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Length: 9:09
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There is no reason for you to hide
It's so hard for me, staying here all alone
When you could be taking me for a ride
Yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead, ooh, ooh
Shot her dead, ooh
You take my hand, I'll take your hand
Together, we may get away
This much madness is too much sorrow
It's impossible to make it today
Ooh, yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead, dead, ooh, ooh, shot her dead
Shot her dead
Be on my side, I'll be on your side
There is no reason for you to hide
It's so hard for me, staying here all alone
When you could be taking me for a ride
Ooh, yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away, yeah
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
How I imagine it would sound if someone had a petit mal seizure while holding an electric guitar.
Define bad, define iconic, define guitar solo. Define yourself.
I have always rather liked the separate instruments in L & R channels. It used to happen in the early days of stereo before the rules were so rigid. I’m kinda sorry it doesn't seem to happen any more.
I agree.
Crime solved.
I totally agree. I used to despair that today seemed bereft of poet-warriors like Dylan, Young, Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Cockburn , U2 (I apologize for my massive omissions on this list) appeared to be the last of our poet-leaders. But perhaps the Old Testament had it down already "there is nothing new under the sun". Are there new sentiments, expressions or observations that can't be found already noted in text or in voice? Today's poets can only fill the ever-smaller gaps instead of pioneering new territory?
this and Southern Man
Awareness? Yes, there's more awareness. Enough awareness to make domestic violence disappear? No. Every day news articles or situations when a dumb ass slaps or shoots his wife or the kids. How does NOT singing about it in 2020 somehow show progress over the era of a song in 1970?
And Neil, btw, is now an American citizen. Or, as he says, a Canarican.
https://tinyurl.com/v7qgtr6
WOW! Talk about a understanding of reality - you got it!!!

That's why Zuma was such a big hit for me and then when he toured it...... Another plane. and the dreams (

Not sure, but roads and parking lots "down by the river" always give me the willies.

Some contradiction here?
Maybe that's why I love it so? The simple hammering that is considered a Neil Young solo. Maybe. Maybe it's the quiet bass groove that changes ever so slightly, but is hypnotically clear and unwavering ...
.
.
.
..... and Everybody Knows This is Nowhere.
Not only does it play with the bass line, but it also interacts greatly with the variations that the rhythm guitars are throwing down. And yes, it famously starts out with that one note, but it quickly moves into greatness.
I agree with the other commenter that said this is best enjoyed on cranked headphones.
BCarn wrote:Over rated whiner.
On_The_Beach wrote:
Don't be so hard on yourself.
You can't help it if your taste in music sucks.
LOL....my taste is AWESOME! But hey, if you like whiners, your option.
NY is a whiner.

coloradojohn wrote:
THAT's a great sentence that might never be approved in writing class .

Perhaps I've grown accustomed to it.
Perhaps I just appreciate it more.
Perhaps I've heard Bob Dylan sing too much.
This is a debate that will have no end and has been going on since NY became a thing. The same can be said for his guitar playing. Love him too--at least this period of his career.
Why... have you never bin dragged over the rainbow?
😎
Why... have you never bin dragged over the rainbow?
Yes, that. This is one of those songs that stops me in my tracks every time. Seems so simple on the surface but it just sucks you in and holds you there. And it helps if you were kind of raised on it.
I couldn't say I was, but rest assured, it doesn't unhelp me. Loved this song right from the start when I first heard it, well into my thirties, if my memory doesn't fail me.
On_The_Beach wrote:

(Sorry, couldn't resist. Arguably Farley's best bit.)
Those rivers have a lot to answer for!
Psalm 137 is one of the oldest songs about being "down by the river".
Those rivers have a lot to answer for!
Well the river reflects time: past, present and future, and all are one at the same time.
Those rivers have a lot to answer for!
No; it's similar (especially the tempo), but it's not the same bass line - this one has more notes and variations for one thing. Both songs have I - IV progressions in the verses, though this one is in a minor key; there are only so many bass notes to play between two chords. Learn to play an instrument or learn some scales before you recklessly accuse musicians of "stealing".
That's funny, since Neil has been nominated for the Juno Awards Male Vocalist of the Year 12 times between 1979-1997.
Let's stop peddling the silly memes.
He won an award for singer of the year way back when, his comment about that was "only in Canada would this happen". True perhaps, but part of what makes him unique and so good is the voice, it just has a way of grabbing you with the emotion it brings.



Don't be so hard on yourself.
You can't help it if your taste in music sucks.
Yes, that. This is one of those songs that stops me in my tracks every time. Seems so simple on the surface but it just sucks you in and holds you there. And it helps if you were kind of raised on it.

Maybe that's why I love it so? The simple hammering that is considered a Neil Young solo. Maybe. Maybe it's the quiet bass groove that changes ever so slightly, but is hypnotically clear and unwavering ...
.
.
.
..... and Everybody Knows This is Nowhere.
Don't be so hard on yourself.
You can't help it if your taste in music sucks.
Mine too. After Cinnamon Girl and Cowgirl in the Sand and Like a Hurricane and Southern Man and Mr. Soul and Helpless and a few others. But I know exactly what you mean.
And backing band Crazy Horse.


Uhhhh...to my knowledge we never were a colony of Australia, mate.
Huh? Canada as a colony of Australia? Strange.....
FWIW, 'the colonies' always refers to the former colonies of the British Empire. There is no room for ambiguity.
Amen and yes, Rock on Neil.
It does reflect the period. It is a bit self-indulgent. But then self-indulgence is the probably single best word to describe the 60s/70s counter-culture. Not all the self-indulgence from the period was bad. Some of the experiments survive to this day.

