Be On My Side, I'll Be On Your Side: The Myth of Washed Up Neil
UPDATE: 2/16 - Incredibly, the myth of the myth itelf is perpetuated even further in today's OregonLive.com's Hard Drive: A commuting blog by Joseph Rose "Neil Young's concept album about eco-friendly cars puzzles fans, critics - Has Neil Young lost his hybrid-loving mind?".
The Oregon Live article feeds off the following blog post. Right down to the exact quotes and link sources. Thanks Joseph. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Thanks Tony!
Fans Cough Up The Buck$ for new Neil Young songs @
Madison Square Garden, NYC, NY - 12/15/2008
The Ground Zero of Capitalism
There's a Bailout comin'
And it's not for you.
Last month, we wrote about the new songs that Neil Young debuted on tour in 2008 and the extraordinary reaction by fans and critics.
We had been hearing them out on the road live for the first time and absorbing their freshness when it became apparent that not everyone was enamored with new Neil songs. Hmm, how odd?
The latest round on the uproar over Neil's unrelenting creativity was sparked by our blogging which led off with the truly despicably bizarre review of the MSG, NYC shows in the Village Voice by Rob Harvilla titled "Let's Avoid Neil Young's Next Record: The old stuff enthralls, but the new stuff terrorizes at MSG":
"I am struggling to think of anyone who could possibly give less of a fuck about what you think of his/her new album than Neil Young does. But each song tonight creates an unpleasant binary effect: Love it if we immediately recognize it; barely tolerate it if we don't."
"The crowd's restlessness is painfully evident, particularly in the case of two stupendously drunk older ladies in my row who start booing loudly and shouting, "You suck!" into the bug-/buck-coughing din. [sic]"
Harvilla's review goes on to report "that only 60% of the original audience remained by the end of the show" which was total utter rubbish as was his characterizations of the audience demeanor. See this photo from the concert's conclusion and note that it is 100% full and these 100+ ecstatic review blog comments.
Neil Young and His Electric Band
Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York - Dec. 15, 2008
Photo by penfifteenclub on Flickr
Village Voice critic Harvilla was contacted for this blog but he refused to provide comment.
In addition to blogging on Harvilla's lame review we then blogged this comment on the new song "FORK IN THE ROAD":
"The other car songs featured on tour are decidedly bad, but this 'Fork in the Road' song is so distressingly awful that it almost seems like a joke. So hideous that one almost has to laugh at the situation. Would a record company actually listen to this garbage and then agree to release it? At some point, they're going to have to take a stand - right? I'm actually rooting for the record company here."
Now it gets interesting. Next, Thrasher's Wheat blog gets picked up by the U.K.'s The Guardian newspaper headlined "Neil Young fans upset that he is releasing a new album" by "reporter" Sean Michaels:
For months now, Young obsessives have been awaiting the release of Archives Volume 1 – a vast library of early recordings, in the form of 10 Blu-ray discs. This week, however, reports have emerged that an album of new Neil Young material – called Fork In the Road – will pre-empt Archives, pushing its February release back into spring.Often, this would call for celebration. Who needs old material when you are being offered shiny, new songs by a music legend? Alas, that's not what Neil Young's fans seem to be thinking. They have heard these new songs – on Young's recent tour, or in a new viral video – and let's just say they don't like them very much.
"Would a record company actually listen to this garbage and then agree to release it?" asked one fan at the popular Thrasher's Wheat site. "At some point, they're going to have to take a stand – right? I'm actually rooting for the record company here."
With Fork In the Road, Young seems to be exploring three things – dirty blues, direct lyrics, and his LincVolt electric car project. That all sounds well and good until you hear the opening lyrics of the title track.
"Got a pot belly," Young sings, "It's not too big / Gets in my way / When I'm driving my rig."
The video – clearly a webcam recording of Old Shakey chomping on an apple, mouthing along, cotton buds in his ears – doesn't inspire much confidence. A few minutes in, he sings about blogging. Later in the video he plays air guitar as a flat-screen TV seems to be repossessed. Commentary on the financial crisis? Maybe. Revelatory rock music? Says a fan of his for the past 20 years: "This new stuff is simply the most tired music I've ever heard from Neil."
Instantly, The Guardian newspaper article using Thrasher's Wheat original premise with Harvilla's angle and then cherry-picking, an out-of-context quote from Rust starts to ricochet through the internet echo chamber.
