Crazy Horse has also released 5 albums of its own. They have received inconsistent critical reaction, partially due to the band's frequent and radical lineup changes; though bassist Billy Talbot and drummer Ralph Molina appear on every album, few other musicians have appeared on more than one. The band's first and best-received self-titled album also featured Jack Nietzsche, Nils Lofgren, and Danny Whitten, who became the topic of various Neil Young songs after his heroin overdose in late 1972. On Crazy Horse's 1972 album, "Loose," they were all replaced with John Blanton, Greg Leroy, and George Whitsell, who was a member of Crazy Horse's predecessor The Rockets. Crazy Horse's third album also released in 1972, "At Crooked Lake," replaced those three with Rick and Mike Curtis.
Later that decade in 1978, Crazy Horse released another album under its own name entitled "Crazy Moon." This would feature, along with the steady Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina, some guest work by Neil Young and guitarist Frank Sampedro, who had joined the band in 1975 for Young's album "Zuma." This lineup would be used for many of Crazy Horse's albums with Neil Young through the rest of the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. In the late 1980s, Young used Frank Sampedro in his R&B-styled Bluenotes backing band, but did not use Molina or Talbot as he thought their style was unfitting. Now without Sampedro, Crazy Horse recruited Sonny Mone and Matt Piucci for their most recent album, "Left For Dead," released 1989. Piucci would later play on Billy Talbot's 2006 solo release. The album's title track is a pointed remark about their frustrating relationship with Young in the late 1980s, and included a number of other references to Neil Young and his work.
Barstool Blues
Crazy Horse Lyrics
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For long enough to know
Why my mind is moving so fast
And the conversation is slow.
Burn off all the fog
And let the sun through to the snow
Let me see your face again
Before I have to go.
I have seen you in the movies
And in those magazines at night
I saw you on the bar stool when
You held that glass so tight.
And I saw you in my nightmares
But I'll see you in my dreams
And I might live a thousand years
Before I know what that means.
Once there was a friend of mine
Who died a thousand deaths
His life was filled with parasites
And countless idle threats.
He trusted in a woman
And on her he made his bets
Once there was a friend of mine
Who died a thousand deaths.
In Crazy Horse's song Barstool Blues, the singer expresses his confusion about his own thoughts and feelings. He wishes he could hold onto one thought long enough to figure out why his mind is racing while the conversation around him is slow. He wants to burn off all the fog in his mind and see things clearly once again. He talks about seeing someone in movies and magazines at night, and in his nightmares, as well as on a barstool, holding a glass tight. This person seems to haunt him, but he hopes to see their face again before he has to leave. He feels that he might never understand what all of this means, even if he lives for a thousand years.
The song also talks about a friend of the singer who died a thousand deaths. This person's life was filled with parasites and countless idle threats. The friend trusted in a woman and made bets on her, which eventually led to his downfall. The song is a mix of confusion, longing, and regret.
Overall, the song seems to be about wanting to understand something that is just out of grasp. Whether it's a person, a feeling, or a situation, the singer wants to make sense of it all but can't quite get there.
Line by Line Meaning
If I could hold on to just one thought
I wish I could focus on one idea for long enough to understand why my mind is so busy when the conversation is slow.
For long enough to know
I want to have a clear understanding of what's occupying my thoughts.
Why my mind is moving so fast
I'm puzzled as to why my thoughts are racing while the conversation seems to be going at a slower pace.
And the conversation is slow.
Despite my racing thoughts, it feels like there's not much productive conversation going on.
Burn off all the fog
I wish I could clear my head.
And let the sun through to the snow
I want clarity to shine through my confusion.
Let me see your face again
I miss seeing the person I care about.
Before I have to go.
I'm aware that time is running out.
I have seen you in the movies
I've seen you on screen - a world that's distant and unattainable for me.
And in those magazines at night
I've seen you in magazines that I flip through during late nights - a world that's just a fantasy for me.
I saw you on the bar stool when
I recall seeing you sitting on a bar stool with a drink in hand.
You held that glass so tight.
You clutched your drink so hard, as if trying to hold onto something fleeting.
And I saw you in my nightmares
I remember dreaming about you, but the dream was a nightmare.
But I'll see you in my dreams
I hope to see you in my dreams again, but this time, it's not a nightmare.
And I might live a thousand years
It feels like it's going to take forever to figure out what's going on in my life.
Before I know what that means.
I don't know what's causing my confusion and frustration yet, but I hope to figure it out eventually.
Once there was a friend of mine
I had a friend a long time ago.
Who died a thousand deaths
My friend went through a lot of hardships and battles in their life.
His life was filled with parasites
My friend had to deal with a lot of people who were just using him for their own benefit.
And countless idle threats.
There were people who were threatening him without having any intention of following through on those threats.
He trusted in a woman
My friend gave his trust to a woman.
And on her he made his bets
He invested a lot of himself in this relationship and hoped for the best.
Once there was a friend of mine
This friend has long passed away and is no longer with us.
Who died a thousand deaths.
His life was filled with so much pain and hardship that it felt like he died a thousand times over.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
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