Harvest Moon (Neil Young song)

Last updated
"Harvest Moon"
Harvest Moon single.jpg
Single by Neil Young
from the album Harvest Moon
B-side "Old King"
ReleasedNovember 2, 1992
RecordedSeptember 22, 1991
Studio Redwood Digital
Genre
Length5:03
Label Reprise
Songwriter(s) Neil Young
Producer(s) Neil Young
Neil Young singles chronology
"War of Man"
(1992)		"Harvest Moon"
(1992)		"Unknown Legend"
(1992)
Music video
"Harvest Moon" on YouTube

"Harvest Moon" is a song written by Canadian and American singer and songwriter Neil Young, released in November 1992 by Reprise Records as the first single from his 19th album bearing the same name, Harvest Moon (1992). The song was both written and produced by Young, reaching No. 36 on the UK Singles Chart, [1] and Rolling Stone ranked it his 30th best.

Contents

Background and composition

The song uses a moon motif, which Young has mentioned as being very important to him and having quasi-religious undertones. Linda Ronstadt provides the backing vocals. [2] The song is composed in the key of D Major, with Young's guitar in Drop D tuning and his vocal range spanning from D3 to F#4. [3]

Reception

Rolling Stone ranked "Harvest Moon" in 2014 as the 30th-best Neil Young song of all time. [4] AllMusic's Matthew Greenwald strongly praised the song, stating that the song epitomized the album and "the power of nature and music, as well as a feeling of celebrating lifetime love are the focal points here, and Young captures it all in his typically literate, artless style." Greenwald praised the melody as "positively gorgeous, and it's one that could have easily framed a heavier song." [2] "Classic Rock Review" called it an "absolute masterpiece of a title song" that "celebrates longevity in relationships and love affairs with a flawless melody backed by a perfect music arrangement." They went on to say that "from the upfront acoustic riffing to the picked steel guitar, subtleties of ethereal sounds, soft brush strokes on the drums, and beautiful background vocals, this song captures the essence of beauty and romance as well any song ever." [5]

Pitchfork said, "Young lets his guitar summon a vast distance—detuning the lowest string and letting it reverberate through the central riff, fingerpicking the harmonics high up the fretboard during the verses. The sound itself seems to conjure eternity, and the words do, too." [6] The music critic Alexis Petridis wrote that Harvest Moon was a "genuinely beautiful hymn to marriage and enduring love". [7] The British critic Sam Inglis wrote that if Harvest Moon had been released in 1973, Young would have been accused of artistic stagnation as the song sounded too similar to the songs on his album Harvest , but in 1992 the song was celebrated as the "end of a great musical journey", a refreshing return to Young's musical style of the early 1970s. [8] Inglis wrote that much of the popular success of Harvest Moon in the fall of 1992 was due to a backlash against grunge music, which dominated the charts in first half of 1992. [9] Grunge music tended to feature angry and/or depressing lyrics, and the romantic "gentleness" of Harvest Moon was felt to be an exhilarating contrast to grunge when it debuted in November 1992. [9] Harvest Moon was widely seen as a sequel to Harvest, which added to its appeal. [10]

Music video

The music video for the song was filmed during the night at the Mountain House, a restaurant situated inside a redwood forest at Skyline Boulevard, Woodside, California. [11] The video featured Young and his wife attending a night-time dance at the Mountain House in 1992 where Young is somehow also the lead singer in the band playing at the Mountain House. [11] The video then moves back in time to 1967 where a younger Young (played by Melvins drummer Dale Crover [12] [13] ) and his girlfriend/future wife dance at the same location when it was known as Alex's, again with Young as the lead singer in the band playing, showing the enduring love between the couple over successive harvest moons over the years. [11] Young's girlfriend drops a matchbox labelled Alex's in 1967 during her dance, which is still on the floor in 1992, which again shows the enduring love between over the decades.

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [17] Gold400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Young</span> Canadian and American musician (born 1945)

Neil Percival Young is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining the folk-rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the beginning of his solo career, often backed by the band Crazy Horse, he released critically acclaimed albums such as Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (1969), After the Gold Rush (1970), Harvest (1972), On the Beach (1974), and Rust Never Sleeps (1979). He was also a part-time member of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, with whom he recorded the chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melvins</span> American rock band

Melvins are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Primarily a trio, they have also performed as a quartet, with either two drummers or two bassists. Since 1984, vocalist and guitarist Buzz Osborne and drummer Dale Crover have been constant members.

<i>Badmotorfinger</i> 1991 studio album by Soundgarden

Badmotorfinger is the third studio album by American rock band Soundgarden, released on October 8, 1991, through A&M Records. Soundgarden began the recording sessions for the album with new bassist Ben Shepherd in the spring of 1991. The album maintained the band's heavy metal sound, while featuring an increased focus on songwriting compared to the band's previous releases. AllMusic considered the album's music to be "surprisingly cerebral and arty"; alternative tunings and odd time signatures were present on several of the album's songs, and lyrics were intended to be ambiguous and evocative.

