THE LYRICS? NO CLUE! THE SOUND? AMAZING! First Time Hearing America - Ventura Highway Reaction!
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- čas přidán 20. 04. 2024
- Welcome back, everyone! Today we’re hitting the road with our first-time reaction to "Ventura Highway" by America. This 1970s classic is known for its catchy riffs and cryptic lyrics that evoke the spirit of travel and freedom. Join us as we explore the smooth sounds of America and try to unravel the mystery behind the song's poetic lyrics.
⭐️ WHAT WE EXPLORE IN THIS VIDEO:
Our initial reactions to the iconic acoustic guitar riff and harmonious vocals.
Discussing the possible meanings behind the intriguing lyrics of "Ventura Highway."
Analyzing how the song's breezy, relaxed feel captures the essence of California road-tripping.
Sharing our thoughts on America's contribution to the folk-rock genre and how this track stands out in their discography.
🎵 ABOUT AMERICA & "VENTURA HIGHWAY":
America is a British-American rock band formed in the early 70s, best known for their harmonious rock sound and introspective lyrics. "Ventura Highway," from their 1972 album "Homecoming," features metaphoric lyrics that have intrigued fans for decades, set against the backdrop of a carefree, melodic tune that epitomizes the era’s soft rock vibe.
👫 WHO WE ARE:
We're a couple who loves diving deep into classic tracks, discovering the stories behind the songs, and sharing our unfiltered reactions. Our channel features a variety of music genres, offering both insights and a bit of fun as we experience each song for the first time.
💬 COMMENT BELOW:
What’s your interpretation of "Ventura Highway"?
What other songs by America or from the 70s folk-rock scene should we check out next?
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You can find America - Ventura Highway at the link below:
• Ventura Highway
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You can find America - Ventura Highway on Spotify and Apple Music at the links below:
music.apple.com/album/ventura...
open.spotify.com/track/4IU1RL...
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For any reaction suggestions - drop them in the comments!
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For donations to the channel or content requests:
www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted...
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#america #musicreaction #firsttimereaction - Zábava
I’m sorry but today’s music does not hold a candle to 60,70 and 80,s
So very true!!
💯 correct..
I tend to agree but it’s all relative. When we were growing up our parents probably felt the same way in regards to the music of their time.
I think most people will feel that way. 20 years from now the young people of today will probably feel that todays music was the best and the music their kids are listening to is crap.
Amen
I agree, however, I would erase the 80s
“alligator lizards in the air” refers to formations of clouds he witnessed when traveling through California with his family as a kid, Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California, that runs from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line to Pasadena in Los Angeles and in the summer with the top down is a great ride.
no its a real bug, I googled it a while back
There are alligator lizards in California we used to catch them all the time. They will bite the crap out of you. And I was raised in Ventura California. Lived a mile away from the 101 ( Ventura Hwy).
How very Joni Mitchell of him. Writers in those days just had so much imagination.
@@MrRondonmon It may be a real bug, but whether Dewey knew that or not, it was a simple matter of him and and his brother describing what certain clouds looked like when they'd pull over for rests on the PCH heading south to the LA beaches.
This song is not about the Ventura Freeway, it's about the Pacific Coast Highway.
You would also like "Sister Golden Hair" by America.
"Alligator lizards in the air" maybe fanciful description of cloud formations?
Spot on, this was Dewey Bunnell’s explanation, while in the family car driving down the Californian coast he looked up into the sky and made faces and shapes in the clouds.
@@philmead7977 I've always wondered what that meant! Thank you!
Suntan lotions, in the air, on the beach, called alligator and lizards.
The alligator lizard is a real animal.
Definitely! Dewey Bunnell said so himself!
Whenever I hear this I’m 8 years old again spending the summer riding my bike and playing with my friends in the playground, carefree and happy beyond words. Growing up in the 70’s was by far the greatest time to be a child.
💯 and chewing on a piece of grass walking down the road with friends and my Dad. 😉 Good times. Carefree.
