I love Reactor. Surfer Joe and Moe the Sleaze is a good song, and I love T-Bone.
So yeah, I’m a Neil Young fan. He’s got a wry sense of humor. Listen to “Cough Up the Bucks” sometime.
I like Trans more than Harvest.
Can’t argue with that. For me, his voice just works better in a group than by itself.
Heh, and I like his folky stuff, but the distorted guitar rock sound does nothing for me. Chacun a son gout (each to his own goo).
He’s one of those artists I like and respect but I am not really drawn to seek out their music. But his songs like “Hey Hey, My My” and “Love is a Rose” are excellent.
In the 60s and 70s he had a comical, vaguely cro-magnon appearance, I surmise he had some killer parties at his ranch, those would have to have been a LOT of fun, he is a real character. He lost some cool points though for trading in his wife in for a younger model, although to be fair I don’t know the whole story, still.
Right there with you. My favorite Neil is distorted guitar and wailing away, be it with Crazy Horse or whoever. I’ll cue up “Like A Hurricane,” “I’m the Ocean,” “Cortez the Killer,” “Powderfinger,” and such and just let it wash over me.
I am a fan - though at only 35, his best years were behind him by the time I was born, probably. That said, as people have mostly been repping his 70s output (rightly), if any of you who like him have not checked out Le Noise from 2010, I would do so. It’s the junction of his solo work with that of Crazy Horse - just him and Daniel Lanois on production, heavy electric guitars and tons of reverb to give the Crazy Horse vibe but otherwise a solo record. It’s the isolated gem in his late career output that, at least imo, absolutely passes muster with his 70s work.
A quick perusal of the thread leads me to say the following:
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Everyone who is a fan has their favourite bits - usually singer/songwriter acoustic Neil or noisy as fuck, Crazy Horse Neil. Me - I think he peaked artistically with the 4 album run that includes Time Fades Away, Tonight’s The Night, On The Beach and Zuma. Those are the albums - On The Beach in particular - that I return to time and again. They’ve not been mentioned much - so my two pence on those to give them some time here.
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Sign me up as one who like Trans more than Harvest too.
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He’s lost whatever he had as a lyricist in his most recent output really - Psychedelic Pill, Storytone and Monsanto Years in particular have a lot of pretty trite stuff on them lyrically - but his live performances are still great. His current touring band is Willie Nelson’s kids who formed their own band - with their own output - Promise Of The Real and, for my money, it’s the best band I’ve seen him with (have seen him with Crazy Horse, have seen him with the Chrome Dreams II band, which only had Ralph Molina from Crazy Horse in it and seen him with POTR). POTR are capable of great versions of any Neil song from any era - more supple and technically gifted than Crazy Horse and less boring/more energised than the Chrome Dreams II band. If you can see them, I’d definitely recommend it.
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Finally, even when Neil was really in the doldrums, his live work was great. The International Harvesters band that’s captured on A Treasure (from the period in the 80s when he was at war with Geffen and producing pretty awful albums) is worth seeking out. The Bluenote Cafe album from just before he got it together for his Godfather of Grunge period in the early 90s is also really good. There’s the classic SNL performance of Rockin’ In The Free World (performed with a band that only ever played together that one night it seems - which is remarkable given how great that performance is). At the risk of being one of those fans that says “you’ve got to see him live”, well, if you have any interest and you haven’t, you’re missing out.
I think he’s great. It’s clear he’s not as good a lyricist as Dylan. I’d say his live show is not as good as Springsteen. But, frankly, what he’s got on both of them, is the capacity to surprise and test himself in ways that Springsteen never really bothered with or Dylan attempted but never really stood out with. Sometimes, he falls flat on his arse, but at least he gives it a go. In that respect, and if you can bracket all three together, I find Neil the most interesting, if not necessarily the most talented or the most consistent.
My mom loves him. So, she played alot of his stuff along with the CSNY records when I was a wee lass. So, I grew up liking him…I mean, I don’t LOVE his stuff, like my mom does. But, I like him
My favorite songs of his are Heart of Gold followed by Needle and the Damage Done.