- Neil Young to Release Potentially Batshit Concept Album | Pitchfork
- Neil Young's Electric Car Songs Make Some Regret That 'Rust Never Sleeps' - Business and Media
- Neil Young's Archives delayed - Peterborough Examiner - Ontario, CA
- Neil Young’s New Album To Be All About Eco Cars // Archives // ecorazzi.com :: the latest in green gossip:
"The other car songs featured on tour are decidedly bad, but this ‘Fork in the Road’ song is so distressingly awful that it almost seems like a joke,” said one reviewer on the Thrashers Wheat website. “So hideous that one almost has to laugh at the situation."
- CANOE -- JAM! - Neil Young box set delayed again
- Neil Young loses mind, legitimacy on new album – Spectator Blog
- Neil Young to Release Album About Eco-Cars | RiverWired
- Neil Young to release worst album (all electric car songs) in history of music - I Hate the Media: "You won’t get much of an argument from anyone if you say Neil Young is the worst singer in the history of rock ‘n roll."
The pedantically opining critics with their false assertions, canards and tropes on Neil's creative decline and fan revolts seems to play into the hands of all the deniers and doubters.
So let us take some creative license here with one of our all time favorite bloggers Glenn Greenwald who does the smackdown so diplomatically:
"There are times when the glaring ignorance one encounters from people who are paid to write about music issues is so severe -- so illustrative of how distorted and misleading our musical discourse is -- that it's impossible to ignore even though one would really like to.
This is what happens constantly -- ill-motivated and/or ill-informed people spout the most blatant falsehoods, using their venues and credentials to mislead others on these sorts of issues.
It really isn't that hard to refrain from writing about things or making statements about matters that you know absolutely nothing about, or at least to spend a small amount of time finding out before using a platform like The Village Voice or a large blog or a college degree to spout whatever pops into your head."
Thanks Glenn! (fyi - good blog by Glenn).
Obviously, folks who don't "get Neil" just don't have a clue.
"Fork In the Road" Video
But there are those who do "get it" like over on the blog Seeking Alpha "Neil Young's Message to Wall St." regarding the new song and video "Fork in the Road":
"Are we listening?
You can dismiss it as 'just a rock song,' but personally I think that's a mistake. Neil Young is not only a big rock star, but a profoundly patriotic guy who is engaged in the issues of the day. He's turning his old Lincoln into an electric car and he performs at benefits for farmers and the poor and the other left-behind people he sings about. He's also been a good barometer of what people are thinking; remember, long before the outcome of last year's election was obvious to anyone, he sang:
Someone walks among us, and I hope he hears the call.
Maybe it's a woman, or a black man after all.
No business exists without public permission, and in finance that means the trust and confidence of investors and the public at large. The events of the last year have wiped out any good will that the Street might have had. Neil Young has just delivered a little musical reminder that we have a long road ahead to get it back. And if it's not too corny for me to say it, the road back is paved with transparency and good practices."
And the mainstream press continues to perpetuate the burned out Neil the hippie meme in TIME magazine "Neil Young's Bailout Song" by Claire Suddath which frames the old versus new debate:
"The song, 'Fork in the Road,' is allegedly the title track off a forthcoming album, and its home-movie quality video features Young wearing headphones plugged into an apple (oh, he is so clever) and moving around in quasi-dance motions like an aging hippie rocking out to the same classic jam he's been listening to for the past four decades.
To be fair, it's hard to write music about the economy. No one has ever come out with a great 'Invisible Hand' anthem or a theme song about price elasticity and wage rates. But that doesn't stop Young from trying; the latter part of his 2008 world tour concerts were peppered with angry rants about the financial collapse. Last November he even released his own plan for saving the U.S. auto industry. Young aimed to tackle 'the issue of global warming from our automobiles while enhancing our National Security and keeping Detroit working.'
Wow, did the Woodstock generation get boring or what?"
And this from Snapped Shot on "The Grammy-Baiting Neil Young":
"I bet if the other tracks on Neil Young's new albums deal with other such controversial material, such as shrinking rainforests, the depleted ozone layer, and global warming, he'd be a shoo-in for this year's Grammy Awards, despite the fact that this could quite possibly be be the worst song, ever."
From Consequence of Sound "Neil Young goes “mental” on new album" by Michael Roffman:
Neil Young is, for the lack of a better word, insane.
But that’s why we love him, right? His music is turbulent and fierce, always engaging the listener with apocalyptic discourse that’s both surreal and rather grim, and his image is iconic. Just by looking at him, one could assess that not everything’s all together with the ol’ Canadian songwriter. He looks like an ex-grunge rocker, and even though he’s pushing sixty-four years of age, he carries it off like a teenager. So, it should come as no surprise that he’s just as angsty and bitter as one, too."
