Posted on Aug 16, 2014
SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
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2006 to present

"Army Strong" is the recruiting slogan that is used currently by the United States Army. The composer of the song used in the Army Strong television commercials is Mark Isham.[3]

2001 to 2006
A humvee wrapped with the slogan in April 2006
"Army of One" was a relatively short-lived recruiting slogan. It replaced the popular "Be All You Can Be" and was replaced in 2006 by the new slogan "Army Strong".[4]The Army of One slogan was meant to mean as described Sun Tzu's Art of War in Chapter VI Weak Points and Strong, that you are only as strong as your weakest link,if the enlisted soldiers are not trained by the non commissioned officers,because the officer are not with troops and checkout what they need,a Army is very weak. The reason for the replacement is believed to be[by whom?] that the slogan "Army of One" is contrary to the idea of teamwork.[citation needed] It is unknown whether this slogan was taken directly from the poster for the 1976 Clint Eastwood film The Outlaw Josey Wales, which had "An Army of One" under a drawing of the Josey Wales character. The "One" in the slogan was an acronym, standing for Officers, Non-Commissioned, and Enlisted,[citation needed] the three types of Soldiers in the US Army.

1980 to 2001

Be All (That) You Can Be was the recruiting slogan of the United States Army for over twenty years.[5] This popular slogan was created by Earl Carter while at the advertising firm N. W. Ayer & Son. He was awarded the Outstanding Civilian Service Award for his efforts.[6] In his autobiography Soul of It All, Michael Bolton claims to have sung the jingle in the early 1980s.[7]

1971 to 1980

"Today's Army Wants to Join You" was a recruiting slogan from the 1971 Volunteer Army (Project VOLAR) campaign, which was introduced as the country prepared to transition to an all-volunteer military. When N. W. Ayer & Son, who were engaged by the US Army, believed they felt the army said "Today's Army is changing; we want to meet you half way", the firm came up with that slogan. General William Westmoreland asked "Do we have to ask it that way?" but agreed to the campaign. The slogan was replaced by "Join the People Who've Joined the Army" in 1973, which later evolved into "This is the Army."[8]

Slogan was written in 1971 by Ted Regan Jr., Executive Vice President and Executive Creative Director of N.W. Ayer, the Army's ad agency. Regan also wrote the follow up slogan, "Join the people who've joined the Army."

Circa 1950s–1971
"Look Sharp, Be Sharp, Go Army!"was a recruiting slogan in the 1950s and 1960s. The Big Picture,[disambiguation needed] public announcements on broadcast television, and highway roadway signs advertised the slogan during a time of a national draft of young men 18 to 34 years of age. The advantage of volunteering for Service, vice being drafted, was choosing the career field you wanted to serve and/or first unit or location of assignment.

World War I
"I Want YOU for US Army" featured on a poster of Uncle Sam painted by James Montgomery Flagg.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slogans_of_the_United_States_Army

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-Mc1uQW8RI
Edited 5 y ago
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SSG Brian Carpenter
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Be all that you can be innocent The US Army
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SMSgt Thor Merich
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Be all you can be (1981).
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SSG Homer Barnwell
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That was my motivation. Messed around in college, lost my deferment then won the lottery ....... the draft lottery (#36). Like many young people in those days I chose to dodge the draft. Rather than going to Canada or elsewhere I figured out the perfect dodge! I ENLISTED!!!!. Chose the Army rather than the Air Force or Navy because it was only 3 years rather than four. I eventually re-uped and stayed seven and a half years active leaving as a Specialist E-6.
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SGT Christopher Hayden
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"An Army Of One" which was silly.
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SP5 David Tschappat
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I ask the recruiter when can I leave how soon? And he said how is tomorrow? That was good enough for me.
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SP5 David Tschappat
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I ask the recruiter how soon I could leave for basic. And he said hows tomorrow?
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LTC Martin Metz
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This came out around the time the all volunteer force replaced the draft when I entered the Army in 1974. “Pick a service, pick a challenge, set yourself apart, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines! What a great place it’s a great place to start!”
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CW5 John M.
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Edited 6 y ago
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My situation was rather unusual. My dad, stationed in Taiwan (Republic of China), inexplicably brought home a July 1967 (Army) Aviation Digest - the first and only time - that he had picked up at work, I read that Digest “cover-to-cover” with growing interest. When I got to the article entitled “What is a WOC - something you ’fwow’” at a ’wabbit’?” I was smitten as it detailed the Warrant Officer Candidate program in the Army. I still have that copy, and I suppose one might say that I joined under that title/slogan.
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SPC Wayne Pless
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In 1971, when I enlisted, there were no "slogans". There was the draft, and there were enlistees that only required a belief in God and Country to understand the responsibility of military service.
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SSG Edward Tilton
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Be All That You Can Be, was gone before I went on Recruiting Tour in 84, it was an ARMY OF ONE.
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SPC John Smith
SPC John Smith
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I joined in ‘89 and a big slogan of the times was, “Be all that you can be.” We changed it a bit and encouraged one another to, “Clean all that you can clean.” There are probably several slogans that are used at the same time but Be all that you can be was definitely still in use in 1989.
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