The song was considered symbolic of the Vietnam War and President Lyndon Johnsons policy of escalation, then widely seen as pushing the United States deeper into the increasingly unpopular war. The captains criticism of a dissenting sergeant as a Nervous Nelly in the songs third verse appears to mimick Johnsons epithet for critics of the war.[1] Seeger often performed the song at concerts and rallies, and in late 1967 he was invited to perform on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Seeger chose to perform Big Muddy, and sang the song on the taping of the CBS show in September, 1967 but CBS management objected to its political tone, and censored the song prior to broadcast. Following the strong support from the shows hosts, CBS later relented, and allowed Seeger to come back and sing the song on the Brothers February 25, 1968, show. This broadcast is included on the DVD The Best of the Smothers Brothers.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Jan 2014 07:21:23 +0000
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