But many Neil fans do "get it" like the oh-so elegant Anonymous:
Neil to his credit seems to take it in stride in the 'Fork' video. I think he's often way ahead of many fans. He's been criticized for things over the years, but he just keeps going forward, and then in retrospect many fans come around to seeing (and appreciating) where he was coming from, or that he's so prolific they move onto focus on his next great project.
Either way, the criticism seems petty when seen in context of what he's done and what he'll do. Second, I think the journalist on Guardian.com deserves a black mark for writing a very slanted Anti-Neil article. For every complaint there is another fan praising but few if any of the positive comments were highlighted in the article. The cynic in me says that most journalists are at heart focused on getting paid so critical, slanted articles create controversy and they sell better. I don't think that author had something unique or sincere to say.
Finally, I think some people are wired to complain so they'll complain no matter how many great projects, shows, songs, album Neil does, they'll focus on the one aspect they don't like and blow it out of proportion. To Neil's credit he's made a career of completely ignoring the complainers, the journalists, and even devoted fans and all the while managing to stay a few steps ahead.
Gary A. adds:
I would be the last person to tell Neil what to play and what to release, and I think we all do a great disservice to him, and also disrespect him, to ask him to not follow his heart and release whatever the hell he wants to release.
So, for the critics in all of us, here's a little song for you from Martin:
Come gather 'round whiners
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the songs they are a-changin'.
Complainers and whiners
Throughout the land
Do not criticize
What you can't understand
The songs and the lyrics
Are beyond your command
Your old road is
Rapidly agin'.
Please get out of the new one
If you can't lend your hand
For the songs they are a-changin'.
Had enuf? No??? Then you'll just love "Neil Young Officially Washed Up For All Time" reverse chronology by Bluejay Young.
Or just light a candle my friend because just writing a blog won't change the world.
Labels: concert, myth, neil young
by thrasher@PermaLink: 2/15/2009 08:03:00 PM
142 comments
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142 Comments:
A month ago Neil bailed me out with this one. A youtube special. Free.
Why is it so hard to see. I'm glad I'm not what they want me to be either.
sony
For all the envious and jealous who would love to see this guy flop, there are far too many more who see his endurance and respect for the muse & planet as his most endearing and desirable quality.
How can you be washed up and be the rain at the same time?
This is the Tao of Neil Young...
So he may get it wrong or get it right... as much as I adore Neil and Thrashers Wheat, isn't it just a matter of personal opinion of the music - after all, it will in our ears, in our brain... inside of us. :) For these reasons, I'm not going to read into a single review or comment or critic or admirer, until I listen to the album and can interpret it personally for myself... and that begins with this post! (p.s. I love you, Thrashers Wheat, honestly. :D)
p.s. I meant, "it will be in our ears"
p.p.s. Actually I did read this post very briefly, to give some neccessary credibility to the end part of my comment(!)
insidetherain,
hi.
your blog made me cry today.
thank u!
t
Never cared if a (paid, or not) "reviewer" thought a show was good or bad, never cared if Siskel and Ebert gave it it 2 thumbs up or thumbs down, Never cared if 4 out of 5 dentists recommended it to their patients, I know what I like...Neil & Co. in a nice, intimate venue...If I can afford it, Great, if not, I am envious and greatful for the shows I have attended.
Yes, as our friend, Punkdaddy, pointed out, music is very, very personal.
I get the feeling that what some people feel in Neil Young's music is that desire to get to a truth about something happening in their life. He searches, he yearns, he laments. He shows us our human side. Our vulnerabilitis.
What human isn't curious about the world they live in? What human doesn't question why things are the way they are?
Hasn't it always been the media who misinterprets his actions & songs as being "political" because they can only see things in black and white?
If you have questions about something, then you must be political?
I think the only side Neil's ever been on is the side of the person listening to his music.
Has there ever been an artist in the history of music that could ever be so diverse and un predictable, could create such division to his fan's and critics in reaction to his songs as Neil?...I don't think so!
What other artist has achieved such longevity in their music,has had a following of such loyalty that they have created their own blog site(good onya Thrash).What other artist has been pyscho analysed, revered, admonished, idolised, politicised, categorised and inspired others with his music. Just look at the amount of "rusties" doin' covers of his music from every decade of his musical career. I think he has deserved the right to be sarcastic, cynical and sometimes obnoxious in some critics eyes.
