| "L.A." | |
|---|---|
| Song by Neil Young | |
| from the album Time Fades Away | |
| Released | August 1973 |
| Recorded | 1973 |
| Genre | Rock |
| Length | 3:11 |
| Label | Reprise |
| Songwriter(s) | Neil Young |
| Producer(s) | Neil Young Elliot Mazer |
"L.A." is a song written and performed by Neil Young from the 1973 album Time Fades Away , a live album noted for its abrasive experimentation and its "wild, agonized, deliberately jarring" [1] vocals.
Johnny Rogan in his Complete Guide to the Music of Neil Young [2] tells us that "L.A." was "Young's fantasy vision of the destruction of Los Angeles. There is an underlying glee in his apocalyptic vision that is both intriguing and disconcerting." Rogan also suggests that the song may have been written by Young a full five years before it was debuted during his 1973 Time Fades Away tour. Rogan talks about the song at greater length in the book Neil Young: Zero To Sixty.
In 2004 Rolling Stone rated "L.A." as Young's 74th greatest song, calling it a "tense, bitter rocker" that is a "tribute to 'the uptight city of smog' that made him a star." [3]
Young performed L.A. 22 times on the Time Fade Away tour and wouldn't play it again until 2015 [4]
The Black Crowes performed the song on some legs of their 2005-2006 reunion tour, with lead guitarist Marc Ford handling vocal duties. Several of these performances saw official release via the band's deal with Instant Live. Although the Instant Live versions are now out of print, several shows have been made available via the band's official live download site, liveblackcrowes.com .
Jubilee recorded "L.A." (released in January 2008) as a B-Side on their single "Rebel Hiss" with the participation of guest drummer Troy Petrey. [5]
Lukas Nelson, son of Willie Nelson, released a version of "L.A." on his CD, Promise Of The Real.
Neil Percival Young is a Canadian-American singer, musician and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and others. Since the beginning of his solo career with his backing band Crazy Horse, Young has released many critically acclaimed and important albums, such as Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, After the Gold Rush, Harvest, On the Beach and Rust Never Sleeps. He was a part-time member of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
Nils Hilmer Lofgren is an American rock musician, recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Along with his work as a solo artist, he has been a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984, a member of Crazy Horse, and founder/frontman of the band Grin. Lofgren was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band in 2014.
Rust Never Sleeps is an album with both studio and live tracks by Canadian American singer-songwriter Neil Young and American band Crazy Horse. It was released on June 22, 1979, by Reprise Records. Most of the album was recorded live, then overdubbed in the studio, while others originated in the studio. Young used the phrase "rust never sleeps" as a concept for his tour with Crazy Horse to avoid artistic complacency and try more progressive, theatrical approaches to performing live.
Time Fades Away is a 1973 live album by Canadian / American musician Neil Young. Consisting of previously unreleased material, it was recorded with The Stray Gators on the support tour following 1972's highly successful album Harvest. Due to Young's dissatisfaction with the tour, it was omitted from his catalogue and not released on CD until 2017.
"Down by the River" is a song composed by Neil Young. It was first released on his 1969 album with Crazy Horse, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. Young explained the context of the story in the liner notes of his 1977 anthology album Decade, stating that he wrote "Down by the River," "Cinnamon Girl" and "Cowgirl in the Sand" while delirious in bed in Topanga Canyon with a 103 °F (39 °C) fever.
"Sedan Delivery" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1979 album with Crazy Horse, Rust Never Sleeps.
Zuma, the seventh studio album by Canadian/American musician Neil Young, was released on Reprise Records in November 1975. Co-credited to Crazy Horse, it includes "Cortez the Killer," one of Young's best-known songs.
"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.
"Into the Mystic" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and featured on his 1970 album Moondance. It was also included on Morrison's 1974 live album, It's Too Late to Stop Now.
The Stray Gators was the name given by Neil Young to his supporting musicians from 1971 to 1973 and who backed him on the albums Harvest (1972) and Time Fades Away (1973). It consisted of Jack Nitzsche (piano), Ben Keith, Tim Drummond (bass) and Kenny Buttrey (drums); the latter replaced during the Time Fades Away tour by Johnny Barbata.
"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.
"Powderfinger" is a song written by Neil Young, first released on his 1979 album Rust Never Sleeps. It subsequently appeared on several of Young's live recordings. A 2014 Rolling Stone special issue on Young ranked it as Young's best song ever.
"Carrying a Torch" is a popular song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and released on his 1991 double album, Hymns to the Silence. It was also included on his 2015 album "Duets: Re-working the Catalogue" with Clare Teal.
"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.
"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.
"Unknown Legend" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1992 album Harvest Moon. Although it was not released as a single, it reached #38 on the Billboard Magazine Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
"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
"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 as one version was the first song of the album that the other version was the last song of the album. "Tonight's the Night" has also appeared on some of Young's live and compilation albums.
