In Honor of James Clayton Swinney (Captain Separated)


We met as soul mates,
On Parris Island.
We left as inmates,
From an asylum.
And we were sharp,
As sharp as knives.
And we were so gung ho,
To lay down our lives.


We came in spastic,
Like tameless horses.
We left in plastic,
As numbered corpses.
And we learned fast
To travel light
Our arms were heavy
But our bellies were tight
We had no home front
We had no soft soap
They sent us Playboy
They gave us Bob Hope


We dug in deep
And shot on sight
And prayed to Jesus Christ
With all of our might



And we held on to each other
Like brother to brother
We promised our mothers we’d write
And we would all go down together

Remember Charlie
Remember Baker
They left their childhood
On every acre



And who was wrong?
And who was right?


It didn’t matter in the thick of the fight.


We held the day
In the palm
Of our hand
They ruled the night
And the night
Seemed to last as long as six weeks
On Parris Island


We held the coastline
They held the highlands
And they were sharp
As sharp as knives
They heard the hum of our motors
They counted the rotors
And waited for us to arrive.



And we would all go down together!

We said we’d all go down together!!!!!


Yes we would all go down together.

In Honor of James Clayton Swinney (Captain Separated)

Goodnight Saigon. A Good Thing.