Unknown Legend

Last updated
"Unknown Legend"
Promotional single by Neil Young
from the album Harvest Moon
ReleasedNovember 2, 1992
RecordedJanuary 30, 1992
Studio Redwood Digital
Genre
Length4:32
Label Reprise
Songwriter(s) Neil Young
Producer(s)
Neil Young singles chronology
"Harvest Moon"
(1992)		"Unknown Legend"
(1992)		"The Needle and the Damage Done" (live)
(1993)

"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.

Contents

Music and lyrics

Although "Unknown Legend" was not released until 1992, it was written earlier, closer to the release of Young's 1978 album Comes a Time , and several critics have noted a similarity between the style of "Unknown Legend" and the material on Comes a Time, particularly the song "Motorcycle Mama". [1] [2] AllMusic critic Matthew Greenwald describes the song as being based on a "simple, folksy guitar riff and melody". [3] As with several other songs on Harvest Moon, Linda Ronstadt provided backup vocals in the refrains. [3] [4] Ben Keith plays pedal steel, in a performance that Young biographer Jimmy McDonough describes as providing "proud but sad" accents. [5]

The lyrics describe a woman who had worked in a diner and rode a Harley Davidson, but now is raising two children. [1] The lyrics were inspired by multiple people. [1] [2] Nigel Williamson feels that the lyric about how the woman used to work in a diner was inspired by Young's first wife Susan Acevedo and that the lyrics about an "unknown legend" who is raising two kids but still has "the far away look in her eyes" were inspired by his later wife Pegi Young, and music critic Johnny Rogan agrees that the character described by the lyrics seems to be a combination of the two. [1] [2] Young biographer Glen Boyd similarly sees a portrait of Pegi in the lyrics about working in a diner and raising two kids, as well as in a line about "her long blonde hair flowin' in the wind." [6] Nonetheless, Young has described his inspiration as being more expansive, stating: [1] [2]

It's inspired by some people I know and some people I don't know and all kinds of things put together...They're just pictures, people's lives. A lot of the common thing is survival, not losing what it is you were when you were young, but take it with you, take it with you into your own age. Don't leave it behind.

Young biographer David Downing sees the song as one of several on Harvest Moon that describe Americans feeling a deep sense of loss for unknown reasons in 1992. [7]

Reception

In a 2016 Rolling Stone magazine readers poll, "Unknown Legend" ranked as Young's 4th best post-1970s song. [8] It reached #38 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. [9]

AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine considers "Unknown Legend" to be one of Young's best songs, describing it as "lovely". [10] McDonough describes it as "perhaps the empathetic portrait of a woman [Young has] ever created. [5] Greenwald calls the arrangement "exquisite" and comments how the lyrics provide a "clear" and "cinematic" picture of the female protagonist. [3]

Live performances

Young performed "Unknown Legend" for his 1993 MTV Unplugged concert and it was included on his Unplugged album. [4] [11] For the Unplugged concert, Astrid Young and Nicolette Larson performed the backing vocal that Ronstadt performed on the Harvest Moon album. [4] Young later played the song live on his 2015 tour. [8]

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 and 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 with backing by the band Crazy Horse, he has 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.

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

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

<i>Unplugged</i> (Neil Young album) 1993 live album by Neil Young

Unplugged is a live album by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young, released on June 15, 1993, on Reprise. Recorded on February 7, 1993, the album is an installment of the MTV series, Unplugged. The performance was also released on VHS.

"Danger Bird" is a song written by Neil Young. It was first released on his 1975 album with Crazy Horse, Zuma. A live version was also released on the 1997 album Year of the Horse.

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

"Cowgirl in the Sand" is a song written by Neil Young and first released on his 1969 album Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. Young has included live versions of the song on several albums and on the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young album 4 Way Street. It has also been covered by The Byrds on their self-titled album. Like three other songs from Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, "Cinnamon Girl", "Down by the River" and the title track, Young wrote "Cowgirl in the Sand" while he was suffering from the flu with a high fever at his home in Topanga, California.

