Neil Percival Young,
OCThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
,
OMThe Order of Manitoba is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Instituted in 1999 when Lieutenant Governor Peter M...
(born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian
singer-songwriterSinger-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation. Young began performing as a solo artist in Canada in 1960, before moving to
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1966, where he co-founded the band
Buffalo SpringfieldBuffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
along with
Stephen StillsStephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
and
Richie FurayRichie Furay is an American singer, songwriter, and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member who is best known for forming the bands Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Bruce Palmer, and Dewey Martin, and Poco with Jim Messina, Rusty Young, George Grantham and Randy Meisner...
, and later joined Crosby, Stills & Nash as a fourth member in 1969. He forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, releasing his first album in 1968; his career has since spanned over 40 years and 34 studio albums, with a continual and uncompromising exploration of musical styles. The
Rock and Roll Hall of FameThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
website describes Young as "one of rock and roll’s greatest songwriters and performers". He has been inducted into the Hall of Fame twice: first as a solo artist in 1995, and second as a member of Buffalo Springfield in 1997.
Young's work is characterized by his distinctive guitar work, deeply personal lyrics and signature
falsettoFalsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
/
tenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
singing voice. Although he accompanies himself on several different instruments, including piano and harmonica, his idiosyncratic electric and
clawhammerClawhammer is a highly rhythmic banjo playing style and common component of American old-time music. The principal difference between clawhammer style and other styles is the picking direction...
acoustic guitar playing are the defining characteristics of a varyingly ragged and melodic sound. While Young has experimented with differing music styles, including swing and
electronic musicElectronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
throughout a varied career, his best known work usually falls into two primary styles:
acousticAcoustic music comprises music that solely or primarily uses instruments which produce sound through entirely acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means...
folk and country rock, or amplified hard rock in collaboration with the band
Crazy HorseCrazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
. Young has also adopted elements from newer styles such as
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and
grungeGrunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
. His influence on the latter caused some to dub him the "Godfather of Grunge".
Young has directed (or co-directed) a number of films using the pseudonym Bernard Shakey, including Journey Through the Past (1973), Rust Never Sleeps (1979),
Human HighwayHuman Highway is a 1982 comedy film starring and co-directed by Neil Young under his pseudonym Bernard Shakey. Dean Stockwell co-directed the film and acted along with Russ Tamblyn, Dennis Hopper, and the band Devo...
(1982),
GreendaleGreendale is the name of an album, movie and graphic novel by Neil Young. As the twenty-seventh album by Neil Young, Young and Crazy Horse's Greendale, a 10-song rock opera, is set in a fictional California seaside town...
(2003), and CSNY/Déjà Vu (2008). He is currently working on a documentary about electric car technology, tentatively titled Linc/Volt. The project involves a 1959
Lincoln ContinentalThe Lincoln Continental is an automobile which was produced by the Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company from 1939 to 1948 and again from 1956 to 2002...
converted to hybrid technology, which Young plans to drive to Washington, D.C. as an environmentalist example to lawmakers there.
Young is an outspoken advocate for environmental issues and the welfare of small farmers, having co-founded in 1985 the
benefit concertA benefit concert or charity concert is a concert, show or gala featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. Such events raise both funds and public awareness to address the cause at...
Farm AidFarm Aid started as a benefit concert on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, held to raise money for family farmers in the United States...
. In 1986, Young helped found The Bridge School, an educational organization for children with severe verbal and physical disabilities, and its annual supporting
Bridge School BenefitThe Bridge School Benefit is an annual non-profit charity concert held in Mountain View, California, every October at the Shoreline Amphitheatre. The concerts are all organized by musician Neil Young and his wife, Pegi....
concerts, together with his wife Pegi Young (née Morton). Young has three children: sons Zeke (born during his relationship with actress
Carrie SnodgressCaroline "Carrie" Snodgress was an American actress.-Biography:Snodgress was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. She attended Maine Township High School East in Park Ridge then Northern Illinois University before leaving to pursue acting. Snodgress trained for the stage at the Goodman Theatre, in Chicago...
) and Ben, who were diagnosed with
cerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
, and daughter Amber Jean who, like Young himself, has
epilepsyEpilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
. Young lives on his ranch in
La Honda, CaliforniaLa Honda is a census-designated place in southern San Mateo County, California, United States. The population was 928 at the 2010 census. It is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains between Silicon Valley and the Pacific coast of California...
. Although he has lived in northern California since the 1970s and sings as frequently about U.S. themes and subjects as he does about his native country, he retains Canadian citizenship, having no desire to relinquish it. On July 14, 2006, Young was awarded the
Order of ManitobaThe Order of Manitoba is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Instituted in 1999 when Lieutenant Governor Peter M...
, and on December 30, 2009, was made an Officer of the
Order of CanadaThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
Early years (1945–1966)
Neil Percival Young was born in
Toronto General HospitalThe Toronto General Hospital , is a part of the University Health Network, and a major teaching hospital in downtown Toronto, Ontario. It is located in the Discovery District, directly north of the Hospital for Sick Children, across Gerrard Street West, and east of Princess Margaret Hospital and...
,
TorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
,
OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
at 6:45 AM on 12 November 1945. His father, Scott Young (1918–2005), was a journalist, and sportswriter who would later rise to prominence in Canada for his work. His mother, Edna "Rassy" Young (1918–1990), was of
AmericanAmerican-Canadians are people of Canadian citizenship who were born in the United States of America. They account for a significant portion of Canada's population. Canada and the United States share much culturally but are separate geopolitical entities in North America.According to the Canada 2006...
,
FrenchFrench Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
, and
IrishIrish Canadian are immigrants and descendants of immigrants who originated in Ireland. 1.2 million Irish immigrants arrived, 1825 to 1970, at least half of those in the period from 1831-1850. By 1867, they were the second largest ethnic group , and comprised 24% of Canada's population...
ancestry. They married in 1940 in
WinnipegWinnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
,
ManitobaManitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, with their first son, Robert 'Bob' Young, being born in 1942.
Shortly after Neil's birth in 1945, the family decided to move to the rural town of
Omemee, OntarioOmemee is a community within the city of Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, Canada, formerly known as Victoria County. Omemee is one of the major communities in the Kawartha Lakes, as the proclaimed "city" is vastly rural and has but one major population centre...
, which Neil would later fondly describe as a "Sleepy little place." Omemee later established the Youngtown Museum in tribute to Young. Young was diagnosed with diabetes as a child, and also suffered from a bout of polio in 1951, in what was the last major outbreak of the disease in Ontario. This was in fact the same epidemic in which singer-songwriter
Joni MitchellJoni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
, then aged nine, also contracted the virus.
Following his recovery, the Young family went on holiday to
FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1952, and upon returning to Canada soon decided to move away from Omemee and into the city of
TorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, before relocating to
PickeringPickering is a city located in Southern Ontario, Canada immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area, the largest metropolitan area in Canada.- Early Period :...
, which was just east of Toronto, and then again to north Toronto soon afterward. It was during this period that Young began to take an interest in
popular musicPopular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
that he heard on the radio, and also began to rear chickens in order to sell their eggs.
When Neil was twelve, his father, who had been having a number of extra-marital affairs, left his mother, and she subsequently asked for, and received, a
divorceDivorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
some years later, in 1960. Due to the breakup of the family, Neil went to live with his mother, who moved back to
WinnipegWinnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
,
ManitobaManitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, while his brother Bob stayed with his father in Toronto.
During the mid-fifties, at around the age of ten or eleven, Young was drawn to a variety of musical genres including
rock and rollRock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
,
rockabillyRockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
,
doo-wopThe name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
, R&B,
countryCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, and western pop. He would listen to pop music broadcast on the
CHUMCHUM, branded as TSN Radio 1050, broadcasting at 1050 kHz in the AM band, is a Canadian radio station licensed to Toronto, Ontario. The station is owned and operated by Bell Media....
radio station via his
transistor radioA transistor radio is a small portable radio receiver using transistor-based circuitry. Following their development in 1954 they became the most popular electronic communication device in history, with billions manufactured during the 1960s and 1970s...
. Young has stated in interviews that growing up he idolized
Elvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
and strived to be just like him, later referencing him in a number of his lyrics. Other early musical influences included
Chuck BerryCharles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
,
Little RichardRichard Wayne Penniman , known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist, and actor, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. He was also the first artist to put the funk in the rock and roll beat and...
,
Fats DominoAntoine Dominique "Fats" Domino, Jr. is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter. He was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Creole was his first language....
,
The ChantelsThe Chantels were the second African-American girl group to have nationwide success in the United States, preceded by The Bobbettes. The group was established in the early 1950s and attended St. Anthony of Padua school in The Bronx...
,
The MonotonesThe Monotones were a six-member African American doo-wop vocal group in the 1950s. They are considered a one-hit wonder, as their only hit single was "The Book of Love", which peaked at #5 on the Billboard Top 100 in 1958....
,
Ronnie SelfRonnie Self was a United States rockabilly singer and songwriter. His solo career was unsuccessful, despite being signed to contracts with Columbia and then Decca from the late 1950s through the early 1960s. His only charted single was "Bop-A-Lena"; recorded in 1957 and released in 1958, it...
,
The FleetwoodsThe Fleetwoods were a singing trio from Olympia, Washington, United States; formed in the late 1950s. They were responsible for eleven hit songs, beginning with "Come Softly to Me"...
,
Jerry Lee LewisJerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
,
Johnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, and
Gogi GrantGogi Grant is an American popular singer.-Life and career:Grant was born Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the age of 12, she moved to Los Angeles, California, where she attended Venice High School. In California, she won a teenage singing contest and appeared on television...
. He first began to play music himself on a plastic
ukuleleThe ukulele, ; from ; it is a subset of the guitar family of instruments, generally with four nylon or gut strings or four courses of strings....
, before, as he would later relate, going on to "a better ukulele to a banjo ukulele to a baritone ukulele – everything but a guitar."
Neil and his mother settled into the working class area of
Fort RougeFort Rouge is a district of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Located in the south-central part of the city, it is bounded on the north by the Assiniboine River, on the east and south by the Red River, and on the west by Stafford Street and Pembina Highway...
, Winnipeg where the shy, dry-humoured youth enrolled at Earl Grey Junior High School. It was there that he formed his first band,
The JadesThe Jades were a rock band formed in late 1960, and consisted of musicians Neil Young, Ken Koblun, John Daniel, David Gregg, and Jim Atkin. The band formed out of Earl Grey Junior High School in Winnipeg.-History:...
, and met
Ken KoblunKen Koblun is a Canadian musician best known for his work with Neil Young, performing with Young in the Jades, the Squires, the Stardusters, and briefly with Buffalo Springfield...
, later to join him in The Squires. While attending
Kelvin High SchoolKelvin High School is a public high school, located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.-History:Founded in 1912 as Kelvin Technical High School, the name was later shortened to Kelvin High School. The school is named after the mathematical physicist and engineer Sir William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin of...
in Winnipeg, he played in several instrumental rock bands. Young's first stable band was called The Squires, with Ken Koblun, Jeff Wuckert and Bill Edmondson on drums, who had a local hit called "The Sultan." Young dropped out of high school and also played in
Fort WilliamFort William was a city in Northern Ontario, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Ever since then it has been the largest city in Northwestern...
(now part of the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario), where they recorded a series of demos produced by a local producer named Ray Dee, whom Young called "the original Briggs." While there, Young first encountered
Stephen StillsStephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
. In the 2006 film Heart of Gold, Young relates how he used to spend time as a teenager at
Falcon Lake, Manitoba
where he would endlessly plug coins into the jukebox to hear
Ian TysonIan Tyson CM, AOE is a Canadian singer-songwriter, best known for his song "Four Strong Winds". He was also one half of the duo Ian & Sylvia.-Career:Tyson was born to British immigrants in Victoria in 1933, and grew up in Duncan B.C...
's "
Four Strong Winds"Four Strong Winds" is a song written by Ian Tyson in the early 1960s. It was first recorded by The Brothers Four in a version that "Bubbled Under" the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1963...
".
After leaving the Squires, Neil worked folk clubs in Winnipeg, where he first met
Joni MitchellJoni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
. Mitchell recalls Young as having been highly influenced by
Bob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
at the time. Here he wrote some of his earliest and most enduring folk songs such as "
Sugar Mountain"Sugar Mountain" is a song by Canadian folk rock singer and composer Neil Young. Young composed the song on his 19th birthday in 1964, and its lyrics are reminiscences about his youth in Winnipeg, Manitoba.- Meaning of the lyrics :...
", about lost youth. Mitchell wrote "The Circle Game" in response. Winnipeg band
The Guess WhoThe Guess Who are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Initially gaining recognition in Canada, they also found international success from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s with numerous hit singles, including "American Woman", "These Eyes" and "Share the Land"...
(Randy Bachman being their lead guitarist) had a Top 40 Canadian hit with Young's "Flying on the Ground is Wrong," which was Young's first major hit as a songwriter.
