About the song
“Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)” stands as a testament to Neil Young’s ability to capture the essence of his time while transcending it. Written by the Canadian-American musician, the song, along with its acoustic counterpart “My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)”, encapsulates the dichotomy of fleeting fame and enduring relevance, themes central to Young’s 1979 album “Rust Never Sleeps.”
The genesis of “Hey Hey, My My…” traces back to Young’s collaboration with the American art punk band Devo, particularly Mark Mothersbaugh, during the late 1970s. Young’s involvement with Devo, notably during the creation of his film “Human Highway”, provided fertile ground for the song’s evolution. Initially performed with Devo in 1978 at San Francisco’s Different Fur studio, the track would undergo transformation with Young’s band Crazy Horse, incorporating the now-iconic phrase “rust never sleeps,” inspired by Mothersbaugh’s past in graphic arts.
Critically, the song’s impact was immediate. Described as a “grinding three-chord rocker” by Cash Box and praised as a “perfect anthem” by Record World, its raw energy and defiant lyrics resonated deeply in an era marked by punk’s rebellious spirit. Brad Tyer aptly characterized it as “proto-grunge grunt rock,” foreshadowing its enduring influence on subsequent musical genres.
Beyond its initial release, “Hey Hey, My My” has left an indelible mark on popular culture. It served as the title theme for Dennis Hopper’s film “Out of the Blue” in 1980 and found renewed appreciation with its inclusion in Neil Young’s Greatest Hits in 2004. Its cultural footprint extends to covers by a diverse array of artists spanning Oasis, System of a Down, and Dave Matthews Band, among others, each reinterpretation adding new layers to its legacy.
However, perhaps its most poignant legacy lies in its lyrical resonance. Lines like “It’s better to burn out than to fade away” transcended music to become immortalized in Stephen King’s novel “It” and notably referenced in Kurt Cobain’s farewell. Cobain’s tragic homage led Young to briefly retire the song, a decision later reversed at the request of Cobain’s surviving bandmates, highlighting its profound impact on both musicians and audiences alike.
In essence, “Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)” endures not just as a song, but as a cultural touchstone—a reflection of Neil Young’s uncompromising spirit and a timeless exploration of the tension between artistic longevity and fleeting fame. Its journey from studio experimentation to cultural icon status cements its place in the annals of rock history, a testament to the enduring power of music to capture the zeitgeist and transcend generations.
Video
Lyrics
My my, hey hey
Rock and roll is here to stay
It’s better to burn out
Than to fade away
My my, hey hey.Out of the blue
and into the black
They give you this,
but you pay for that
And once you’re gone,
you can never come back
When you’re out of the blue
and into the black.The king is gone
but he’s not forgotten
This is the story
of a Johnny Rotten
It’s better to burn out
than it is to rust
The king is gone
but he’s not forgotten.Hey hey, my my
Rock and roll can never die
There’s more to the picture
Than meets the eye.
Hey hey, my my.