Song of the DayJimi Hendrix

“All Along the Watchtower”

Released in 1968

1968

Down in Eutaw, Alabama in 1965A young man about 21 no different than you or IHe’s catchin’ catfish and gettin’ drunkBut Uncle Sam called, he called him upSent him out to VietnamThat young man, got his life turned upside downTurned his smile into a frownRobbed that king of his crownFor an ideal he didn’t even know about

He was gamblin’ at the wagonWhen that Army man showed upAnd he flashed that pen and paperAnd ol’ Flukie, he signed upThere’s gonna be a big time in the

jungleGonna be a firefight, gonna be a

rumbleSend me out to Vietnam

I’ll fight ten menI got nothin’ left in the states for meI wanna see the world, you seeI know that Uncle Sam needs meTo fight for an ideal I know nothin’

about

Oh, the drop point was dustyAnd the drill sergeant was loudAnd he could not see the corpsesFor the raging dust cloudGrab your duffle bags, head for the

checkpointWelcome to Vietnam, boysYou’re in for a hell of a fight

Take it from the ones who knowThe army moves slowHurry up and wait, don’t sleep lateLearn to hate your brotherBefore you hate your foeOn patrol out in the rice fieldsThem choppers flew low

Glancing for the hand signal To tell you where to goThen the bombs started fallin’And they pounded his brainAnd he thought about EutawAnd who was to blameFor sendin’ him to Vietnam

16. Tet OffensiveTet= Vietnamese Lunar New Year

• Coordinated attack on over 40 South Vietnamese cities and American targets by the North Vietnamese• Vietcong intended to occupy cities until local population joined their cause• American and South Vietnamese forces repel the attack• Ends any American hope of a quick victory in Vietnam

Tet Offensive

17. My Lai Massacre

• 3/16/68: Frustrated American troops kill 500 unarmed civilians in town of My Lai• American public doesn’t learn of incident until almost two years later• Increased pressure on President Nixon to end the war

Warning: The next few

slides are graphic.

Look at your own

risk…

My Lai

My Lai

My Lai

18. LBJ Doesn’t Seek Reelection

• His popularity shot as a result of the stalemate in Vietnam, Johnson decides not to run for a second full term in 1968

http://youtu.be/dDTBnsqxZ3k

18. LBJ Doesn’t Seek Reelection

• Robert F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey vie for the nomination of the Democrats

June 1968: Robert Kennedy is assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan, a Palestinian sympathizer who felt betrayed by Kennedy’s support of Israel

18. LBJ Doesn’t Seek Reelection

18. LBJ Doesn’t Seek Reelection• The Democrats nominate VP Hubert

Humphrey • George Wallace runs as a third party candidate

19. Nixon Wins in ‘68

• Former VP Richard Nixon (R-CA) takes advantage of a split Democratic vote to defeat VP Hubert Humphrey (D-MN) and Gov. George Wallace (I-AL)• Nixon appeals to voters concerned about protesters in the streets and rising crime levels; promises to restore “law and order”

Nixon Wins

20. Violence at Kent State

• National Guardsmen respond to student protests at Kent State University in Ohio• Students throw rocks and bottles• Several guardsmen fire on student protesters• 4 students are shot and killed