” (+1 more that year) | 1965 |
| My Lai | Baba Scholae — “Song My (My Lai)” (+2 more that year) | 1969 |
| Kent State | Third Condition — “Monday in May (A May Day of Hell)” (tied with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, “Ohio”, released around the same time) | 1970 |
| P.O.W. | Jerry Reed — “Fightin' for the U.S.A.” | 1965 |
| Agent Orange | The X-Defektors — “Agent Orange” (tied with Ski Patrol, “Agent Orange”) | 1980 |
| Boat People | Dick Maloney — “The Boat People (A Song of Hope)” (Vader Abraham, “Boote ohne Hafen”, the same year) | 1979 |
| Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall | Festival feat. Britt Small — “The Wall” (+2 more that year) | 1982 |
Time
Decades
in order · sort by recordsBusiest years
top 25 · sort by yearCounted from records with a known year only. 1,262 records have no known year, 1,211 of them from the war years, so the true figures for the 1960s and early 1970s are higher than shown.
Artists & songwriters
Artists, ranked
top 50 · 3,940 artistsArtists with the most records in the archive, with the span of years their records cover.
Songwriters, ranked
top 50 · 3,773 songwritersSongwriters credited on the most records (from the Composer credits), with the span of years.
Artist gender
6,518 records with a valueFilled in for 6,518 of 6,529 records (99.8%) so far. The data is incomplete: shares are of the records where the artist’s gender is known, and will change as the column is filled in.
Songwriter gender
3,078 records with a valueFilled in for 3,078 of 6,529 records (47.1%) so far. The data is incomplete: shares are of the records where the songwriter’s gender is known, and will change as the column is filled in.
Labels & releases
Record labels, ranked
top 50 · 2,442 labelsLabels with the most records in the archive (“Not On Label” left out), with their main country and span of years.
Release types
Formats
Themes
Prominence of the war in the song
6,528 records with a valueHow prominent the Vietnam War is in each song: Central, General or Passing Mention. Recorded for 6,528 of 6,529 records so far; shares are of those records.
Primary themes, ranked
5 primary themes · 6,529 songsEach song carries one primary theme — its overall stance or viewpoint — so the shares add up to 100%. Songs from 1976 on are Post-War; the other primary themes cover the war years, 1960–75. The middle column splits each between records from the USA and from everywhere else.
Peace v Patriotic v Home Front / Soldier’s Perspective — USA, war years
3,228 US songs, 1960–75US records from the war years (1960–75), compared by primary theme across the three viewpoints. What is counted: the archive holds 4,547 US records in all; 1,079 of them are from 1976 on and carry the primary theme Post-War, so they sit outside this war-years comparison. Of the 3,468 war-years records, 209 spoken-word recordings and 31 songs from Vietnam on a US-issued LP (Vietnamese Patriotic) are left out, leaving the 3,228 songs compared here.
Peace, Protest & Anti-War 1,107 34.3% US Patriotic / Pro-Government / Anti-Protest 1,040 32.2% Home Front / Soldier's Perspective 1,081 33.5%Parent themes, ranked
42 parent themes · 6,416 tagged songsEach parent theme by the number of songs carrying it, most first. A song may carry several parent themes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Sub-themes, ranked
482 sub-themes in useEvery sub-theme tag in use, most songs first, with the share of tagged songs carrying it.
Places
Regions, ranked
7 regions · 6,529 songs with a regionThe archive by region, most records first, with the number of countries in each and its share of the archive. Latin America includes Mexico, Central America and South America; the Caribbean is counted separately.
All countries, ranked
58 countries · 6,529 songs with a countryEvery country in the archive in one table, most records first, with its region and share of the archive.
United States by state
4,547 US songs →Cities & towns
alphabeticalCities outside the US, ranked
top 50 · 219 citiesCities of artists and groups outside the United States, most records first, with their country.
Languages
All languages, ranked
37 languages · 6,071 songs with wordsEvery language in the archive, most records first, with the number of countries the records come from, the years they span, and the share of the sung and spoken records. Instrumentals are counted separately below.
Genres
Parent genres, ranked
43 parent genres in use · 6,490 records placedEach parent genre by the number of records placed in it, most first; every record has one parent genre, so the shares add up to 100%.
Sub-genres, ranked
318 sub-genre tags in useEvery sub-genre tag in use, most records first, with the parent genre it sits under most often (+n = also under that many other parents) and its share of placed records.
Collections
Annotated collections, ranked
44 collectionsEach annotated collection by the number of entries in it. A record can be in more than one collection.