In 1965 Young toured Canada as a solo artist. In 1966, while in Toronto, he joined the
Rick JamesJames Ambrose Johnson, Jr. , better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. James was a popular performer in the late 1970s and 1980s, scoring four number-one hits on the U.S. R&B charts performing in the genres of funk and R&B...
-fronted
Mynah BirdsThe Mynah Birds were a Canadian R&B band formed in Toronto, Ontario active from 1964 to 1967. Although the band never released an album, it is notable as featuring a number of musicians who went on to have successful careers in rock, folk rock and funk....
. The band managed to secure a record deal with the Motown label, but as their first album was being recorded, James was arrested for being
AWOLIn military terminology, desertion is the abandonment of a "duty" or post without permission and is done with the intention of not returning...
from the Naval Reserve. After the Mynah Birds disbanded, Young and bass player
Bruce PalmerBruce Palmer was a Canadian musician notable for playing bass guitar in the folk rock band Buffalo Springfield.-Early years:Palmer was born and raised in Toronto Ontario, Canada...
relocated to Los Angeles. Young admitted in a 2009 interview that he was in the United States illegally until receiving a green card in 1970.
Buffalo Springfield (1966–1968)
Once they reached Los Angeles, Young and Palmer met up with
Stephen StillsStephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
,
Richie FurayRichie Furay is an American singer, songwriter, and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member who is best known for forming the bands Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Bruce Palmer, and Dewey Martin, and Poco with Jim Messina, Rusty Young, George Grantham and Randy Meisner...
, and
Dewey MartinDewey Martin was a Canadian rock drummer, best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield.-Career:Martin was born Walter Milton Dwayne Midkiff in Chesterville, Ontario in 1940. He was raised there and the surrounding Smiths Falls and Ottawa...
to form
Buffalo SpringfieldBuffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
. A mixture of folk, country, psychedelia, and rock lent a hard edge by the twin lead guitars of Stills and Young made Buffalo Springfield a critical success, and their first record
Buffalo SpringfieldBuffalo Springfield is the self-titled debut album by folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, released in late 1966. It was originally released in both mono and stereo versions as Atco 33-200, but when the single "For What It's Worth" became a hit, the album was re-released as Atco 33-200A and added...
(1966) sold well after Stills' topical song "For What It's Worth" became a hit, aided by Young's melodic harmonics played on electric guitar.
Distrust of their management, as well as the arrest and deportation of Palmer, exacerbated the already strained relations among the group members and led to Buffalo Springfield's demise. A second album,
Buffalo Springfield AgainBuffalo Springfield Again is the second 1967 folk rock album by Buffalo Springfield.-Production:The recording has been stated by some as tense and protracted, because Young was often absent and the band was unable to keep a permanent bass player...
, was released in late 1967, but two of Young’s three contributions were solo tracks recorded apart from the rest of the group.
In many ways, these three songs – "
Mr. Soul"Mr. Soul" is a song written by Canadian rock musician Neil Young, and first recorded by folk rock band Buffalo Springfield and released on their second album, Buffalo Springfield Again...
," "Expecting To Fly," and "
Broken Arrow"Broken Arrow" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young and recorded by Buffalo Springfield on their 1967 album Buffalo Springfield Again. It was recorded in August and September 1967 at Columbia Recording Studios and Sunset Sound Recorders...
" – on Buffalo Springfield Again are harbingers of much of Young's later work in that, although they all share deeply personal, almost idiosyncratic lyrics, they also present three very different musical approaches to the arrangement of what is essentially an original folk song. "Mr Soul" is the only Young song of the three that all five members of the group performed together. In contrast, "Broken Arrow" was confessional folk-rock of a kind that would characterize much of the music that emerged from the singer-songwriter movement. Young’s experimental production intersperses each verse with snippets of sound from other sources, including opening the song with a sound bite of Dewey Martin singing "Mr. Soul" and closing it with the thumping of a heartbeat. "Expecting to Fly" was a lushly produced
balladA ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
similar to the
baroque popBaroque pop, Baroque rock, or English baroque, often used interchangeably with chamber pop/rock, is a pop and rock music subgenre which originated in the mid-1960s in the United Kingdom and United States...
of the mid-1960s, featured a string arrangement that Young's co-producer for the track,
Jack NitzscheBernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
, would dub "symphonic pop."
In May 1968, the band split up for good, but in order to fulfill a contractual obligation, a final album
Last Time AroundLast Time Around is the third and final album by folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, released in 1968 . The members included Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay, Dewey Martin, Bruce Palmer, and Jim Messina.- History :...
was released, primarily from recordings made earlier that year. Young contributed the songs "On the Way Home" and "I Am a Child", singing lead on the latter. In 1997, the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; Young did not appear at the ceremony. The three surviving members; Furay, Stills and Young appeared together as Buffalo Springfield at Young's annual Bridge School Benefit on 23–24 October 2010 and are planning a reunion tour for late 2011.
Going solo, Crazy Horse & CSNY (1968–1970)
- Main articles: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
After the breakup of Buffalo Springfield, Young signed a solo deal with
Reprise RecordsReprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:...
, home of his colleague and friend
Joni MitchellJoni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
, with whom he shared a manager,
Elliot RobertsElliot Roberts is an American music manager, record executive, and philanthropist, best known for helping start the careers of Neil Young and Joni Mitchell....
, who manages Young to this day. Young and Roberts immediately began work on Young's first solo record,
Neil YoungNeil Young is the self-titled debut studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, which was his debut release as a solo artist following his departure from the band Buffalo Springfield...
(November 1968), which received mixed reviews. In a 1970 interview, Young deprecated the album as being "overdubbed rather than played," and the quest for music that expresses the spontaneity of the moment has long been a feature of his career. Nevertheless, the album contains some songs that remain a staple of his live shows, most notably "The Loner".
For his next album, Young recruited three musicians from a band called The Rockets:
Danny WhittenDaniel Ray Whitten was an American musician and songwriter best known for his work with Neil Young and Crazy Horse, and for the song "I Don't Want To Talk About It", a hit for Rita Coolidge, Rod Stewart and Everything but the Girl.- Biography :Whitten was born on May 8, 1943, in Columbus, Georgia....
on guitar,
Billy TalbotBilly Talbot is an American singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the bassist of Crazy Horse.-Music career:Born in New York City, Talbot started his musical career singing on street corners at the age of 14. He moved to New Jersey with his family the next year, and by 17 he had moved to...
on bass guitar, and
Ralph MolinaRalph Molina is an American musician, best known as the drummer for Neil Young's backing band Crazy Horse.Born in Puerto Rico, Molina has been a member of Crazy Horse since they were formed in 1962 as Danny & the Memories. He has remained throughout the band's many personnel changes, and has...
on drums. These three took the name
Crazy HorseCrazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
(after
the historical figure of the same nameCrazy Horse was a Native American war leader of the Oglala Lakota. He took up arms against the U.S...
), and
Everybody Knows This Is NowhereEverybody Knows This Is Nowhere is the second studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released on Reprise Records catalogue RS 6349...
(May 1969), is credited to "Neil Young with Crazy Horse." Recorded in just two weeks, the album opens with one of Young's most familiar songs, "Cinnamon Girl," and is dominated by two more, "Cowgirl in the Sand" and "Down by the River," that feature lengthy jams showcasing Young's idiosyncratic guitar soloing accompanied sympathetically by Crazy Horse. Young reportedly wrote all three songs on the same day, while nursing a high fever of 103 °F (39.4 °C) in bed.
Shortly after the release of Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, Young reunited with Stephen Stills by joining
Crosby, Stills, & NashCrosby, Stills & Nash is a folk rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, also known as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when joined by occasional fourth member Neil Young...
, who had already released one album as a trio. Young was originally offered a position as a sideman, but agreed to join only if he received full membership, and the group – winners of the 1969 "Best New Artist"
Grammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
– was renamed Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The quartet debuted in Chicago on August 16, 1969, and later performed at the famous
Woodstock FestivalWoodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
, during which Young skipped the acoustic set and refused to be filmed during the electric set, even telling the cameramen: "One of you fuckin' guys comes near me and I'm gonna fuckin' hit you with my guitar". During the making of their first album, Déjà Vu, the musicians frequently argued, particularly Young and Stills, who both fought for control. Stills continued throughout their lifelong relationship to criticize Young, saying that he "wanted to play folk music in a rock band". Despite the tension, Young's tenure with CSN&Y coincided with the band's most creative and successful period, and greatly contributed to his subsequent success as a solo artist.
"Ohio" was written following the Kent State massacre on May 4, 1970, and was a staple of anti-war rallies in the 1970s. The song was quickly recorded by CSNY and immediately released as a single, even though CSNY's "Teach Your Children" was still climbing the singles charts. In the late 1970s and for much of the 1980s, Young refrained from performing "Ohio" live, as he considered the song to be dated. In the wake of the 1989
Tiananmen Square massacreThe Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, also known as the June Fourth Incident in Chinese , were a series of demonstrations in and near Tiananmen Square in Beijing in the People's Republic of China beginning on 15 April 1989...
, Young revived the song in concert, often dedicating it to the Chinese students who were killed in the massacre. Crosby, Stills & Nash, as a trio, also returned the song to their live repertoire around the same time, even though Young had provided the lead vocals on the original recording.
After the Gold Rush, acoustic tour and Harvest (1970-1972)
Later in the year, Young released his third solo album,
After the Gold RushAfter the Gold Rush is the third studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young. Released in August 1970 on Reprise Records, it was one of the four high-profile albums released by each member of folk rock collective Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in the wake of their chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu...
(1970), which featured, among others, a young
Nils LofgrenNils Hilmer Lofgren is an American rock music recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist...
,
Stephen StillsStephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
, and CSNY bassist Greg Reeves. Young also recorded some tracks with Crazy Horse, but dismissed them early in the sessions. The eventual recording was less amplified than Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, with a wider range of sounds. Young's newfound fame with CSNY made the album his commercial breakthrough as a solo artist, and it contains some of his best known work, including "Tell Me Why" and "Don't Let It Bring You Down," the country-influenced singles "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" and "When You Dance," and the title track, played on piano, with dream-like lyrics that ran a gamut of subjects from drugs and interpersonal relationships to
environmental concernsEnvironmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
. Young’s bitter condemnation of racism in the heavy blues rock song "
Southern Man"Southern Man" is a song by Neil Young from his album After the Gold Rush. The album was released in 1970.The lyrics of "Southern Man" are vivid, describing the racism towards blacks in the American South. In the song, Young tells the story of a Southern white man and how he mistreated his slaves...
" (along with a later song entitled "Alabama") was also controversial with southerners in an era of desegregation, prompting
Lynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...
to decry Young by name in the lyrics to their hit "
Sweet Home Alabama"Sweet Home Alabama" is a song by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd that first appeared in 1974 on their second album, Second Helping.It reached #8 on the US charts in 1974, and was the band's second hit single.-Creation and recording:...
". However, Young said he was a fan of Skynyrd's music, and the band's front man
Ronnie Van ZantRonald Wayne "Ronnie" Van Zant was an American lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and a founding member of the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd...
was later photographed wearing a Tonight's the Night t-shirt on the cover of an album.
In the autumn of 1970, Young began a solo acoustic tour of North America, during which he played a variety of his Buffalo Springfield and CSNY songs on guitar and piano, along with material from his solo albums and a number of new songs. Some songs premiered by Young on the tour, like "Journey through the Past", would never find a home on a studio album, while other songs, like "See the Sky About to Rain", would only be released in coming years. With CSNY splitting up and Crazy Horse having signed their own record deal, Young's tour, now entitled "Journey Through the Past", continued into early 1971, and its focus shifted more to newer songs Young had been writing- Young famously remarked that having written so many, he could not think of anything to do but play them. Many gigs were sold out, including concerts at
Carnegie HallCarnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
and a pair of acclaimed hometown shows at Toronto's
Massey HallMassey Hall is a venerable performing arts theatre in the Garden District of downtown Toronto. The theatre originally was designed to seat 3,500 patrons but, after extensive renovations in the 1940s, now seats up to 2,765....
, which were taped for a planned live album. The show became legendary among Young fans, and the recordings were officially released nearly 40 years later as an official bootleg in Young's Archive series.
Near the end of his tour, Young performed one of the new acoustic songs on the Johnny Cash on Campus TV show. "
The Needle and the Damage Done"The Needle and the Damage Done" is a song by Neil Young that describes the descent into heroin addiction of musicians he knew. It was written about the heroin use of his Crazy Horse guitarist Danny Whitten, and previews the theme of "Tonight's the Night", a song that addresses the heroin overdose...
", a somber lament on the pain caused by heroin addiction, had been inspired in part by the heavy heroin use of Crazy Horse member
Danny WhittenDaniel Ray Whitten was an American musician and songwriter best known for his work with Neil Young and Crazy Horse, and for the song "I Don't Want To Talk About It", a hit for Rita Coolidge, Rod Stewart and Everything but the Girl.- Biography :Whitten was born on May 8, 1943, in Columbus, Georgia....
