McDonald was born in Washington, DC, and grew up in El Monte, California, where he was student conductor and president of his high school marching band. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the United States Navy for three years and was stationed in Japan. After his enlistment, he attended Los Angeles City College for a year. In the early 1960s, he began busking on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, California. His father, Worden McDonald, from Oklahoma, was of Scottish Presbyterian heritage (the son of a minister); he worked for a telephone company. His mother, Florence Plotnick, was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants and served for many years on the Berkeley City Council. In their youth, both were Communist Party members before renouncing the cause, and named their son after Joseph Stalin.
McDonald has recorded 33 albums and has written hundreds of songs over a career spanning 40 years. In 1965, he and Barry Melton co-founded Country Joe & the Fish which became a pioneer psychedelic rock band with their eclectic performances at the Avalon Ballroom, the Fillmore, the Monterey Pop Festival, and both the original and 1979 reunion Woodstock Festivals.
In the fall of 2005, political commentator Bill O'Reilly compared McDonald to Cuban President Fidel Castro, remarking on McDonald's involvement in Cindy Sheehan's protests against the Iraq War.
In 2015, McDonald (with assistance from Alec Palao), formed The Electric Music Band; the intention of the group was to perform the early psychedelic material of the early career of Country Joe And The Fish. The band has performed 'Electric Music For The Mind And Body' in its entirety, and band members include Palao, The Rain Parade's Matt Piucci and Derek See of The Chocolate Watchband.
In 2017, McDonald released an album on his own Rag Baby label entitled "50".
McDonald was married to Kathe Werum from 1963 to 1966 and married Robin Menken a year after his divorce from Werum.[12] In 1968, Menken gave birth to the couple's first daughter, Seven Anne McDonald, in San Francisco. Seven, formerly a columnist for LA Weekly and now a movie producer and artist manager,[13] had a previous career as a TV child actor in the late 1970s and early 1980s, managed Johnny Depp's Viper Room nightclub and the alternative rock band Smashing Pumpkins in the 1990s, and wrote for Details, Elle and Harper's Bazaar magazines in the 1990s and 2000s. According to Ron Cabral's biography on Country Joe and the Fish, Seven was the subject of and inspiration behind the song Silver and Gold. McDonald has noted that his ex-girlfriend at the time, Janis Joplin, showed much anger for breaking up with her to be with Menken but asked him to write a song about her; the result was "Janis".
McDonald has four other children, Devin (b. 1976) and Tara (b. 1980) from his marriage to Janice Taylor, and Emily (b. 1988) and Ryan (b. 1991) from his marriage to Kathy Wright.
As of 2012, McDonald still lived in Berkeley, California.
Here I Go Again
Country Joe McDonald Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And evening's drowsiness to carry me away
I know once again that there is nothing we can save,
So I'll pack up my things, I'll be on my way.
Yes, here I go again
Off down the road again
Thinking thoughts of days gone by.
Here I am again
Thinking and dreaming
Thoughts of you and I.
Swirls of giant colors swam madly through my head,
I looked around to find you, but I just found him instead.
It might have been a dream for all the things we said
But you promised me —
Darling you promised me —
Yes, and here I go again
Off down the road again
Thinking thoughts of things gone by.
Here I am again
Singing my songs again
Thinking and dreaming
Oh I feel like I could cry.
Father's gone to fight the war,
He left us here alone.
I shiver in the lonesome night
Beside the telephone
But time brings no word,
I guess he's not coming home,
It feels like the end,
It feels like the end, my friend.
Here we go again
Off down the road again
Thinking thoughts of things gone by.
Here I am again
Singing my songs again
Thinking and dreaming
Oh I feel like I could
Thinking and dreaming
Oh I feel like I could
Thinking and dreaming
Oh I feel like I could die.
Oh, yeah!
In this song, Country Joe McDonald is expressing a feeling of restlessness and uncertainty that he is experiencing in his life. He talks about how the dawn touches his purple haze and the evening's drowsiness carries him away, which can be interpreted as a metaphor for the various different moods and states of being that he is experiencing. Despite his feelings of uncertainty and confusion, he knows that there is nothing that he can do to save the situation, so he decides to pack up his things and hit the road again. He is thinking about the days gone by and singing his songs again, thinking and dreaming about the past.