"Two roads diverged in a wood and I..
I took the road less travelled by..
and that has made all the difference..( extract from the poem "The road not Taken"..By Robert Frost).
Long may you run Neil!
Can someone please explain to me who the fuck is Claire Suddath and why on earth she thinks that anyone would give a shit about any of her opinions? Her little 'blog' was the most hillariously pathetic thing i've read in a long time!
Time to choose a new career Claire, writing about music really isn't your thing now is it?
Come on guys, lighten up. Seems like there's another fork in the road ahead as well, again, between those who can laugh about what old Neil is up to at his darn granola ranch, and those who take it all just a bit too seriously.
I don't like critics snarky criticism for criticisms sake,but then I don't like mindless obsequiesness either.
I'll be honest & admit I'm not yet a huge fan of the new stuff,but I'll give it time.It's growing on me.
Even Neil's stuff that doesn't blow you away immediately has a habit of creeping up on you, working their way into your head & heart.
I'M GRATEFUL to Neil that he keeps on keepin' on.,and for all the wonderful music through all the years.
I think that there are an aweful lot of opinionated people out there, who are just stuck in a time warp, and only want to hear the songs that made the most air play on the radio in the 70's. Neil is a rock n roll Genius...and you must love Neil and his music unconditionally...I Love Fork in Road!!
LONG LIVE NEIL!!!
One of the great things about Neil Young is that he doesn't give a shit what we or anyone else thinks. He is a creative genius and listens only to himself and his muse, thank goodness. The comment that he is way ahead of his fans was meant as a positive, I know, but that made me laugh out loud. That has to be the Neil Young understatement of the century. Way ahead? Yeah. That's why he's Neil Young and we're Fan Numbers One through a Zillion. Here is an update on the What Is Your Favorite New Neil Song Poll I was taking on my blog when the songs first hit the road:
http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/1261904/?view=results
I don't love all of them, but I do love some. Get Around (not a high scorer in the poll) is my absolute favorite, OMG.
loveandaffectionkaren
Hey Thrasher- so you have a picture of a few hundred people at the most from Madison Square Garden and based on that, you conclude that the place was 100% full at the end of the show.
Ha! Ha! Do Neil Young sycophants know any level to which they won't stoop in order to prop up their hero.
I realize that as a socialist, a lie is as good as the truth to you. Next time though, try making your lie not quite so obvious.
So, once again you have to go on for inch after column inch after foot after yard, a la your last one on the new songs, to try to convince yourself that there is some artistic merit in this crap he's recording. No one is arguing against his social stands, they're just saying that he's writing and recording lousy music to support them.
It's very clear that you don't want unbiased criticism on this site, so I won't post again, but, in parting a few things need to be addressed:
-those who say the new stuff may "creep up" on you as you get used to it - like some of his other stuff. If Time Fades Away or On the Beach or Tonight's the Night had to creep up on you, you never got Neil anyway. Nothing he's ever recorded that was worth a crap had to creep up on you. I'm the Ocean was immediately classic, the rest of Mirrorball not so much. Same with Side two of Stars n' Bars, etc. It's either good or it isn't. The new stuff not only isn't, it REALLY isn't.
-all the "all you critics sit alone" and "throw your hatred down" quoters. Repeat after me - THERE IS NO ONE WHO VISITS THIS SITE WHO DOESN'T LOVE NEIL YOUNG. These are not Rolling Stone or Internet blog critics desperately trying to put on a pretense of objectivity. No one who posts on here is remotely objective. We all love Neil Young and want him to write, sing and record great music. But, and especially because it appears that Neil may actually be paying attention to this site, you sycophants are doing incalculable damage by blindly following along bowing and scraping before this utter crap that has come pouring out of the NY recording factory over the last few years. For God's sake, just read the lyrics. How many stories do you have to read about "I wrote five new songs last night" before you realize that the man is no longer being inspired by his artistic muse? I get really tired of reading the "But Neil doesn't need the money." quotes. How the hell do you know that Neil doesn't need (or simply, maybe, want) the money? Everything he's done for the last few years seems calculated by his accountants.
And finally, one last quote. I hope Neil reads it (wouldn't hurt the rest of you either)
"There ain't nothing like a friend
who can tell you you're just pissing in the wind."
Over and out.
Hey listen 2/16/2009 09:29:00 AM,
You realize that we've heard your accusations of sycophantic behavior for way too long now.
