Having success on his own for a bit, he later joined the folk rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash as a fourth member in 1969, thus forming Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. He forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, releasing his first album in 1968. His career has since spanned over 40 years and 34 studio albums, with a continual and uncompromising exploration of musical styles; his musical vision is notably referred to by his autobiographical tune"The Loner". Music critics have often called him one of the best single artists of all time, and several tunes such as "Heart of Gold" and "Rockin' in the Free World" remain popular on rock radio.
According to the Don't Be Denied Songfacts, the 16-year-old Neil was raising chickens and selling the eggs, with plans to go to Ontario Agricultural College and be a farmer. Only his leisure activities foretold his future, when he would hide from his family problems in his room with his transistor radio playing local station CHUM. From this, Young experienced a growing admiration for rock n roll originators such as Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and, of course, Elvis Presley. In 1958, his father bought Neil his first music instrument, a plastic ukulele. His father would later recall, "He would close the door of his room... and we would hear plunk, pause while he moved his fingers to the next chord, plunk, pause while he moved again, plunk."
In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Neil started his professional music career in the mid-60s with a number of bands in Canada, including the Squires and later the Mynah Birds, which also included fellow future Buffalo Springfield bassist Bruce Palmer and future funk star Rick James. When the Mynah Birds broke up, Young and Palmer headed to California to meet Stephen Stills, whom he had met in Thunder Bay, and the result was Buffalo Springfield. That band split up after releasing three critically acclaimed albums, particularly achieving international fame for their tune "For What It's Worth".
Showing his strengths as a cynical yet experimental songwriter in the group, he also sung prominently in some of the band's songs such as the biting satire of 'rock star' life "Mr. Soul". Neil soon started his solo career with the release of 'Neil Young' on November 12, 1968. The album did not do very well commercially, but it included several strong tracks, including "The Loner", said to be a portrait of Stephen Stills but also being deeply auto-biographical.
On May 14, 1969, he recruited members of Crazy Horse and made the critically acclaimed 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'. This was a much more consistent album, being the first to introduce longstanding collaborators Crazy Horse and beingbuilt around the balanced interplay between the guitar playing of Young and the talented Danny Whitten. The album also featured two lengthy classics, "Down by the River" and "Cowgirl in the Sand". The critically acclaimed solo album "After the Gold Rush" came out in 1971, featuring such classic songs as "Southern Man'", "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" and "Don't Let it Bring You Down". Harvest followed in 1972 with the hit"Heart of Gold".
During this time he also enjoyed considerable success as a quarter of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
Neil's subsequent work has zig-zagged across genres - dabbling in country rock on "Old Ways"; electronics on "Trans"; hooking up with the Shocking Pinks in a homage to old-time Rock 'n' Roll on "Everybody's Rockin'"; creating a wall of feedback on the live Arc-Weld; and cementing his status as Godfather of Grunge when collaborating with Pearl Jam on Mirror Ball.
His idiosyncratic approach to genre even led to him being sued by his record company (Geffen) in the 80s for making "uncharacteristic" music.
Young has also dabbled in film, most recently on the album/concert series/dvd Greendale.
Young is often known by the nickname "Shakey." According to his biographer Jimmy McDonough, the name was given by his friends after noticing very unsteady results holding a camera for home movies.
Young founded Pono Music, whose mission was to bring a digital player, download store, and streaming service devoted to hi-res music. It was a commercial flop and was shut down in 2016. Young has stated that the labels would not agree that "All songs should cost the same, regardless of digital resolution."
The film Canadian Bacon includes the line "Canadians are always trying to figure out a lot of ways to ruin our lives. The metric system, for the love of God! Celsius! Neil Young!"
For recent news see: http://www.neilyoung.com/
Falling From Above
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sittin' on the porch,
"I won't retire
But I might retread."
"Seem like that guy singin' this song
Been doing it for a long time.
Is there anything he knows
Sing a song for Freedom.
Sing a song for Love.
Sing a song for depressed angels
Falling from above.
Grandpa held the paper
Pretending he could see.
But he couldn't read
Without his glasses on.
"How can all those people
Afford so many things?
When I was young people wore
What they had on."
Mamma said, "A little love and affection
In everything you do
Will make the world a better place
With or without you."
A little love and affection
In everything you do
A better place
With or without you.
Slamming down a late night shot,
The Hero and the artist compared
Goals and visions and afterthoughts
For the twenty first century.
But mostly came up with nothing,
So the truth was never learned.
And the human race just
Kept rollin' on.
Rollin' through the fighting,
Rollin' through the religious wars,
Rollin' down the temple walls
And the churches' exposed sores.
Rollin' through the fighting.
Through religious wars.
Mostly came up with nothin'...
"Grandpa here's your glasses,
You'll see much better now,"
Said that young girl
Of Edith and Earl's.
But Grandpa just kept starin'
He was lost in some distant thought
Then he turned and he said
To that young girl...
"A little love and affection
In everything you do,
Will make the world a better place
With or without you."
With or without you.
A better place...
With or without you.
With or without you.
Hear that rooster crowin'
Down on the Double E.
It's a new morning
Dawning on the green.
Bouncing off the towers,
The sun's heading down to the streets.
The business meeting
Window shades are drawn.
Another morning edition
Is headed for the porch,
Because Grandma puts down the paper
Before Grandpa raises his fork.
A little love and affection
In every thing you do,
With or without you...
Hear the rooster crowing
Down on the Double E...
