Travelin' Soldier
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| "Travelin' Soldier" | |
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"Travelin' Soldier" is a country song written and originally recorded by Bruce Robison in 1996 and then, in rewritten form, in 1999. It was later recorded by Ty England on his 1999 album Highways & Dance Halls; however, the most well-known renedition was released by the Dixie Chicks in 2002, on their album Home, and became their sixth and final Number One single on Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) chart for the group.
Song information
The song is a tale about a shy, lonesome American soldier who strikes up a conversation and later a correspondence with a high school girl during the Vietnam War era. Americana details pervade the lyric, including piers, school bands, public prayer, and Friday night football games. The song is neither explicitly pro-war nor anti-war but rather depicts a particular time and socio-cultural place. The song's evocative nature lies in the somber ending, in which the soldier ultimately dies unnoticed by all but the high school girl he was maintaining correspondence with.
Dixie Chicks controversy
The song has the distinction of being the one that the Dixie Chicks were promoting when lead singer Natalie Maines said that the band is ashamed that the United States President George W. Bush is from Texas. "Travelin' Soldier" was at #1 on the Country singles chart the week that Maines' comments hit the press. The following week, as many stations started a still-standing boycott of the Chicks' music, the song collapsed in the chart; after falling to No. 3 the week after topping the chart, the song plummeted in popularity and disappeared from the charts.
"Travelin' Soldier" also had the distinction of being the last single released by the Dixie Chicks to reach the top 20 spot on the Country singles chart before being outdone by "Not Ready to Make Nice", released in 2006.