From the recording Lucky Forward
Two words…Lucky Forward. I first heard this expression while listening to a WWII veteran tell stories. I ignorantly asked what is ” Lucky Forward". From there I read General Patton’s speech before the great invasion. In all of that I found my song. My uncle was a colorful character and it was a challenge to capture his flavor. But the song became so much more. And I cannot put into words my depth of gratitude to those who have served.
Lyrics
Lucky Forward
intro
My Uncle Lynwood was a country gentleman
A Southern Baptist from North Carolina
He lost his leg in WWII
He’ll be the first to tell you
He knows exactly where it is
He was a brilliant student but he joined the Army
The very next morning after Pearl Harbor
His mom said your tough as shoe leather
But Lord Almighty Lynwood, why the Army
He wound up in a foxhole in the fields of Luxembourg
So close he could smell German cigarettes
And when terror reigned down shots fired from everywhere
Those boys in Arlington, I might of put of few of them there
Lucky Forward
His second home became Walter Reed
Safe in the refuge of his crippled band of brothers
The wild hell raising toast of Washington
Drowning memories in alcohol
For ten years you didn’t touch him at night
Demons plagued him most of his life
But in a come to Jesus moment in an airport bar
He left his drink on the table and went home sober to his wife
Lucky Forward
He called out of the blue when his beloved Jean died
Hello this is your favorite one-legged uncle
He became the dad I wished I had
The dad I’m sure he wished he’d been
So I wrote this down for no other reason
But to tell another story of the Great Generation
Where ordinary boys became heroic men
Then home to lives that would never be
Ordinary again
And he’s gone now but I will not forget
The man with the Purple Heart on his lapel
And in his honor I do him honor
To live my life and to live it well
Luck Forward, Lucky Forward
Lucky Forward, Lucky Forward
And to the Great Beyond, I am signing off
Lucky Forward
© Mulcahy www.TamiMulcahy.com
*Note: Lucky Forward was the slogan of General Patton and the nickname of his headquarters. Google Lucky Forward and you will find the infamous speech he gave to the troops before the great invasion that led to the Battle of the Bulge.