Neil YoungA Canadian boy from Toronto, Ontario, has been widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation.
Neil Young is one of my favourite artists because I grew up listening to him. My dad and uncles used to play in a band together, and Neil Young was one of their favourites to play. I inherited the love of playing guitar after forcing my Uncle John play Neil Young songs whenever he had his guitar handy. He bought me a guitar for my sixteenth birthday and also took me to a Neil Young concert at the Air Canada Centre; what a guy! I will now give you a bit of background information on Neil Young and I will share some of my favourite music by him.
Neil began performing in Canada in 1960 before he moved to his ranch in California, where he still resides. In his early days, he co-founded the band Buffalo Springfield, later joined the group Crosby Stills and Nash, and also played heavier rock music with his band Crazy Horse.
He is best known for his deep lyrics and his unique guitar work. His music is described to have "dream-like" lyrics that include subjects of drugs, interpersonal relationships, environmental concerns and anti-racism.
Later on in his career, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young broke up and Crazy Horse got their own record deal, leaving Neil to begin his solo career in 1971. Little did he know his solo career would be a HUGE success; a time when "Heart of Gold" became his #1 hit single.
"Heart of Gold"
"Needle and the Damage Done", is a GREAT song inspired by the death of fellow band mate, Danny Whitten (from Crazy Horse), who died of a heroin addiction. "A lot of great art goes down the drain"...
"Needle and the Damage Done"
"Old Man" is one of my favourite Neil Songs that he wrote about an old man who worked on his ranch.
"Old Man"
"Hey Hey, My My", is a song comparing the public's view on Johnny Rotten (lead singer of the Sex Pistols), with Elvis Presley who had recently died when the song was composed.
"Hey Hey, My My"
Neil Young is a great artist and creates music that I love. The songs I have shared with you are ones I have listened to a silly amount of times. Each song personally means something to me and I hope you are able to take a few minutes of your time to appreciate them. I hope you have learned something from my post and I strongly encourage people to add anything they want to share.
"Keep on Rocking in the Free World",
Love: Danielle
It has only been within the last 5-6 years that I've REALLY gotten into classic rock -- spending two summers in a truck listening to Q107 with a couple of landscapers who grew up in the 70s was actually an amazing educational experience in this genre. Being Canadian, Neil Young was guaranteed on the airwaves at some point during the day, due to CanCon requirements. While it took me a while to appreciate his style, after a while you can't help but be impressed.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the more I learn and read about him, the more you can really see why he is often labeled as the originator of "Grunge" music in the 90s -- this is so impressive to me, because only in VERY few cases have you EVER seen a single artist essentially responsible for fathering an entire genre of music. Nice profile!