View source for War Song

{{About|the Neil Young and Graham Nash song|songs named "War"|War (disambiguation)|other uses|War song (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox song
| name       = War Song
| cover      = Ws_small.jpg
| alt        =
| type       = single
| artist     = [[Neil Young]] and [[Graham Nash]]
| album      =
| B-side     = [[The Needle and the Damage Done]]
| released   = June 24, 1972
| recorded   = May 22, 1972
| studio     = Broken Arrow Ranch
| genre      = [[Rock music|Rock]]
| length     = 3:35
| label      = [[Reprise Records|Reprise]]
| writer     = [[Neil Young]]
| producer   = 
* [[Elliot Mazer]]
* Tim Mulligan
* [[L.A. Johnson]]
* [[Neil Young]]
| chronology= Neil Young
| prev_title = [[Old Man (song)|Old Man]]
| prev_year  = 1972
| next_title = [[Time Fades Away]]
| next_year  = 1973
| misc=
{{extra chronology
| artist= Graham Nash
| type = single
| prev_title = I Used to Be a King
| prev_year  = 1971
| title = War Song
| year = 1972
| next_title = Prison Song
| next_year  = 1973
}}
}}

"'''War Song'''" is a 1972 [[Single (music)|single]] credited to [[Neil Young]] & [[Graham Nash]], backed by [[The Stray Gators]]. It was released in support of [[George McGovern]]'s [[George McGovern presidential campaign, 1972|1972 presidential campaign]], who was running against incumbent President [[Richard Nixon]]. Young had already voiced his opinions of Nixon two years prior with "[[Ohio (1970 song)|Ohio]]" while a member of [[Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young]], and once again tried to make an impact with a [[protest song]]. Despite his and Nash's intentions, the single failed to make a serious impression.  

''[[Cash Box]]'' described the song as a "philosophical/political opus in the groove of [the [[Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young]] song] '[[Ohio (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young song)|Ohio]].'"<ref name=cb>{{cite magazine |title=CashBox Record Reviews |date=June 17, 1972 |page=16 |access-date=2022-01-12 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1972/Cash-Box-1972-06-17.pdf |magazine=Cash Box}}</ref> ''[[Record World]]'' called it "an angry reply to the renewed bombing of [[North Vietnam]]" and said that "it's the best Young has sounded in some time."<ref name=rw>{{cite magazine|magazine=Record World|date=June 24, 1972|accessdate=2023-03-31|title=Hits of the Week|page=1|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/72/Record-World-1972-06-24.pdf}}</ref>

The single itself soon went [[out of print]]. Warner Brothers released the song on their 1974 [[loss leader]] Series album ''Hard Goods'' (a promotional series used primarily to promote rock acts on the label at the time).  After that, "War Song" would remain unreleased in any other format until June 2009, when it was released on CD, DVD, and Blu-ray on a box set by [[Neil Young]] called ''[[The Archives Vol. 1 1963–1972]]''.

==Charts==
===Weekly charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! align="left" |Chart (1972)
! align="left" |Peak
position
|-
| align="left" |Canada ''RPM'' Top Singles
| style="text-align:center;" |40
|-
| align="left" |US ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]]
| style="text-align:center;" |61
|-
| align="left" |US ''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]]'' Top 100<ref>{{Cite web|title=CASH BOX MAGAZINE: Music and coin machine magazine 1942 to 1996|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box-Magazine.htm|access-date=2021-04-02|website=worldradiohistory.com}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;" |52
|-
| align="left" |US ''Record World'' Top 100<ref>{{Cite web|title=RECORD WORLD MAGAZINE: 1942 to 1982|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record_World.htm|access-date=2021-04-02|website=worldradiohistory.com}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;" |51
|-
|Japan ([[Oricon]])<ref name="jachart">{{cite book|first= Satoshi |last= Okamoto |title= Single Chart Book: Complete Edition 1968–2010 |year= 2011 |publisher= Oricon Entertainment |location= [[Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo|Roppongi, Tokyo]] |isbn= 978-4-87131-088-8 |language= ja}}</ref>
|align="center"|97
|-
|}

==See also==
* [[List of anti-war songs]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Neil Young}}
{{Graham Nash}}
{{The Stray Gators}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1972 songs]]
[[Category:1972 singles]]
[[Category:Anti-war songs]]
[[Category:Neil Young songs]]
[[Category:Graham Nash songs]]
[[Category:Reprise Records singles]]
[[Category:Protest songs]]
[[Category:Songs written by Neil Young]]
[[Category:Political songs]]
[[Category:Songs written by Graham Nash]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Neil Young]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Elliot Mazer]]


{{1970s-single-stub}}