It won't be hard to find tracks sung by multiple artists released in the '70s that alluded to the conflict of the Vietnam War. John Prine released a folk track in 1971 that was known as one of the saddest in the genre, which spoke of a soldier coming home from war.
"Sam Stone" was written by Prine and released as part of his eponymous 1971 debut album, originally titled "Great Society Conflict Veteran's Blues." While the track failed to enter the Billboard chart, it gained resurgence, landing at No. 15 following his death in 2020.
The song was once ranked by Rolling Stone as one of the saddest songs of all time, and largely due to the story Prine tells through its lyrics. It focused on a drug-addicted war veteran with a Purple Heart who died of an overdose. Many interpret the song as a reference to heroin and morphine addiction, which many soldiers faced after serving in the war.
"Sam Stone" doesn't explicitly talk about the Vietnam War in its lyrics, but certain word choices allude to it, like "serving in the conflict overseas". The same is said about the track's references to addiction, like "habit" and "popped his last balloon." According to American Songwriter, Prine was inspired by his own experience serving in the military.
“I always thought one of the great mistakes they made in the service is if they spent half the time that they do getting you ready, and the intensity that they put you through in basic training for combat, if they spent half that time bringing you down and teaching you how to be a civilian, it would make a big difference," he said.
The singer added that he compares the experience to anyone who's been incarcerated and "how difficult it is to be back on the street." When it came to the title of the folk track, he admitted to having made Sam Stone up because it rhymed with "home." He didn't take any inspiration from a real person he knew.
"Sam Stone" remains a generational anthem with a sad backstory. Years later, the melody for the track was used by Roger Waters for Pink Floyd's 1983 song "The Post War Dream."
Related: 1971 Folk Ballad, Inspired by a Painful Breakup, Became an Unlikely Holiday Classic
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