I was 8 in 72', you captured it perfectly
@@allenwhitmer8192 10
It was a great time to be 18 too!🤪🤣 I dropped out of college in 1970 and immediately hitchhiked from Texas to San Francisco.💯 All of us young hippies were always "California Dreamin'."🤗❤️✌️
I was 7yrs old and remember hearing this on the radio when mom was cleaning house ❤️ always brings me to that memory 🙏🏻 miss you mom ❤️
Tinman, Sister golden hair. A must.
And "Daisy Jane"
BIG RADIO HIT : SISTER GOLDEN HAIR 😊
My favorite America song. o
Somehow I both Love and Hate "Sister Golden Hair" so, yea, I'd like a reaction.
It's the part where they sound like The Archies.... euggg.
Like: We got half a song! Uh... but uh not enough for a cut... hmm.
They had about 10 better songs than that.
America member Dewey Bunnell wrote this song. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times October 1, 2006, he explained: "It was 1963 when I was in seventh grade, we got a flat tire and we're standing on the side of the road and I was staring at this highway sign. It said 'Ventura' on it and it just stuck with me. It was a sunny day and the ocean there, all of it.
Source: Songfacts
Summer Breeze by Seals & Crofts will give you much the same vibe
Oh yes!!
Yes. Great song.
Yes!
Dewey Bunnell’s autobiographical song recalls his childhood car rides on the portion of California’s Pacific Coast Highway that passes through Ventura, California, appropriately named the Ventura Freeway. This was before his military father was reassigned to England, where he met his bandmates in the school for the children of American servicemen near the base.
Hey John, good to see you on another channel, pal. Quick correction, here, though. The road Dewey's describing is the Pacific Coast Highway during trips in the family car heading south from the city of Ventura, along the coast down to the L.A. beaches. The Ventura Freeway, which does run concurrently with the PCH for a 50-mile stretch north of the city of Ventura, separates from it just a bit south of the city of Ventura, at which point it (the Ventura Freeway) does not travel along the coast heading south any longer, it becomes a major east-west road down in the L.A. area. So the song's not about Dewey's memories of riding along the coast to the L.A. Beaches on the Ventura Freeway, because at that point the Ventura Freeway is not a coast-hugging road, it's inland with no view of the water any longer. Instead, it's the Pacific Coast Highway that hugs the coastline south from Ventura to the L.A. beaches which Dewey so fondly remembers looking out the family car windows to the beautiful ocean and beaches. So in reality, Dewey didn't change the name from, "Ventura Freeway", to, "Ventura Highway", he changed the name from, "Pacific Coast Highway", to, "Ventura Highway". And he did so simply because it sounded better, and he had a vivid memory of a sign for, "Ventura" (the county or city) on the side of the PCH they were traveling. That no such road exists didn't matter.
Oh, and by the way, if the hosts of this channel are reading this, here's the answer to another one of your questions. When his family would stop for a break on the side of the PCH, he and his brother would look up at the clouds and say what animal shapes they were making -- one in particular he recalled was seeing clouds that looked like "alligator lizards".
@@Cosmo-Kramer Hey, brother, thanks for the further elaboration. Not being a California native, I was just relying on the snippets I gathered on the internet. Are you still on Harri's channel? Maybe I've missed some of your recent requests? Anyway, hope everything's copacetic.
@@John_Chu Yes, I've recently (in the last couple months) sponsored two reactions by Harri, both for the artist, Ren. The first one is Ren busking in England a medley of 3 songs: "I Shot The Sheriff/Road To Zion/Hip Hop". And the second one is Ren doing another medley of two songs, "Back on 74/Message In A Bottle". I cannot recommend you go watch them highly enough, they are extraordinary performances, and Harri loved them both.
ps~There are two other Ren songs Harri reacted to, but they were not sponsored by me. One was a Ren original called, "Chalk Outlines", and the other was a cover of Sting's, "Englishman in New York". They are also great, but if you only have time to watch a couple, I recommend the two I sponsored, they are special.
You are correct.
Greetings from Ventura,CA
"Lonely People" "Tin Man" "I Need You"
Yes, America The Band is quintessential 7Os America!