You haven't an original thought in your head ever since you began posting here.
We realize that there is nothing that we or Neil can do which will please you.
And "socialist"?! I mean seriously. What makes you think we support socialism? or more to the point so what?
Are you suggesting there's something amiss about socialists liking Neil's music?
ya know, jesus was a socialist too.
Hey Pinto (or Flounder),
Thanks for posting twice this morning.
You realize I can track you?
It's easy, beside the fact that you mis-spell sycophant every time you post? Really, don't you think if you come on here all the time accusing us of being sycophants you could spell it right?
Don't you think it undercuts your arguments to come here with your cut & paste hatchet jobs?
btw, will you please observe the fuckin' Comments Policy?
Lastly, "these are not Rolling Stone or Internet blog critics desperately trying to put on a pretense of objectivity" really just makes me laugh.
Over & out, good buddy.
LOL
There were a lot of people catching an already crowded train from downtown traffic at 32 & Union Station & Broadway.
Every seasoned New Yorker & traveller knows that after midnight, the train & subway schedule changes and many stops that are available coming into town are not available going out.
Also commuter busses hooking up have a drop-deadline, too. So if people don't catch their busses to NJ,MA, DC, Philly, and upstate they're out of luck.
It's possible that people were worried about getting that last train out of town at 34 & 42nd & Union Station & Broadway because of the regular downtown traffic.
Neil should have been forewarned about allowing for this onsideration.
Again, the stream of people leaving the show at MSG had nothing to do with political ideologies, socialism, or lying.
Now I understand why Neil has a moat around this castle he's built... to keep the crazies out.
"There ain't nothing like a friend
who can tell you you're just pissing in the wind."
Take the old man's advice, Pinto, because sometimes you're just pissin all over the place online, too.
Jesus was not a socialist.
Obama is.
Dear Pinto,
Look at your own words here:
"If Time Fades Away or On the Beach or Tonight's the Night had to creep up on you, you never got Neil anyway."
I think you pretend to get Neil, but you don't because you go on and on about this person who doesn't exist anymore.
Do you know what I mean?
Are you the same person you were 30years ago?
I hope not. And neither is Neil Young nor the work he is producing these days.
You think it's crap?
Don't buy it. You want more of the same, wait for the archives.
You want him to produce music in the same genre as you remember him or what you believe is capable of?
Can't happen.
A little off the subject, I suppose but Jesus (if you believe he ever existed) was solcialist.
1. Jesus owned nothing.
2. Jesus argued for the dissolution of the family and the establishment of communes.
3. Jesus loved all people regardless of ethnicity or class. 4. Jesus revolted against the imperial government, established religion and finance capitalism (usury).
5. Jesus taught that we should act as one body, one blood.
6. Jesus taught that his kingdom (ie nation state) is in the heart and not below the feet.
7. Jesus taught that we should fight for Justice and 'turn the other cheek' to petty morality.
8. Jesus was a laborer and a teacher.
9. Jesus practiced healing and forgiveness.
10. Jesus taught that you can't be an imperialist and a disciple at the same time.
Just sayin.
Mother Nature,
Always appreciate your taking on the denialists.
Clearly, they're bogus fans who post comments designed to incite.
I've always been somewhat reluctant to feed the trolls as you may know if you've read the comments policy.
But this bit with the Village Voice & Guardian demonstrate how these anon drive-bys flow up the food chain to the MSM.
t
Greg,
I hear you dude.
And you never really know where Flounder/Pinto is coming from either.
We know what he's against.
But we don't know what he stands for?
Like he's against socialism. So what is for? Unrestrained, unregulated, laissez-faire corporate welfare maybe?
t
So Thrasher why are you so quick to always dismiss the likes of the Flounders & Pntos, etc?
Are you afraid of the truth? That your Neil has no clothes?
Carmichael
CATCH UP, CATS AND KITTENS! DON'T GET LEFT BEHIND!
OBJECTS IN MIRROR ARE CLOSER THEN THEY APPEAR.....
Hey Carmichael the floundering pinto;
There’s a new book out, all about you, check it out.
Snark: the language of losers- Salon Jan25/09 - http://tinyurl.com/dlyne4
Walk On
Neil possess neither the emptiness or the pretension of powerful people which is the point of the "emperor's new cloths."
I don't get the connection here.
Explain.
"It's a dream, only a dream and it's fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa (smack CD player!) fading now....."