, who eventually died of an overdose. While in Nashville for the Cash taping, Young made a sudden connection with a new group of country-music session musicians, whom he christened
The Stray GatorsThe Stray Gators were the musicians Jack Nitzsche , Ben Keith , Tim Drummond and Kenny Buttrey that supported Neil Young in 1972 on his hit album Harvest, for which Nitzsche also produced two songs...
, and began playing with them; Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor also began to work with the group. Against the advice of his producer David Briggs, he scrapped plans for the imminent release of the live acoustic recording and quickly recorded much of his new material with the Stray Gators in Nashville, later adding two recordings made with an orchestra in London. The result was Young's fourth album, Harvest (1972), which would prove to be a massive hit. The only remnant left of the original concept was the album's live acoustic performance of the harrowing "Needle."
Young's more settled personal life was reflected in the rest of the Harvest album's mellow, pastoral tone. After his success with CSNY, Young had been able to purchase a ranch in rural Northern California (where he has lived since), writing the song "Old Man" in honor of the land's longtime caretaker, Louis Avila. On September 8, 1972, the actress
Carrie SnodgressCaroline "Carrie" Snodgress was an American actress.-Biography:Snodgress was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. She attended Maine Township High School East in Park Ridge then Northern Illinois University before leaving to pursue acting. Snodgress trained for the stage at the Goodman Theatre, in Chicago...
, with whom he had been living, gave birth to Neil Young's first child (the boy, Zeke, was later diagnosed with
cerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
). Young fell in love with Snodgress after seeing her in a movie,
Diary of a Mad HousewifeDiary of a Mad Housewife is a 1967 novel that was adapted into 1970 drama film about a frustrated wife, portrayed by Carrie Snodgress, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won a Golden Globe award in the same category. The film was adapted by Eleanor Perry from the 1967...
; Young wrote about this experience in the song "A Man Needs a Maid". Originally, for example in his Massey Hall concert, Young had played a fragment of another new song, "Heart of Gold," as part of "A Man Needs a Maid," but eventually, he separated the songs. "Heart of Gold," now played on guitar and harmonica, was released as the first single from Harvest, became a US number one single and remains the only No. 1 hit in his long career. "Old Man" was also immensely popular.
The album's recording had been almost accidental. Its mainstream success caught Young off guard, and his first instinct was to back away from stardom. In the
DecadeDecade is a triple album compilation by Neil Young, released in 1977, now available on two compact discs. It contains 35 of Young's songs recorded between 1966 and 1976, among them five tracks that had been unreleased up to that point...
compilation, Young chose to include his greatest hits from the period, but his handwritten liner notes famously described "Heart of Gold" as the song that "put me in the middle of the road. Traveling there soon became a bore, so I headed for the ditch. A rougher ride but I saw more interesting people there."
The "Ditch" Trilogy and personal struggles (1972–1974)
Although a new tour had been planned to follow up on the success of Harvest, it became apparent during rehearsals that Danny Whitten could not function due to drug abuse. On November 18, 1972, shortly after he was fired from the tour preparations, Whitten was found dead of an overdose. Young described the incident to Rolling Stone’s
Cameron CroweCameron Bruce Crowe is an American screenwriter and film director. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at Rolling Stone magazine, for which he still frequently writes....
in 1975: "[We] were rehearsing with him and he just couldn't cut it. He couldn't remember anything. He was too out of it. Too far gone. I had to tell him to go back to L.A. 'It's not happening, man. You're not together enough.' He just said, 'I've got nowhere else to go, man. How am I gonna tell my friends?' And he split. That night the coroner called me from L.A. and told me he'd OD'd. That blew my mind. I loved Danny. I felt responsible. And from there, I had to go right out on this huge tour of huge arenas. I was very nervous and ... insecure."
On the tour, Young struggled with his voice and with the constantly changing band lineups, and called
David CrosbyDavid Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR...
and
Graham NashGraham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
to help perform some of the music. The album assembled in the aftermath of this incident,
Time Fades AwayTime Fades Away is a 1973 live album by Neil Young, consisting of previously unreleased material. It was recorded with The Stray Gators on the tour following 1972's highly successful Harvest and has not been reissued on CD due to Young's dissatisfaction with that particular series of concerts...
(1973), has often been described by Young as "[his] least favorite record," and it is one of only two of Young’s early recordings that has yet to be officially re-released on CD (the other being the soundtrack album
Journey Through the PastJourney Through the Past is a soundtrack album from the film of the same name by Neil Young, released in November of 1972 on Reprise Records, catalogue 6480. It peaked at #45 on the Billboard 200, and since its initial release on vinyl, cassette tape and 8-track tape cartridge it has remained out...
). Nevertheless, Young and his band tried several new musical approaches in this period. Time Fades Away, for instance, was recorded live, although it was an album of new material, an approach Young would repeat with more success later on. Time was the first of three consecutive commercial failures which would later become known collectively to fans as the "
Ditch TrilogyThe Ditch Trilogy refers to a trio of rock music albums by Neil Young made in the wake of his chart-topping best-seller, Harvest. The moniker derives from a quote by Young, printed in the self-penned track-by-track liner notes to his career summary compilation Decade of 1977...
", as contrasted with the more middle-of-the-road pop of Harvest. These subsequent albums were seen as more challenging expressions of Young's inner conflicts on achieving success, expressing both the specific struggles of his friends and himself, and the decaying idealism of his generation in America at the time.
In the second half of 1973, Young formed The Santa Monica Flyers, with Crazy Horse's rhythm section augmented by
Nils LofgrenNils Hilmer Lofgren is an American rock music recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist...
on guitar. Deeply affected by the drug-induced deaths of Whitten and roadie
Bruce BerryBruce Berry was a professional roadie for the members of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, both as a group and individually. He got his start by working at his brother Ken's store SIR which brought him steady gigs. His happy, charismatic personality endeared him to the group and he was always on the...
, Young recorded an album specifically inspired by the incidents, Tonight's the Night. The album's dark tone and rawness led Reprise to delay and Young had to pressure them for two years before they would release it. While his record company delayed the release, Young recorded another album, On the Beach (1974), which presented a more melodic, acoustic sound at times, including a recording of the older song "See the Sky About to Rain", but dealt with similarly dark themes such as the collapse of '60s folk ideals, the downside of success and the underbelly of the Californian lifestyle. Like Time Fades Away, it sold poorly but eventually became a critical favorite, presenting some of Young's most original work. A review of the 2003 re-release on CD of On the Beach described the music as "mesmerizing, harrowing, lucid, and bleary".
After completing On the Beach, Young reunited with Harvest producer Elliot Mazer to record another acoustic album, Homegrown. Most of the songs were written after Young's breakup with Carrie Snodgress, and thus the tone of the album was somewhat dark. Though Homegrown was reportedly entirely complete, Young decided, not for the first or last time in his career, to drop it and release something else instead, in this case, Tonight's the Night, at the suggestion of
The BandThe Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
bassist
Rick DankoRichard Clare "Rick" Danko was a Canadian musician and singer, best known as a member of The Band.-Early years :...
. Young further explained his move by saying: "It was a little too personal ... it scared me". Most of the songs from Homegrown were later incorporated into other Young albums, but the original album never surfaced. Tonight's the Night, when finally released in 1975, sold poorly, as had the previous albums of the "ditch" trilogy, and received mixed reviews at the time, but is now regarded as a landmark album. In Young's own opinion, it was the closest he ever came to art.
Reunions, retrospectives and Rust Never Sleeps (1975–1979)
Young reformed Crazy Horse with
Frank SampedroFrank "Poncho" Sampedro is an American guitarist and member of the rock and roll band Crazy Horse, known mainly for its longtime collaboration with singer-songwriter Neil Young....
on guitar as his backup band for his eighth album,
ZumaZuma is the seventh studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, his second with Crazy Horse, released in 1975. Some believe the album was named after Zuma Beach in Malibu; however, it seems more logical that the title comes from Montezuma, as he is featured prominently in the song Cortez The...
(1975). Many of the songs are overtly concerned with failed relationships, and even the epic "
Cortez the Killer"Cortez the Killer" is a song by Neil Young from his 1975 album, Zuma. It was recorded with Young's band Crazy Horse and ranked #39 on Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos and #321 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time....
", a retelling of the Spanish conquest of Mexico from the viewpoint of the
AztecThe Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
s, may also be heard as an allegory of love lost. The song's deeply emotional lyrics and searing guitar solos made it one of Young's most enduring songs in concert over the next several decades. Zumas closing track, "Through My Sails," was the only released fragment from aborted sessions with Crosby, Stills and Nash for another group album. The following year, Young reunited with Stephen Stills for the album
Long May You Run-Side two:-Personnel:* Neil Young – vocals, guitars, piano, harmonica, synthesizer* Stephen Stills – vocals, guitar, piano* Jerry Aiello – organ, piano* George "Chocolate" Perry – bass, backing vocals...
(1976), credited to The Stills-Young Band; the follow-up tour was ended midway through by Young, who sent Stills a telegram that read: "Funny how some things that start spontaneously end that way. Eat a peach, Neil."
In 1976, Young performed with Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, and numerous other rock musicians in the high profile all-star concert
The Last WaltzThe Last Waltz was a concert by the rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco...
, the final performance by The Band. The release of
Martin ScorseseMartin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's movie of the concert was delayed while Scorsese unwillingly re-edited it to obscure the lump of cocaine that was clearly visible hanging from Young's nose during his performance of
"Helpless.""Helpless" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young, most famously recorded by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on their 1970 album Déjà Vu....
American Stars 'N Bars (1977) contained two songs originally recorded for Homegrown album, "Homegrown" and "Star of Bethlehem," as well as newer material, including the future concert staple "
Like a Hurricane"Like a Hurricane" is a song written by Neil Young in 1975 and first released on the album American Stars 'N Bars in 1977.-History:The song was written in July 1975 with friend and La Honda neighbor Taylor Phelps in the back of his car, , when Neil Young was unable to sing due to an operation on...
". Performers on the record included
Linda RonstadtLinda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
,
Emmylou HarrisEmmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
and Young protégé
Nicolette LarsonNicolette Larson was an American pop singer. She is perhaps best known for her work in the late 1970s with Neil Young, as well as her 1978 cover of Young's "Lotta Love". The song, her debut single, was a Number One Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks hit and #8 pop hit that year...
along with Crazy Horse. In 1977, Young also released the compilation
DecadeDecade is a triple album compilation by Neil Young, released in 1977, now available on two compact discs. It contains 35 of Young's songs recorded between 1966 and 1976, among them five tracks that had been unreleased up to that point...
, a personally selected set of songs spanning every aspect of his work, including a handful of previously unreleased songs. The record's sequencing, unusually for the time, resembled a live setlist and included less commercial album favorites alongside Young's greatest radio hits.
Comes a TimeComes a Time is the ninth album by Neil Young, and a return to the country/folk rock sound of Harvest . Many of the tracks include harmony vocals from Nicolette Larson. Originally, it had started out as a solo record, but when Young played it for Reprise executives they asked him if he wouldn't...
(1978), Young's first entirely new solo recording since the mid '70s, also featured Nicolette Larson and Crazy Horse and became Young's most commercially accessible album in quite some time, marked by a return to Young's folk roots, including a cover of Ian Tyson's "Four Strong Winds," a song Young associated with his childhood in Canada. In 1978 much of the filming was done for Young's film
Human HighwayHuman Highway is a 1982 comedy film starring and co-directed by Neil Young under his pseudonym Bernard Shakey. Dean Stockwell co-directed the film and acted along with Russ Tamblyn, Dennis Hopper, and the band Devo...
, which took its name from one of the album's songs. Over four years Young would spend $3,000,000 of his own money on production. This also marked the beginning of his brief collaboration with the post-punk band
DevoDevo is an American band formed in 1973 consisting of members from Kent and Akron, Ohio. The classic line-up of the band includes two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales . The band had a #14 Billboard chart hit in 1980 with the single "Whip It", and has maintained a cult...
, whose members appeared in the film.
Young set out in 1978 on the lengthy "Rust Never Sleeps" tour, in which he played a wealth of new material. Each concert was divided into a solo acoustic set and an electric set with Crazy Horse. The electric sets, more furiously distorted than Young's work in the past, were later seen as a response to punk rock. One new song, "
Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)"Hey Hey, My My " is a rock song by Neil Young. Combined with its acoustic counterpart "My My, Hey Hey ", it bookends Young's successful 1979 album Rust Never Sleeps...
", was a centerpiece of the new material, and Young played it in both acoustic and electric renditions. Its blunt, but cryptic, lyrics have been among Young's most widely quoted ever since, addressing fame, commerce and rock n' roll, which according to Young's opening lines, "can never die." Young also compared the rise of Johnny Rotten with that of the recently deceased "King"
Elvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, who himself had once been disparaged as a dangerous influence only to later become an
iconA pop icon is a celebrity, character, or object whose exposure in pop culture constitutes a defining characteristic of a given society or era. The categorization is usually associated with elements such as longevity, ubiquity, and distinction. Moreover, "pop icon" status is distinguishable from...
