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)
Sugar Mountain
Neil Young & Crazy Horse Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
You're leaving there too soon
It's so noisy at the fair
But all your friends are there
And your mother and your dad
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
You're leaving there too soon
There's a girl just down the aisle
Oh to turn and see her smile
You can hear the words she wrote
As you read the hidden note
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
You're leaving there too soon
Now you're underneath the stairs
And you're giving back some glares
To the people who you met
And it's your first cigarette
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
You're leaving there too soon
Now you say you're leaving home
'Cause you want to be alone
Ain't it funny how you feel
When you're finding out it's real
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
You're leaving there too soon
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
With the barkers and the colored balloons
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
Neil Young's "Sugar Mountain" is a nostalgic reflection on the fleeting nature of youth and coming of age. The song sets the stage with imagery of a fair, where the singer longs to live on Sugar Mountain- a symbol of a carefree world full of candy, balloons, and childhood wonder. But the song reminds us that life moves quickly, as the singer realizes you can't be twenty on Sugar Mountain, even though he's thinking he's leaving too soon. Young describes the excitement of a fair, where friends, family, and unexpected love interests can be found- something you hold onto in childhood memories.
The song's contemplative mood is emphasized by the lyrics "Now you say you're leaving home, 'Cause you want to be alone, Ain't it funny how you feel, When you're finding out it's real." The singer is growing up and leaving the innocent world of Sugar Mountain, but is met with mixed emotions. On the one hand, there's excitement and freedom that comes with independence, but on the other hand, there's a sense of loss and fear that comes with making the transition to adulthood.
In summary, "Sugar Mountain" is a bittersweet coming-of-age song that romanticizes childhood innocence whilst harboring an awareness of the inevitability of growing up.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, to live on sugar mountain
I wish I could go back to the sweet, carefree days of childhood
With the barkers and the colored balloons
Where everything was bright, colorful and exciting at the fairground
You can't be twenty on sugar mountain
You can't go back to being a child, no matter how much you may want to
Though you're thinking that you're leaving there too soon
Even though you feel like you're getting older and growing up, you're probably not ready to leave childhood behind
You're leaving there too soon
Life moves on too quickly and you can never get those innocent days back
It's so noisy at the fair,
The fairground can be overwhelming and chaotic
But all your friends are there
But you're with your friends, so it's still a fun place to be
And the candy floss you had
You remember the sweet treats, like cotton candy, that made the fair even more enjoyable
And your mother and your dad.
And the presence of your parents who made everything feel safe and comforting
There's a girl just down the aisle,
You see someone you have a crush on
Oh to turn and see her smile
You wish she would notice you and smile back
You can hear the words she wrote
You imagine what she might have written in a note just for you
As you read the hidden note.
As you read and re-read the message, trying to decipher its meaning
Now you're underneath the stairs,
You've wandered away from the fairground crowds and are hiding away in a quiet spot
And you're giving back some glares
You feel defensive and don't want to be bothered
To the people who you met,
To others who try to engage with you, but who you don't really want to talk to
And it's your first cigarette.
You're trying something new and maybe even dangerous - smoking cigarettes
Now you say you're leaving home,
You think you're grown up enough to leave your childhood home behind and start your own journey
'Cause you want to be alone
You feel like you need to strike out on your own and find your own path, separate from family and friends
Ain't it funny how you feel
It's strange how your perspective can shift so dramatically as you grow up
When you're finding out it's real.
When you start to realize that life isn't just fun and games, and that there are consequences to your actions
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: Neil Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Beth
on We Never Danced
i desperately want to know who painted aunt lisa's paintings in the movie