In 1986, British rock band
Status Quo covered "In the Army Now" on their
1986 album of the same name. Their version added a prominent synth riff and changed the line ''"Smiling faces on the way to 'Nam"
to "Smiling faces as you wait to land"'', thus removing the explicit reference to the
Vietnam War. The version peaked at number 2 in the
UK Singles Chart. It reached the top of the charts in German-speaking Europe as well as Ireland, whilst peaking highly in Norway, Spain and Sweden. In September 2010, Status Quo released a new version of the song with the Corps of Army Choir through their label Universal/UMC as a special release. The lyrics were further changed to a pro-soldier version. This version charted at no. 31 in the UK Singles charts upon its release. All profits from this updated version were donated equally to the
British Forces Foundation and
Help for Heroes charities.
Track listings 7-inch single • "In the Army Now" (Bolland/Bolland) – 3:52 • "Heartburn" (Patrick/Parfitt/Rossi) – 4:44
12-inch maxi :A1. "In the Army Now" (military mix) – 5:55 :B1. "Heartburn" (Patrick/Parfitt/Rossi) – 4:44 :B2. "Late Last Night" (Young/Parfitt/Rossi) – 2:58
Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts ==Certifications and sales==