| "Ventura Highway" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side A of the US single | ||||
| 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 | ||||
| ||||
| 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]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI) [22] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
America are a British-American rock band formed in London in 1970 by English-born American Dewey Bunnell and Americans 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 and 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 versions of the song were released in 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". A version by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young appeared on their album Déjà Vu in March 1970 and became a staple of classic rock radio and the best-known version of the song 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 in the UK, reaching the top of the Singles Chart in 1970. A fourth version by studio project the Assembled Multitude also became a chart hit.
America is the debut studio album by America, released in January 1972. It was initially released without "A Horse with No Name", which was released as a single in Europe in late 1971 and in the US in January 1972. When "A Horse with No Name" became a worldwide hit in early 1972, the album was re-released with that track.
"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 reached number 3 in the UK singles chart. 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 the co-founder 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.
Hat Trick is the third studio album by the American folk rock trio America, released on Warner Bros. Records in 1973. It peaked at number 28 on the Billboard album chart; it failed to go gold, whereas the group's first two releases had platinum sales. The album produced the single, "Muskrat Love", which reached number 67 on the Billboard singles chart and number 11 on the adult contemporary chart. That song would become a much bigger hit for Captain & Tennille three years later.
Holiday is the fourth studio album by the American folk rock band America, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in June 1974. The album was produced in London by George Martin, the first of six consecutive albums he produced with America.
History: America's Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album by American folk rock trio America, released by Warner Bros. Records in 1975. The album is credited as produced by George Martin, even though 7 of the 12 tracks were recorded before he started working with America. It was a success in the United States, reaching number 3 on the Billboard album chart and being certified multi-platinum by the RIAA. It has also been certified 6 times platinum by ARIA for shipments of 420,000 copies in Australia. History: America's Greatest Hits reached 41 on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog Albums Chart in 2007, number 90 on the Billboard Top Album Sales Chart and 50 Top Rock Albums Chart in 2019.
Hideaway is the sixth studio album by American folk rock trio America, released by Warner Bros. Records in April 1976. The album was produced by George Martin, the third of six consecutive albums he produced with America.
Harbor is the seventh studio album by American folk rock trio America, released by Warner Bros. Records in February 1977. It was the last to feature Dan Peek, who embarked on a solo Christian career shortly after the album's release. The album was produced by George Martin, the fourth of six consecutive albums he produced with America.
Silent Letter is the eighth studio album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records in June 1979.
Your Move is the eleventh studio album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records on June 3, 1983.
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.
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.
"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.
"Daisy Jane" is a song written by Gerry Beckley of the band America, included on the band's 1975 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.