Neil's been pretty successful playing the guitar. Tell us how you've done.
Being from the 'colonies', I think we can excuse you.

Uhhhh...to my knowledge we never were a colony of Australia, mate.
Ordinarily I would respond with a snarky comment. I'll just say that it is sad that you don't have the capacity to appreciate brilliant music like this.
or sing...man, I really love Neil Young
The comments are all whiny and complaining but the silent majority has voted again. 8.2 rating

(Sorry, couldn't resist. Arguably Farley's best bit.)
Sorry, I didn't mean it literally. In Australia that means "he was very young and just starting out", so to speak. A bit like "when Moses was wearing shorts". :-) It's a brilliant album and I love it, and have bought it several times in one form or another. Cheers JT
Being from the 'colonies', I think we can excuse you.

Last time I was there, someone had taken me there and dropped me in it.
Fifth grader? Then I surely think you may mean 1958. Or 1955. Young was born in 1945. From a Rolling Stone piece:
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Number 34, 1969), which contains three of Young's most famous songs: "Cinnamon Girl," "Down by the River," and "Cowgirl in the Sand." The singer once told a journalist that they were all written in one day while he was stricken with a fever from the flu.
This doesn't specify *when* he had the flu, but if it was in 1968, he wasn't a fifth grader, he was 22+ and had already passed through Buffalo Springfield.
Sorry, I didn't mean it literally. In Australia that means "he was very young and just starting out", so to speak. A bit like "when Moses was wearing shorts". :-) It's a brilliant album and I love it, and have bought it several times in one form or another. Cheers JT
He **was** a "fifth grader" when he wrote this in 1968 - we all have to start somewhere.
Fifth grader? Then I surely think you may mean 1958. Or 1955. Young was born in 1945. From a Rolling Stone piece:
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Number 34, 1969), which contains three of Young's most famous songs: "Cinnamon Girl," "Down by the River," and "Cowgirl in the Sand." The singer once told a journalist that they were all written in one day while he was stricken with a fever from the flu.
This doesn't specify *when* he had the flu, but if it was in 1968, he wasn't a fifth grader, he was 22+ and had already passed through Buffalo Springfield.
I think he's playing the guitar exactly as he wants to play it. In accordance with the lyrics about a quite addled dude on the run with his baby (but I do hope he means his girl friend, not his baby baby) for some badness or crime only alluded to, and he shot her. No lovely melodies there.
He **was** a "fifth grader" when he wrote this in 1968 - we all have to start somewhere.

I think he's playing the guitar exactly as he wants to play it. In accordance with the lyrics about a quite addled dude on the run with his baby (but I do hope he means his girl friend, not his baby baby) for some badness or crime only alluded to, and he shot her. No lovely melodies there.
I like Neil, but this is whacked!

Huh?

I have always rather liked the separate instruments in L & R channels. It used to happen in the early days of stereo before the rules were so rigid. I’m kinda sorry it doesn't seem to happen any more.
"Like Hell there isn't—you're trying to shoot me!"

What Causes Tinnitus?
Prolonged exposure to loud sounds is the most common cause of tinnitus. Up to 90% of people with tinnitus have some level of noise-induced hearing loss. The noise causes permanent damage to the sound-sensitive cells of the cochlea, a spiral-shaped organ in the inner ear. Carpenters, pilots, rock musicians, street-repair workers, and landscapers are among those whose jobs put them at risk, as are people who work with chain saws, guns, or other loud devices or who repeatedly listen to loud music. A single exposure to a sudden extremely loud noise can also cause tinnitus.

LowPhreak wrote:
So it's a crime to separate instruments L and R, or should everything just be a blob in the center?
I think not.
I don't know ... just love me some Neil ...
So it's a crime to separate instruments L and R, or should everything just be a blob in the center?
I think not.
So waddid he say?
The battery chain in his Lincvolt malfunctioned. (Google up Lincvolt.) No biodiesel had been delivered. There was two gallons of gas but he didn't want to put more in the tank. The whole long-distance road trek project was about car fuels for the future. So the plan for a few hours of location documentary work in Times Square, downtown FiDi and on Long Island died 15 minutes after the @!%^&(} car left the hotel garage. I had no more than a cursory chat with Neil, he was anchored to the phone with his tech team trying to figure out wtf. Alackaday and fuck my luck, no talk about why she could drag him over the rainbow or rockin' in the free world, electric trains, Farm Aid, the Alberta tar sands...
If she could take him over the rainbow, why did he shoot her? Never figured that out.
Maybe he caught her messin' 'round with another man. Huh! And that ain't cool.
So waddid he say?
Balls out guitar solo.
That poor guitar... what did it do to deserve this torture?

Vintage Neil.
Sheets of electric guitar. Solid rhythm section. Balls out guitar solo.
If she could take him over the rainbow, why did he shoot her? Never figured that out.
He also says she could "drag me" over the rainbow....hummm....
https://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/Neil+Young+blasts+Harper+government+allowing+oilsands/9377863/story.html
If she could take him over the rainbow, why did he shoot her? Never figured that out.
Maybe he caught her messin' 'round with another man. Huh! And that ain't cool.
Hunting accident. Yup. She shouldn't have worn that light brown suede jacket with a white angora hat. *sigh*