Why I love Neil Young:
I first time I really heard Neil Young, I was at a friend’s house. I was about 13 years old...we were skipping school and we had just smoked a bomber in his shed and had come in to talk over a cup of coffee...the important things that stoned 13 year old dudes talk about...chicks, rock n' roll, bikes, guitars and drugs. I was the music freak and as I poured over my buddie’s CDs for something appropriate I saw an interesting album cover that I'd never seen before: a band dwarfed by huge amps with a strange drum kit design/lights behind them. The sloppy hand written lettering of the words "RUST NEVER SLEEPS" and the above 80's, computerish looking lettering of ‘Neil Young and Crazy Horse’ and in my state it all seemed to jump out at me. At that time I considered myself a music freak but the only bands I'd listen to were the Beatles, the Doors, Jimi Hendrix and maybe Bob Dylan’s Greatest hits Vol. 1.
"What is this?" I asked my friend
"Oh that’s Neil Young...you never heard of him? Someone left that here"
I put it in the CD player and the opening riff of 'My My, Hey Hey (out of the blue' twanged out of the speakers and I felt an instant recognition of the song and I had a nostalgic childhood feeling...as I must have heard that riff on the rock station my Dad listened to on the radio while I was growing up. I was instantly intrigued. As I poured the fifth teaspoon of sugar onto my coffee, the closing harmonica really sparked something in my soul and made all the hairs on my arms and neck stand out. The deepness of Thrasher blew my mind and I had little understanding of the song’s meaning. I giggled at 'Ride My Llama' and wanted to weep at the beauty of "Pocahontas' and 'Sail Away’ all the while trying to keep up my cool dude posture around my friend. Then came the growling of the pure guitar rock of the second half. 'Powderfinger' instantly became my new favorite song. 'Welfare Mothers' and 'Sedan Delivery' put me in Rock Heaven and then 'Hey Hey, My My (into the black)...GOD THAT RIFF AGAIN!? THAT GUTAIR! I'd NEVER heard a Guitar sound like THAT! I thought it so odd that someone would put the same song on an album twice like that. I had to know more about this Neil Young guy...that voice! That Guitar! and That Harmonica.... this Music was from another planet! (And when I finally saw what Neil looked like I thought he might have come from Mars)
Grabbing my book bag (with CD in hand) leaving to walk home I asked if I could borrow it?
"Oh it's not mine" So I walked back to put it by the player and snuck it in my bag. After I walked down the road a-ways I popped it in my CD WALKMAN to go through that weird trip again as I bounced back home.
Shortly there after I watched the rock and roll hall of fame induction on MTV and guess who was being inducted? I watched the opening montage of bits and pieces of Neil's music and career as I had still known nothing (If you've never seen that little film its now on Youtube I suggest you watch it) word can not describe the fascination I felt watching that...'the Needle and Damage Done' and 'Down by the River’ (played with CSNY) truly peeked my interest and I had to get those songs...I didn’t even know their names. I saw a bit of Neil on stage with Nils Lofgren playing the TRANS stuff...which was WAY bizarre to me. Then I watched Eddie Vedder induct Neil. He seemed to ramble on FOREVER! And then Neil came up and RAMBLED ON EVEN LONGER! I THOUGHT "WOW WHAT A WERID DUDE!!!" and he mentioned Kurt Cobain, which I thought, was super cool as my friends and I were still kind reeling over his suicide.
The next day I walked to my local Strawberries music store and bought a casseset tape of 'After the Goldrush'&'Harvest' Two albums on one. (I thought 'Cripple Creek Ferry' or one of those tunes might be that 'Down by the River' song...but as we know I was wrong) At first and even second listen I hated both sides except 'Heart of Gold' and 'Old Man' I thought this (what my sister called "Hippy Music") was just too weird! for me. Then I got 'Everybody Knows this is nowhere' and I never looked back. I was a Neil Young Freak! I grew the best sideburns my 14 or 15-year-old self could muster and luckily grunge was in and I was already wearing flannel. My friends started calling me Neil Young.
