When The War Began - Protest Songs

When The War Began. This is the first in the revised Protest Songs themed series of mixes about war and peace. This is a mostly quiet mix with songs of loss and sadness caused by war but picks up towards the end with some protest rockers before ending with a quiet lament version of the classic "War".

The first few songs describe the personal costs of war and includes the cover of Elvis Costello's Shipbuilding by Robert Wyatt which is considered by many to be the definitive version and an Iron and Wine cover of New Order's Love Vigilantes. Both songs were written about Britain's Falklands War. Chris Whitley does an amazing acoustic cover of The Clash's The Call Up as is the Joan Osborne cover of War.

1. Pearls Before Swine - When The War Began (The Use of Ashes, 1970)
2. Robert Wyatt - Shipbuilding (EPs, 1999)
3. Iron and Wine - Love Vigilantes (Around The Well, 2009)
4. Mary Black - My Youngest Son Came Home Today (Collected, 1988)
5. Cat Power - Maybe Not (You Are Free, 2003)
6. Josh Ritter - The Girl In The War (The Animal Years, 2006)
7. Tom Waits - Day After Tomorrow (Real Gone, 2004)
8. Chris Whitley - The Call Up (War Crime Blues, 2004)
9. Christy Moore - The Dying Soldier (Ride On, 1984)
10. M. Ward - Requiem (Post-War, 2006)
11. Steve Earle - Rich Man's War (The Revolution Starts Now, 2004)
12. James McMurtry - Cheney's Toy (Just Us Kids, 2008)
13. Dar Williams - Empire (My Better Self, 2005)
14. James - Hey Ma (Hey Ma, 2008)
15. Neil Young - After The Garden (Living With War, 2006)
16. Richard Thompson - Dad's Gonna Kill Me (Sweet Warrior, 2007)
17. Bruce Springsteen - Last To Die (Magic, 2007)
18. Joan Osborne - War (How Sweet It Is, 2002)