. Rotten returned the favour by playing one of Young's records on a London radio show, an early sign of Young's eventual embrace by a number of punk-influenced alternative musicians.
Young's two accompanying albums
Rust Never SleepsRust Never Sleeps is an album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse released in 1979. The bulk of the album was recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, with overdubs added. Audience noise is removed as much as possible, although it is clearly audible at certain points, most noticeably on the opening...
(new material, culled from live recordings, but featuring studio overdubs) and
Live RustLive Rust is a live album by Neil Young & Crazy Horse, recorded during his fall 1978 Rust Never Sleeps tour. The show at the Cow Palace, San Francisco was filmed and was the performance used in the concert film, Rust Never Sleeps; however, the album Live Rust was composed of performances...
(a mixture of old and new, and a genuine concert recording) captured the two sides of the concerts, with solo acoustic songs on side A, and fierce, uptempo, electric songs on side B. A movie version of the concerts, also called Rust Never Sleeps (1979), was directed by Young under the pseudonym Bernard Shakey. Young worked with rock artist
Jim EvansJim Evans born sometime in the 1950s, sometimes known as T.A.Z., is an American painter, printmaker, and Creative Director who was a contributing figure in the visual art movement known as underground comics...
to create the poster art for the film, using the "Star Wars" Jawas as a theme. Young's work since Harvest had alternated between being rejected by mass audiences and being seen as backward looking by critics, sometimes both at once, and now he was suddenly viewed as relevant by a new generation, who began to rediscover his earlier work. Readers and critics of Rolling Stone voted him Artist of the Year for 1979 (along with The Who), selected
Rust Never SleepsRust Never Sleeps is an album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse released in 1979. The bulk of the album was recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, with overdubs added. Audience noise is removed as much as possible, although it is clearly audible at certain points, most noticeably on the opening...
as Album Of The Year, and voted him Male Vocalist of the Year as well.
The Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
named Rust Never Sleeps as the year's winner in the Pazz & Jop Poll, a survey of nationwide critics, and honored Young as the Artist of the Decade.
Experimental years (1980-1988)
The 1980s were often difficult times for Young, both personally and professionally. At the start of the decade, distracted by domestic medical concerns relating to his second disabled son, Ben, Young had little time to spend on writing and recording. After providing the incidental music to a 1980 biopic of
Hunter S. ThompsonHunter Stockton Thompson was an American journalist and author who wrote The Rum Diary , Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 .He is credited as the creator of Gonzo journalism, a style of reporting where reporters involve themselves in the action to...
entitled
Where the Buffalo RoamWhere the Buffalo Roam is a 1980 American semi-biographical comedy film which loosely depicts Hunter S. Thompson's rise to fame in the 1970s and his relationship with Chicano attorney and activist Oscar Zeta Acosta. Art Linson directed the picture, while Bill Murray portrayed the author and Peter...
, Young released
Hawks & DovesHawks & Doves is the tenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young. Its two sides were recorded in different circumstances, side one being culled from sessions dating from approximately 1974 through 1977, and side two from sessions specifically for the album in early 1980. The record peaked at...
, a short record pieced together from sessions going back to 1974. 1981's
Re-ac-torRe-ac-tor is the eleventh studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, and his third with Crazy Horse, released in 1981. The album married the electric guitar crunch of the late '70s Crazy Horse sound with early '80s new wave rhythms...
, an electric album recorded with Crazy Horse, also included material from the 1970s. Young did not tour in support of either album; in total, he played only one show, a set at the 1980 Bread and Roses Festival in
BerkeleyBerkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
, between the end of his 1978 tour with Crazy Horse and the start of his tour with the Trans Band in mid-1982.
The 1982 album
TransTrans is the twelfth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 1982. Recorded partially and released during his notorious Geffen era in the 1980s, Trans baffled many Neil Young fans. Some suggested that the album could be a satirical message that Young was trying to send about the...
, which incorporated
vocoderA vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder...
s, synthesizers, and electronic beats, was Young's first for new label
Geffen RecordsGeffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
(distributed at the time by
Warner Bros. RecordsWarner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
, whose parent
Warner Music GroupWarner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
owns most of Young's solo and band catalog) and represented a distinct stylistic departure. Young later revealed that an inspiration for the album was the theme of technology and communication with his son Ben, who has severe
cerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
and cannot speak. An extensive tour preceded the release of the album, and was documented by the video
Neil Young in BerlinNeil Young In Berlin is a live video by Neil Young, directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg and recorded in 1982. It was issued on VHS Video & later on DVD.-Track listing:# "Cinnamon Girl"# "Computer Age"# "Little Thing Called Love"# "Old Man"...
, which saw release in 1986.
Young's next album, 1983's
Everybody's Rockin'Everybody's Rockin' is the thirteenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 1983. The album was recorded with the Shocking Pinks , and features a selection of rockabilly songs . Running 25 minutes, it is Young's shortest album...
, included several
rockabillyRockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
covers and clocked in at less than twenty-five minutes in length. Young was backed by the Shocking Pinks for the supporting U.S. tour. Trans had already drawn the ire of label head
David GeffenDavid Geffen is an American record executive, film producer, theatrical producer and philanthropist. Geffen is noted for creating Asylum Records in 1970, Geffen Records in 1980, and DGC Records in 1990...
for its lack of commercial appeal, and with Everybody's Rockin following only seven months later, Geffen Records sued Young for making music "unrepresentative" of himself. The album was also notable as the first for which Young made commercial music videos –
Tim PopeTimothy Michael Pope is a film director most famous for his music videos, having directed feature films, and for a brief pop career.-Early life and career:...
directed the videos for "Wonderin'" and "Cry, Cry, Cry". Also premiered in 1983, though little seen, was the eclectic full-length comedy film
Human HighwayHuman Highway is a 1982 comedy film starring and co-directed by Neil Young under his pseudonym Bernard Shakey. Dean Stockwell co-directed the film and acted along with Russ Tamblyn, Dennis Hopper, and the band Devo...
, co-directed and co-written by Young, and starring Young,
Dean StockwellDean Stockwell is an American actor of film and television, with a career spanning over 65 years. As a child actor under contract to MGM he first came to the public's attention in films such as Anchors Aweigh and The Green Years; as a young adult he played a lead role in the 1957 Broadway and...
,
Russ TamblynRussell Irving "Russ" Tamblyn is an American film and television actor, who is arguably best known for his performance in the 1961 movie musical West Side Story as Riff, the leader of the Jets gang....
,
Dennis HopperDennis Lee Hopper was an American actor, filmmaker and artist. As a young man, Hopper became interested in acting and eventually became a student of the Actors' Studio. He made his first television appearance in 1954 and appeared in two films featuring James Dean, Rebel Without a Cause and Giant...
and members of
DevoDevo is an American band formed in 1973 consisting of members from Kent and Akron, Ohio. The classic line-up of the band includes two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales . The band had a #14 Billboard chart hit in 1980 with the single "Whip It", and has maintained a cult...
.
1984 was the first year without a Neil Young album since the start of Young's musical career with Buffalo Springfield in 1966. Young's lack of productivity was largely due to the ongoing legal battle with Geffen, although he was also frustrated that the label had rejected his 1982 country album Old Ways. It was also the year when Young's third child, his second with wife Pegi, was born: his daughter Amber Jean, a child who was later diagnosed with inherited epilepsy. Young spent most of 1984 and all of 1985 touring for
Old WaysOld Ways is the fourteenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 1985. Young refers to this album in interviews as Old Ways II, as he had originally planned to release a country album titled Old Ways in 1983. Geffen objected to this, asking Young for a "rock 'n roll" album,...
with his country band, the International Harvesters. The album was finally released in an altered form midway through 1985. Young also appeared at that year's
Live AidLive Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
concert in Philadelphia, collaborating with Crosby, Stills and Nash for the quartet's first performance for a paying audience in over ten years.
Young's last two albums for Geffen were more conventional in genre, although they incorporated production techniques like synthesizers and echoing drums that were previously uncommon in Young's music. Young recorded 1986's
Landing on WaterLanding on Water is the fifthteenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released on July 28, 1986 .-History:Several of the songs on the album were resurrected from Neil Young and Crazy Horse's failed 1984 sessions - a set of sessions where, according to longtime producer David Briggs, the...
without Crazy Horse, but reunited with the band for the subsequent year-long tour and final Geffen album,
LifeLife is the sixteenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, his fourth with Crazy Horse, Young's first with his erstwhile backing band since 1981's Re-ac-tor, and Young's last release on the Geffen label....
, which emerged in 1987. Young's album sales dwindled steadily throughout the eighties; today Life remains his all-time-least successful studio album, with an estimated four hundred thousand sales worldwide.
Switching back to his old label Reprise Records, Young continued to tour relentlessly, assembling a new blues band called The Bluenotes in mid-1987 (a legal dispute with musician Harold Melvin forced the eventual rechristening of the band as Ten Men Working midway through the tour). The addition of a brass section provided a new
jazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
ier sound, and the title track of 1988's
This Note's For YouThis Note's for You is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 1988. It was originally credited to Young and the Bluenotes. Most of the album's concept centered around the commercialism of rock and roll, and tours in particular...
became Young's first hit single of the decade. Accompanied by a video that parodied corporate rock, the pretensions of advertising, and
Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, the song was initially unofficially banned by MTV for mentioning the brand names of some of their sponsors. Young wrote an open letter, "What does the M in MTV stand for: music or money?" Despite this, the video was eventually named best video of the year by the network in 1989. By comparison, the major music cable network of Young's home nation,
MuchmusicMuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
, ran the video immediately.
Young reunited with Crosby, Stills and Nash to record the 1988 album
American DreamAmerican Dream is the 1988 reunion album for Crosby, Stills & Nash with Neil Young.Released on November 3, 1988, there was great anticipation for the quartet's first studio album in eighteen years, but all four performers were in fact at various ebbs in their songwriting. The harmonies still...
and play two benefit concerts late in the year, but the group did not embark upon a full tour. The album was only the second-ever studio record for the quartet.
Return to prominence (1989-1999)
Young's 1989 single "
Rockin' in the Free World"Rockin' in the Free World" is a song by Neil Young, released on his 1989 album Freedom. Two versions of the song were released, similar to the song "Hey Hey, My My " of Young's Rust Never Sleeps album, one of which is performed with a predominantly acoustic arrangement, and the other with a...
", which hit #2 on the U.S. mainstream-rock charts, and accompanying album, Freedom, rocketed him back into the popular consciousness after a decade of sometimes-difficult genre experiments. The album's lyrics were often overtly political; "Rockin' in the Free World" deals with homelessness, terrorism, and environmental degradation, implicitly criticizing the government policies of President George H.W. Bush.
The use of heavy
feedbackFeedback describes the situation when output from an event or phenomenon in the past will influence an occurrence or occurrences of the same Feedback describes the situation when output from (or information about the result of) an event or phenomenon in the past will influence an occurrence or...
and distortion on several Freedom tracks was reminiscent of the
Rust Never SleepsRust Never Sleeps is an album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse released in 1979. The bulk of the album was recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, with overdubs added. Audience noise is removed as much as possible, although it is clearly audible at certain points, most noticeably on the opening...
album, and foreshadowed the imminent rise of
grungeGrunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
. The rising stars of the genre, including
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
's
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
and
Pearl JamPearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
's
Eddie VedderEddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...
, frequently cited Young as a major influence, contributing to his popular revival. A tribute album called
The Bridge: A Tribute to Neil YoungThe Bridge: A Tribute To Neil Young is a 1989 anthology album that features a variety of alternative rock bands covering songs written by Neil Young. A portion of the profits from the album were donated to The Bridge School, which develops and uses advanced technologies to aid in the instruction of...
was released in 1989, featuring covers by alternative and grunge acts including
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
,
Nick CaveNicholas Edward "Nick" Cave is an Australian musician, songwriter, author, screenwriter, and occasional film actor.He is best known for his work as a frontman of the critically acclaimed rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, established in 1984, a group known for its eclectic influences and...
,
Soul AsylumSoul Asylum is an American alternative rock band that formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1983.The band originally formed in 1981 under the name Loud Fast Rules, with the original line-up consisting of Dan Murphy, Dave Pirner, Karl Mueller and Pat Morley. The latter was replaced by Grant Young in...
,
Dinosaur JrDinosaur Jr. is an American alternative rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1984. Originally called Dinosaur, prior to legal issues that forced the group to change their name, the band disbanded in 1997 until reuniting in 2005...
, and the Pixies.
Young's 1990 album
Ragged GloryRagged Glory is the twentieth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, his fifth with Crazy Horse, released in 1990.The album revisits the hard rock style previously explored on Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere and Zuma...
, recorded with Crazy Horse in a barn on his
Northern CaliforniaNorthern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...
ranch, continued this distortion-heavy aesthetic. Young toured for the album with Orange County, California country-punk band
Social DistortionSocial Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness , Jonny Wickersham , Brent Harding and David Hidalgo, Jr...
and
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
pioneers
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
as support, much to the consternation of many of his old fans.
