Song Analysis Of John Prine's Sam Stone

John Prine’s “Sam Stone”

In war, there are no unwounded soldiers - Jose Narosky.

An estimation of about 2.6 million men served in the Vietnam war, but only a several hundred thousand of them came home. While some soldiers who returned were successful with the transition of returning back to the civilian life, many others did not. In John Prine’s anti war song, “Sam Stone”, he sings about the life of a man who goes home to his family and gets addicted to drugs.

To start off, the title of the song is “Sam Stone.” Many might think that this is just an ordinary name that Prine thought of randomly, but it actually has a little more significance to it. The last name, Stone, symbolizes that this character becomes a drug addict, or a stoner, after the war. Also, a few people may think that Sam Stone was an actual person that Prine based his character off of, but in reality Sam Stone was influenced by a couple of men Prine knew that from the Vietnam War ("Sam Stone by John Prine Songfacts").

Another thing that develops the idea is when Prine sings, “Sam Stone’s welcome home didn’t last too long.” This shows that soldiers did not return home to praise and worship, but to criticism and hatred.

There were many who protested against the Vietnam war that when soldiers returned, they were spat on and treated with bitterness (“Sam Stone Lyrics”). In the song, Prine also sings, “With a purple heart and a monkey on his back,” to hint to his listeners that Sam was a soldier wounded in the Vietnam war who was awarded the Purple Heart. Also, the phrase, “to have a monkey on one’s back” means to have a drug addiction (“Sam Stone (song)”). So, as a result of the psychological and physical pain, many veterans turned to drugs and eventually became

addicted.

Throughout the entire song, Prine uses many allusions that refer to Sam Stone as a drug junky. For example, he expressively sings the words, “There’s a hole in daddy’s arm where all the money goes.” This section of the chorus implies that the person singing the song is one of his children and is telling it like story (“Sam Stone lyrics”). Sam Stone’s “family” symbolizes the families of every veteran who became addicted and shows that they too are affected. It shows that after the war that they not only began to neglect their children, but also began to act recklessly in front of them. The “hole in daddy’s arm where all the money goes,” indicates the use of heroin needles (“Sam Stone Lyrics”). Also, it evokes the idea that veterans would use up all their money or exchange what they own to pay for the substances. Another example is when Prine sings, “sweet songs never last too long on broken radios.” This line of the song insinuates that ‘sweet songs’ is Sam Stone’s soul and wellbeing, as for the radio stands for his heroin addiction (“Sam Stone Lyrics”). Prine is saying that going to war ruined Sam Stone’s life, and have ruined the lives of several that experienced war.In all, Prine uses allusion throughout in his song to get his point across that veterans used drugs and other substances to overcome their PTSD.

One last example is, “Sam Stone was alone when he popped his last balloon… overdose hovering the air.” In the streets, heroin is commonly packed inside small balloons. So in this case, Prine uses imagery to paint an image in the listener’s mind of Stone opening is last package of drugs (“Sam Stone (song)”). He shows that the effects on war can be so stressful that it can lead a man to his own deathbed. Another interpretation of the line,”Sam Stone… popped his last balloon,” can say that it was the last time he found heroin accelerating or that it was the lasst time he truly enjoyed himself, a perfect moment that quickly disappeared. In conclusion, Prine shows his listeners that even those who survive war end up killing themselves.

Therefore, in the song, “Sam Stone” by John Prine, he demonstrates that even though many men returned home safely, they were still wounded physically or psychologically. They also suffered from serious cases of PTSD and to relax they turned to drugs. Prine uses the two devices, allusion and imagery, to capture the listener’s attention and to expand the idea of how it has much effect on not only the veterans, but also the families. Eventually, the soldiers use of drugs kill them, like a form of suicide that satisfies the victim. Thus, “Sam Stone” carries the true story of a war veteran- tired, depressed, insane, unhappy, and lost and we should do something to help stop from gaining more “Sam Stone’s.”