I don’t like everything. Not a fan of Trans. Or Neil and the Shocking Pinks.
But his stuff I like, I like a lot.
I think he hates his fans, though. Some of his albums just seem to be “how bad can I make a record and have people buy it?” After the success of Harvest, he famously said that he got tired of being in the middle of the road, so he headed for the ditch. I’m sorry, Neil, but harvest is great. Just because people like it doesn’t make it bad.
The most obviously dickish thing I can think of that Neil has done in the recent past was flagging up a “major new release” that the fan base was convinced was going to be the first drop of Archives and then announcing it was Fork In The Road - a concept album about electric cars (this is obviously not even getting into the “you want a rock n roll album, huh?” parts of his career). He’s an antagonistic old geezer sometimes.
I never interpreted that quote as his saying Harvest was bad though. Last time I saw him, he played half of the album (literally - Heart of Gold, Needle, Out on the Weekend, Alabama and Words) and seems to love those songs. I always thought of it more as, “I can’t do this my whole life - I’ll die of boredom”. YMMV.
“It sort of starts off real slow, then fizzles out altogether.” - on Four-Way Street
My little sister and I were talking about this one a few years ago. We both agreed that it’s the perfect October song.
It’s also the first song I think of when I think of Neil Young. Yeah, I’m a fan.
I am one of…five…people that can’t stand him. Maybe that’s harsh. I respect his music, I understand completely why others really like him, but his voice is like nails on a chalkboard for me.
I’m a bad Canadian.
I also don’t like Geddy Lee’s voice. I really only joined the military so you guys wouldn’t throw me out of the country.
You have to love a performer who got sued by his record company for making albums that didn’t sound enough like himself. I love some Neil Young, I love his Australopithecine riffing.
Love that quote :D. I just love his guitar work when he totally lets loose, preferably with Frank Sampredo as a counterpoint. Of course he’s no virtuoso, but he’s VERY effective. I love guitar noise and feedback, and he’s one of the godfathers of guitar noise, and almost everybody working that field owes to him, J Mascis, Sonic Youth, early Teenage Fanclub and many others (and of course that whole Grunge thing, which isn’t an invective to me like for many other people). And he’s a folkie and the eternal hippie too, and I like that aspect of his persona just as well. He’s in my personal pantheon of singer/songwriters, with guys and gals like Dylan, Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell and Carole King. I like his don’t-give-a-shit-attitude and hist relentless individuality and stubbornness, though I can’t always quite follow and appreciate his sometimes queer opinions. And I like his voice too; but then, I also think that nobody sings Dylan like Dylan ;).
Here’s some elevator music for you. (Sorry, couldn’t help it ;))
Weld wasn’t too shabby, either. I fucking love those fuzzed up, chopped out rhythm chords it opens with: that’s what guitars are supposed to do. I like how in 1991 Neil Young just kind of looked sideways at bands like Soundgarden and muttered, “Grunge, huh?”.
Maybe I’m just a baby boomer but: The idea of being a “rock fan” and not placing Neil Young at the center of what the term even means is incomprehensible to me. Like “Love rock, but don’t like Neil…” I just go whah!
ok you lowly reprobates!
Just consider yourselves soooooooo lucky that I’m only dishin you foolish ones…that! >>> :eek::mad:
Yes - your welcome for my lenience, here - you may all get off your knees now.
He is one definition of the ultimate rock star. Genius songs, musical integrity. Could sing like a stuck pig, but it’s irrelevant. He is the author whose soul interprets the tune. Otherwise might as well just listen to cover bands.
The way I see it he looked around and realized he was never going to equal Dylans lyrics, the beatles tunes, or the Stones raunch. But I see him as having surpassed the other two artists on each category by each measure. (His tunes were better than Dylans or the stones…) He became more “Neil Young” . He went inside. Nobody has done it as well as neil. He wrote that book.
Let’s get real. It’s his work from 1965 to 1977 you judge him on. Twelve years is very difficult to sustain. He’s one of the most productive stars ever. It’s no shame on him living longer than this but that’s the way it goes.