The lyrics to Neil Young's song Falling From Above are reflective and thought-provoking, expressing many different messages and themes through the perspective of several different characters. The opening lines convey a sense of acceptance and resilience in the face of aging, as Grandpa declares that he won't retire but may "retread." The lyrics go on to ponder the longevity of the singer and question if there is anything he knows that hasn't already been said. The chorus "sing a song for freedom, sing a song for love, sing a song for depressed angels falling from above" is both hopeful and melancholic, urging the listener to sing for love and freedom while acknowledging that even angels can fall.
The song then shifts to the perspective of Grandma and Mamma, who talk about the importance of love and affection to make the world a better place. The singer then describes a conversation between two men comparing goals and visions for the 21st century, ultimately conceding that "the truth was never learned" and the human race just keeps "rollin' on." The song ends with the return to Grandpa and the mention of a rooster crowing, signifying a new day full of hope and possibilities.
Overall, the lyrics of Falling From Above are a meditation on life, aging, love, and the human condition. The song urges listeners to find hope and joy in the face of difficult circumstances and to embrace love and affection as tools for making a better world.
Line by Line Meaning
Grandpa said to cousin Jed
Sittin' on the porch,
"I won't retire
But I might retread."
Grandpa talking to cousin Jed saying that though he'd quit work, he isn't going to stop working entirely, just slow down.
"Seem like that guy singin' this song
Been doing it for a long time.
Is there anything he knows
That he ain't said?"
Asking about the singer of the song if he's done anything he hasn't talked about because of his long career.
Sing a song for Freedom.
Sing a song for Love.
Sing a song for depressed angels
Falling from above.
Asking to sing for freedom and love, to sing for depressed people who have given up.
Grandpa held the paper
Pretending he could see.
But he couldn't read
Without his glasses on.
Grandpa holds the newspaper and tries to read, but cannot do so without his reading glasses.
"How can all those people
Afford so many things?
When I was young people wore
What they had on."
Grandpa asks how people can afford having so many things as people in his time used to wear whatever was available.
Mamma said, "A little love and affection
In everything you do
Will make the world a better place
With or without you."
A little love and affection
In everything you do
A better place
With or without you.
Mother talks about love and affection making the world a better place with or without the person.
Slamming down a late night shot,
The Hero and the artist compared
Goals and visions and afterthoughts
For the twenty first century.
But mostly came up with nothing,
So the truth was never learned.
And the human race just
Kept rollin' on.
A hero and an artist discussed their plans for the 21st century but couldn't come up with anything, and the world's problems kept on going.
Rollin' through the fighting,
Rollin' through the religious wars,
Rollin' down the temple walls
And the churches' exposed sores.
Rollin' through the fighting.
Through religious wars.
Mostly came up with nothin'...
Referencing the world's problems, wars, and destruction.
"Grandpa here's your glasses,
You'll see much better now,"
Said that young girl
Of Edith and Earl's.
But Grandpa just kept starin'
He was lost in some distant thought
Then he turned and he said
To that young girl...
"A little love and affection
In everything you do,
Will make the world a better place
With or without you."
With or without you.
A better place...
With or without you.
With or without you.
Grandpa's granddaughter talks to him about his glasses and he's lost in thought, but later tells her about love and affection.
Hear that rooster crowin'
Down on the Double E.
It's a new morning
Dawning on the green.
The rooster crows on the Double E, marking a new day.
Bouncing off the towers,
The sun's heading down to the streets.
The business meeting
Window shades are drawn.
Another morning edition
Is headed for the porch,
Because Grandma puts down the paper
Before Grandpa raises his fork.
Referencing the start of a new workday with the sun coming up and the newspaper arriving before Grandma finishing breakfast.
A little love and affection
In every thing you do,
With or without you...
Hear the rooster crowing
Down on the Double E...
Ending note about love and affection, with reference to the rooster crowing at the start of a new day.
Lyrics © Silver Fiddle, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: NEIL YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jason Spinney
@Sir Barnaby St.John Toffington Thank you for the title, G D Am7
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Keys inside I'm sleeping on the ground
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Stars are nice but my smile is a frown
Played round a fire for a small crowd
Girl said boy I can help you get found
Now I'm outside in a Carolina town
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
My socks are wet and my feet are cold
I just wrote the moon would never get old
Now I'm feeling my temperature drown
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
I didn't get no sleep all night
Im getting hungry but I'll be alright
Sit here waiting for the morning light
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
Locked out in goddamn lockdown
iguanadans
My husband was a huge Neil Young fan. He was obsessed with the Greendale show and music. He probably saw the show at least 6 times in whatever city Neil was playing within a six hour or more drive and I went with him to most of them. I lost him to leukemia in February 2011. I haven't heard this song in a long time, it brings back memories. I can hear my husband singing along with Neil. Love you and miss you Pat.
Mark Kasten
Buried my parents ,wife, and oldest son in a three year period it's been ten years but I still suffer, changed my life for ever
Juanito Santanero
Sorry about your lost “rock and roll is here to stay”
Marsha Hammond,PhD
I saw Neil dancing with his Greendale guitar like it was a woman. Never seen that. Man merged with his instrument.
Stephen Fisher
He had good taste…may he in peace
Jason Higdon
Thank you for sharing that story, sorry for your loss!!
Christine Newburry
Thank you Neil for All of your lyrics, your music, your charisma and character✌💓
George Fordham
Yes sir.
Paul Blakey
Great stuff, just what we need in these troubled times. Rock on Neil.
James Johnson
His music is a huge,I repeat,HUGE part of what and who I am today. THANK YOU 😊