Ooh, I didn’t think of “I Need You”, love that one!
It has been documented that Prince stated he used the phrase “purple rain” from this song
I assumed as much, but thanks for the confirmation.
America , Bread and Jackson Browne , my Dad's 3 top favorite bands . I'll never forget hearing these albums played in the house.
My Home Town Ventura Highway California
There's no such road in California. There's a Ventura Freeway. But songwriter Dewey Bunnell says he was describing the Pacific Coast HIghway, and changed the name for the song as it sounded better.
@@Cosmo-Kramer I'm pretty sure the original poster knows that. Anyone from that area that has two brain cells to rub together knows that.
@@watchmanonthewall14 Have you ever met a socal surfer dude??? Lol
@@watchmanonthewall14I am not from that area so it was news to me.
I don't know if you hit this one before, but if not, you need to check out "Tin Man" by America. Thanks for your great reactions! As an 70 something hippie woman, it is so much fun to watch young people experience the great feelings we got from these amazing artists and sounds so many years ago. The feelings and smiles they create are still with us!
Probably my favorite hit by America is "Sister Golden Hair," but I'm sucker for slides on guitar.
Sister golden hair surprise.
Hey guys, you know, you love us and we love you. It's great to watch somebody experiencing something that we have experienced back in the day. And it's great that you 2 are able to recognize greatness. Don't stop keep it up. It's people like you that keep the music going.
The southern alligator lizard is found on the Pacific coast. Bunnel said he saw a cloud that looked like an alligator lizard, i.e., "in the air".
The California vibe was surf, sand and sun (think Beach Boys) - but "The Sunshine State" is the moniker placed on Florida.
Another great band I grew up with. Love their folk rock sound. They had so many great hits in the 70's-80's such as "I Need You", “Muskrat Love”, "Tin Man", "Lonely People", "Sister Golden Hair", "Daisy Jane", "You Can Do Magic", "The Border" etc.
California is the "Golden State" and Florida is the "Sunshine State" Great reaction to a great song!
'Don't Cross The River' is a pretty little ditty by America.
'Sandman', 'Never Found The Time', 'Here', 'Sister Golden Hair' 'Lonely People' among many more to listen to! Thanks for the reaction!
Chewin' on a piece of grass, walkin' down the road. One of the best opening lyrics ever.
My Lord, 1972...this was on the radio all the time! Where has the time gone????
Glad to be from the 805! This song is a perfect for the summer cruising from Ventura towards Santa Barbara. 🌊☀️
America is absolutely fantastic. I remember my dad playing Horse With No Name on his Ovation back when I was a kid in the 80's.
I listened to this band nonstop when they were putting out albums and playing on the radio!! I particularly love their song "Muskrat Love". It's so cute and sweet.
Hey Phil and Sam I've been waiting for this reaction. Music I grew up with. Keep reacting guys we're loving it ❤❤
Lucky that you grew up with this 🔥 !
@@barsandbarbells2022 Yes very lucky.. The radio was everything. No computer, no digital only records and radio
Dewey Bunnell, the song's vocalist and writer, has said that the lyric "alligator lizards in the air" in the song is a reference to the shapes of clouds in the sky he saw in 1963 while his family was driving down the coast from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, California, where they had a flat tire. While his father changed the tire, he and his brother stood by the side of the road, watched the clouds, and saw a road sign for Ventura.[4]
In the booklet for the boxed set, Highway, he states that the song "reminds me of the time I lived in Omaha as a kid and how we'd walk through cornfields and chew on pieces of grass. There were cold winters, and I had images of going to California. So I think in the song I'm talking to myself, frankly: 'How long you gonna stay here, Joe?' I really believe that 'Ventura Highway' has the most lasting power of all my songs. It's not just the words - the song and the track have a certain fresh, vibrant, optimistic quality that I can still respond to".[5] The song has a "Go West, young man" motif in the structure of a conversation between an old man named Joe and a young and hopeful kid. Joe was modeled after a "grumpy" old man he had met while his dad was stationed in Biloxi, Mississippi, at Keesler Air Force Base.[4] He also stated "I remember vividly having this mental picture of the stretch of the coastline traveling with my family when I was younger. Ventura Highway itself, there is no such beast, what I was really trying to depict was the Pacific Coast Highway, Highway 1, which goes up to the town of Ventura."[6]
America reminds me a little of Crosby, Stills and Nash. Great harmonies great Accoustics. I miss this style of music.