WeldWeld is a live album and concert video by Neil Young & Crazy Horse released in 1991, comprising performances recorded on the tour to promote the Ragged Glory album...
, a two-disc live album documenting the tour, was released in 1991. Sonic Youth's influence was most evident on
ArcArc is a composition of feedback, guitar noise, and vocal fragments that was realized from various shows on the 1991 Neil Young and Crazy Horse US tour, which was originally released with Weld in a special-edition 3-CD set called Arc-Weld...
, a 35-minute collage of feedback and distortion spliced together at the suggestion of Sonic Youth's
Thurston MooreThurston Joseph Moore is an American musician best known as a singer, songwriter and guitarist of Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside of Sonic Youth, as well as running the Ecstatic Peace! record label...
and originally packaged with some versions of Weld.
1992's
Harvest MoonHarvest Moon is the twenty-first studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 1992. Many of the musicians appearing on it also appeared on his 1972 album Harvest, and this album is considered by many to be a pseudo-sequel to Harvest....
marked an abrupt return to the country and folk-rock stylings of Harvest and reunited him with some of the musicians from that album, including singers
Linda RonstadtLinda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
and
James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
. The title track was a minor hit and the record was well received by critics, winning the
Juno Award for Album of the YearThe Juno Award for "Album of the Year" has been awarded since 1975, as recognition each year for the best album in Canada. It was also known as Best Album , and Best Selling Album .-Best Album :...
in 1994. Young also contributed to
Randy BachmanRandolph Charles "Randy" Bachman, OC, OM is a Canadian musician best known as lead guitarist, songwriter and a founding member for both the 1960s–70s rock band The Guess Who, and the 1970s rock band Bachman–Turner Overdrive...
's nostalgic 1992 tune "Prairie Town," and garnered a 1993 Academy Award nomination for his song "Philadelphia", from the
soundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
of the
Jonathan DemmeRobert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
movie of the same name. An
MTV UnpluggedUnplugged is a 1993 live album by Neil Young. It contains a previously unreleased song "Stringman", that dates from 1976. The taping of the show was also released on VHS....
performance and album emerged in 1993. Later that year, Young collaborated with Booker T. and the M.G.s for a summer tour of Europe and North America. Some European shows ended with a rendition of "Rockin' in the Free World" played with
Pearl JamPearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
, foreshadowing their eventual full-scale collaboration two years later.
In 1994 Young again collaborated with Crazy Horse for
Sleeps with AngelsSleeps With Angels is the twenty-second studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, his sixth with Crazy Horse, released on the Warner Bros. Records/Reprise label....
, a record whose dark, sombre mood was influenced by
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
's death earlier that year; the title track in particular dealt with Cobain's life and death, without mentioning him by name. Cobain had quoted Young's lyric "It's better to burn out than fade away" (a line from "My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)") in his suicide note, causing Young to then on emphasize the line "'cause once you're gone you can't come back" when performing the song. Young had reportedly made repeated attempts to contact Cobain prior to his death. Still enamored with the grunge scene, Young reconnected with Pearl Jam in 1995 for the live-in-the-studio album
Mirror BallMirror Ball is the twenty-third studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, his only album featuring Pearl Jam, released on June 27, 1995 through Reprise Records. The album has been certified gold by the RIAA in the United States.-Recording:...
and a tour of Europe with the band and producer
Brendan O'BrienBrendan O’Brien is a record producer, mixer, engineer, and musician.At age 14, O'Brien played guitar for the Atlanta-based cover band Pranks. In the late 1970s, he moved on to writing, performing and recording with the Samurai Catfish band...
backing Young. 1995 also marked Young's induction into the
Rock and Roll Hall of FameThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
, where he was inducted by Eddie Vedder.
Young's next collaborative partner was filmmaker
Jim JarmuschJames R. "Jim" Jarmusch is an American independent film director, screenwriter, actor, producer, editor and composer. Jarmusch has been a major proponent of independent cinema, particularly during the 1980s and 1990s.-Early life:...
, who asked Young to compose a
soundtrack to his 1995 black and white western film
Dead ManDead Man is a 1995 American Western film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. It stars Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Billy Bob Thornton, Iggy Pop, Crispin Glover, John Hurt, Michael Wincott, Lance Henriksen, and Robert Mitchum . The film, dubbed an "Acid Western" by its director, includes twisted...
. Young's instrumental soundtrack was improvised while he watched the film alone in a studio. The death of longtime mentor, friend, and producer
David BriggsDavid Briggs was an American record producer best known for his work with Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse. He is noted for his eclectic imagination and style.-Early life:David Briggs was born in Douglas, Wyoming...
in late 1995 prompted Young to reconnect with Crazy Horse the following year for the album and tour
Broken ArrowBroken Arrow is the twenty-fourth studio album by Neil Young, and his seventh with Crazy Horse. The first three songs are in the form of long, structured jams...
. A Jarmusch-directed concert film and live album of the tour,
Year of the HorseYear of the Horse is a 1997 documentary directed by Jim Jarmusch following Neil Young and Crazy Horse on their 1996 tour.-Eponymous album:Year of the Horse is also a live album by Neil Young & Crazy Horse released in 1997...
, emerged in 1997. From 1996–97 Young and Crazy Horse toured extensively throughout Europe and North America, including a stint as part of the
H.O.R.D.E.Horizons of Rock Developing Everywhere or H.O.R.D.E. Festival was a touring summer rock music festival originated by the musical group Blues Traveler in 1992. In addition to travelling headliners, the festival gave exposure to bands, charities, and organizations from the local area of the...
Festival's sixth annual tour.
In 1998, Young renewed his collaboration with rock band
PhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
, sharing the stage at the annual
Farm AidFarm Aid started as a benefit concert on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, held to raise money for family farmers in the United States...
concert and then at Young's Bridge School Benefit, where he joined headliners Phish for renditions of "Helpless" and "I Shall Be Released." Phish declined Young's later invitation to be his backing band on his 1999 North American tour.
The decade ended with the release in late 1999 of
Looking ForwardLooking Forward is an album by folk rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, released on Oct 26, 1999.-Track listing:#"Faith in Me" – 4:21 Take 1, recorded 5:26 PM, January 23, 1997 at Ga Ga's Room, Los Angeles, CA...
, another reunion with Crosby, Stills and Nash. The subsequent tour of the United States and Canada with the reformed super quartet earned $42.1 million, making it the eighth largest grossing tour of 2000.
Renewed activism and brush with death (2000s)
Neil Young continued to release new material at a rapid pace through the first decade of the new millennium. The studio album
Silver & GoldSilver & Gold is the twenty-fifth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 2000. Many of these songs were written in the late 1990s, though the song "Silver & Gold," which by his own estimation, he had been trying to get "the take" for around ten years, was written in...
and live album
Road Rock Vol. 1Road Rock Vol. 1: Friends & Relatives is a live album released in 2000 by Neil Young. The "friends and relatives" include Ben Keith, Chrissie Hynde, Duck Dunn, Young's wife, Pegi, and his sister, Astrid...
were released in 2000 and were both accompanied by live concert films. His 2001 single "Let's Roll" was a tribute to the victims of the September 11 attacks, and the
effective action taken by the passengers and crew"Let's roll" is a catchphrase that has been used extensively as a term to move and start an activity, attack, mission or project. After the September 11 attacks, the phrase, especially in the United States, has come to symbolize heroism, self sacrifice and initiative in a tough situation...
on
Flight 93United Airlines Flight 93 was United Airlines' scheduled morning transcontinental flight across the United States from Newark International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, to San Francisco International Airport in California. On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, the Boeing 757–222 aircraft operating the...
in particular. At the "
America: A Tribute to HeroesAmerica: A Tribute to Heroes was a benefit concert created by the heads of the four broadcast networks. Joel Gallen was selected by them to produce and run the show Joel Gallen. Actor George Clooney wrangled the celebrities to performed and to man the telephone bank . The marketing and public...
" benefit concert for the victims of the attacks, Young performed
John LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's "
Imagine"Imagine" is a song written and performed by the English musician John Lennon. It is the opening track on his album Imagine, released in 1971...
" and accompanied Eddie Vedder and
Mike McCreadyMichael David McCready is an American musician who serves as the lead guitarist for the American rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Dave Krusen, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of Pearl Jam...
on the song "Long Road", a Pearl Jam song that was written with Young during the Mirrorball sessions. "Let's Roll" was included on 2002's
Are You Passionate?Are You Passionate? is the twenty-sixth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, the only album to feature Booker T. & the M.G.'s, and his eighth with Crazy Horse, released in 2002. It represents Young's foray into soul music, not sounding like anything he had previously released...
, an album mostly composed of mellow love songs dedicated to Young's wife, Pegi, backed by Booker T & the MGs. Young was not the only Canadian singer who performed at the benefit concert;
Celine DionCéline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
sang "
God Bless America"God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin in 1918 and revised by him in 1938. The later version has notably been recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature song ....
."
In 2003, Young released
GreendaleGreendale is the name of an album, movie and graphic novel by Neil Young. As the twenty-seventh album by Neil Young, Young and Crazy Horse's Greendale, a 10-song rock opera, is set in a fictional California seaside town...
, a concept album recorded with Crazy Horse members Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina. The songs loosely revolved around the murder of a police officer in a small town in California and its effects on the town's inhabitants. Young, under the pseudonym "Bernard Shakey", directed an accompanying film of the same name, featuring actors lip-synching to the music from the album. Young toured extensively with the Greendale material throughout 2003 and 2004, first with a solo, acoustic version in Europe, then with a full-cast stage show in North America, Japan, and Australia. Young began using
biodieselBiodiesel refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids with an alcohol....
on the 2004 Greendale tour, powering his trucks and tour buses with the fuel. "Our Greendale tour is now ozone friendly,” Young said. “I plan to continue to use this government approved and regulated fuel exclusively from now on to prove that it is possible to deliver the goods anywhere in North America without using foreign oil, while being environmentally responsible.” Young spent the latter portion of 2004 giving a series of intimate acoustic concerts in various cities with his wife, who is a trained vocalist and guitar player.
In March 2005, while working on the Prairie Wind album in
NashvilleNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Young was diagnosed with a brain
aneurysmAn aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
. He was treated successfully with a minimally invasive
neuroradiologicalNeuroradiology is a subspecialty of radiology focusing on the diagnosis and characterization of abnormalities of the central and peripheral nervous system, spine, and head and neck. Primary imaging modalities include computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging...
procedure, performed in a New York hospital on March 29. Two days afterwards, Young passed out on a New York street from bleeding from the
femoral arteryThe femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone....
, which surgeons had used to access the aneurysm. The complication forced Young to cancel his scheduled appearance at the Juno Awards telecast in Winnipeg, but within months he was back on stage, appearing at the close of the
Live 8Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 Conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland from 6–8 July 2005; they also coincided with the 20th anniversary of Live Aid...
concert in
Barrie, OntarioBarrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, located on the western shore of Lake Simcoe, approximately 90 km north of Toronto. Although located in Simcoe County, the city is politically independent...
on July 2. During the performance, he debuted a new song, a soft hymn called "When God Made Me". Young's brush with death influenced Prairie Winds themes of retrospection and mortality. The album's live premiere in Nashville was immortalized by filmmaker
Jonathan DemmeRobert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
in the 2006 film
Neil Young: Heart of GoldNeil Young: Heart of Gold is a 2006 documentary and concert film by Jonathan Demme, featuring Neil Young. The film was made in the summer of 2005 in Nashville, Tennessee, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and was released to theaters on February 10, 2006...
.
Young's renewed activism manifested itself in the 2006 album
Living With WarLiving with War is the twenty-ninth Grammy and Juno Award-nominated studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 2006. The album's lyrics, titles, and conceptual style are highly critical of the policies of the George W. Bush administration; the CTV website defined it as "a musical...
, which like the much earlier song "Ohio," was recorded and released in less than a month as a direct result of current events. In early 2006, three years after the US invasion of Iraq, the sectarian war and casualties there were escalating. While doing errands on a visit to his daughter, Young had seen a newspaper photo of wounded US veterans on a transport plane to Germany, and noticing that the same paper devoted little actual coverage to the story, he was unable to get the image out of his head, realizing the suffering caused to families by the war had not truly registered to him and most Americans who were not directly affected by it. Young broke down crying, and immediately got his guitar out and began to write multiple songs at once. Within a few days he had completed work and assembled a band. He later said he had restrained himself for a long time from writing any
protest songA protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...
s, waiting for someone younger, with a different perspective, but no one seemed to be saying anything.
Most of the album's songs rebuked the Bush administration's policy of war by examining its human costs to soldiers, their loved ones, and civilians, but Young also included a few songs on other themes, and an outright protest titled, "
Let's Impeach the PresidentLet's Impeach the President is a Grammy Award-nominated protest song written, produced and recorded by Neil Young. It is the seventh track on his 2006 studio album Living with War....
