BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM)

Original Pete Seeger version

If you love this land of the free
Bring them home, bring them home
Bring all troops back from overseas
Bring them home, bring them home

It will make the generals sad, I know
Bring them home, bring them home
They want to tangle with the foe
Bring them home, bring them home

They want to test their weaponry
Bring them home, bring them home
Here is their big fallacy
Bring them home, bring them home

Our foe is hunger and ignorance
Bring them home, bring them home
You can't beat that with bombs and guns
Bring them home, bring them home

I may be right, I may be wrong
Bring them home, bring them home
But I got a right to sing this song
Bring them home, bring them home

[Spoken:] Isn't that the wonderful thing about America? You got a right to be wrong. Where else in the world can we do it like we can do it here? And back in 1965 when I first wrote this song it was "If you love your Uncle Sam, support our boys in Vietnam, bring them home". And if you all sing that chorus with me, we can raise the ceiling a little higher. Hooray for the United States of America and the right to speak your mind.

There's one thing I must confess
Bring them home, bring them home
I'm not really a pacifist
Bring them home, bring them home

If an army invaded this land of mine
Bring them home, bring them home
You'd find me out on the firing line
Bring them home, bring them home

Show those generals a fallacy
Bring them home, bring them home
They don't have the right weaponry
Bring them home, bring them home

For defense you need common sense
Bring them home, bring them home
They don't have the right armaments
Bring them home, bring them home

The world needs teachers, books and schools
Bring them home, bring them home
And learning a few universal rules
Bring them home, bring them home

So now we don't want to fight for oil
Bring them home, bring them home
Underneath some foreign soil
Bring them home, bring them home

So if you love this land of the free
Bring them home, bring them home
Bring all troops back from overseas
Bring them home, bring them home

Info

BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM) is a song written by Pete Seeger in 1965 during the Vietnam war as an invitation to support the move for U.S. troops withdrawal. The song was first published in issue #71 (June 1966) of Broadside magazine. See scan below.

BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM) lyrics as published in Broadside magazine in 1966

Pete Seeger first released a live version of the song on his 1969 album Young Vs. Old. In 2003, Seeger and Appleseed Recordings founder Jim Musselman updated the song to address the Iraq war. The song was recorded with Seeger trading verses and lines with Billy Bragg, Ani DiFranco and Steve Earle. That new recording of the song was released on Pete Seeger's 2003 album Seeds: The Songs Of Pete Seeger, Volume 3. The above lyrics are for Pete Seeger's original version of BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM) as released in 2003.

Pete Seeger & Friends -- Seeds: The Songs Of Pete Seeger, Volume 3

2-CD - Appleseed Recordings (APR CD 1072) - USA, 2003

The song was titled "If You Love Your Uncle Sam (Bring Them Home)" on Broadside magazine, "Bring Them Home" on Young Vs. Old, and "Bring Them Home (If You Love Your Uncle Sam)" on Seeds: The Songs Of Pete Seeger, Volume 3. This website uses the latter title.

Bruce Springsteen's Version

Bruce Springsteen recorded his own version of BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM). His version was heavily modified, becoming a song of its own titled "Bring 'Em Home". See BRING 'EM HOME for more details.

Available Versions

List of available versions of BRING THEM HOME (IF YOU LOVE YOUR UNCLE SAM) on this website:

Page last updated: 04 Mar 2016