Alex Limbert October 3rd, 2020 - 5:39 PM
Folk rock veteran Neil Young released a grooving new live video for “Falling from Above,” the first song on his upcoming album Return to Greendale expected to be released on Nov. 6 on Reprise Records. The video was filmed in Toronto, Canada during Young’s historic 2003 tour supporting his 25th studio album, Greendale. The video was directed by Bernard Shakey and produced by L.A. Johnson.
The “Falling from Above” video is a “small-town rock opera” where Young performs live alongside actors playing a grandfather, grandson and granddaughter. The three actors are on the front porch of a house set off to the right of the stage. The actors lip sync the song’s lyrics while Young signs.
The skit has an old-country town feel. Most of the video focuses on the grandfather with the grandson taking intermittent lead roles throughout the song. The grandson also pretends to play the harmonica, which is actually played by Young. Playing the shortest role, the granddaughter briefly comes out of the house to give her grandfather a pair of glasses so he can read his newspaper.
It’s not clear if the grandmother passed away but the first time the chorus plays, it starts with “and mama said / a little love and affection /In everything you do / Will make the world a better place / With or without you.”
The stage lights shined primarily on the family’s house to the right and not much of Young or Crazy Horse can be seen throughout the video. One of the guitarists had his back to the audience the entire song and there appears to have been more footage of Young’s guitar than his face. When Young’s face did come into focus, it was often shadowed by his cap and placed behind three microphones hard to see.
Return to Greendale will be released in multiple formats including Blu-ray, two LPs and two CDs, and DVD. It’s available for pre-order here.
In other recent news, Young released the album Homegrown originally recorded in 1975. According to the singer/songwriter, the album was written during the period in which Young was going through a tumultuous breakup. Young “started to see the weaknesses in Homegrown” and decided not to release it until June 19, 2020, forty-five years later.
Return to Greendale track listing for audio and Blu-ray:
- Falling from Above
- Double E
- Devil’s Sidewalk
- Leave the Driving
- Carmichael
- Bandit
- Grandpa’s Interview
- Bringin’ Down Dinner
- Sun Green
- Be the Rain
