We are so pleased to feature our first Guest DJ, Shashanna Orellano, MM, MT-BC, for our new Spotify channel. Shashanna is a full-time music therapist at the West Palm Beach VA in South Florida. With Patriots and Veterans Day coming up in the calendar, we asked Shashanna to create a playlist of songs that would be appropriate for Veterans; songs that are sensitive to their experience. Here is what she came up with:
Veterans Playlist
By Shashanna Orellano, MM, MT-BC
1. “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood. Many Veterans really connect with this song and it had a huge resurgence after 9/11. When I ask Veterans which patriotic song they want to hear or what song I should use for special ceremonies, they usually choose this one.
2. “Universal Soldier” by Buffy St Marie although the version by Donovan was more popular. This song was suggested to me by a Vet in my PTSD group.
3. “Agent Orange” by Country Joe McDonald. Title speaks for itself.
4. “Pieces” by Stephen Cochran. He is a country singer and Marine. This song is about his physical recovery from injuries sustained during combat in Afghanistan and PTSD. [*Note – PBMTI was unable to locate this song on Spotify but the video is available here on YouTube.]
5. “Goodnight Saigon” by Billy Joel.
6. “Still in Saigon” by the Charlie Daniels Band.
7. “Soldiers” by Drowning Pool. Had to have some heavy metal to balance out the country on the list. Drowning Pool was/is very supportive of the troops giving concerts in the Middle East through the USO.
8. “A Soldiers Memoir” by Joe Bachman and Mitch Rossell. A song about PTSD written by the two up and coming country singers and each released their own version. I think Joe Bachman’s video is cooler because of the interviews with Veterans but I like Mitch Rossell’s voice a little better.
9. “Dear PTSD” by Soldier Hard. Soldier Hard is a hip hop artist who is a Vet with PTSD. He writes very honest lyrics about what he goes through and has started a record label for Veteran rappers: Redcon-1 Music Group. His idea for this song is brilliant and therapeutic: he wrote a break up letter to PTSD. He also has a great song about the Veteran suicide crisis called Red Flags.
10. “Born in the USA” by Bruce Springsteen. Not the totally patriotic song people think it is if you listen to the words. It’s really about Vietnam Veterans and what they went through after they came home.
11. “God Bless America” by Irving Berlin. WWII Vets especially connect with this one.
You can listen to Shashanna’s Spotify playlist here: