My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue) 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
[Verse 2]
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
[Verse 3]
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
[Verse 4]
Hey hey, my my
Rock and roll can never die
There's more to the picture than meets the eye
Hey hey, my my
[Harmonica Solo]
Hey hey, my my
About
Recorded in 1978, Neil Young wrote this song about his fears of becoming obsolete in the music world.
The “other” version, also annotated, is here, where the title is well explained.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
The rock'n'roll spirit is not survival. Of course, the people who play rock'n'roll should survive. But the essence of the rock'n'roll spirit to me, is that it’s better to burn out really bright than to sort of decay off into infinity. Even though if you look at it in a mature way, you’ll think, ‘well, yes… you should decay off into infinity, and keep going along.’ Rock'n'roll doesn’t look that far ahead. Rock'n'roll is right now. What’s happening right this second. Is it bright? Or is it dim because it’s waiting for tomorrow—that’s what people want to know. And that’s why I say that.
- 1.My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)
- 2.Thrasher
- 4.Pocahontas
- 5.Sail Away
- 6.Powderfinger