Neil Young and Devo – Hey Hey, My My

You know…sometimes you just have to mix things up.

I have always admired Devo. They were so different and no one is remotely like them. This odd collaboration came out of a movie that Neil Young made that came out in 1982 called Human Highway. The cast had names you would definitely know. The movie has Dean Stockwell, Dennis Hopper, Sally Kirkland, and more.

Am I a huge Devo fan? No, I’m not but I do like some of their songs. I do respect them…I can’t help but respect them. They had no peers…they did what they did better than anyone else…because they were the only ones who did it. Whatever it… is. They are just so bizarre but I can’t help but admire them.

I showed my son the SNL clip of Devo (De-Evolution) when he was around 10-12 years old and I looked around at his confused/scared look… his mouth was hung open. He asked me slowly…Dad, what was that? I said Son, that was Devo…it still works…whatever IT is.

When Devo was called by Young to be in his movie…they didn’t think it would go well. They said they considered Neil Young the “grandfather of granola.” They soon found out he was out there like they were and they got along great. Neil collaborated with Devo in 1978.

A few years later Young released the album “Trans” with electronic music that was inspired by the German band Kraftwerk. Maybe Devo influenced him a bit as well.

Hey Hey, My My

Hey, hey, my, my
Rock and roll can never die
There’s more to the picture
Than meets the eye
Hey, hey, my, my

Out of the blue and into the black
You pay for this, but they give you that
And once you’re gone, you can’t come back
When you’re out of the blue and into the black

The king is gone but he’s not forgotten (Johnny Rotten, Johnny Rotten)
Is this the story of Johnny Rotten? (Johnny Rotten, Rotten Johnny)
It’s better to burn out ’cause rust never sleeps
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

…

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

39 thoughts on “Neil Young and Devo – Hey Hey, My My”

  3. Well that’s… something! I don’t know if I would have recognized the song if not for the title being written there and Neil being in it. It’s almost catchy in its own way. Good for Neil for having enough of a sense of humor to go along with it.

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  8. Well – there you go. I never knew this at all – some Devo fan, me, huh? Saw them in 1978 at Glasgow Apollo (only @ half filled I remember) and then as part of their reunion tour @ 2005(?)

    That film looks pure mental, too. A real crazy B-Movie type. If I ever had time to sit down and watch a film, I think I might do this one – what a weird collaboration.

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  10. Oh my goodness, that movie has cult classic written all over it. AND it bears a striking resemblance to “Repo Man.” Of course I had to see which one was made first to see who was ripping who off. “Human Highway” was released in 1982, and “Repo Man” was released in 1984.

    I remember you sharing before how Bailey reacted to seeing Devo. Mark Mothersbaugh, born in Akron, OH, came from a musical family. His terrible vision had him wearing glasses, and he decided to make lemonade with them in Devo lol (how’s that for a mixed metaphor.)

    From wikipedia:
    “Mothersbaugh attended Kent State University as an art student, where he met Devo co-founders Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis. In early 1970, Lewis and Casale formed the idea of the “devolution” of the human race after Casale’s friends Jeffrey Miller and Allison Krause were killed by Ohio National Guardsmen on university grounds during what came to be known as the Kent State shootings.[8] Intrigued by the concept, Mothersbaugh joined them, building upon it with elements of early post-structuralist ideas and oddball arcana…”

    Later, Devo (per wiki):
    “Devo was awarded the first Moog Innovator Award on October 29, 2010, during Moogfest 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina. The award aims to celebrate “pioneering artists whose genre-defying work exemplifies the bold, innovative spirit of Bob Moog”. ”

    Mothersbaugh has gone on to score dozens of films and TV shows. He’s the sound man on man on several Wes Anderson movies. He also does the music for the series, “What We Do in the Shadows.” and continues to create.

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    2. I didn’t know about the Moog Innovator before….I do remember something about Kent University…him and Chrissie Hynde being from Kent and they were there at that time.
      That is interesting about Repo Man…

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