The verses of the song continue on a theme of uncertainty and confusion about the past, present and future. The swirls of giant colors that swim madly through his head are a manifestation of the chaotic thoughts he is experiencing. The lines "It might have been a dream for all the things we said / But you promised me - Darling you promised me" suggest that there is some kind of broken promise that is haunting him. He talks about his father being gone to fight in the war, leaving him alone with a feeling of intense loneliness, and how time has brought no word of his father's return, making him feel like the end is near.
Overall, the lyrics of Here I Go Again are about the confusion and uncertainty that comes with the passage of time and the way that people move through different phases of their lives. The song touches on themes of loss, loneliness and broken promises, while also expressing a desire to keep moving forward and searching for answers.
Line by Line Meaning
When dawn comes to touch my purple haze
As the sun rises and casts light on my haziness from the past
And evening's drowsiness to carry me away
As night falls, I am swept away into a dream-like state
I know once again that there is nothing we can save,
I am reminded that the past is unchangeable and there is nothing we can do to fix it
So I'll pack up my things, I'll be on my way.
In acceptance of the past, I am ready to move forward and leave it behind
Yes, here I go again
Acknowledging that this is not the first time I have embarked on this journey
Off down the road again
Starting my journey once more
Thinking thoughts of days gone by.
Reflecting on past memories
Here I am again
Returning to this same emotional state
Singing my songs again
Expressing my emotions and thoughts through music
Thinking and dreaming
Letting my mind wander and imagining different possibilities
Thoughts of you and I.
Remembering the past relationship and what could have been
Swirls of giant colors swam madly through my head,
Vivid and chaotic thoughts racing through my mind
I looked around to find you, but I just found him instead.
Trying to find my past partner, but realizing they have moved on with someone else
It might have been a dream for all the things we said
Wondering if the promises made in the past were ever real or just a fantasy
But you promised me —
Darling you promised me —
Recalling the love and promises from the past partner
Father's gone to fight the war,
My father is away at war
He left us here alone.
My family and I are left to face the challenges without him
I shiver in the lonesome night
Beside the telephone
Fearful and isolated, I wait by the phone for my father's call
But time brings no word,
I guess he's not coming home,
As time passes without any news, the reality of my father's fate sets in
It feels like the end,
It feels like the end, my friend.
Feeling like the end of the world, with no hope or relief in sight
Oh I feel like I could cry.
Overwhelmed with emotions and on the brink of tears
Thinking and dreaming
Oh I feel like I could die.
Lost in my thoughts and emotions, wishing for escape or relief
Oh, yeah!
An exclamation of strong emotion or feeling
Contributed by Ellie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
C. S. McLeod
Why TF can't anyone in 2022 play guitar like that? Barry Melton👏👏👏
Nick D'Andrea
The best country joe song for sure
Richard Myers
the best music and some awesome and wonderful times. I wouldn't trade those times to be young again...
Randall Roske
One of my favorite tunes from Joe and the Fish
A Pa
a big shout out to Sbritt for posting, thank you so much for your faithful love of one of our great Americans and great Rock and Roll artists, Country Joe. I woke up this morning with this song in my head and was happy to find it on your list. Hope everything is well with you, thanks again, and God Bless America/
Charlie Gee
Here's one I had forgotten about until I heard a different version on the radio this morning. This was a first and best version!
ohrc
love this ballad
chromman56
This is an incredible album, and cut ! -thanks for the post
A Pa
also one of my favorite Country Joe and the Fish songs; piercing guitar work, Joe really knew how to sing a sad song-see "Breakfast for Two"
-underneath all the psychedelia and the raucous horseplay, beats the heart of a romantic,
a very good man with a witty appreciation of love.
hummelharp1
@A Pa I watched that vid awhile back & didn’t pick up on any ill will on anyone’s part. Joe wears his feelings on his sleeve but I don’t think there’s any weirdness.