", in which he stated that Bush had lied to lead the country into war (an impeachable offense under the US Constitution). Young's lyrics in another song named Illinois Senator
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, who had not declared any intention to run for president at the time and was widely unexpected to be able to win either the Democratic Party nomination or a general election, as potentially a replacement for Bush. That summer, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young reunited for the supporting "Freedom Of Speech Tour '06", in which they played Young's new protest songs alongside the group's older material, meeting with both enthusiasm and anger from different fans, some of whom were supportive of Bush politically.
CSNY Déjà VuCSNY/Déjà Vu is a 2008 film directed by Bernard Shakey, a pseudonym for Neil Young. It focuses on the career of Crosby Stills Nash and Young, its musical connection to its audience and the turbulent times with which its music is associated as the band goes on their 2006 Freedom of Speech tour.It...
, a concert film of the tour directed by Young himself, was released in 2008, along with an accompanying live album.
While Young had never been a stranger to eco-friendly lyrics, themes of environmentalist spirituality and activism became increasingly prominent in his work throughout the 1990s and 2000s, especially on Greendale and Living With War. The trend continued on 2007's
Chrome Dreams IIChrome Dreams II is the thirty-first studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young. The album was released on October 23, 2007. The album is a sequel to Chrome Dreams, a legendary Neil Young album from 1977 that had originally been scheduled for release but was shelved in favor of American Stars 'N...
, with lyrics exploring Young's personal eco-spirituality. Also in 2007, Young accepted an invitation to participate in
Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats DominoGoin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino is a 2007 tribute album by various artists to Fats Domino, issued by Vanguard Records.-History:In contrast to an earlier tribute album, That's Fats: A Tribute to Fats Domino , which mostly contained previously released cover versions, Goin' Home: A Tribute to...
, contributing his version of "
Walking to New OrleansWalking to New Orleans is a 1960 song by Bobby Charles, written for and recorded by Fats Domino.Domino was a hero of Charles. Domino had previously recorded the Charles tune "Before I Grow Too Old"...
".
In 2008, Young revealed his latest project, the production of a
hybrid-engineA hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that uses two or more distinct power sources to move the vehicle. The term most commonly refers to hybrid electric vehicles , which combine an internal combustion engine and one or more electric motors.-Power:...
1959
LincolnLincoln is an American luxury vehicle brand of the Ford Motor Company. Lincoln vehicles are sold mostly in North America.-History:The company was founded in August 1915 by Henry M. Leland, one of the founders of Cadillac . During World War I, he left Cadillac which was sold to General Motors...
called
LincvoltLincVolt is a 1959 Lincoln Continental, owned by musician Neil Young, that was converted into a more fuel-efficient, hybrid demonstrator vehicle....
. A new album loosely based on the Lincvolt project,
Fork in the RoadFork in the Road is the thirty-second studio album by Canadian-American musician Neil Young, released April 7, 2009, on Reprise Records. The album was released on vinyl on July 26, 2009....
, was released on April 7, 2009. The album, partly composed of love songs to the car, also commented on the economic crisis, with one narrator attacking the Wall Street bailouts enacted in late 2008. Unfortunately, the car caught fire in November 2010, in a California warehouse, and along the way it burned an estimated $850,000 worth of Young's rock and roll memorabilia collection. Initial reports suggest the fire might have been triggered by an error in the vehicle's plug-in charging system. Young blamed the fire on human error and said he and his team were committed to rebuilding the car. "The wall charging system was not completely tested and had never been left unattended. A mistake was made. It was not the fault of the car," he said.
A Jonathan Demme concert film from a 2007 concert at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby,
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, called the
Neil Young Trunk ShowNeil Young Trunk Show is a 2009 documentary and concert film by Jonathan Demme, featuring Neil Young.It is, along with Neil Young: Heart of Gold and a yet-unfinished film, part of a Neil Young trilogy being created by Demme....
premiered on March 21, 2009, at the
South by SouthwestSouth by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
(SXSW) Film Conference and Festival in
AustinAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, Texas. It was featured at the Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2009 and was released in the US on March 19, 2010 to critical acclaim.
Young's most recent album appearance was on the album
Potato HolePotato Hole is a 2009 album by Booker T. Jones, recorded with Drive-By Truckers as the backing band and guitar accompaniment by Neil Young. The album was nominated for two Grammy awards: the album itself for Best Pop Instrumental Album, and the track "Warped Sister" for Best Rock InstrumentalOn...
, released on April 21, 2009 by Memphis organ player
Booker T. JonesBooker T. Jones is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. and the MGs. He has also worked in the studios with many well-known artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, earning him a Grammy Award for lifetime...
, of Booker T. & the MG's fame. Young plays guitar on nine of the album's ten instrumental tracks, alongside
Drive-By TruckersDrive-By Truckers are an alternative country/Southern rock band based in Athens, Georgia, though three out of six members are originally from The Shoals region of Northern Alabama, and the band strongly identifies with Alabama. Their music uses three guitars as well as bass, drums, and now...
, who already had three guitar players, giving some songs on the album a total of five guitar tracks. Jones contributed guitars on a couple of tracks.
Young continues to tour extensively. In 2009, he headlined the
Glastonbury FestivalThe Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
in
Pilton, EnglandPilton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the A361 road in the Mendip district, 3 miles south-west of Shepton Mallet and 6 miles east of Glastonbury. The village has a population of 935...
, at
Hard Rock CallingHard Rock Calling is an annual music festival held in Hyde Park, London, which first took place on Saturday July 1 and Sunday July 2, 2006. The music played is primarily rock music, and various performers, including Bon Jovi, The Who, Aerosmith, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen have played at the...
in London (where he was joined onstage by
Paul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
for a rendition of "
A Day in the Life"A Day in the Life" is a song by The Beatles, the final track on the group's 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, the song comprises distinct segments written independently by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with orchestral additions...
") and, after years of unsuccessful booking attempts, the
Isle of Wight FestivalThe Isle of Wight Festival is a music festival which takes place every year on the Isle of Wight in England. It was originally held from 1968 to 1970. These original events were promoted and organised by the Foulk brothers under the banner of their company Fiery Creations Limited...
in addition to performances at the
Big Day OutThe Big Day Out is an annual music festival held in several cities in Australia and New Zealand in late January. It started in Sydney in 1992, spread to Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth by 1993, with the Gold Coast and Auckland joining in 1994...
festival in New Zealand and Australia and the
Primavera Sound FestivalSan Miguel Primavera Sound, commonly known as Primavera Sound or simply Primavera, is an annual music festival which takes place in Barcelona, Spain in late May and, in some years, early June...
in
BarcelonaBarcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
.
Young was also the victim of an Internet hoax death in early 2011 triggered by the death of an English football player of the same name.
New performances (2010s)
On January 22, 2010, Young performed "Long May You Run" on the final episode of
The Tonight Show with Conan O'BrienThe Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show that featured Conan O'Brien as host from June 1, 2009 to January 22, 2010 as part of NBC's long-running Tonight Show franchise...
. On the same night, he and
Dave MatthewsDavid John "Dave" Matthews is a South African–born American musician and occasional actor, best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band...
performed the Hank Williams song "Alone and Forsaken", for the
Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake ReliefHope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief was a charity telethon held on January 22, 2010 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern Standard Time . The telethon was the most widely distributed telethon in history...
charity telethon, in response to the
2010 Haiti earthquakeThe 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
. Young performed "Long May You Run" at the
closing ceremony of the 2010 Olympic winter gamesThe Closing Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics took place on February 28, 2010, beginning at 5:30 pm PST at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...
in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. In May 2010, it was revealed Young had begun working on a new studio album produced by
Daniel LanoisDaniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
. This was announced by David Crosby, who said that the album "will be a very heartfelt record. I expect it will be a very special record." On May 18, 2010, Young embarked upon a North American solo tour to promote his then upcoming album,
Le NoiseLe Noise is the thirty-third studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 2010. The album was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Daniel Lanois...
, playing a mix of older songs and new material. Although billed as a solo acoustic tour, Young also played some songs on electric guitars, including Old Black. Young is continuing his Twisted Road tour with a short East Coast venture during the Spring of 2011. Young also contributed vocals to the Elton John-Leon Russell album, "The Union", singing a beautiful second stanza in the track, "Gone to Shiloh", and providing backing vocals as well.
In September 2011, Jonathan Demme's third documentary film on the singer songwriter, Neil Young Journeys, premiered at the
Toronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. Like Demme's earlier work with Young, most of the film consists of a simply filmed live performance, in this case, Young's homecoming show in May 2011 at Toronto's
Massey HallMassey Hall is a venerable performing arts theatre in the Garden District of downtown Toronto. The theatre originally was designed to seat 3,500 patrons but, after extensive renovations in the 1940s, now seats up to 2,765....
, four decades after he first played at the iconic venue. Playing old songs, as well as new ones from Le Noise, Young performs solo on both electric and acoustic instruments. His performance is a counterpoint to Demme's footage of Young's return to Omemee, Ontario, the small town near Toronto where he grew up, which has now become physically unrecognizable, though he vividly recalls events from his childhood there.
Young currently lives near
La Honda, CaliforniaLa Honda is a census-designated place in southern San Mateo County, California, United States. The population was 928 at the 2010 census. It is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains between Silicon Valley and the Pacific coast of California...
on his Broken Arrow Ranch, named after one of his early Buffalo Springfield songs. The original 140 acre (0.5665604 km²) parcel was purchased in 1970 for $350,000 cash and has grown to thousands of acres.
Archives project
As far back as 1988, Young spoke in interviews of his efforts to compile his unreleased material and to remaster his existing catalog. The collection was eventually titled the
Neil Young ArchivesThe Neil Young Archives is a series of archival releases by singer-songwriter Neil Young which feature previously released as well as unreleased studio and live recordings. The project has been long in the making – work began in the late 1980s...
Series. The first installment, entitled The Archives Vol. 1 1963–1972, was originally planned for a 2007 release but was delayed, and released on June 2, 2009.
Three performances from the Performance Series of the archives were released individually before The Archives Vol. 1.
Live at the Fillmore EastLive at the Fillmore East is a live album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse featuring guitarist Danny Whitten. In February and March 1970, Young and Crazy Horse went on tour to support Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. Live at the Fillmore East, released in 2006, features performances from the tour...
, a selection of songs from a 1970 gig with
Crazy HorseCrazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
, was released in 2006.
Live at Massey Hall 1971Live At Massey Hall 1971 is a live album by Neil Young. Released in 2007, the album features a solo, acoustic performance from Massey Hall in Toronto, Canada on 19 January 1971 during the Journey Through the Past Solo Tour. It is the second release in Young's Archives Performance Series.. It...
, a solo acoustic set from Toronto's Massey Hall, saw release in 2007.
Sugar Mountain - Live At Canterbury House 1968Sugar Mountain – Live at Canterbury House 1968 is a live album by Neil Young. On November 8–10, 1968, Young performed three shows at Canterbury House in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This album is compiled from the performances on the 9th and 10th....
, an early solo performance and, chronologically, the first disc in the performance series, emerged late in 2008.
In an interview in 2008, Neil Young discussed Toast, an album originally recorded with Crazy Horse in San Francisco in 2000 but never released. The album will be part of the Special Edition Series of the Archives. No release date currently exists for Toast. The album
A TreasureA Treasure is a live album by Neil Young, released on June 14, 2011. It features performances from his 1984-1985 U.S. tour with the International Harvesters. It contains six previously unreleased songs. The album is volume nine in Young's Archives Performance Series and the sixth to be...
, with live tracks from 1985 sessions with the International Harvesters, during a time when he was being sued by Geffen Records, was released in June 2011.
On July 14, 2009, Young's first four solo albums were reissued as remastered HDCD discs and digital downloads as discs 1–4 of the Original Release Series of the Archives.
Awards and recognitions
- 2011 Juno Awards
The Juno Awards of 2011, honours Canadian music industry achievements in the latter part of 2009 and in most of 2010. The awards presented in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the weekend of 26 and 27 March 2011. A week of related events on 21 March 2011...
Artist of the Year, Adult Alternative Album of the Year, and Allan Waters Humanitarian Award
- 2011 Grammy Awards Best Rock Song "Angry World
"Angry World" is the fifth track from Neil Young's 2010 album Le Noise. The track features Young on guitar and vocals with no additional musicians. It was written by Young and was produced by Daniel Lanois...
" – Neil Young, songwriter
- 2010 Grammy Awards Best Art Direction On A Boxed/Special Limited Edition Package "Archives Volume One 1963-1973" – Neil Young, Gary Burden, Jenice Heo
- Canadian Music Hall of Fame
The Canadian Music Hall of Fame honors Canadian musicians for their lifetime achievements in music. The ceremony is held each year as part of the Juno Award ceremonies. Members of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame represent many of the world's great talents...
, 1982
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
He has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. First in 1995 for his solo work, with an induction speech given by Eddie VedderEddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...
, and again in 1997 as a member of Buffalo Springfield.
As one of the original founders of
Farm AidFarm Aid started as a benefit concert on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, held to raise money for family farmers in the United States...
