Crazy Horse is best known for its long association with Young, despite having released five albums of its own over a 19-year span. It has been co-credited with Young as Neil Young and Crazy Horse on 15 albums, "Americana" and "Psychedelic Pill" from 2012 being the latest.
The band recorded a concept album entitled "Greendale" (2003) that told the story using metaphors of murder and crime to represent the destruction of a small town community. The final song "Be The Rain" is one of Neil's classic epics, pleading for the world to be like the rain -- recycle and conserve to save our planet.
Discography: the studio albums "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" (1969), "Zuma" (1975), "Rust Never Sleeps" (1979), "Re-ac-tor" (1981), "Life" (1987), "Ragged Glory" (1990), "Sleeps With Angels" (1994), "Broken Arrow" (1996), Greendale (2003), "Americana" (2012), Psychedelic Pill (2012) and live albums "Live Rust" (1979), "Weld" (1991), "Year of the Horse" (1997), "Live at the Fillmore East" (2006)
Helpless
Neil Young & Crazy Horse Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With dream comfort memory to spare,
And in my mind I still need a place to go,
All my changes were there.
Blue, blue windows behind the stars,
Yellow moon on the rise,
Big birds flying across the sky,
Leave us
Helpless, helpless, helpless
Baby can you hear me now?
The chains are locked and tied across the door,
Baby, sing with me somehow.
Blue, blue windows behind the stars,
Yellow moon on the rise,
Big birds flying across the sky,
Throwing shadows on our eyes.
Leave us
Helpless, helpless, helpless.
The lyrics of "Helpless" by Neil Young & Crazy Horse are a poignant depiction of longing for a place of comfort and familiarity. The opening lines set the scene of a small, homely town in northern Ontario that holds memories and comfort for the singer, a place he still feels drawn to despite all his changes. The imagery of the "blue, blue windows behind the stars" and "yellow moon on the rise" present a dreamy, ethereal quality to the setting, while the "big birds flying across the sky, throwing shadows on our eyes" add a sense of foreboding or ominousness. The repetition of the word "helpless" throughout the chorus adds to this feeling of vulnerability and powerlessness, as the singer sings out for someone to hear them and help them escape the chains that have been locked and tied across the door.
Overall, "Helpless" is a hauntingly beautiful song that captures the essence of longing for a place of comfort and belonging. The poignant lyrics, combined with Neil Young's distinctive and emotive voice and the raw power of Crazy Horse's music, make for a truly unforgettable listening experience.
Line by Line Meaning
There is a town in north Ontario,
In my mind, there exists a town in the northern region of Ontario.
With dream comfort memory to spare,
This town is a place of great comfort where memories and dreams are plentiful.
And in my mind I still need a place to go,
I still yearn for a place to go, and this town is that place in my imagination.
All my changes were there.
All the significant changes that I experienced in my life happened in that town.
Blue, blue windows behind the stars,
The windows in that town, which were often painted in blue, felt like they led to the stars above.
Yellow moon on the rise,
The yellow moon that rose in the sky over that town.
Big birds flying across the sky,
The sight of big birds soaring through the sky above that town.
Throwing shadows on our eyes.
Their flight patterns created shadows that cast upon those of us on the ground.
Leave us
Helpless, helpless, helpless
The beauty of that town left us feeling powerless to its allure and wonder.
Baby can you hear me now?
Oh, my love, are you listening to me?
The chains are locked and tied across the door,
The door is locked and barred, preventing entrance to that place of comfort and memories.
Baby, sing with me somehow.
My hope is that we can sing together, mirroring the joy and peace that came with those memories.
Helpless, helpless, helpless.
Our powerless feelings remain and persist, and it's hard to let go of the love we had for that town.
Contributed by Noah A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Christian Raimondi
thank your for this!!!
Stormbringer Coming
Funny seeing Croz with Crazy Horse. He always claimed to hate them. Musically speaking.
Greg LaPointe
Yes, I remember reading somewhere that he was critical of the Horse. It appears that he just burned all his bridges with Neil after his recent comments.