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Off of Rise Against’s fifth album Appeal to Reason, “Hero Of War” is about an Iraq war veteran looking back on the hardships he endured during the war. The song starts out with an army recruiter asking the protagonist, a potential recruit, to enlist. With promises of adventure and money, they do ind...
[Verse 1]
He said, "Son, have you seen the world?
Well, what would you say, if I said that you could?
Just carry this gun, you'll even get paid"
I said, "That sounds pretty good"
Black leather boots, spit-shined so bright
They cut off my hair, but it looks alright
We marched and we sang, we all became friends
As we learned how to fight
[Chorus 1]
A hero of war
Yeah, that's what I'll be
And when I come home
They'll be damn proud of me
I'll carry this flag
To the grave if I must
'Cause it's a flag that I love
And a flag that I trust
[Verse 2]
I kicked in the door, I yelled my commands
The children, they cried, but I got my man
We took him away, a bag over his face
From his family and his friends
They took off his clothes, they pissed in his hands
I told them to stop, but then I joined in
We beat him with guns, and batons not just once
But again and again
[Chorus 1]
A hero of war
Yeah, that's what I'll be
And when I come home
They'll be damn proud of me
I'll carry this flag
To the grave if I must
'Cause it's a flag that I love
And a flag that I trust
[Verse 3]
She walked through bullets and haze
I asked her to stop, I begged her to stay
But she pressed on, so I lifted my gun
And I fired away
And the shells jumped through the smoke
And into the sand that the blood now had soaked
She collapsed with a flag in her hand
A flag white as snow
[Chorus 2]
A hero of war
Is that what they see?
Just medals and scars
So damn proud of me
And I brought home that flag
Now it gathers dust
But it's a flag that I love
It's the only flag I trust
[Outro]
He said, "Son
Have you seen the world?
Well, what would you say
If I said that you could?"
Hero of War was written by Tim McIlrath & Joseph Principe & Brandon Barnes & Zach Blair.
Hero of War was produced by Jason Livermore & Bill Stevenson.
Rise Against released Hero of War on Tue Oct 07 2008.
When asked by ARTISTdirect about having learned more about the Vietnam War through music, rather than history books, McIlrath replied with:
I was talking about the song, “Hero of War,” when I said that. It was written expressly with that idea in mind. It was a way to documenting what’s going on, li...
Guitarist Zach Blair told Ultimate-Guitar.com about this multi-layered acoustic guitar song:
That was a song Tim (McIlrath, frontman) had in the studio and it was one of those things that were like it was his baby; it was his whole thing. It’s a brilliant song and it might raise a few eyebrows but...