If you think musicians and the military, you might think of The Andrews Sisters, local acts playing to spur war bond donations, or maybe Jane Fonda’s infamous singalong in Vietnam. Plenty of musicians served in the military, though, and some saw active duty as well — if they stayed enlisted for that long.Whatever their respective circumstances, the time these 15 musicians spent in the military left an indelible mark on their lives and shaped their careers.
UNSPECIFIED - JANUARY 01: Photo of Elvis PRESLEY; Posed studio portrait of Elvis Presley (Photo by RB/Redferns)
BURBANK, CA - JUNE 27: Rock and roll musician Elvis Presley performing on the Elvis comeback TV special on June 27, 1968. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Body Count, Ice-T, Torhout/Werchter Festival, Werchter, Belgium, 2 July 1995. (Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK-NOVEMBER 28: Rapper Ice-T (aka Tracy Lauren Marrow) strips to his underwear and does a DJ Set on the turntables when he performs in concert on November 28, 1992 in New York City. (Photo by Al Pereira/Getty Images/Michael Ochs Archives)
Gene Autry with a rope in a lasso circa 1942 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Richard C. Miller/Getty Images)
GERMANY - JUNE 03: Photo of Maynard James KEENAN and TOOL; Maynard James Keenan playing live at Rock Im Park (Photo by Sandy Caspers/Redferns)
Maynard James Keenan of A Perfect Circle performing live at Pinkpop Festival 2018 in Landgraaf, Netherlands, on 16 June 2018. (Photo by Roberto Finizio/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND: Johnny Cash performs live in Amsterdam, Holland in 1972 (Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns)
UNITED STATES - JANUARY 01: NASHVILLE Photo of Johnny CASH, Posed portrait of Johnny Cash with Takamine acoustic guitar (Photo by Beth Gwinn/Redferns)
Jimi Hendrix (1942 - 1970) performing at Madison Square Garden, New York City, 18th May 1969. (Photo by Walter Iooss Jr./Getty Images)
ARC000 954
Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit during Limp Bizkit "Family Values" Tour at the Nassau Colliseum at Nassau Colliseum in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by KMazur/WireImage)
Rap singer Shaggy at the rehearsals for the Smash Hits Poll winners party held at the London arena. (Photo by Sean Dempsey - PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 11: Shaggy performs onstage during Kisstory, The Blast Off Tour at The O2 Arena on March 11, 2020 in London, England. (Photo by Ollie Millington/Redferns)
American Country musician George Strait plays guitar as he performs onstage at Chicagofest, Chicago, Illinois, August 30, 1985. (Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images)
EAST TROY, WISCONSIN - SEPTEMBER 21: Willie Nelson performs in concert during Farm Aid 34 at Alpine Valley Music Theatre on September 21, 2019 in East Troy, Wisconsin. (Photo by Gary Miller/Getty Images for Shock Ink)
NEW ORLEANS, UNITED STATES - APRIL 23: Willie Nelson performing at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on April 23, 1999. (Photo by Clayton Call/Redferns)
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 15: Rapper MC Hammer attends Capitol Records 75th Anniversary Gala at Capitol Records Tower on November 15, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
TODAY -- Pictured: MC Hammer on Tuesday, January 28, 2020 -- (Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
BERLIN, GERMANY - MARCH 09: British singer James Blunt performs live on stage during a concert at the Mercedes-Benz Arena on March 9, 2020 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Frank Hoensch/Redferns)
11 March 2020, Hamburg: British singer-songwriter James Blunt speaks in a dpa interview before his concert in Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie, which is not allowed to be performed in front of an audience due to an order to contain the novel corona virus. Instead, the performance will be broadcast live on the Internet. Photo: Markus Scholz/dpa (Photo by Markus Scholz/picture alliance via Getty Images)
(MANDATORY CREDIT Koh Hasebe/Shinko Music/Getty Images) Creedence Clearwater Revival John Fogerty live at Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, February 29, 1972. (Photo by Koh Hasebe/Shinko Music/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - SEPTEMBER 20: John Fogerty performs during the 2019 Bourbon & Beyond Music Festival at Highland Ground on September 20, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Stephen J. Cohen/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JULY 24: Singer Tony Bennett performs in concert at Atlanta Symphony Hall on July 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - FEBRUARY 09: Singer Tony Bennett arrives at the Los Angeles Confidential Magazine And Tony Bennett Celebrate The GRAMMYS At Crustacean Beverly Hills Presented By Porteon Electric Vehicles with Ciroc event at Crustacean on February 9, 2012 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Amanda Edwards/WireImage)
BB King poses for a studio portrait in 1955 in the United States. He holds a Fender Esquire guitar. (Photo by Gilles Petard/Redferns)
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - JUNE 28: American blues guitarist B.B. King performing live on stage with his band at the Royal Albert Hall, June 28, 2011. (Photo by Kevin Nixon/Guitarist Magazine/Future via Getty Images)
