Then came the death of Phạm Phú Quốc, a flyer in the South Vietnamese air force, during a bombing raid to North Vietnam. To create the heroic image of an ''ideal'' man, I wrote HUYỀN SỬ CA MỘT NGƯỜI MANG TÊN QUỐC (Epic of a Man named Quốc)
In music, the ballad is a type of epic used to sing about stories and heroes. I used the word ''huyền sử ca'' (epic, myth) to give the story a mystical feeling. This song would later lead to others by fellow musicians about the heroes of the South Vietnamese armed forces such as NGƯỜI Ở LẠI CHARLIE (The One Who Stayed Behind in Charlie), ANH KHÔNG CHẾT ÐÂU ANH (No You Haven't Died), etc.
Even though I was singing about a man who died for the fatherland,
I did not want to sound like a hired writer. I only wanted to weep for
Phạm Phú Quốc as I would for any other Vietnamese born in thesetimes,
a man forced to wear the mantle of a hero, when perhaps all he wants to
do is
to be a gentle brother. His fate it was to be a hero, and so
Rising to the sky, he is the sunshine, he is a star,
looking down at a countryside as beautiful as velvet...
but he must still drop his bombs! Proudly he may soar up to claim
the dawn sky, but as the sun sets his heart is filled with
love.
Then one afternoon he did his heroic duty and went home -
some thought that this expression referred to dying, however it merely
means that
he was going back to the North, which he has to bomb, even though it was
the land of his birth. Then one day his wings were broken, and he went
back to the earth and the water, a yellow dust flying all over the sky.
Quốc, or any young Vietnamese who dies for the homeland,
may become a sun shining over Vietnam. Those were my thoughts
when I wrote:
EPIC OF A MAN NAMED QUỐC
(Saigon-1965)
Once when your greeted the world with a baby's cries
Your beloved mother named you Quốc,
She named you after the country
She put the love of the land into your cradle.
As you grew up you held high the Fatherland
As you grew up in a raging war
Vietnam was burning
Your heart was burning
Vietnam was fighting for freedom and happiness.
O Quốc!
Youth is like a flower
That opens in a raging storm
A flower still fresh like this land!
O Quốc
A flock of birds was flying
Calling for the sun to shine
So that people could think of the future.
Then you gave your life to the nation.
Vietnam was divided
And all the people lamented.
You felt the pain in his heart
As the people grieved for their nation's fate.
Then you followed your heartfelt promise
And the blue sky opened its door.
Soaring high, you were the sunshine
You were the moon, you were a star, looking down
O Quốc.
Spreading your wings in the dawn
You soared to claim the sky.
As the sun set you were filled with love
O Quốc!
A pilot flying in the sky
Still must bear a man's fate.
A proud divine wind, knowing no fear,
You still felt the weight of the country.
On the other side was the nation's pain
On this side was sadness, your sadness.
You had to find your way through obstacles.
You soared up to defend this land
You soared up to smash the tyrants
Your flight echoed in the heart of the nation
Your flight united hardships and love
O Quốc!
A hero you were
But always so quiet
So peaceful and quiet
O Quốc!
Have you gone to look
For a peaceful sky and white clouds
Beautiful as a dream?
You followed the path that had been drawn
A path in the sky that held your body
To us life has been granted, but we are only dust
Life will take us back to the earth.
You went back, one afternoon you went back home
To do your hero's duty
And your eagle's wings were broken.
One afternoon you went, back to earth
One afternoon you went, back to water
One radiant afternoon, dust flew all over the sky
O Quốc!
From now on in the wind
From now on in the clouds
You live on in my mind
O Quốc!
If you think of me in eternity
Give us a shining sun
Always shining over Vietnam...
Songs For Rural Construction
Songs For The Vietnamese Army
The songs that were written for the Rural Construction movement centered on the raising of the peasants' standard of living: NÔNG THÔN QUẬT KHỞI (The Countryside Rising Up), TAY SÚNG TAY CẦY (Gun In One Hand, Plough In The Other), CÙNG NHAU XÂY ẤP MỚI (Together We Build The new hamlet), AI VỀ THÔN ẤP MÀ COI (Come Have A Look At Our Village), HÁT HAY KHÔNG BẰNG HAY HÁT (Singing Often Is Better Than Singing Well), KHOÁC ÁO MẦU ÐEN (Putting On A Black Shirt), BÁT CƠM BÁT MỒ HÔi BÁT MÁU (Bowl Of Rice, Bowl Of Sweat, Bowl Of Blood), etc.
THE COUNTRYSIDE RISING UP
(Saigon-1965)
Many years our people have suffered
Many years we have carried two ennemies on our shoulders
Bullying village tyrants who have oppressed us
Making us live in hardship...
(forgotten)
Cadres and people, we are one
Cadres and people, we are two
The people love and trust the cadre
Together we fight to build Vietnam.
SINGING OFTEN IS BETTER THAN SINGING WELL
(Vũng Tầu-1966)
Singing often is better than singing well!
Singing often is better than singing well!
Let's sing all the time! Let's sing all the time!
Let's sing these words for building the countryside!
(clapping)
Singing often is better than singing well!
Let's sing to celebrate! Let's sing loudly!
Let's sing together! Let's sing as a big group!
(clapping)
Singing, we build a fighting village!
Singing, we build a fighting village!
We'll live together! We'll live together!
We have no fear of nobody!
(clapping)
Singing, we build a fighting village!
Singing, we build a fighting village!
We'll fight corruption, we'll fight dirty tricks,
We'll fight invaders, we'll fight bandits!
(clapping)
Let's wipe out hatred and division
Let's wipe out hatred and division
Let's sing with a passion!
Let's sing with a passion!
Why should there be any mistrust between us?
(clapping)
Let's wipe out hatred and division
Let's wipe out hatred and division
Let's sing of love! Let's sing of trust!
Let's sing of close affection, let's sing all the time.
(clapping)
Let's sing for the old and for the young
Let's sing for the old and for the young
For the country girl, for the village boy
Let's no suspicion come between us
(clapping)
Let's sing something the village will remember
Let's sing something the village will remember
Let's sing for the militia, for glory
Let's sing for the countryside, for self reliance!
(clapping)
Let's sing in hope for tomorrow
Let's sing in hope for tomorrow
Let's sing of peace, of peace,
Let's sing of heroes, o Vietnam!
(clapping)
Let's sing to celebrate the new rice crop
Let's sing to celebrate the new rice crop
Let's raise our voice higher, sing like madmen
Let's sing a gentle song, of lasting love.
(clapping)
Among the songs written for Rural Construction, I liked most KHOÁC ÁO MẦU ÐEN (Wearing A Black Shirt) as I often wore one to do cross-country singing (part of a movement known as du ca aimed at bringing music to the people).
WEARING A BLACK SHIRT
(Saigon-1966)
I wear a black shirt, color of the nation
A black shirt bearing the color of struggle
Gloomy black, rising to overcome
And wipe out the rouge and powder of vice...
(forgotten)
BOWL OF RICE, BOWL OF SWEAT, BOWL OF BLOOD
(Saigon-1966)
Two full meals, food for a day,
Golden rice, o golden rice
Whom do we owe it to?
So much blood has been shed
With sweat on the fields
All our life we remember
No doubt, there's no doubt
We owe the people a debt
The people who works day and night
In the sun, in the rain, in hardship
In the sun, in the rain, in hardship
To make this rice.
THE MODEL SOLDIER
(Saigon-1966)
My soldier friend, you work so hard
My soldier friend, you're truly a hero
Today I vote you a model soldier
Today I vote you a model soldier
etc...
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