Buffalo Springfield Again Review: Psychedelic Folk Rock Masterpiece

Buffalo Springfield Again

Buffalo Springfield – 1967 – Atco Records

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What Is Buffalo Springfield Again About?

Buffalo Springfield Again emerged from a nine-month recording period fraught with band dysfunction, member departures, and creative tensions that paradoxically fueled its artistic ambition. Following bassist Bruce Palmer’s deportation for marijuana possession in January 1967 and Neil Young’s recurring absences due to health issues and creative differences, the album became less a unified band effort and more a collection of individual visions.

The album explores diverse themes across its ten tracks. Young’s contributions grapple with fame’s psychological toll and personal identity (“Mr. Soul”), while his experimental “Broken Arrow” and Jack Nitzsche-arranged “Expecting to Fly” pushed boundaries of studio production and psychedelic soundscaping. Stills brought blues-rock energy with “Bluebird” and jazz-influenced sophistication with “Everydays,” while his “Rock & Roll Woman” (allegedly featuring uncredited vocals from David Crosby) anticipated the harmonic style of Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Richie Furay made his songwriting debut on the album with country-flavored tracks like “A Child’s Claim to Fame” and “Sad Memory,” establishing the country rock template he would perfect with Poco. The album’s stylistic diversity reflects not just the band’s musical range but the reality that by mid-1967, Buffalo Springfield existed more in name than in unified practice, with members often recording separately with session musicians filling gaps left by Palmer’s deportation and Young’s unpredictability.

Complete Track Listing & Analysis

“Mr. Soul” – The Album’s Driving Force

Opening Buffalo Springfield Again with unmistakable power, “Mr. Soul” features one of rock’s most recognizable guitar riffs, deliberately echoing the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” Young allegedly wrote the song in under five minutes, channeling his anxieties about fame and identity into a fuzz-drenched garage rock anthem. The track’s aggressive energy and oblique lyrics established Young’s emerging voice as rock’s foremost introspective outsider.

“Bluebird” – Stephen Stills at His Peak

Stills’ “Bluebird” remains one of the album’s most celebrated tracks, featuring his chiming 12-string acoustic guitar interwoven with Young’s biting electric leads. The song’s structure shifts seamlessly between folk-rock verses and explosive instrumental passages, showcasing the guitar interplay that made Buffalo Springfield legendary. An extended nine-minute version appeared on later compilations, revealing the song’s jam-band potential.

“Expecting to Fly” – Psychedelic Masterwork

Perhaps the album’s most ambitious track, “Expecting to Fly” was recorded by Young with session musicians under the mistaken belief it was for a solo project rather than Buffalo Springfield. Jack Nitzsche’s orchestral arrangements, featuring lush strings and baroque instrumentation, created a dreamlike soundscape that influenced Young’s later work on “Harvest.” The track contains no Buffalo Springfield members aside from Young’s vocals, yet it fits perfectly within the album’s experimental spirit.

“Rock & Roll Woman” – The CSN Blueprint

Stills’ “Rock & Roll Woman” allegedly features David Crosby on uncredited vocals, and whether true or not, the song’s sublime harmonies and psychedelic folk-rock structure directly anticipated Crosby, Stills & Nash’s signature sound. The track’s shimmering guitar work and sophisticated vocal arrangements represent the peak of late-60s California rock craftsmanship.

“Broken Arrow” – Young’s Experimental Suite

Closing the album with audacious ambition, Young’s “Broken Arrow” functions as a six-minute sound collage, beginning with audience applause (lifted from a Beatles concert, not a Buffalo Springfield show) and the opening bars of “Mr. Soul” recorded live in the studio. The track then shifts through folk-rock passages and includes a calliope version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” before concluding with free-form experimentation. This track demonstrated Young’s view that studio production was as crucial as songwriting itself.

Is Buffalo Springfield Again Worth Listening To?

Absolutely. Buffalo Springfield Again deserves its reputation as an essential 1960s album for multiple reasons. First, it captures three generational talents at formative stages: Neil Young developing the introspective experimentalism that would define his solo career, Stephen Stills mastering the guitar interplay and harmonic sophistication he’d bring to CSN, and Richie Furay pioneering country rock ahead of The Eagles and Gram Parsons.

