Barry Sadler and Robin Moore's song The Ballad of the Green Berets hit #1 on the pop charts.

BQ78 said:

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Barry Sadler and Robin Moore's song The Ballad of the Green Berets hit #1 on the pop charts.

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Any idea what year the Aggie Band started playing the Green Berets?

I think that was the first record I bought, perhaps the second after Red Rubber Ball by The Cyrkle.

Not too long after it came out,it was one of the songs on the first full length record album in 1968 and I remember them playing it at the 1968 Cotton Bowl.

I remember Sadler's later years were pretty depressing.

Yeah, he shot a guy in the head and killed him and was convicted on manslaughter. Then he was shot in the head himself and became a quadriplegic. There was a legal battle over his custody but he died about a year after being shot.

I don't think he ever recovered from being a one hit wonder either.

Dad bought that album and he never bought records

And reading his Wiki entry, I didn't remember that he wrote the "Casca" series of books. One of my fellow BQs was into that series.

As I recall the premise, Casca was a Roman Soldier at the crucifixion of Christ, and was cursed to be reincarnated as a soldier until The Second Coning

My dad had that album and it was given to me when he passed. My brother and I literally wore it out. I have since bought a "replacement" that I listen to from time to time and still have my dad's original album.