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"Quiet Heroes" audio, lyrics & notes

A combat veteran tribute song

Here are the lyrics and audio for "Quiet Heroes," an original folk song written by Lannie Dietle as a tribute to American combat veterans. This heartfelt piece honors some of the "quiet heroes" the songwriter knew — Pennsylvania and Texas veterans of World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam — who survived unspeakable combat situations, and then came home to raise families. Enjoy the free lyrics, personal notes, and streaming audio below.

Quiet Heroes — a combat veteran tribute song
© Lannie Dietle 2026

I grew up in a land of quiet heroes
Who wore their feelings inside-out.
Men who saw and did things
They could barely talk about.

Jerry was a mountain farmer
Living next to my Grand-Dad.
His voice was like an Angel
And always made me glad.

I never knew he was a soldier
who fought in the Meuse-Argonne.
Twenty-six thousand Americans died
As that battle raged on and on.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Jerry had a son named Irving
Who was in the next world war.
He fought in France and Germany
And saw his share of blood and gore.

One day talk turned to huntin'
But he didn't do that anymore.
He'd seen too much killin'
As a tanker during that awful war.

He said it in a quiet way
To help us understand
It was he who did the killing
With a machine gun in his hands.

He fired till the barrel glowed,
Replaced it, and shot some more.
That's how he softly told us why
He didn't go huntin' any more.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Mr. Green was in the same battle
Uncle Irving fought in.
An infantry replacement,
His training a little thin.

He took out German armor
Using thermite grenades.
When he made them fellers burn
He could stop their cannonade.

He fought in the bitter cold
For several desperate days,
Right up until his arm
Was mostly shot away.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Bill was a good machinist
Who swore by his forty-five.
A shot to someone's moustache
Is one reason he survived.

Deep in an island jungle
On another risky mission,
Bill's Tommy gun, it jammed
With steel case ammunition.

It happened in close combat
Where just a hair's breadth
Stood there between Bill's life
And a very grisly death.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Tom was in the Air Force,
Where death could be horrific.
He was a door gunner,
Fightin' in the South Pacific.

He was restin' on a log one day
Beside Joe, his best friend,
And when he turned to look,
He saw that Joe was very dead.

Tom never knew what happened
And he hadn't heard a sound.
Joe was dead there on the log,
But he hadn't fallen down.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

I thought Sam was mighty brave
To lead a Sunday class of kids,
Then I learned that was not
The bravest thing he ever did.

He was stationed at Pearl Harbor
On a fateful December day,
And manned a 30-cal machine gun
To help keep the Japanese at bay.

He then flew countless missions
On a maritime re-con grid.
A Guardian of the Upper Realm
Was what Sam McCurdy did.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Phil was our country neighbor
And a happy go lucky guy.
He had a smile in hard times,
But I never did know why.

I didn't know he was a medic
In that God-awful Korean War.
I guess he was just so happy
He wasn't fightin' any more.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Jim was standing on guard duty
When he was rushed by Vietcong.
He downed one with his shotgun
But the other kept coming on.

His shotgun, it jammed up
As the other guy charged close.
He got him with his forty-five
In the foot and in the throat.

He managed to survive
But he never knew how or why
He got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

I grew up in a land of quiet heroes
Who wore their feelings inside-out.
Men who saw and did things
They could barely talk about.

Oh, they managed to survive
But they never knew how or why
They got to live and raise a family
When so many others died.

Thoughts on this combat veteran tribute song

The song "Quiet Heroes" is a reflective narrative-type folk song honoring the ordinary men I knew who quietly carried the burden of their combat experiences. The verses tell the stories of several veterans — from World War I through Vietnam — who survived brutal combat yet seldom spoke about it. The song emphasizes their courage, the emotional burden they carried, and the recurring theme that they "managed to survive" without understanding why they lived when so many other men died. In short, the song is a tribute to the quiet strength of everyday heroes whose wartime sacrifices and postwar contributions helped to shape the generations that followed. Here is a brief introduction to the men in the song:

Jerry Saylor lived on a farm that adjoined the Somerset County, Pennsylvania farm of my grandfather Irvin H. Dietle, and was the father-in-law of my aunt Julia (Dietle) Saylor. He served overseas from May 19, 1918 to May 12, 1919 as a member of the 319th Field Artillery, and saw action in the Marbache Sector and Meuse-Argonne engagements.

Irving Saylor was an uncle of mine through his marriage to my aunt Julia (Dietle) Saylor, and owned and operated the previously mentioned adjoining Pennsylvania farm. He saw action in France and Germany as a member of the 702nd Tank Battalion, and participated in the Battle of the Bulge.

Mr. Green was the father of my Houston, Texas neighbor Tom Green. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge as a replacement until his arm was grieviously wounded.

Bill was a talented machinist I knew and depended on when I worked in Sugar Land, Texas.

Tom Minner was the manager of the Agway Petroleum store in Mercer, Pennsylvania when I worked there.

"Joe" is a pseudonym for the name of Tom Minner's best friend.

Sam McCurdy was my Sunday School teacher (and a good friend of my parents) who lived in the environs of Jackson Center, Pennsylvania. In World War II, he was a member of the 5th Bombardment Group.

Philip Reither was a neighbor of my parents who also lived in the environs of Jackson Center, Pennsylvania. I never knew about his military service until after he died.

"Jim" (a pseudonym) and I were members of the same club in Houston, Texas.

Jerry and Irving Saylor. — This composite image shows Jerry Saylor (left) and his son Irving — two of the men referenced in my combat veteran tribute song "Quiet Heroes." One day when I was still very small, I was standing on the front porch of my grandparents' Somerset County, Pennsylvania farm house listening to some of my uncles talking about hunting. That's when uncle Irving quietly said he didn't hunt anymore because he'd seen too much killing. Then he quietly described shooting his machinegun until the barrel glowed, then replacing the barrel, and then continuing to shoot.

Now that you've heard my combat veteran tribute song "Quiet Heroes," check out the music index for other folk & bluegrass songs inspired by real people and events.

Acceptable use

The song is available to stream and download for personal use and radio air play at no cost. For commercial use, such as performing or recording covers of the song, contact me to discuss licensing terms.

L. Dietle
camouflage

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