The Gunner is a soldier who served in an airplane during WW2. Could have been a tail gunner or he could have been the guy who manned the nose turret. In the bombers of WW2 the guys communicated with each other (navigator, pilots, gunners, bombadiers) over headphones or intercoms. Between firefights they'd talk about their families, girls, dreams, what they would do after the war, the usual subjects you'd expect.
The Hero made it back and the gunner didn't. The gunner was in a plane that was shot down and he (the Gunner) now sleeps in the corner of some foreign field.
It's chilling and brings tears to your eyes when you think of this song while visiting the military cemetaries of Belgium or France. These guys gave their all, and those who survived to come home had a hard time reintegrating into normal society. How the hell do you come home and live a normal life when 2 weeks ago you were paid to kill people and there were professional killers on the other side doing their best to kill you first?
The Gunner is a soldier who served in an airplane during WW2. Could have been a tail gunner or he could have been the guy who manned the nose turret. In the bombers of WW2 the guys communicated with each other (navigator, pilots, gunners, bombadiers) over headphones or intercoms. Between firefights they'd talk about their families, girls, dreams, what they would do after the war, the usual subjects you'd expect.
The Hero made it back and the gunner didn't. The gunner was in a plane that was shot down and he (the Gunner) now sleeps in the corner of some foreign field.
It's chilling and brings tears to your eyes when you think of this song while visiting the military cemetaries of Belgium or France. These guys gave their all, and those who survived to come home had a hard time reintegrating into normal society. How the hell do you come home and live a normal life when 2 weeks ago you were paid to kill people and there were professional killers on the other side doing their best to kill you first?