My Top 20 Albums from 1977 No 19

Neil Young American Stars n Bars
Track listing

All tracks are written by Neil Young except "Saddle Up the Palomino" written with Tim Drummond and Bobby Charles. All songs recorded at Broken Arrow Ranch except for "Star of Bethlehem" recorded at Quadrafonic Sound Studios in Nashville.
Side one No. Title Recording date Length
1. "The Old Country Waltz" April 4, 1977 2:58
2. "Saddle Up the Palomino" April 4, 1977 3:00
3. "Hey Babe" April 4, 1977 3:35
4. "Hold Back the Tears" April 4, 1977 4:18
5. "Bite the Bullet" April 4, 1977 3:30
Side two No. Title Recording date Length
1. "Star of Bethlehem" December 13, 1974 2:42
2. "Will to Love" April 25, 1976 7:11
3. "Like a Hurricane" November 29, 1975 8:20
4. "Homegrown" November 19, 1975 2:20
Personnel
Side one (credited to Neil Young, Crazy Horse and the Bullets)
Neil Young – guitar, vocals
Frank "Poncho" Sampedro – guitar
Billy Talbot – bass
Ralph Molina – drums
Ben Keith – pedal steel guitar
Carole Mayedo – violin
Linda Ronstadt – backing vocals
Nicolette Larson – backing vocals

Side two
"Star of Bethlehem"
Neil Young – guitar, vocals, harmonica
Ben Keith – dobro, vocals
Tim Drummond – bass
Karl T. Himmel – drums
Emmylou Harris – vocals

"Will to Love"
Neil Young – guitar, vocals, organ, piano, vibraphone, drums

"Like a Hurricane" (credited to Neil Young and Crazy Horse)
Neil Young – guitar, vocals
Frank "Poncho" Sampedro – Stringman, vocals
Billy Talbot – bass
Ralph Molina – drums, vocals

"Homegrown" (credited to Neil Young and Crazy Horse)
Neil Young – guitar, vocals
Frank "Poncho" Sampedro – guitar, vocals
Billy Talbot – bass
Ralph Molina – drums, vocals

Additional roles

Neil Young, David Briggs, Tim Mulligan, Elliot Mazer – production
Dean Stockwell – cover art
Elliot Roberts – direction
Star Of Bethlehem"

Ain't it hard
When you wake up
In the morning
And you find out
That those other days
Are gone?
All you have
Is memories of happiness
Lingerin' on

All your dreams
And your lovers
Won't protect you
They're only passing
Through you in the end
They'll leave
You stripped of all
That they can get to
And wait for you
To come back again

Yet still a light is shining
From that lamp on down the hall
Maybe the star of Bethlehem
Wasn't a star at all

"Like A Hurricane"

Once I thought I saw you
in a crowded hazy bar,
Dancing on the light
from star to star.
Far across the moonbeam
I know that's who you are,
I saw your brown eyes
turning once to fire.

You are like a hurricane
There's calm in your eye.
And I'm gettin' blown away
To somewhere safer
where the feeling stays.
I want to love you but
I'm getting blown away.

I am just a dreamer,
but you are just a dream,
You could have been
anyone to me.
Before that moment
you touched my lips
That perfect feeling
when time just slips
Away between us
on our foggy trip.

You are like a hurricane
There's calm in your eye.
And I'm gettin' blown away
To somewhere safer
where the feeling stays.
I want to love you but
I'm getting blown away.

You are just a dreamer,
and I am just a dream.
You could have been
anyone to me.
Before that moment
you touched my lips
That perfect feeling
when time just slips
Away between us
on our foggy trip.

You are like a hurricane
There's calm in your eye.
And I'm gettin' blown away
To somewhere safer
where the feeling stays.
I want to love you but
I'm getting blown away.