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Elvis: Rock and Roll’s King was once a lowly Private (until he was promoted to Sergeant)
The rebellious spirit of Rock and Roll often seems at odds with the US Military. Indeed, John Lennon once quipped after the King of Rock and Roll’s untimely death that, “Elvis died when he went in the Army.” Lennon’s opinion notwithstanding, however, many rock and roll luminaries, instrumentalists and one-hit wonders have served their country in the armed forces. As the nation celebrates Veteran’s Day on November 11, make sure you take the time to honor these brave gents who answered their country’s call:
Elvis Presley: Army
Jimi Hendrix: Army
The Everly Brothers: The Marine Corps.
Johnny Cash: Air Force
John Fogerty: Army Reserve
Rick James: Navy (served briefly, before going AWOL)
Mike Nesmith (of the Monkees): Air Force
Herb Alpert: Army
MC Hammer: Navy
Ice T: Army
Kris Kristofferson: Army, achieved rank of Captain
Del Shannon: Army
The Del Vikings: Air Force
Gary Lewis (of Gary Lewis and the Playboys): Army
“Keith” (born James Barry Keefer; performed the hit song “98.6”): Army
The Essex (performed the hit “Easier Said than Done”): The Marine Corps
Frankie Ford (performed the hit “Sea Cruise”): Army
Hoyt Axton (wrote Three Dog Night’s hit, “Joy to the World”): Navy
Drake Levin (of Paul Revere and the Raiders): National Guard
Lou Christie (performed the hit “Lightning Strikes”): Army
…and then there’s…
The pop/rock group America, who met at the English Air Force base where their American fathers all served.
James Blunt, who served in the British Army.
Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, the guitarist for Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers, who parlayed his expertise on sound recording technology into a second career as a missile defense consultant.
And, of course, Army Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, who took his record “The Ballad of the Green Beret” all the way to number one on the charts during the height of the Vietnam War.
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