Sister Golden Hair please? If I'm not mistaken, Ventura Highway was the B-side of the Horse With No Name 45 I bought when it was released. 45 rpm gold!
On any "feel good playlist" that could ever be assembled, this one would be hard to leave off. "Summer, carefree vibes" is perfect.
Back in 74,I was 23,and after I graduated college I decided to travel cross country and cross Canada from NY and this was a song I heard often in my convertible GTO..good song
America's "Homecoming" is one of the greatest, most beautiful albums ever released. It's a pure jewel of a record!
Heard that riff before??? Saw the curious look on your face, Phil. Maybe you've heard the Janet Jackson song Someone to Call My Lover. I think that's the name. Anyways, she used part of this in her recording...mostly that riff. Thanks for another great video! God bless you!
And she paid America for it, too. Unlike earlier when she nicked the opening of America's ballad, "Daisy Jane", for her song, "Let's Wait Awhile", and got sued out the wazzoo by America, settling out of court.
Every track America do is so easy to listen to. So laid back.and relaxing!
Great song !!!
My little brother was convinced that “Alligator lizards in the air “ was alligator whizzes in the air” and that was how he would sing it 😂
🤣🤣🤣
Love this song love both of your reactions love when Sam chair dances. ❤
Ventura Highway is basically the I-101 in California. Ventura California is a coastal city, just north of LA. A close friend of mine lost her husband of almost 40 yrs this year. He was a native of Ventura and surfed his whole life, all the way until just a couple of year's before passing. He had lived here in Las Vegas since the mid 80's, but he and my friend would make twice a year trips there to surf. Old school long board dedicated, as she also became. RIP Surfer Joe (see the song named such from the group the Surfaris ca. 1963)
We all make shapes out of the clouds do t we?
Especially on a sunny hot day on the beach.
I’ve seen hundreds of rabbits in the sky living on the Atlantic in Cornwall.
"Cornwall highway in the sunshine."
One of my favorite driving songs on a beautiful sunny day and an empty highway.
When I lived on the east coast, I thought they were saying venture a highway. Then when I moved to LA 20 years ago, I realized that there's a road called Ventura Highway. Great song. Great band. Learned many of their songs on guitar. Classics
This takes me back to the summer of '72 when I was 12, riding my bike and listening to my transistor radio. The alligator lizards in the air I believe refers to clouds in the sky shaped like that. Looking for shapes in the clouds on a lazy summer day on lawn chairs in the backyard - another memory from my childhood. More songs from America are "Lonely People" (1971), "Tin Man" (1974), "Sister Golden Hair" (1975), and "You Can Do Magic" (1982). Thanks for bringing up such great memories on my birthday. Love you guys.
Thanks Mary!! Great song. SISTER GOLDEN HAIR my favorite! So Sam likes the Horses 🐎 WILDFIRE by Michael Martin Murphy!! Alligator 🐊 lizards in the air is the Old what does the cloud look like conversation from earlier times! Great Channel Guys!! Peace 🕊️☮️♾️😎
😃. Yes, Yes!!Sister Golden Hair next please.
Pacific Coast Highway passes through the town of Ventura, CA. Yes, driving a convertible on that highway during summer and playing this song. Perfect vibe. Love it.
America had very very catchy songs absolute masterpieces… very talented musicians! 👍
A band of Air Force kids, whose families were, stationed in the UK in the 70's. I was in the Air Force in Germany at that time. Such a great mellow sound for me!
"Sister Golden Hair" is my personal favorite by America.
