Dear Uncle Sam
{{Infobox song
| name = Dear Uncle Sam
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Loretta Lynn
| album = I Like 'Em Country
| B-side = Hurtin' for Certain
| released = January 1966
| recorded = 15 November 1965
| studio = Columbia (Nashville, Tennessee)
| venue =
| genre = Honky tonk country
| length = {{Duration|m=2|s=14}}
| label = Decca
| writer = Loretta Lynn
| producer = Owen Bradley
| prev_title = When I Hear My Children Pray
| prev_year = 1965
| next_title = You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)
| next_year = 1966
}}
"Dear Uncle Sam" is a song written and originally recorded by the American country artist Loretta Lynn. It was released as a single in January 1966 by Decca Records.
Background and reception
"Dear Uncle Sam" was recorded at the Columbia Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee on 15 November 1965. The session was produced by the studio's co-founder, renowned country music producer Owen Bradley. Three additional tracks were recorded during this session, including the single's B-side, "Hurtin' for Certain".{{cite web|website=Praguefrank's Country Discographies|title=Loretta Lynn, part 1|url=http://countrydiscoghraphy2.blogspot.com/2016/02/loretta-lynn-part-1.html|date=28 February 2016|accessdate=3 April 2016}}
"Dear Uncle Sam" is told from the perspective of a wife whose spouse is entering the Vietnam War and was one of the first country music songs to discuss war. It was Lynn's second self-composed song to enter the country music charts, the first being "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl" in 1960.{{cite web|title=Top 10 War Songs in Country Music: Loretta Lynn: Dear Uncle Sam (#7)|url=http://theboot.com/war-songs/|website=The Boot|accessdate=3 April 2016}}
"Dear Uncle Sam" reached number four on the Billboard Hot Country Singles survey in 1966. It was her seventh top ten single on the country chart. It was included on her 1966 studio album, I Like 'Em Country.{{cite book |title= The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research}}
Track listings
;7" vinyl single{{cite web|title=Loretta Lynn - Dear Uncle Same/Hurtin' for Cheatin' (Vinyl)|url=https://www.discogs.com/Loretta-Lynn-Dear-Uncle-Sam-Hurtin-For-Certain/release/7140479|website=Discogs|date=1966 |accessdate=3 April 2016}}
- "Dear Uncle Sam" – 2:14
- "Hurtin' for Certain'" – 2:00
Charts
= Weekly charts =
| class="wikitable sortable"
!align="left"|Chart (1966) !align="center"|Peak |
| align="left"|US Hot Country Singles (Billboard)
|align="center"|4 |
References
{{reflist}}
{{Loretta Lynn singles}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Decca Records singles
Category:Songs written by Loretta Lynn
Category:Song recordings produced by Owen Bradley
Category:Songs of the Vietnam War
{{1960s-country-song-stub}}