The 1986 song that led to John Denver being dropped by RCA: “I thought that I might be able to do something”

In 1986, John Denver was dropped by RCA Records shortly after releasing "Let Us Begin (What Are We Making Weapons For?)", an anti-war song questioning arms-race spending. The timing raised eyebrows because RCA had recently been acquired by General Electric, a firm with significant military contracts, though the label never gave a definitive reason for ending Denver's contract, which came on 30 July 1986.

The song appeared on Denver's final RCA studio album, One World, and was partly inspired by his visit to the Soviet Union, where he performed and recorded with Soviet singer Alexander Gradsky in what was reported as the first joint American-Soviet music video. However, tensions with RCA had been building for years: Denver, who had sold over 33 million albums for the label, had previously accused it of losing interest in promoting and releasing his work, and had begun re-recording masters of his older songs to regain control. He continued releasing music through his own label, Windsong, with his next album, Higher Ground, arriving in 1988.