Soon after I heard he was coming out with a new album and a tour...Broken Arrow.... I love that album and it will always be a favorite. Never did I EVER think I'd see the man live! And I did TWICE THAT TOUR! Once from the lawn at Greatwoods in MA (which was pretty tame from where I was) and once close up- at The Meadows in Hartford CT...That show BLEW MY FUCKING MIND...THE HORSE! ALL FEEDBACK!!! I left there thinking I'd just seen a pure Lunatic! WHO THREW HIMSELF AROUND THE STAGE...ROCKING BACK AND FOURTH...KILLING, TRASHING, BLOWING, HAMMERING, COAX HIS GUTAIR TO GET THE MOST UNEARTHLY SOUNDS OUT OF IT! A CRAZY MAN POSSESED! It was the GREATEST NIGHT...and "when you Dance " was released on 'Year of the Horse' much to my elation. Since then I’ve seen Neil 15 times solo, with the horse, Greendale, CSNY, with friends and relatives and now the electric band. I have almost all his albums on Vinyl and the other few on CD. I’ve read every book…etc..,etc
Now if you've gotten this far in my history of Neil Young in my life you may be wondering why I'm writing this now and what this has to do with Neil's new music. Neil Young has NEVER EVER been truly defined...he has always and continues to Boggle our minds and to try to figure him out...to Nail him down and BOX him into a CATIGORY as "a soft Hippy Folky who mixes in Hard Grunge and Country Rock" totally misses the point and is a lesson in PURE DUMB. He will never do what you want...EVER! HE IS A POCISO WITH HIS GUTIAR AND HIS SONGS AND I'LL BET HE WILL KEEP WORKING UNTILL HE DROPS OR BURNS OUT because, like Picasso, it keeps him ALIVE and, like Picasso, he has hurt and will continue to hurt EVERYONE for his art. It makes me sad to hear his fans fighting over his music, his art! To hear people saying his new music is crap...but it doesn’t surprise me AT ALL. Any Neil Young fan with half a brain knows this is the Nature of the beast. Neil Young really doesn’t give a shit about you or what you think about him and his art...he does it because he BELIEVES IN HIMSELF! BECAUSE IT KEEPS HIM ALIVE.... IT’S HIS LIFE BLOOD. There is a reason why he keeps doing different things with his music and why he takes breaks and makes movies and etc. Because he must- to keep the MUSE ALIVE because he NEEDS it. He's not touring with CRAZY HORSE NOW BECAUSE NOW ISNT THE TIME FOR HIM. HE DOESNT KNOW YOU and he WILL NEVER MAKE YOU HAPPY EVERY TIME... HE’S NOT OUT TO PLEASE YOU! He is not your dog who greets you EVERY SINGLE TIME when you walk in the door! He's an ARTIST...BRITNEY, JAY-Z, Justin Timberlake, the Jonas brothers are POP STARS.... NEIL YOUNG IS AN ARTIST. AND LIKE AN ARTIST HE IS NOT ALWAYS UNDERSTOOD OR WELL RECEIVED….BUT LIKE EVERY GREAT ARTIST, TIME WILL TELL AND SHOW US THAT HE KNEW BETTER THAN YOU OR ME.
I didn’t like 'Harvest' or 'After The Gold Rush' WHEN I WAS 14 years old. NOW? CHRIST! THEY ARE BEOND CLASSICS TO ME. And right now there is some 13 year old kid who is unhappy with today’s music and is just listening to 'Rust Never Sleeps' for the first time...and he's fascinated by this strange man with the high voice and KILLER guitar...and I tell you what; He can’t wait for the New Album of “CRAPPY SONGS” to come out.
PS I was at MSG 12/15- FRONT ROW! IT WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST SHOWS I’D EVER SEEN! AND THE PLACE WAS PACKED AT THE END….
PSS I CANT WAIT FOR THE NEW ALBUM….! CAUSE NEW MUSIC IS BEST
Walk On,
Great post on snark.
We're trying to keep Thrasher's Wheat a "Snark-free" zone.
t
Oh love this site!...Good healthy(maste)debating..and I learn soo much... and all those BIG words and stuff..its all a new world to me... thanks thrashees for your entertainment... whilst I'm doing the graveyard shift!!
I've always had a big problem with professional music critics. I could probably write pages on why, but it comes down to a couple of things.
1) Music "experts". There are people, I'm sure you've met some, and even if you haven't you've read their writings, who put themsleves out there as experts on music in general. They "know" every band, every album, every song, and fucked if they don't have an opinion on every single one of them.
Now, I've done some rough math in my head at times, but I can't for teh life of me figure out how any person can have BOTH a wide musical understanding AND a deep musical understanding. There simply are not enough hours in the day.
You hear a new album. You probably have an initial reaction to the music (that initial reaction may or may not hold after repeated listens). Now, maybe you really dislike the album on first listen. Why would you listen to it in full, or repeatedly, in order gain real knowledge of the music, especially if you have thousands of other albums that you have to listen to in order to become an "expert" on everything? But ironically, the same holds for an album that you DO really like on first listen. The "music experts" have to listen to several new albums every day of their life in order to keep up their expertise on everything. How can they have time to truly get to know and love ANY album, even teh ones that they like the best?
