The 40 Greatest Anti-War Songs, from Blowin' in the Wind to Zombie

What is the most famous anti-war song?

"War" by Edwin Starr, a 1970 number one, and John Lennon's "Imagine" are two of the most famous songs against war, along with Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind", Pete Seeger's "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?", Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Fortunate Son" and Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On".

Folk songs against war

1. "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?", Pete Seeger, 1955: a circular folk song about the cost of war, later a hit for the Kingston Trio.
2. "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream", Ed McCurdy, 1950: a dream of a world that agrees to end war.
3. "Blowin' in the Wind", Bob Dylan, 1963: a song of questions that became an anthem of the 60s.
4. "Masters of War", Bob Dylan, 1963: a fierce attack on the arms makers.
5. "Universal Soldier", Buffy Sainte-Marie, 1964: a song about who is responsible for war.
6. "I Ain't Marching Anymore", Phil Ochs, 1965: a soldier who refuses to fight another war.
7. "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy", Pete Seeger, 1967: a parable about a foolish officer.

Vietnam-era protest songs

8. "War", Edwin Starr, 1970: a Motown number one and the most direct anti-war song ever.
9. "Fortunate Son", Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1969: an angry song about who gets sent to fight.
10. "Give Peace a Chance", Plastic Ono Band, 1969: recorded in a hotel room during John and Yoko's bed-in.
11. "What's Going On", Marvin Gaye, 1971: a soulful plea inspired in part by his brother's stories from Vietnam.
12. "Ohio", Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, 1970: Neil Young's response to the Kent State shootings.
13. "Eve of Destruction", Barry McGuire, 1965: a number one hit full of Cold War dread.
14. "The Unknown Soldier", the Doors, 1968: a theatrical song about war on the evening news.
15. "Sky Pilot", Eric Burdon and the Animals, 1968: a song about a chaplain blessing soldiers before battle.
16. "Alice's Restaurant Massacree", Arlo Guthrie, 1967: an 18-minute comic story about the draft.
17. "War Pigs", Black Sabbath, 1970: heavy metal's great anti-war epic.

Songs about peace

18. "Imagine", John Lennon, 1971: a vision of a world without war or division.
19. "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", John and Yoko and the Plastic Ono Band, 1971: a Christmas song with a message.
20. "Peace Train", Cat Stevens, 1971: a hopeful, rolling song of peace.
21. "Where Is the Love?", the Black Eyed Peas, 2003: a plea for compassion released the year the Iraq War began.

Anti-war songs of the 80s

22. "Sunday Bloody Sunday", U2, 1983: about the violence of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
23. "99 Luftballons", Nena, 1983: a German pop hit about a war started by accident.
24. "Two Tribes", Frankie Goes to Hollywood, 1984: a Cold War dance hit.
25. "Born in the U.S.A.", Bruce Springsteen, 1984: a Vietnam veteran's bitter story, often mistaken for a patriotic anthem.
26. "Russians", Sting, 1985: a Cold War song built on a Prokofiev melody.
27. "Brothers in Arms", Dire Straits, 1985: a mournful ballad about soldiers.
28. "Enola Gay", Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, 1980: a bright synth-pop song about the bomber that struck Hiroshima.
29. "One", Metallica, 1988: a harrowing song about a wounded soldier, inspired by Johnny Got His Gun.
30. "Civil War", Guns N' Roses, 1990: an epic about the futility of war.

More songs against war

32. "Zombie", the Cranberries, 1994: Dolores O'Riordan's response to an IRA bombing that killed two children.
33. "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda", Eric Bogle, 1971: an Australian soldier's story of Gallipoli.
34. "The Green Fields of France", Eric Bogle, 1976: a visit to a young soldier's grave from World War I.
35. "Child in Time", Deep Purple, 1970: a dramatic rock epic about the threat of war.
36. "Machine Gun", Jimi Hendrix, 1970: a guitar piece that imitates the sounds of battle.
37. "Travelin' Soldier", the Chicks, 2002: a love story cut short by Vietnam.
38. "Bring 'Em Home", Pete Seeger, 1966: a call to bring the troops home, later revived by Bruce Springsteen.
39. "Gimme Shelter", the Rolling Stones, 1969: a dark song about violence and fear in the Vietnam era.
40. "For What It's Worth", Buffalo Springfield, 1966: written about protests on the Sunset Strip and adopted as an anthem of the era.

Why anti-war songs matter

Songs against war give a voice to fear, grief and anger that people often cannot put into words. In the 60s they turned folk clubs and campuses into centers of protest, in the 80s they captured the dread of nuclear war, and they still give soldiers, veterans and families a way to talk about what war costs. Many of the most powerful ones are not slogans but stories about one soldier, one family or one town.

The story behind War

"War" was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and first recorded by the Temptations, but Motown held back their version, worried it might alienate fans. Edwin Starr recorded it with a fiery vocal, and in 1970 it spent three weeks at number one. Its blunt message made it one of the defining songs of the Vietnam era.

The story behind Ohio

On May 4, 1970, the Ohio National Guard opened fire on students protesting the Vietnam War at Kent State University, killing four. Neil Young wrote "Ohio" after seeing photographs of the shooting, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young recorded and released it within weeks. It remains one of the fastest responses to the news in rock history.

The story behind Zombie

In March 1993 an IRA bomb in the English town of Warrington killed two children, Johnathan Ball and Tim Parry. The Cranberries' Dolores O'Riordan, from Limerick in Ireland, wrote "Zombie" in response, and its heavy guitars and anguished vocal made it a worldwide hit. For more from the band, see our Cranberries songs.

The story behind Give Peace a Chance

In 1969 John Lennon and Yoko Ono spent their honeymoon week in bed as a public protest for peace, inviting reporters into their hotel rooms in Amsterdam and then Montreal. In the Montreal room, surrounded by friends and journalists, they recorded "Give Peace a Chance", and within months it was being sung by huge crowds at anti-war rallies in the United States.

Anti-war songs for a classroom or a memorial

For a history or music lesson, "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?", "Blowin' in the Wind", "War", "Imagine" and "Where Is the Love?" are clean, clear and easy to discuss. For Veterans Day, Memorial Day or Remembrance Day, "Brothers in Arms", "The Green Fields of France" and "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" honor those who served without celebrating war. For more, see our Veterans Day songs and songs about peace.

More protest music

For more songs from the era, see our Bob Dylan songs, CCR songs, 60s songs and traditional folk songs.

A song of peace, written for someone you love

The best songs against war are really songs about the people war takes away. A personalized song can honor someone you love who served, came home or did not: their name, their story and what they mean to your family. It makes a moving tribute for a veteran's birthday, a homecoming or a memorial.

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