Ventura Freeway runs from Pasadena to Rincon right thru Ventura, Calif. - number designation is US 101. It's a song about longing for Southern Cal. These boys were Air Force brats and picked up their guitars as teens when their fathers were stationed in England and just started playing together after school. Their first two albums (on tape) make good road-trip listening.
I have the first part of the riff for this song as the ringtone on my cell phone! Your should see heads turn when I get a call out in public - those know the song always throw a smile my way.
Nice! ❤
Iconic early 70s summer songs. The SoCal sound.
I grew up and lived on that very stretch of highway they are singing about in 1972. Stretch, I believe they are describing, is between Ventura, CA, and Carpenteria, CA.. high bluffs above the ocean with Channel Islands across the Pacific Ocean. Every time I drive that hwy, windows down, wind flowing through my hair, cobalt blue water, shimmering!
Great memories cruising with the top down between Santa Barbara and LA. Yes, on Ventura highway. 1972-73
I grew up in the Ventura area, it was an awesome place to live in the 70s and 80s. California is known as the Golden State. And there really is a lizard out there called an alligator lizard, but his reference was to clouds.
One of the great driving songs !
The song's vocalist and writer, Dewey Bunnell, has said that the lyric "alligator lizards in the air" in the song is a reference to the shapes of clouds in the sky he saw in 1963 while his family was driving down the coast from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, California.
HAPPY BLESSED SUNDAY YOU GUYS! 😊SO BASICALLY THERE'S 3 MAIN HIGHWAYS / FREEWAYS TO GET YOU ANYWHERE IN OUR COUNTRY💯 AND ONE OF THEM IS KNOWN AS THE 101 OR THE VENTURA FREEWAY / HIGHWAY👍THE OTHER 2 BEING THE 5 ( GOLDEN STATE ) AND THE 405 ( SAN DIEGO ) HOPE YOU ENJOY
Country? State?
@@rubroken he means State.
This song comes on and I go back to being a kid in the back seat of my parents car while we are on a road trip during the summer.
Drove the Ventura Highway many times while on vacations or responding to major wildfires in California.. This song would always come to mind .. Salty air, the way the colors in the sky would change from orange to pink then purple as the sun would set .. From Santa Barbara to the gaviota pass was always my favorite stretch of the highway …
That's the Ventura Freeway. There is no such road as the Ventura Highway. Songwriter Dewey Bunnell is describing the Pacific Coast Highway in this song.
@@Cosmo-Kramer .. 🤦🏻♂️
@@xtrmfc ?? English, please.
A sometimes overlooked lyric in this song is "I've been hit by a purple rain". Prince (sort of) admits he copped that line for his film (and title song) Purple Rain.
No better experience of driving down Ventura Highway in a convertible Mustang on a spring day hearing this song...just felt right somehow.
Another great America tune is "Sister Golden Hair."
Summer vibes
Saw them open for Kansas back in early 2000's. Their many songs on the radio were mostly acoustic guitars, but live they were more rock with electric guitars & put on a heck of a show. Rip Dan Peek🙏
This band had lots of hits from the late '60s onwards this is from '72, another big track from them was "You Can Do Magic", which is well worth reacting to.
Aaaaand... nostalgia! My parents bought this album at some point in the '70s when I was too young to remember hearing it. I grew up seeing the album all my childhood, but discovered this song in the late '80s my senior year in high school. I played this track till I thought I'd wear through the vinyl xD
A departure for me (I was BIG into new wave/synth/alternative dance and rock at the time). I cant hear this song, Crosby, Stills, and Nash's "Judy Blue Eyes" or Chicago's "Beginnings" without flashing back to this time in my life. They were happy times, and discovering the value of my parent's music contributed greatly to it. It also opened other doors of appreciation.
Speaking of which, thank you for the journey back to that time :D
Forgot how much I loved this band, America! Listening to Top 40 radio in the 70s was great. The hits had great melodies, the singers were so talented, the musicianship was impressive-the guitar riffs on this one are instantly recognizable
I was blessed to have enjoyed these guys twice live! Once for free downtown Orlando and the first time as a teenager in the late 70's believe it or not.... they opened for Ted Nugent! WHAT???