"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">Bluebird (Buffalo Springfield song)</span> Song by the rock group Buffalo Springfield

"Bluebird" is a song recorded by the American rock group Buffalo Springfield. It was written and produced by Stephen Stills, with co-production by Ahmet Ertegun. In June 1967, Atco Records released it as a single to follow-up their hit "For What It's Worth" (1966).

"Pocahontas" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1979 album Rust Never Sleeps. It has also been covered by Johnny Cash, Everclear, Emily Loizeau, Crash Vegas, Gillian Welch, Trampled By Turtles, and Ian McNabb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No More (Neil Young song)</span> 1989 song by Neil Young

"No More" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1989 album Freedom. Although not released commercially as a single, it reached #7 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. Young performed the song live on a Saturday Night Live performance on September 30, 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harvest Moon (Neil Young song)</span> 1992 single by Neil Young

"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, Harvest Moon (1992). The song was both written and produced by Young, reaching No. 36 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Will to Love</span> Song by Neil Young

"Will to Love" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1977 album American Stars 'N Bars. A promotional single of "Will to Love" was released, backed with a live performance of "Cortez the Killer."

"The Old Laughing Lady" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1968 debut solo album Neil Young.

"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.

"I Believe in You" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1970 album After the Gold Rush. It has also been covered by other artists, including Linda Ronstadt, Robin Zander and Rita Coolidge. Coolidge's version was released as a single and was a minor hit in Canada.

"Crime in the City " is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1989 album Freedom, although Young had performed longer versions in concert earlier. It was not released as a single but reached number 34 on the Billboard Magazine Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. It is a lengthy song, with a released version of almost nine minutes, but earlier versions were more than twice as long. It has been characterized as a document of moral rot in urban regions of the United States in the late 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (song)</span> Neil Young song

"Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" is a song written by Neil Young that was originally released as the title track of his 1969 album with Crazy Horse, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. The song was written earlier, and a different version was originally considered for Young's 1968 solo debut album Neil Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Come On Baby Let's Go Downtown</span> Song written by Danny Whitten

"Come On Baby Let's Go Downtown", also known as "(Come On Baby Let's Go) Downtown" or "Downtown", is a song written by Danny Whitten, possibly in collaboration with Neil Young, that was first released on Crazy Horse's 1971 album Crazy Horse. A live version was later released on multiple Neil Young albums, most famously on his 1975 album Tonight's the Night, and then on his 2006 album Live at the Fillmore East. Phish has covered the song in concert.

"Tonight's the Night" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1975 album Tonight's the Night. Two versions of the song bookended the album, with one version as the first song, and the other as the last. "Tonight's the Night" has also appeared on some of Young's live and compilation albums.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Williamson, N. (2002). Journey Through the Past: The Stories Behind the Classic Songs of Neil Young. Hal Leonard. p. 128. ISBN   9780879307417.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Rogan, Johnny (1996). The Complete Guide to the Music of Neil Young. Omnibus Press. p. 145. ISBN   978-0711953994.
  3. 1 2 3 Greenwald, Matthew. "Unknown Legend". AllMusic . Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  4. 1 2 3 Bielen, K. (2008). The Words and Music of Neil Young. Praeger. pp. 74, 77. ISBN   9780275999025.
  5. 1 2 McDonough, Jimmy (2003). Shakey. Anchor. pp. 520, 662. ASIN   B000Q67KGU.
  6. ↑ Boyd, G. (2012). Neil Young FAQ. Backbeat Books. ASIN   B008RYZ7WM.
  7. ↑ Downing, David (1994). A Dreamer of Pictures: Neil Young, the Man and His Music . Da Capo. p.  219. ISBN   9780306806117.
  8. 1 2 Greene, Andy (March 9, 2016). "Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Post-1970s Neil Young Songs". Rolling Stone . Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  9. ↑ "Neil Young Chart History: Mainstream Rock Songs". Billboard . Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  10. ↑ Erlewine, S.T. "Harvest Moon". AllMusic . Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  11. ↑ Ruhlmann, William. "Unlugged". AllMusic . Retrieved 2019-01-20.
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.