The album’s stylistic diversity, rather than feeling scattered, showcases the breadth of late-60s rock experimentation. From the garage-rock stomp of “Mr. Soul” to the baroque psychedelia of “Expecting to Fly,” from the country twang of “A Child’s Claim to Fame” to the soul-influenced “Good Time Boy,” the album offers a comprehensive survey of 1967’s musical possibilities.

For modern listeners, the album remains remarkably fresh. Unlike some psychedelic-era albums that sound dated, Buffalo Springfield Again benefits from strong songwriting foundations that transcend period production. The guitar work throughout remains influential, the harmonies pristine, and the songs themselves timeless. Whether you’re a fan of Neil Young’s catalog, CSN’s vocal interplay, or Poco’s country rock, this album contains the DNA of all these future developments.

How Did Buffalo Springfield Again Perform?

Buffalo Springfield Again reached #44 on the Billboard 200, a modest commercial performance that belied its lasting influence. Three singles were released: “Bluebird” backed with “Mr. Soul,” “Rock & Roll Woman” backed with “A Child’s Claim to Fame,” and “Expecting to Fly” backed with “Everydays.” While none achieved the Top 40 success of the band’s earlier hit “For What It’s Worth,” they received substantial FM radio airplay and established Buffalo Springfield as album artists rather than merely singles hitmakers.

The album’s relatively modest chart position reflected several factors. By late 1967, the band’s internal dysfunction was public knowledge, with Young’s absences forcing tour cancellations and Palmer’s deportation creating lineup instability. The album also faced formidable competition from The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” The Doors’ self-titled debut, and Jefferson Airplane’s “Surrealistic Pillow,” all released the same year.

Despite initial modest sales, the album achieved Gold certification and has sold steadily for decades. Its critical reputation grew substantially over time, earning placement at #188 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (maintaining this position in the 2012 revision), inclusion in Robert Christgau’s “Basic Record Library” of essential 1950s and 1960s recordings, and recognition in Robert Dimery’s “1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.”

What Do Critics Say About Buffalo Springfield Again?

Contemporary critics recognized Buffalo Springfield Again as a significant artistic achievement despite the band’s turmoil. Cash Box praised “Rock & Roll Woman” as a “mid-tempo rock ballad” with “throaty vocals with a shimmering group backing spiced with outstanding guitar showing.” Record World called it “an imaginative, different rock song.”

Retrospective assessments have been even more enthusiastic. Robert Christgau included it in his essential recordings collection, recognizing its influence on subsequent rock developments. Critics have particularly praised the album’s role in bridging folk rock and harder psychedelic sounds, with Mark Prendergast noting that Young’s sound collages on the album proved “for him, studio production was as important as content.”

Modern critics emphasize the album’s historical importance as a precursor to multiple rock subgenres. The country-rock elements in Furay’s songs predated The Eagles by five years. The experimental production techniques Young employed influenced not just his solo work but the broader acceptance of the studio as an instrument. Stills’ guitar interplay with Young established a template for dual-lead rock guitar that countless bands would emulate.

Buffalo Springfield Again’s Legacy

The lasting influence of Buffalo Springfield Again far exceeds its modest initial commercial impact. Most immediately, it established the individual artistic visions of three musicians who would shape 1970s rock. Young’s experimental production approach and introspective songwriting became hallmarks of his legendary solo career. Stills brought his sophisticated guitar work and harmonic sensibilities to Crosby, Stills & Nash (and later CSNY). Furay’s country rock pioneering with Poco influenced The Eagles, Pure Prairie League, and the entire Southern California country rock movement.

The album’s stylistic diversity demonstrated that rock albums need not maintain sonic unity to succeed artistically. This lesson proved influential for The Beatles’ “White Album” (1968) and countless subsequent albums that embraced eclecticism. The guitar interplay between Stills and Young on tracks like “Bluebird” established a template for dual-lead guitar bands from The Allman Brothers to Thin Lizzy to Radiohead.

Perhaps most significantly, Buffalo Springfield Again proved that a band could create enduring art even while disintegrating. The album’s creative tensions, rather than undermining its quality, seemed to fuel individual ambitions that produced remarkable work. This dynamic would recur in rock history with Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours,” The Beatles’ “Let It Be,” and other classics born from turmoil.

Frequently Asked Questions About Buffalo Springfield Again