| "Ventura Highway" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by America | ||||
| from the album Homecoming | ||||
| B-side | "Saturn Nights" | |||
| Released | September 19, 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Studio | The Record Plant, Los Angeles [1] | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:32 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Dewey Bunnell | |||
| Producer(s) | America | |||
| America singles chronology | ||||
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| Licensed audio | ||||
| "Ventura Highway" on YouTube | ||||
"Ventura Highway" is a 1972 song by the band America from their album Homecoming , written by Dewey Bunnell.
Dewey Bunnell, the song's vocalist and writer, has said that the lyric "alligator lizards in the air" in the song is a reference to the shapes of clouds in the sky he saw in 1963 while his family was driving down the coast from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, California, where they had a flat tire. While his father changed the tire, he and his brother stood by the side of the road, watched the clouds, and saw a road sign for Ventura. [4]
In the booklet for the boxed set, Highway, he states that the song "reminds me of the time I lived in Omaha as a kid and how we'd walk through cornfields and chew on pieces of grass. There were cold winters, and I had images of going to California. So I think in the song I'm talking to myself, frankly: 'How long you gonna stay here, Joe?' I really believe that 'Ventura Highway' has the most lasting power of all my songs. It's not just the words — the song and the track have a certain fresh, vibrant, optimistic quality that I can still respond to". [5] The song has a "Go West, young man" motif in the structure of a conversation between an old man named Joe and a young and hopeful kid. Joe was modeled after a "grumpy" old man he had met while his dad was stationed in Biloxi, Mississippi, at Keesler Air Force Base. [4] He also stated "I remember vividly having this mental picture of the stretch of the coastline traveling with my family when I was younger. Ventura Highway itself, there is no such beast, what I was really trying to depict was the Pacific Coast Highway, Highway 1, which goes up to the town of Ventura." [6]
"That's Gerry and Dan doing a harmony on two guitars on the intro. I remember us sitting in a hotel room, and I was playing the chords, and Gerry got that guitar line, and he and Dan worked out that harmony part. That's really the hook of the song". [5]
Record World said that the "threesome come out of the desert and onto the road in this refreshing number that features those great harmonies and acoustic guitars." [7]
The song went to number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 for America, spending 12 weeks on the charts after debuting on October 21, 1972. It also reached number 43 in the UK Singles Chart, staying in that chart for 4 weeks. [8]
The song contains the phrase "purple rain", later the title of the 1984 song, album, film and tour, from the artist Prince. Whether any connection actually exists, both Mikel Toombs of The San Diego Union and Bob Kostanczuk of the Post-Tribune have written that Prince got the title directly from "Ventura Highway". [9] [10] Asked to explain the phrase "purple rain" in "Ventura Highway," Gerry Beckley responded: "You got me." [11]
The song won many fans, including the pro wrestler-turned-politician, Jesse Ventura. Bunnell recalled, "We went and played at Governor Jesse Ventura's inaugural out in Minneapolis. He asked us to — his wife is a horse lady, and she'd always loved 'A Horse with No Name', and he had adopted this name Ventura. So when he put together his cast of characters for his big inaugural celebration, he wanted us to come and play two songs, which we did". [5]
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America are a British-American rock band formed in London in 1970 by US artists Dewey Bunnell, Dan Peek, and Gerry Beckley. The trio met as sons of US Air Force personnel stationed in London, where they began performing live. Achieving significant popularity in the 1970s, the trio was famous for its close vocal harmonies and light acoustic folk rock sound. The band released a string of hit albums and singles, many of which found airplay on pop/soft rock stations.
Homecoming is the second studio album by America, released on November 15, 1972, through Warner Bros. Records. Acoustic guitar-based, with a more pronounced electric guitar and keyboard section than their first album, their second effort helped continue the band's success, and includes one of their best known hits, "Ventura Highway".
