Unproud Warrior

Cass McCombs

This song’s only a few weeks old and it’s been haunting me. Such an underrated singer/songwriter who always surprises me. This is an early single from an album called HEARTMIND which will come out August 19th.

Last year I researched the gulf war for a script and was disturbed by all the PTSD stories — in particular those from David Finkel’s THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. I love the feeling this song evokes. How his discharge date is etched in his soul. How Cass compares enlistment age to those of a few famous authors. So rich. Even the idea of feeling unproud is so heavy, so sad. I wonder how many veterans feel this way? You built your house alone. 💔

You were only seventeen when you enlisted
You remember
S.E Hinton wrote The Outsiders when she was just fifteen
Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein when she was just nineteen
And at twenty-three, Stephen Crane published The Red Badge Of Courage
Which is still known as one of the most realistic depictions of war
Even though Crane was born after the Civil War ended
Maybe sentiments of regret are not all that unrelatable
You've always taken lengths to be aware of your own choice

Whoa, whoa
Unproud warrior (unproud warrior)
Unproud warrior (unproud warrior)
Unproud warrior (unproud warrior)
You built your house alone (whoa, unproud warrior)