"After the Gold Rush" is a song written and performed by

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer 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 Fur ...

and is the title song from his 1970 album of the same name. In addition to ''After the Gold Rush,'' it also appears on the compilation albums ''

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,'' and ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

,'' and on '' Live Rust.'' An ''

a capella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

'' version of the song was a hit in many countries in 1974 for the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

vocal group Prelude. It is ranked number 322 on ''Rolling Stones list of

The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

Composition

Young has said that he doesn't recall what the song is about.

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

, recalling a conversation while in the process of recording a cover of the song, along with Emmylou Harris and

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...

, for their 1999 album ''

Trio II ''Trio II'' is the second collaborative studio album by Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt. It was released on February 9, 1999, by Asylum Records. Background A dozen years after the release of their Platinum, Grammy-winning '' Trio' ...

'', said: However, in his 2012 biography Young reportedly gave a different explanation of the song's origin and meaning, describing the inspiration provided by a screenplay of the same name (never produced), which apocalyptically described the last days of California in a catastrophic flood. The screenplay and song's title referred to what happened in California, a place that took shape due to the Gold Rush. Young eventually concluded that: "After the Gold Rush" consists of three verses which move forward in time from the past (a medieval celebration), to the present (the singer lying in a burned out basement), and, finally, to the end of humanity's time on Earth (the ascension process in which the "chosen ones" are evacuated from Earth in silver spaceships). On the original recording, in addition to Young's vocals, two instruments are utilized: a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

and a flugelhorn. In the decades since the song was first released, the flugelhorn solo in the song has typically been replaced by a harmonica solo by Young in live performances. The line "Look at Mother Nature on the run / In the 1970s" has been amended by Young in concert over the decades and is currently sung as "Look at Mother Nature on the run / in the 21st century."

Cover versions

The song has been covered numerous times: * Perhaps best known is the 1974 interpretation by the group Prelude, whose ''

'' version was a top 40 hit in numerous countries, especially the

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where it re-charted in the Top 40 in 1982. The song also peaked in Australia at number 51 in 1974, and the re-recording at 98 in 1982. In the US, it went to number 22 on the Hot 100. * The country music trio of Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt covered the song on the 1999 album ''

'' with two changes to the lyrics: The line "Look at Mother Nature on the run / In the 1970s" became "Look at Mother Nature on the run / in the 20th century", and the line "There was a band playin' in my head / And I felt like getting high" was changed to "There was a band playin' in my head / And I felt like I could cry." Parton performed the song during the 2019 Grammys with Maren Morris and Miley Cyrus. The ''Trio'' version of the song was also released as a single, and while it received modest radio airplay, a video accompanying the song was very popular on a number of cable video outlets, including CMT.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:After The Gold Rush (Song) Neil Young songs 1970 songs Environmental songs Songs about outer space Songs about dreams Songs written by Neil Young Song recordings produced by David Briggs (record producer) Song recordings produced by Neil Young