, he remains an active member of the board of directors. For one weekend each October, in
Mountain View, California-Downtown:Mountain View has a pedestrian-friendly downtown centered on Castro Street. The downtown area consists of the seven blocks of Castro Street from the Downtown Mountain View Station transit center in the north to the intersection with El Camino Real in the south...
, he and his wife host the
Bridge School ConcertsThe Bridge School Benefit is an annual non-profit charity concert held in Mountain View, California, every October at the Shoreline Amphitheatre. The concerts are all organized by musician Neil Young and his wife, Pegi....
, which have been drawing international talent and sell-out crowds for nearly two decades with some of the biggest names in rock having performed at the event including
Tom Petty and the HeartbreakersTom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...
,
Bruce SpringsteenBruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
,
David BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
,
The WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
,
Red Hot Chili PeppersRed Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
,
Trent ReznorMichael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...
of
Nine Inch NailsNine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
,
Tom WaitsThomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
,
Thom YorkeThomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...
of
RadioheadRadiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
,
MetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
,
Pearl JamPearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
,
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
,
The Smashing PumpkinsThe Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...
, and Sir
Paul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
and
Dave MatthewsDavid John "Dave" Matthews is a South African–born American musician and occasional actor, best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band...
. The concerts are a benefit for the Bridge School, which develops and uses advanced technologies to aid in the instruction of children with disabilities. Young's involvement stems at least partially from the fact that both of his sons have
cerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
and his daughter, like Young himself, has
epilepsyEpilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
.
Young was nominated for an
OscarAn Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
in 1994 for his song "Philadelphia" from the film
PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia is a 1993 American drama film that was one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to acknowledge HIV/AIDS, homosexuality and homophobia. It was written by Ron Nyswaner and directed by Jonathan Demme. The film stars Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington...
. Bruce Springsteen won the award for his song "
Streets of Philadelphia"Streets of Philadelphia" is an Oscar winning song, written and performed by American rock musician Bruce Springsteen for the first mainstream film on HIV/AIDS in the 1993 film, Philadelphia...
" from the same film. In his acceptance speech, Springsteen said that "the award really deserved to be shared by the other nominee's song." That same night,
Tom HanksThomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
accepted the Oscar for Best Actor and gave credit for his inspiration to the song "Philadelphia".
He was part owner of
Lionel, LLCLionel, LLC is a designer and importer of toy trains and model railroads, based in Chesterfield Township, Michigan. Its roots lie in the 1969 purchase of the Lionel product line by cereal conglomerate General Mills....
, a company that makes toy trains and model railroad accessories. In 2008 Lionel emerged from bankruptcy and his shares of the company were wiped out. At this time his status with Lionel is unknown, according to Lionel CEO Jerry Calabrese he is still a consultant for Lionel. He was instrumental in the design of the Lionel Legacy control system for model trains and it is believed he will continue to develop the system. Young has been named as co-inventor on seven U.S. Patents related to model trains.
Young has twice received honorary doctorates. He received an Honorary Doctorate of Music from
Lakehead UniversityLakehead University is a public research university in Thunder Bay, and Orillia, Ontario, Canada.Lakehead University, shortened to 'Lakehead U', or 'LU', is non-denominational and provincially supported. It has undergraduate and graduate programs and a medical school.The school has more than 45,000...
in
Thunder Bay-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
, Ontario in 1992, and an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from
San Francisco State UniversitySan Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
in 2006. The latter honour was shared with his wife Pegi for their creation of the Bridge School. In 2006, Young was given Manitoba's highest civilian honour, when he was appointed to the
Order of ManitobaThe Order of Manitoba is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Instituted in 1999 when Lieutenant Governor Peter M...
. In 2009, he was then given Canada's highest civilian honour, when he was appointed to the
Order of CanadaThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
Rolling Stone magazine in 2000, ranked Young thirty-fourth in its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time, and in 2003, included five of his albums in its list of 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2000, Young was inducted into
Canada's Walk of FameCanada's Walk of Fame , located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of successful Canadians...
.
In 2006,
PastePaste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:...
magazine compiled a "Greatest Living Songwriters" list; Young was ranked second behind
Bob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
. (While Young and Dylan have occasionally played together in concert, they have never collaborated on a song together, or played on each others' records). He ranked thirty-ninth on
VH1VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's 100 Greatest Artist of Hard Rock that same year. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame explained that while Young has "avoided sticking to one style for very long, the unifying factors throughout Young’s peripatetic musical journey have been his unmistakable voice, his raw and expressive guitar playing, and his consummate songwriting skill."
Young's political outspokenness and social awareness influenced artists such as
Blind MelonBlind Melon is an American rock band active from 1989 to 1999, and from 2006 onward.Best remembered for their 1993 single "No Rain", the group enjoyed critical and commercial success in the early 1990s with their neo-psychedelic take on alternative rock...
,
PhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
,
Pearl JamPearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
, and
NirvanaNirvāṇa ; ) is a central concept in Indian religions. In sramanic thought, it is the state of being free from suffering. In Hindu philosophy, it is the union with the Supreme being through moksha...
. Young is referred to as "the Godfather of
GrungeGrunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
" because of the influence he had on
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
and
Eddie VedderEddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...
and the entire grunge movement. Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam inducted Young into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, citing him as a huge influence. Young is cited as being a significant influence on
experimental rockExperimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
artists
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
,
Jesse MarchantJBM, also known as Jesse Marchant, is a Canadian singer songwriter who plays acoustic guitar and sings about subjects including "personal experience and the familiarity with loss," according to Glide Magazine. His music has been compared to "Bread meets America"...
, and
Thom YorkeThomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...
of
RadioheadRadiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
. Yorke recounted of first hearing Young after sending a demo tape into a magazine when he was 16, who favourably compared his singing voice to Young's. Unaware of Young at that time, he bought After the Gold Rush, and "immediately fell in love" with his work, calling it "extraordinary".
Dave MatthewsDavid John "Dave" Matthews is a South African–born American musician and occasional actor, best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band...
lists Neil Young as one of his favorite and most inspirational songwriters and covers his songs on occasion. The British Indie band
The BluetonesThe Bluetones were an English indie rock band, formed in Hounslow, Greater London, in 1993. The band's members were Mark Morriss on vocals, Adam Devlin on guitar, Scott Morriss on bass guitar, and Eds Chesters on drums. A fifth member, Richard Payne, came on board between 1998 and 2002...
named their number one debut album after the song "Expecting to Fly" (written by Young when still with Buffalo Springfield) and have covered the song while touring. Young also inspired
OasisOasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
singer-songwriter
Noel GallagherNoel Thomas David Gallagher is an English musician and singer-songwriter, formerly the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and principal songwriter of the English rock band Oasis. He is currently fronting his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.Raised in Burnage, Manchester with his...
, with Gallagher covering "My My, Hey Hey (Into the Black)" on the live album
Familiar to MillionsFamiliar to Millions is a live album by the British rock band Oasis. It was recorded at Wembley Stadium on 21 July 2000. It debuted at #5 in the UK charts with 57,000 copies sold in the first week. To date Familiar to Millions has sold around 310,000 copies in Britain alone , about 70,000 copies in...
.
The Australian rock group
PowderfingerPowderfinger was an Australian rock band that formed in Brisbane in 1989. From 1992 until their breakup the band lineup consisted of vocalist Bernard Fanning, guitarists Darren Middleton and Ian Haug, bassist John Collins, and drummer Jon Coghill....
named themselves after Young's song "
Powderfinger"Powderfinger" is a song written by Neil Young, first released on his 1979 album Rust Never Sleeps. It subsequently appeared on several of Young's live recordings, and has been covered by several bands, including Cowboy Junkies, Beat Farmers, Rusted Root, and Jazz Mandolin Project...
" from Young's Rust Never Sleeps. The members of the
Constantines-History:The band was formed by Steve Lambke, Bryan Webb, Doug MacGregor, and Dallas Wehrle in 1999, following the break-up of Webb and MacGregor's emotional hardcore band Shoulder...
have occasionally played Neil Young tribute shows under the name Horsey Craze. While in Winnipeg on November 2, 2008 during the Canadian leg of his tour, Bob Dylan visited Young's former home in River Heights, where Young spent his teenage years. Dylan was interested in seeing the room where some of Young's first songs were composed.
Jason Bond, an
East Carolina UniversityEast Carolina University is a public, coeducational, engaged doctoral/research university located in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. Named East Carolina University by statute and commonly known as ECU or East Carolina, the university is the largest institution of higher learning in...
biologist, discovered a new species of trapdoor spider in 2007 and named it
Myrmekiaphila neilyoungiMyrmekiaphila neilyoungi is a species of trapdoor spider, described in 2007 by East Carolina University professor of biology Jason E. Bond and Norman I. Platnick, curator at the American Museum of Natural History in New York...
after Young, his favorite singer (a previous similar case was the dinosaur Masiakasaurus knopfleri named after the musician
Mark KnopflerMark Freuder Knopfler, OBE is a Scottish-born British guitarist, singer, songwriter, record producer and film score composer. He is best known as the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the British rock band Dire Straits, which he co-founded in 1977...
of
Dire StraitsDire Straits were a British rock band active from 1977 to 1995, composed of Mark Knopfler , his younger brother David Knopfler , John Illsley , and Pick Withers .Dire Straits' sound drew from a variety of musical influences, including jazz, folk, blues, and came closest...
).
In 2001, Young was awarded the Spirit of Liberty award from the civil liberties group
People for the American WayPeople For the American Way is a progressive advocacy group in the United States. Under U.S. tax code, People For the American Way is organized as a tax-exempt 501 non-profit organization.-Purpose:...
. Young was honored as the
MusiCares Person of the YearThe MusiCares Person of the Year is an award presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the same organization that distributes the Grammy Awards, to commend musicians for their artistic achievement in the music industry and dedication to philanthropy...
on January 29, 2010, two nights prior to the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards. In addition was also nominated for two Grammy Awards; Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance ("Fork In The Road") and Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package ["Neil Young Archives Vol. I (1963–1972)"]. Young won the latter Grammy Award. In 2010, Young was ranked #26 in Gibson.com’s Top 50 Guitarists of All Time.
Juno Awards
| Year |
Category |
Nominated work |
Result |
| 2011 The Juno Awards of 2011, honours Canadian music industry achievements in the latter part of 2009 and in most of 2010. The awards presented in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the weekend of 26 and 27 March 2011. A week of related events on 21 March 2011...
|
Artist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| Adult Alternative Album of the Year The Juno Award for Adult Alternative Album of the Year has been awarded since 2005, as recognition each year for the best alternative album in Canada.-Adult Alternative Album of the Year :*2005 - Sarah Harmer, All of Our Names...
|
Le Noise Le Noise is the thirty-third studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 2010. The album was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Daniel Lanois...
|
|
| 2008 The Juno Awards of 2008 were held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada on the weekend ending 6 April 2008. These ceremonies honoured music industry achievements in Canada in the latter part of 2006 and in most of 2007....
|
Adult Alternative Album of the Year The Juno Award for Adult Alternative Album of the Year has been awarded since 2005, as recognition each year for the best alternative album in Canada.-Adult Alternative Album of the Year :*2005 - Sarah Harmer, All of Our Names...
|
Chrome Dreams II |
|
| 2007 The Juno Awards of 2007 were hosted in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada on the weekend ending 1 April 2007. These ceremonies honoured music industry achievements in Canada during most of 2006...
|
Adult Alternative Album of the Year |
Living With War |
|
2006The Juno Awards of 2006 were held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on the weekend of 31 March to 2 April 2006. These ceremonies honour music industry achievements in Canada during the previous year....
|
Adult Alternative Album of the Year |
Prairie Wind |
|
| Jack Richardson Producer of the Year |
"The Painter" |
|
| Songwriter of the Year The Juno Award for "Songwriter of the Year" has been awarded since 1971, as recognition each year for the best songwriter in Canada. It was also known as the Juno Award for "Composer of the Year" from 1975 to 1990.-Best Songwriter :...
|
"The Painter", "When God Made Me", "Prairie Wind" |
|
| 2001 The Juno Awards of 2001 were held in Hamilton, Ontario Canada during the weekend of 3-4 March 2001.The primary ceremonies were hosted by Rick Mercer at Copps Coliseum on 4 March 2001 and broadcast on CBC Television...
|
Best Male Artist |
Neil Young |
|
| Best Roots & Traditional Album – Solo The Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year - Solo is presented annually at Canada's Juno Awards to honour the best album of the year in the roots and/or traditional music genres...
|
Silver & Gold |
|
| 1997 The Juno Awards of 1997, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 9 March 1997 in Hamilton, Ontario at a ceremony in the Copps Coliseum. Jann Arden was host for the major ceremonies which were broadcast on CBC Television.Nominations were announced on...