YEP! I liked them already, but thought the whole way to concert there is no way that combo will work. BUT IT DID!
Everyone just jammed with America and their chill vibe and I remember when they finished how good it was live! America rocked!❤🎉😂❤
This track is incredible. That guitar riff.
Ventura highway is California 101 by the coast. I saw America at a summer concert back in the day. They opened for Christopher Cross. It was a first date.
“Sister Golden Hair” ❤😊! You’ll LOVE it! 😊
Ventura Highway is 101 up the coast into the mountains in California. Beautiful 😍
Saw them just a few years ago. They sound as good now as they did in the 70's. If you get a chance to see them, do it. Hit after hit.
Mother of all road trip songs.
America was amazing. The whole group just brought on a really significant sound. Their harmonizing was tremendous! As a drummer... Listen carefully to all America's music, drums played by Willie Leacox. People talk about great drummers and of course Leacox not being flashy or craving attention, was an extremely accomplished drummer. One drummers can learn from.
I positively love this song and band.
Great band😅
"Ventura Highway" is a song by America that became one of their signature tunes1. The lyrics are about someone called Joe who is walking down a road and is not affected by the snow. The protagonist talks to Joe about leaving and going to Ventura Highway where the days are longer and the nights are stronger. Joe tells the protagonist that they can always change their name before leaving2. The song is actually about the singer having an internal debate about whether he should migrate to California
This reminds me of traveling up Highway 101 in Southern California. There is, in fact, a town called Ventura. Beautiful place.
Saw America in the 70's at an outdoor music festival in Milwaukee Wi. called Summerfest. Great concert with a lot of interaction with the crowd.
I grew up in southern California during the 60's and 70's there is a Ventura Hwy which is a freeway. I used to ride in the highway in my convertible 65 Mustang. Great summer memories with this song.👀👀
The Ventura Highway is describing Highway 101 between Los Angeles and Ventura, then onward to Santa Barbara and north to Northern California. It's a beautiful coastal drive and this song fits it perfectly.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_101_in_California
Umm, no. The song is not describing the 101 between Ventura and L.A., that road is inland and heading west to east, and not the one songwriter Dewey Bunnell and his family traveled south down to the LA beaches when he was a kid, that inspired this song with his memories of gazing out the window at the ocean and coastline.
Love America. They still tour.
Their great in concert. Loved them
It’s such a catchy song it will stay in your head!
So glad to see you enjoying this song.one of my favourites.
Going south on I-5 towards adventure with my parents and brothers. That is what this song means to me. The 70s radio station played all types of music. I miss that. I miss when most of us were seemingly all on the same wavelength. Great song. Wind in the hair song!!
This is a great song this song will always remind me of driving on the 101 freeway between Calabasas and Oxnard it's a beautiful area in Southern California
Driving my Porsche down a nice winding road with plenty of sunshine with the top down.
Love Tulum, been there 3 times. Belated happy B'Day. Also love Ventura Highway as I traveled that particular highway hundreds of time in my youth including when this song was new.
Saw them live just a couple years ago. They still sound amazing. do "Sister Holden Hair" next.... it keeps getting better with America
I live on Vancouver Island and have driven down through California a couple of times all the way down to San Diego ,the last time being in 1998. I love the feeling that you get driving through the hills by the ocean and watching sunsets around Carmel. I imagine it would be a little different these days but probably still be nice. 😊
Wonderful summer vibes …..driving to the coast etc birdwatching…no winged variety
My top 3 songs from AMERICA.
I live about an hour from Ventura Highway. The band said that alligator lizards in the air was cloud formations.
My TOP 2 summer artist
America and The Steve Miller Band.
Such a great song. America is awesome. Love your channel. Brings back fond memories. Love you guys.❤❤
Always there for some "America" love!! ❤
Thanks for the reaction!! Never heard a bad song from these guys. Just pick any song off their first three albums and you have a winner. Their remaining albums are very good as well, but the first three are my favorites.