The band's original lineup consisted of Neil Young (vocals, guitar), Stephen Stills (vocals, guitar), Richie Furay (vocals, guitar), Bruce Palmer (bass) and Dewey Martin (drums). Palmer left the band in 1968 and was replaced by Jim Messina. The band's only Top 40 single, "For What It's Worth", was released in 1967. The band split in 1968. Despite lasting for under 25 months, the band was massively influential on many later folk rock and country rock artists and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
The band only released three albums in its short life, "Buffalo Springfield" (1966), "Buffalo Springfield Again" (1967) and "Last Time Around" (1968). "For What It's Worth", which peaked at #7 in early 1967, was the band's only Top 40 single in the United States. 1967's "Rock 'n' Roll Woman" came the closest to giving the band a second Top 40 entry, peaking at #44.
Stills and Young would go on to perform with David Crosby and Graham Nash in the hugely popular rock act Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young shortly after Buffalo Springfield's demise. Furay and Messina went on to found country-rock group Poco, before Furay embarked on his own solo career. After Messina left Poco, he formed Loggins and Messina with singer/songwriter Kenny Loggins.
On October 23 and 24, 2010, Young, Furay and Stills, along with drummer Joe Vitale and Rick Rosas (replacing the deceased Dewey Martin and Bruce Palmer, respectively) reunited for two performances for the Bridge Schools Benefit concert in Mountain View, California.
The band played six concerts starting in Oakland, CA, on June 1, 2011, followed by dates in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, before moving on to play the 2011 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. A proposed full tour in 2012 never took place. On February 27, 2012, founder member Furay announced that the band was on indefinite hiatus.
Rock 'n' Roll Woman/Bluebird
Buffalo Springfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And she's coming, singing soft and low
Singing rock and roll, she's a joy to know
'Neath the shadow of a soothing hand,
I am free there, just to make my plans,
Dream of faraway lands, anything close at hand
And she will follow me wide, do you know
Could it be, she don't have to try
And tomorrow, she's a friend of mine
And the sorrow, I see her face is lined
She's no longer blind, she's just hard to find
The opening lines of the song Rock indicate that the song is dedicated to an amazing woman who is a singer, and she brings joy to the listener through her soft and pleasant voice. The following lines indicate that when the singer listens to this woman, he feels free and can make his plans while dreaming of distant lands. He further talks about how she follows him wherever he goes, and he knows that she has been to many familiar places. The singer questions if she had to try too hard to do so, indicating that she may be going through some kind of internal struggle. In the last stanza, the singer reflects on how the woman has become his friend and is now visible with the lines on her face. The woman is not blind, but now she has become difficult to find.
The lyrics of Rock by Buffalo Springfield convey a sense of longing and melancholy, but at the same time, it paints a picture of hope and possibility. Listeners can interpret the song in various ways, but the essence of the song is that sometimes, in life, we meet people who impact us in profound ways, maybe just through their presence, and they stay with us even when they are not physically present.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a woman that you ought to know
There's a special woman that you need to know about
And she's coming, singing soft and low
She's coming towards you while singing softly
Singing rock and roll, she's a joy to know
She happily sings rock and roll which makes her a pleasure to know
'Neath the shadow of a soothing hand,
Beneath the calming influence of a protective person
I am free there, just to make my plans,
I am free to make my own plans in that space
Dream of faraway lands, anything close at hand
In that space, I am free to dream of both distant and nearby places
And she will follow me wide, do you know
She will go with me to far places if I take her along
Familiar places she's been by, that I know
She is aware of the places that I have gone before
Could it be, she don't have to try
It is likely that she does not have to make an effort
And tomorrow, she's a friend of mine
And tomorrow, she will be a good friend of mine
And the sorrow, I see her face is lined
And the sadness, I see that her face is marked with experience
She's no longer blind, she's just hard to find
She is no longer ignorant, but she's still a difficult person to locate
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Darius Lawson
There's a woman that you ought to know
And she's coming, singing soft and low
Singing rock and roll, she's a joy to know
'Neath the shadow of a soothing hand,
I am free there, just to make my plans,
Dream of faraway lands, anything close at hand
And she will follow me wide, do you know
Familiar places she's been by, that I know
Could it be, she don't have to try
And tomorrow, she's a friend of mine
And the sorrow, I see her face is lined
She's no longer blind, she's just hard to find
M D
The most beautiful track of the most beautiful album. I was 19 and this was the best you could get in those days of unbelievable music.
Carolyn Zaremba
I was 19, too.
fshoaps
Pretty sure you mean “And Your Bird Can Sing” off Revolver
Shanghi18
I believe ya!
Tim Geary
It was unbelievable and very exciting to be young.
M D
@fshoaps whole different atmosphere
Randy Sottile
The magical voice of Stephen Stills. Always unmistakable.
Burt472
True dat.....Greetings from Italy
SucSynched
Stephen Stills is a composer of extraordinary depth
Cesar Maldito
the very first time I've ever heard this 💩I was using you like piece of rag all on 4s on the floor cackled cackled