# Do you like Neil Young? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 23, 2016, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431 "2016-10-23T03:06:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/21 "2016-10-23T13:03:42Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Love him, love his voice. Love his fuzzy rockers. Love his quiet folkers. > > He is in my musical holy trinity. > > More fun Neil trivia (that **Leaffan** will appreciate): Neil’s dad is in the Hockey Hall of Fame. > mmm True. Scott Young is a well-known journalist in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/22 "2016-10-23T13:08:45Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I don’t think I’m all that familiar with him. Didn’t he do a song called Heart Of Gold? Or was that someone else with a similar voice. Yes, that’s him. _Is_ there anyone out there with a similar voice? ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/23 "2016-10-23T13:12:00Z")
If one of his songs came on the radio I wouldn’t change the station, but I wouldn’t start singing along or drumming on the steering wheel. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/24 "2016-10-23T13:17:22Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > Yes, that’s him. > > _Is_ there anyone out there with a similar voice? [A lot of people thought so.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSAJ0l4OBHM) ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/25 "2016-10-23T13:22:18Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > Yes, that’s him. > > _Is_ there anyone out there with a similar voice? **Jack White** , kinda-sorta. \*\*Mark Kozelek \*\* definitely to my ear: [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AKRA7weVyLs](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AKRA7weVyLs) That’s his band **Sun Kil Moon** , whom I love - that song became an entry point to Neil Young for me because it sounds NY-ish, but Kozelek’s voice is a bit easier to take and the use of picked acoustic and gentle washes of distortion underlying the mix really works for me. After listening to SKM’s album Ghosts of the Great Highway, I listened to Neil Young differently. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Clanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@Small\_Clanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Clanger)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/26 "2016-10-23T13:26:58Z")
This -\> _Powderfinger_ Don’t care for much of his folkier stuff - Roger Waters picked one as one of his Desert Island Discs\* (Helpless?) I can live without that stuff. But. _Powderfinger._ \*An “I can’t believe this is still running” program on BBC Radio4 ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/27 "2016-10-23T13:41:36Z")
Love him. Love how he’s simultaneously been at the center of so much of the kind of music I love – Buffalo Springfield epitomized “seminal,” CSNY were folk-rock gods… – AND he’s always done things his own way. He is utterly _sui generis_ – experimental, yet dependably musical; and the Canadian origins give it all just a slightly different touch. I’ve even grown to like his singing voice! ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/28 "2016-10-23T14:06:26Z")
I find his **The Needle And The Damage Done** and **After The Goldrush** most haunting. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/29 "2016-10-23T14:10:35Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > Yes, that’s him. > > _Is_ there anyone out there with a similar voice? When the file sharing stuff was newish on the internet, I remember seeing A Horse With No Name credited to Neil. I thought, there is no way that Neil Young covered that song. I downloaded it and it was the standard America song- no cover, not Neil. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/30 "2016-10-23T14:17:25Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > I find his **The Needle And The Damage Done** and **After The Goldrush** most haunting. **Dr. Mercotan** , if you haven’t listened to Sun Kil Moon, you might click on that link. Very similar to those songs in feel, to my ear. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/31 "2016-10-23T15:05:42Z")
Total fanboy and have been since the days of Buffalo Springfield. Lost count of the number of times I’ve seen Neil in concert, at venues ranging from amphitheaters to dinky bars. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/32 "2016-10-23T15:10:36Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I don’t think I’m all that familiar with him. Didn’t he do a song called Heart Of Gold? Or was that someone else with a similar voice. Yes, assuming you’re not thinking about another song by that name, like [the one by The Kinks](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSyDnXTONC4). “Heart of Gold” is the Neil Young song I’ve heard most often, and I actively dislike it, largely because of Neil’s voice, which has prevented me from digging any deeper into his work. I remember seeing him as musical guest on SNL (promoting his _Harvest Moon_ album IIRC) and being impressed with him as a performer. But he remains one of those artists whom I respect more than I enjoy. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/33 "2016-10-23T16:15:22Z")
I hated him in college, but that was because my roommate played his first two albums incessantly. His first album is no great shakes, though _Everyone Knows This Is Nowhere_ is quite good overall. Still, when you hear that and nothing but that every day, you grow to dislike it intensely. Later I started to like Young. I’m not a big fan, but I do respect him and his work. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/34 "2016-10-23T17:34:08Z")
Not really. His genre isn’t one I particularly like and his voice doesn’t help him stand out. Mostly he’s in the easily ignored elevator music category for me. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/35 "2016-10-23T17:43:17Z")
For doubters: listen to an acoustic live set from between 69 and 71. And just think he was the writer of all those songs. Or just listen to “Expecting to Fly” ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/36 "2016-10-23T17:47:16Z")
Love him, and most of his work. The heavy ones and the quiet ones. Sometimes they’re kind of inseparable, like [Out of the Blue](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cawk2cMTnGo) and [Into the Black](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQhEvfeJocM). ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/37 "2016-10-23T17:51:30Z")
\*“Don’t Let It Bring You Down” Old man lying by the side of the road With the lorries rolling by, Blue moon sinking from the weight of the load And the buildings scrape the sky, Cold wind ripping down the alley at dawn And the morning paper flies, Dead man lying by the side of the road With the daylight in his eyes. Don’t let it bring you down It’s only castles burning, Find someone who’s turning And you will come around. Blind man running through the light of the night With an answer in his hand, Come on down to the river of sight And you can really understand, Red lights flashing through the window in the rain, Can you hear the sirens moan? White cane lying in a gutter in the lane, If you’re walking home alone.\* What’s not to like? ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/38 "2016-10-23T18:02:09Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > _Is_ there anyone out there with a similar voice? Well if you combine [Kim Deal + Frank Black](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwaIVWiatSc)… 😛 Original observation I think courtesy of Gina Arnold. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/39 "2016-10-23T18:47:03Z")
The man can’t sing. Magnificently. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431/40 "2016-10-23T18:49:23Z")
> [@DinoR](#): > > Not really. > > His genre isn’t one I particularly like and his voice doesn’t help him stand out. Mostly he’s in the easily ignored elevator music category for me. I find musical taste an interesting topic. I actually feel just the opposite of Neal Young. He has a very distinctive voice (IMO). If I knew more about music I’d be able to quantify it but the way he stresses a note is difficult to describe but very unique. As a general rule I find most vocalists get in the way of the music. Young’s voice IS the music. When I listen to Lou Reed it grates on every nerve in my body. Many people LOVE Reed. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-neil-young/769431.md?page=3)