19 Lyrics & Chords By Paul Hardcastle

In 1965, Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war
But it wasn't, it was different in many ways
As so were those who did the fighting
In World War II
The average age of the combat soldier was twenty-six

In Vietnam, he was nineteen
In Vietnam, he was nineteen
In Vietnam, he was nineteen
In Vietnam, he was nineteen
N-n-n-n-nineteen

The heaviest fighting of the past two weeks
Continued today twenty-five miles northwest of Saigon

I really wasn't sure what was going on

N-n-n-n-nineteen, nineteen
N-nineteen, nineteen

In Vietnam
The combat soldier typically served a twelve-month tour of duty
But was exposed to hostile fire almost every day

N-n-n-n-nineteen
N-n-n-n-nineteen

In Saigon
A US military spokesman said today
More than 700 enemy troops were killed last week
In that sensitive border area
In all of South Vietnam
The enemy lost a total of 2,689 soldiers

All those who remember the war
They won't forget what they've seen
Destruction of men in their prime
Whose average was nineteen

D-d-d-d-d-destruction
D-d-d-d-d-destruction

According to a Veteran's Administration study
Half of the Vietnam combat veterans suffered
From what psychiatrists call
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Many vets complain of alienation, rage, or guilt
Some succumb to suicidal thoughts
Eight to ten years after coming home
Almost eight-hundred-thousand men
Are still fighting the Vietnam War

None of them received
A hero's welcome

S-S-S-S-S-Saigon
Nineteen, S-S-S-S-Saigon
N-n-n-n-n-ninteen