"Woodstock" is a song written by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. At least four notable versions of the song were released in the same year, 1970. Mitchell's own version was first performed live in 1969 and appeared in April 1970 on her album Ladies of the Canyon and as the B-side to her single "Big Yellow Taxi". This publication was preceded by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's cover version, which appeared on their March 1970 album Déjà Vu and became a staple of classic rock radio and the best-known version in the United States. A third version, by the British band Matthews Southern Comfort became the best known version in the United Kingdom, and was the highest charting version of the song, reaching the top of the UK singles chart in 1970. A fourth version by studio project The Assembled Multitude also became a chart hit.
Gerald Linford Beckley is an American singer, songwriter, and musician, and a founding member of the band America.
"A Horse with No Name" is a song by American folk rock trio America. Written by Dewey Bunnell, it was released on the Warner Bros. label, in late 1971 in Europe and early 1972 in the United States. The song was met with commercial success and topped charts in Canada, Finland, and the United States. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on March 24, 1972. The song was quickly added to a rerelease of the bands' debut studio album, America. The song is a staple of the group's discography and one of their most popular.
Daniel Milton Peek was an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known as co-founder and member (1970-1977) of the band America and a "pioneer in contemporary Christian music".
Lee Merton "Dewey" Bunnell is an English-born American musician, singer, guitarist, and songwriter, and a founding member of the band America.
Your Move is the eleventh studio album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records on June 3, 1983.
Perspective is the twelfth studio album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records on September 21, 1984.
In Concert is the second official live album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records in July 1985. This was the sixth and last release by America on the Capitol Records label and was the first America album ever issued on the budding compact disc format. This was America's first album that failed to chart. No singles were released from the album.
In Concert is the third officially released live album by American folk rock duo America, released by King Biscuit Records in 1995. The concert itself was recorded on September 4, 1982, at the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, for an installment of the King Biscuit Flower Hour radio show.
The Complete Greatest Hits is the fourth principal major label greatest hits album by American folk rock duo America, released by Rhino Records in 2001. This is the first compilation to feature all 17 of the group's Billboard Hot 100 singles. The album was intended to update and expand upon History: America's Greatest Hits. It includes two new tracks released exclusive to this collection. This was the group's first album to chart since 1984's Perspective, reaching No. 152 on the Billboard albums chart.
The Grand Cayman Concert is the fifth official live album by American folk rock duo America, released by the group in 2002. The concert consisted of Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell performing a number of their hits in a stripped-down, acoustic manner not seen since the early days when America performed as an acoustic trio. The concert was performed in the Cayman Islands, the longtime home of former bandmate Dan Peek.
"Muskrat Love" is a soft rock song written by Willis Alan Ramsey. The song depicts a romantic liaison between two anthropomorphic muskrats named Susie and Sam. It was first recorded in 1972 by Ramsey for his sole album release Willis Alan Ramsey. The song was originally titled "Muskrat Candlelight" referencing the song's opening lyric.
"Tin Man" is a 1974 song by the pop rock band America. It was written by band member Dewey Bunnell and produced by George Martin, who also plays the piano part on the recorded version. The song was included on the band's album Holiday, also from 1974.
"You Can Do Magic" is a song by singer-songwriter Russ Ballard that was recorded as a 1982 single by folk rock duo America from their album View from the Ground.
"I Need You" is the second single by the band America from their eponymous debut album America, released in 1972. The song was written by Gerry Beckley.
The Gypsy Queens is the debut studio album by five piece band, The Gypsy Queens. It was released in the United Kingdom on the November 2, 2012. The album entered the UK Albums Chart at number 46.
"Daisy Jane" is a song written by Gerry Beckley of the group America included on the 1975 America album Hearts. Issued as that album's second single — following up the #1 hit "Sister Golden Hair" — "Daisy Jane" reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the final Top 20 hit by the original three-member incarnation of America. On the Easy Listening chart the track reached #4. In Canada, the chart peak of "Daisy Jane" was #16 on the Pop singles chart and #2 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Lost & Found is the 18th studio album by America. Released May 5, 2015 by America Records, it is their first album of original material since Here & Now in 2007. It includes music recorded between 2000 and 2011 but not released on previous albums. The song "Driving", an upbeat single, received some airplay and was highly regarded by many.