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1996 The Juno Awards of 1996, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 10 March 1996 in Hamilton, Ontario at a ceremony in the Copps Coliseum...
|
Best Rock Album The Juno Award for "Rock Album of the Year" has been awarded since 1991, as recognition each year for the best rock album in Canada. The award was previously called a number of other names, including the "Best Hard Rock/Metal Album" and "Best Rock Album"....
|
Mirror Ball |
|
| Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1995 The Juno Awards of 1995, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 26 March 1995 in Hamilton, Ontario at a ceremony in the Copps Coliseum...
|
Songwriter of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| Entertainer of the Year This is a list of the Canadian musical artists named Entertainer of the Year at the Juno Awards in those years in which this award or its nearest equivalent was awarded.-Canadian Entertainer of the Year :*1989 - Glass Tiger...
|
Neil Young |
|
| 1994 The Juno Awards of 1994, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 20 March 1994 in Toronto at a ceremony in the O'Keefe Centre. Roch Voisine was the host for the ceremonies, which were taped that afternoon for broadcast that evening on CBC...
|
Single of the Year |
"Harvest Moon" |
|
| Album of the Year The Juno Award for "Album of the Year" has been awarded since 1975, as recognition each year for the best album in Canada. It was also known as Best Album , and Best Selling Album .-Best Album :...
|
Harvest Moon |
|
| 1993 The Juno Awards of 1993, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 21 March 1993 in Toronto at a ceremony in the O'Keefe Centre. Celine Dion was the host for the ceremonies, which were broadcast on CBC Television at 8 pm Toronto time...
|
Songwriter of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1991 The Juno Awards of 1991, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 3 March 1991 in Vancouver, British Columbia at a ceremony in the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Paul Shaffer was the host for the ceremonies, which were broadcast on CBC Television.This was...
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1990 The Juno Awards of 1990, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 18 March 1990 in Toronto at a ceremony in the O'Keefe Centre...
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1989 The Juno Awards of 1989, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 12 March 1989 in Toronto at a ceremony in the O'Keefe Centre. André-Philippe Gagnon was the host for the ceremonies, which were broadcast on CBC Television.Blue Rodeo won in three of its...
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1986 The Juno Awards of 1986, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 10 November 1986 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by Howie Mandel at the Harbour Castle Hilton Hotel. CBC Television broadcast the ceremonies nationally.Labour problems at the Canadian...
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1982 The Juno Awards of 1982, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 14 April 1982 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by Burton Cummings at the Harbour Castle Hilton Convention Centre....
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1981 The Juno Awards of 1981, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 5 February 1981 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by Andrea Martin at the O'Keefe Centre....
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1980 The Juno Awards of 1980, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 2 April 1980 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by Burton Cummings at the Harbour Castle Hilton....
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1979 The Juno Awards of 1979, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 21 March 1979 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by Burton Cummings at the Harbour Castle Hilton Convention Centre....
|
Male Vocalist of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
| 1975 The Juno Awards of 1975, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 24 March 1975 in Toronto at a ceremony in the Canadian National Exhibition. Paul Anka was host for the ceremonies, which were broadcast for the first time...
|
Composer of the Year |
Neil Young |
|
Instruments
Guitars
In 2003, Rolling Stone listed Young as eighty-third in its ranking of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time", describing him as a "restless experimenter...who transform[s] the most obvious music into something revelatory." Young is a collector of second-hand guitars, but in recording and performing, he frequently uses just a few instruments, as is explained by his longtime guitar technician Larry Cragg in the film
Neil Young: Heart of GoldNeil Young: Heart of Gold is a 2006 documentary and concert film by Jonathan Demme, featuring Neil Young. The film was made in the summer of 2005 in Nashville, Tennessee, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and was released to theaters on February 10, 2006...
. They include:
- 1953 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop
The Gibson Les Paul was the result of a design collaboration between Gibson Guitar Corporation and the late jazz guitarist and electronics inventor Les Paul. In 1950, with the introduction of the Fender Telecaster to the musical market, electric guitars became a public craze. In reaction, Gibson...
. Nicknamed "Old BlackOld Black is the name given to the main electric guitar used by rock musician Neil Young. Most of Neil's electric guitar parts were recorded on "Old Black," though some were played on Gretsch White Falcons...
", this is Young's primary electric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
and is featured on Rust Never SleepsRust Never Sleeps is an album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse released in 1979. The bulk of the album was recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, with overdubs added. Audience noise is removed as much as possible, although it is clearly audible at certain points, most noticeably on the opening...
and other albums. Old Black got its name from an amateur paintjob applied to the originally gold body of the instrument, sometime before Neil acquired the guitar in the late 1960s. In 1972, a mini humbuckerA humbucker is a type of electric guitar pickup, first patented by Seth Lover and the Gibson company, that uses two coils, both generating string signal. Humbuckers have higher output than a single coil pickup since both coils are connected in series...
pickup from a Gibson FirebirdThe Gibson Firebird is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson from 1963 to the present.-History:The Gibson Guitar Corporation released several new styles during the 1950s to compete with Fender's instruments, such as the Telecaster and Stratocaster. After success with the Les Paul in...
was installed in the lead/treble position. This pickup, severely microphonic, is considered a crucial component of Neil's sound. A Bigsby vibrato tailpiece was installed as early as 1969, and can be heard during the opening of "Cowgirl in the Sand" from Everybody Knows This Is NowhereEverybody Knows This Is Nowhere is the second studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released on Reprise Records catalogue RS 6349...
.
- Martin D-45. His primary steel-string acoustic guitar, used to write "Old Man" and many other songs. It was one of four instruments bought by Stephen Stills for himself and his band-mates in CSNY in order to celebrate their first full concert at the Greek Theater in 1969.
- Martin D-28. Nicknamed "Hank" after its previous owner, Hank Williams. Hank Williams, Jr.
Randall Hank Williams , better known as Hank Williams, Jr. and Bocephus, is an American country singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of Southern rock, blues, and traditional country...
, had traded it for some shotguns; it went through a succession of other owners until it was located by Young's longtime friend Grant Boatwright. The guitar was purchased by Young from Tut TaylorTut Taylor is an American bluegrass musician.Taylor played banjo and mandolin as a child, and began playing dobro at age 14, learning to use the instrument with a distinctive flat-picking style. Taylor was a member of The Folkswingers in the 1960s, who released three LPs; he recorded his debut...
. Young has toured with it for over 30 years. A story about the guitar and the song it inspired, "This Old Guitar," can be seen about 50 minutes into the film Neil Young: Heart of GoldNeil Young: Heart of Gold is a 2006 documentary and concert film by Jonathan Demme, featuring Neil Young. The film was made in the summer of 2005 in Nashville, Tennessee, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and was released to theaters on February 10, 2006...
. It is Young's primary guitar for Prairie WindPrairie Wind is the twenty-eighth studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released in 2005. After recent dalliances with 60s soul music and rock opera , Prairie Wind featured an acoustic-based sound reminiscent of his earlier commercially successful albums Harvest and...
.
- Vintage Martin D-18: Young used an old D-18 throughout his early days performing in coffee houses in Canada and on some early Buffalo Springfield work, before he received the D-45 from Stills. It can also be seen on unreleased footage from the Woodstock documentary, particularly on an exceptional acoustic duet of the Buffalo Springfield track "Mr. Soul" with Stills. The guitar has often been used to carry "dropped standard tuning" (DGCFAD) which Young often uses in concert. This allowed him to perform songs such as "Ambulance Blues" and "Don't let it Bring You Down" live without having to tune all 6 strings onstage.
Other notable (or odd) instruments played by Young include:
- On CMT live he is shown playing with Phish
Phish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
in which he plays a Languedoc G2, Presumably that of Phish guitarist Trey AnastasioTrey Anastasio is an American guitarist, composer, and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish...
- Vagabond Travel Guitar, used for "Let's Impeach the President" on The Colbert Report.
- Taylor 855
Taylor Guitars is an El Cajon, California‐based luthier, specializing in acoustic guitars, as well as semi-hollow and solidbody electric guitars. It was established in 1974 by Bob Taylor and Kurt Listug.- History :...
12-string, used in the first half of Rust Never SleepsRust Never Sleeps is an album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse released in 1979. The bulk of the album was recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, with overdubs added. Audience noise is removed as much as possible, although it is clearly audible at certain points, most noticeably on the opening...
.
- 1927 Gibson
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
Mastertone, a six-string banjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
tuned like a guitar, used on many recordings and played by James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
on "Old Man."
- Gretsch 6120
The Gretsch 6120 is a hollow body electric guitar with f-holes manufactured by Gretsch and first appearing in the mid-1950s with the endorsement of Chet Atkins. It was quickly adopted by rockabilly artist Eddie Cochran, Duane Eddy, Eric Clapton, Brian Setzer and many others...
(Chet AtkinsChester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
model). Before Young bought Old Black, this was his primary electric guitar during his Buffalo SpringfieldBuffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
days.
- Gretsch White Falcon
The Gretsch White Falcon is a visually distinctive guitar commercially introduced in 1955 by Gretsch. While it has seen vast and substantial changes to its body shape and features through the years, and is currently offered in several styles, the White Falcon has always maintained a striking and...
. Young purchased a late 1950s model near the end of the Buffalo SpringfieldBuffalo Springfield is a North American folk rock band renown both for its music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined...
era; in 1969 he bought a stereo version of the same vintage guitar from Stephen Stills, and this instrument is featured prominently during Young's early '70s period, and can be heard on tracks like "Ohio," "Southern Man," "Alabama," "Words (Between the Lines of Age)," and "L.A.". It was Young's primary electric guitar during the Harvest era, since Young's deteriorating back condition (eventually fixed with surgery) made playing the much heavier Les Paul difficult. This particular White Falcon is the stereo 6137, in which the signal from the three bass strings is separated from the signal from the three treble strings. Young typically plays this guitar in this stereo mode, sending the separate signals to two different amps, a Fender Deluxe and either a Fender Tremolux or a low-powered Tweed Fender Twin. The separation of the signals is most prominently heard on the Harvest song "Words."
- Gibson Flying V
-External links:*, , , , and , from the Gibson website*, a June 2001 article from Guitar Collector magazine*, a tribute site that lists all models and re-issues and most notable players**...
, on the Time Fades AwayTime Fades Away is a 1973 live album by Neil Young, consisting of previously unreleased material. It was recorded with The Stray Gators on the tour following 1972's highly successful Harvest and has not been reissued on CD due to Young's dissatisfaction with that particular series of concerts...
tour.
- Fender Broadcaster, on the Tonight's the Night album and tour.
Reed organ
Young owns an
EsteyThe Estey Organ Company was founded by Jacob Estey when he bought out a Brattleboro, Vermont manufacturing business in 1852. The company went on to become the largest manufacturer of organs in the United States. The original company had been founded in 1846...
reed organA reed organ, also called a parlor organ, pump organ, cabinet organ, cottage organ, is an organ that generates its sounds using free metal reeds...
, serial number 167272, dating from 1885, which he frequently plays in concert and which was recently restored. The instrument and its restoration are documented in The Reed Society Quarterly (30.1: 6ff); a photograph of the instrument is on the cover.
Amplification
Young uses various vintage
Fender Tweed DeluxeThe Fender Tweed Deluxe guitar amplifier was produced by Fender during the 1950s from approximately 1955 to 1960. Model 5B3/5C3, one of the earliest versions of the Deluxe, was produced between 1948 and 1952. It is often referred to as having a TV Front appearance because the wide panels around the...
amplifiers. His preferred amplifier for electric guitar is the Fender Deluxe, specifically a Tweed-era model from 1959. He purchased his first vintage Deluxe in 1967 for $50 from the drummer of Crazy Horse, Ralph Molina, and has since acquired nearly 450 different examples, all from the same era, but he maintains that it's the original model that sounds superior and is crucial to his trademark sound. The Tweed Deluxe is almost always used in conjunction with a late-1950s Magnatone 280 (similar to the amp used by
Lonnie MackLonnie Mack is an American rock, blues and country guitarist and vocalist....
and
Buddy HollyCharles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
). The Magnatone and the Deluxe are paired together in a most unusual manner: the external speaker jack from the Deluxe sends the amped signal through a volume potentiometer and directly into the input of the Magnatone. The Magnatone is notable for its true pitch-bending vibrato capabilities, which can be heard as an electric piano amplifier on "See the Sky About to Rain". A notable and unique accessory to Young's Deluxe is the Whizzer, a device created specifically for Young, which physically changes the amplifier's settings to pre-set combinations. This device is connected to footswitches operable by Young onstage in the manner of an effects pedal.
Discography
- See also the discographies for Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
The discography of American/British/Canadian supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young is composed of 8 studio albums, 3 live albums, 5 compilation albums, 4 video albums, one music video, 19 singles, 1 guest single, and 1 soundtrack appearance....
See also
- Music of Canada
The music of Canada has influences that have shaped the country. Aboriginals, the British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has subsequently been heavily influenced by American culture because of its proximity and migration between...
- Canadian rock
Canadian rock describes a wide and diverse variety of music produced by Canadians, beginning with American style rock 'n' roll in the mid-20th century. Since then Canada has had a considerable impact on the development of the modern popular music called rock...
External links