Expecting to Fly (song)
"Expecting to Fly" is a song written by Neil Young and performed by Buffalo Springfield. The song reached #98 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968.[1] The song appeared on their 1967 album, Buffalo Springfield Again.[2] Producer Jack Nitzsche provided the orchestral arrangement featuring a string section plus an oboe. Live versions from Young's early solo performances appear on the albums Live at the Riverboat 1969, Sugar Mountain – Live at Canterbury House 1968, and Live at the Cellar Door.
"Expecting to Fly" | ||||
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Single by Buffalo Springfield | ||||
from the album Buffalo Springfield Again | ||||
B-side | "Everydays" | |||
Released | December 16, 1967 | |||
Genre | Psychedelic rock | |||
Length | 3:39 | |||
Label | Atco | |||
Songwriter(s) | Neil Young | |||
Producer(s) | Jack Nitzsche | |||
Buffalo Springfield singles chronology | ||||
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The song was about death, as well as a love relationship that had ended. the lover sees that his opposite is ready to fly the coop. and the lover admits that he tried to save his love relationship, but failed.
In the 2018 music documentary film, Echo in the Canyon, it is suggested "Expecting to Fly" marks and exemplifies a shift in a late sixties' movement from group-oriented folk rock compositions toward more individualized performances and single-artist recordings.
Other versions
- Thirteen Senses released the song in 2005 in the United Kingdom as the B-side to their single "The Salt Wound Routine".[3]
- Metric recorded a version in 2011.
- Emily Haines occasionally played it live during her Knives Don't Have Your Back shows.
- of Montreal released the song as a single in 2011 in Norway.[4]
- Tom Wilson recorded the song for the Neil Young Tribute Album Borrowed Tunes II: A Tribute to Neil Young, released in 2007.
In media
- Buffalo Springfield's version appears in the films Coming Home (1978), Purple Haze (1982), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), and Joy (2015), as well as in the Lillyhammer Season 3 episode "Foreign Affairs" (2014).
References
- Buffalo Springfield, "Expecting to Fly" Chart Positions Retrieved March 1, 2014
- Buffalo Springfield, Buffalo Springfield Again Retrieved March 1, 2014
- Thirteen Senses, "Expecting to Fly" single release Retrieved March 1, 2014
- of Montreal, "Expecting to Fly" single release Retrieved March 1, 2014