Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War This concept of intimate involvement reached new heights in May 1968 when the "Composers and Musicians for Peace" concert was staged in New York. As the war continued, and with the new media coverage, the movement snowballed and popular music reflected this. As early as the summer of 1965, music-based protest against the American involvement in Southeast Asia began with works like P. F. Sloan's folk rock song "Eve of Destruction", recorded by Barry McGuire as one of the earliest musical protests against the Vietnam War. A key figure on the rock end of the antiwar spectrum was Jimi Hendrix
Eve of Destruction (song) recording "leaked" out to a disc jockey, who began playing it. The song was an instant hit and as a result the more polished vocal track that was at first envisioned was never recorded. McGuire's single hit #1 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 and #3 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1965. The song had initially been presented to The Byrds as a Dylanesque potential single, but they rejected it. The Turtles, another L.A. group who often recorded The Byrds' discarded or rejected material, recorded a version instead. Their version was issued as a track on their 1965