This Memorial Weekend, 30 Year Old Musician Asks His Generation To Remember Costs Of Freedom

Joe Horn's Tribute To WWII Combat Veterans “Joe Horn has created a Masterpiece!” Shaun Kroese, CEO, Armed Forces Radio Network Who Will Remember Their Cause? (Free Download)

This article was originally written for Stars and Stripes, the US military’s independent news source, under the title "Award Winning Musician Rockin' Soldiers Everywhere." Updated May 24, 2007

Have you heard Joe Horn’s inspiring tribute to US Armed Forces heroic D-Day invasion Who Will Remember Their Cause? that aired regularly on The Armed Forces Radio Network? If not, listen up, because it’s got a message and sound that will rock you red, white, and blue. National Music Review says, "When Horn walks onto the stage, the first thing you think is that he must be on loan from Led Zeppelin or the Allman Brothers Band. But you would be wrong, even though he ranks among the best guitarists we've heard."

The song, performed live at the Deschutes County Fair on the outskirts of Redmond, Oregon sounds like a combination of "Green Berets" and Toby Keith with a few Carlos Santana and Jimmy Hendrix-sounding guitar licks mixed in. The words of President Roosevelt are also interspersed to give a feel for what it was like in those dangerous, historic days of WWII.

The song opens with battle ambiance that puts you on the beaches of Normandy, then moves into a moving, narrated rockabillie beat that highlights the airborne and beach assaults that culminated in the ultimate armor assault that decimated Hitler’s Third Reich. The thundering chorus that lauds the selfless service of our allied landing forces will move you to chant U-S-A! U-S-A! and leave you wanting more.

Joe’s been wowing crowds with his string-bending ability (he actually does the aircraft and chaotic war sounds in this song with his guitar) in his native Oregon over the past few years with an electrifying guitar that blends the R&B style of Stevie Ray Vaughn and Buddy Guy, with a tinge of Carlos Santana. When the 60th anniversary of D-Day approached a couple years ago, a series of discussions with his father, Tom, brought to light the fact that Joe’s younger generation didn’t understand the tremendous sacrifice and heroism our WWII era ancestors paid for their 21st century liberties. "Who Will Remember Their Cause?" was thought out and written over the next week.

"Every year, when the event is remembered, I think about it. When Saving Private Ryan came out in the mid-90s, the work of our soldiers became much more evident. Then, when D-Day marked the 60th anniversary, I was moved to do more than think. So I went into the studio and wrote," said Joe.

Horn has offered his moving rock tribute to the Armed Services free of charge. It was featured in the US program "Changing World Views" on which the head of the Sky Hawk II Project, former Congressman John LeBoutillier, featured the cut as a part of his efforts in recovering living American POWs in Southeast Asia.

"I’ve offered it free of charge to veterans and agencies, to do with as they want, to honor their awesome heritage of heroes, that they share with every Armed Forces branch," Horn said.

His last CD, "Borrowed Time," presented the song as the first on the album, together with a compilation of straight ahead and ballad offerings that deal with deeper issues of life, so Horn’s got substance too.

Joe Horn recently moved outside Branson, Missouri where he plans to build a new studio. He plans to offer lessons there and to fine tune his own guitar style. In the meantime, check out "Who Will Remember Their Cause?" Because if you’re serving in uniform, the song is also about you.

Free download of "Who Will Remember Their Cause?"

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