<i>Harvest Moon</i> (album) 1992 studio album by Neil Young

Harvest Moon is the 21st studio album by Canadian-American musician Neil Young, released on November 2, 1992. Many of its backing musicians also appeared on Young's 1972 album Harvest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dale Crover</span> American musician (born 1967)

Dale Crover is an American rock musician. Crover is best known as the drummer for Melvins and has also been the drummer for Men of Porn, Shrinebuilder, Crystal Fairy and, for a brief time, Nirvana. He is also guitarist and vocalist for Altamont. He has toured with Fantômas, Off!, and Redd Kross. In 2016, Rolling Stone listed him as the 69th greatest drummer of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drain You</span> 1991 song by Nirvana

"Drain You" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the eighth track on their second album, Nevermind, released in September 1991. The song was released as a promotional single in late 1991, and also appeared as a b-side on UK retail editions of the first single from that album, "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

<i>Stoner Witch</i> 1994 studio album by Melvins

Stoner Witch is the seventh studio album by American rock band Melvins, released on October 18, 1994, by Atlantic Records. It is their second release for the label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buzz Osborne</span> American musician (born 1964)

Roger "Buzz" Osborne, also known as King Buzzo, is an American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He is a founding member of the rock band Melvins, as well as Fantômas and Venomous Concept.

Matthew David Lukin is an American former musician, best known as a bassist and founding member of the Melvins and Mudhoney.

Fecal Matter was a punk rock band from Aberdeen, Washington. The group was formed in 1985 by Kurt Cobain, the future frontman of Nirvana, along with Dale Crover of the Melvins and drummer Greg Hokanson. Melvins members Buzz Osborne and Mike Dillard appeared in a later version of the band during rehearsals the following year. The band was short-lived, disbanding in 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart of Gold (Neil Young song)</span> 1972 single by Neil Young

"Heart of Gold" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young. From his fourth album Harvest, it is Young's only U.S. No. 1 single. In Canada, it reached No. 1 on the RPM national singles chart for the first time on April 8, 1972, on which date Young held the top spot on both the singles and albums charts, and No. 1 again on May 13. Billboard ranked it as the No. 17 song for 1972.

"Out on the Weekend" is a song written by Neil Young that was the opening song of his 1972 album Harvest.

"A Man Needs a Maid" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1972 album Harvest. It is one of two songs on Harvest on which Young is accompanied by the London Symphony Orchestra. It has appeared on several of Young's live and compilation albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Are You Ready for the Country (song)</span> 1972 song by Neil Young

"Are You Ready for the Country?" is a song written by Neil Young and released on his 1972 Harvest album. The track features Young on piano backed by the studio band dubbed The Stray Gators, comprising Jack Nitzsche on slide guitar, Ben Keith on pedal steel guitar, Tim Drummond on bass, and Kenny Buttrey on drums. Backing vocals on the track are by David Crosby and Graham Nash. The recording was made in a studio set up in a barn on Young's ranch.

"Spank Thru" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It appears on the compilation album Sub Pop 200, released in December 1988.

"Honey Bucket" is a song by American rock band Melvins. The song was released as the third single from their fifth album, Houdini (1993). It is the fifth track off the album.

<i>A Walk with Love & Death</i> 2017 studio album by Melvins

A Walk with Love & Death is a double album and the 22nd album by American rock band Melvins, released on July 7, 2017, through Ipecac Recordings. It includes two distinct albums: Love, a fourteen-song soundtrack to a short film by Jesse Nieminen, also known as A Walk with Love & Death, and Death, made up of nine standard songs. This is the first full-length Melvins album to feature bassist Steven McDonald, who only appeared on four of the songs on their previous album, Basses Loaded. Guest musicians include Joey Santiago (Pixies), Anna Waronker and Teri Gender Bender.

"Harvest" is a song written by Neil Young that was the title song of his 1972 album Harvest.

"From Hank to Hendrix" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1992 album Harvest Moon. Young has frequently included it in live sets and it has been included on a number of live and compilation albums.

"Unknown Legend" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1992 album Harvest Moon. Although it was only released as a promotional single, it reached #38 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

References

  1. ↑ "Harvest Moon by Neil Young". Songfacts. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Greenwald, Matthew. "Harvest Moon - Song Review". AllMusic . Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Digital Sheet Music – Neil Young – Harvest Moon". Musicnotes.com. Sony/ATV Music Publishing. April 5, 2004. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  4. ↑ "The 100 Greatest Songs". Neil Young. Rolling Stone. 2014. p. 89.
  5. ↑ "Harvest Moon by Neil Young". Classic Rock Review. 25 June 2012. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  6. ↑ Sam Sodomsky (27 September 2022). "The 250 Best Songs of the 1990s". Pitchfork .
  7. ↑ Petridis, Alexis (5 November 2016). "Neil Young – every album ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  8. ↑ Inglis 2003, p. 2.
  9. 1 2 Inglis 2003, p. 5.
  10. ↑ Inglis 2003, p. 72.
  11. 1 2 3 "Remembering Neil Young's Amazing 'Harvest Moon' Video". www.audacy.com. 2019-09-13. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  12. ↑ "Dale Crover". IMDb.com. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Protonic Reversal Ep230: Dale Crover (Melvins, Redd Kross, Dale Crover Band)". protonicreversal.com. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  14. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Singles - February 13, 1993" (PDF).
  15. ↑ "Top 50 Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week . March 13, 1993. p. 12. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
  16. ↑ "RPM 100 Hit Tracks of 1993" (PDF). RPM . Retrieved November 23, 2017.
  17. ↑ "British single certifications – Neil Young – Harvest Moon". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved July 19, 2024.

Books

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.