The Cover
“I Believe In You” by Neil Young is from my all-time favorite album of his, After The Goldrush, released in 1970. It’s a sparse and intimate record that’s also very dark. This song, in particular, holds more than what a superficial listen might reveal.
The hook “I believe in you” is probably first to get stuck in your head and it can be deceiving because of this. After a few listens you catch on that he’s dropping a bomb in the first line of the chorus “Now that you made yourself love me. Do you think I can change it in a day?” He fears commitment but is saying it in a way to try and save face for both parties. It’s like he’s saying “I don’t love you anymore”, but in reverse.
“Wishing that maybe in a year or two we could laugh. And let it all out” acknowledges what we’ve all probably felt at one time or another: can we just fast-forward through the painful part of love, past all the wounds and just get to the part where we’re laughing about and cathartically airing grievances but without the heart ache. It’d just be easier if we didn’t have to go through this.
With this cover I wanted to specifically take it out of its original, sparse element and infuse a sound that maybe is unexpected. Not unlike Neil’s twist. After last issue’s Mixtape I had been listening to Cowgirl In The Sand quite a bit and wanted to nod to Neil’s tendencies to let the guitar hold all the emotion as he often does with Crazy Horse
The Art
I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of Cover Art. If there’s a cover you’d like to hear please let me know in the comments!