It begs the question, "How can a person be both a 'music expert' and a 'music LOVER'?" They can't. With all that time spent listening to music that they hate, they must take very little joy out of listening to music. No surprise that it translates into very bitter, sarcastic, and shallow reviews of the music that they do listen to.
2) Professional music critics. David Lee Roth once said that the reason that music critics like Elvis Costello so much is because all music critics LOOK like Elvis Costello. The truth is a little more subtle than that, but he was on to something there.
Music experts and professional music critics share some things in common. Primarily, at some level, they are themselves failed musicians. This is because they either lack the musical talent to be successful as musicians or songwriters, or at some point in the past when the door may have been open to their taking a chance at pursuing a career in music they lacked the testicular fortitude to leave the comforts of the dorm room and follow the path of the artist.
It is essential to always rememeber that professional music critics hold their positions not so much based on their expertise in musical analysis, but in their skills as writers, especially their ability to write entertaining snark (Please visit one of my favorite blogs for examples of side-splitting music criticism: http://www.somethingawful.com/d/your-band-sucks/). The same is true for Washington political pundits, who have an astonishing record of being objectively wrong (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/2/16/11152/4105/870/697811).
These people do NOT know any more about music than you do, I promise you. They're just better writers, most of the time.
Lastly, I'd like to address the irony that I'm writing this post after being quoted in one of the above articles giving a scathing critique of Neil's new songs. I am NOT a music expert. But I do think that it's fair to say that I'm an expert on Neil Young's music. People can easily be experts on smaller scopes of music, one needs only be obsessive enough to nearly drown oneself in the music of one, or a few, artists.
I think it is totally fine for people on Neil Young blogs and message boards and newsgroups to give their INFORMED opinions on Neil's music, new or old. We've earned that right. But for some generalized "music critic" to take those comments out of context and claim any kind of standing to speak on a subject that they know tangentially at best, is not the same thing.
--PunkDavid
P.S. Thrasher, it is clearly time to de-troll this blog's comments. It must either require sign-ups that you can regulate, or you have to impose IP bans on anonymous posters who are just stirring up shit.
It's like on that snark article above about how they don't stand for anything, push for anything; they're mere opportunists without dedication, and they don't win any victories for their arguments.
Mike
PunkDavid,
Yes, i did note the irony. ;) Will the circle be unbroken?
As for dealing with the troll comments, i've given it some thought. Trying not to be draconian or make it any more time consuming.
I did amend the Comments Policy that blatant trolling snark would be deleted with a vengeance.
t
Thanks Thrasher - I think you’re doing a great job managing the trolling snarks, those dang vermin are everywhere.
I read the Guardian regularly, I thought they practiced solid journalism, until I saw how the writer lifted the opinionated rant from the Village Voice, cruised by the rust list, picked up on the whining about the archives delay and created the story that Neil’s fans hate the new songs, poppycock.
There was no indication that the crowd at the show I saw didn’t like the new songs, they listened attentively and applauded warmly. These are works in progress; I mean how exciting is that! Judging the new song by listening to amateur tapes, made when the band, and probably the sound board were still working them out, is just pointless, but Neil sure grabbed our attention, again.
I’ve been listening to Neil Young since the Buffalo. Critics come, and go ("Too many notes, my dear Mozart!), but over and over Neil proves them wrong he knows exactly what he is doing and where he is going. I’ve watched as each decade brings a new crop of twenty something’s’ to his shows, kids who sing along word for word, it still amazes me.
I will buying this album the day it’s released based totally on Fork In The Road, I know I’m showing my age, but I’ve a got to confess that the lyrics in that first verse, really turn me on.
Yikes.
Great comments shittyhorse & punk david
Walk On
There's a world of difference between saying the new songs are ordinary and that Neil Young is "washed up". I happen to believe the former, but by no means the latter. He's liable to make a great album at any time -- but this car album will not be it.
-- Glenn
Glenn,
Good to hear from you.
You know with Carmichael here, i don't even know why I bother sometimes.
Look, i put together a 1,000+ word post using some facts, photos, video's, links etc. i think i made my case and point.
And then the Pinto-types come along with nothin'. It's like someone said they come equipped to debate with spitballs.
As you my friend Glenn G. would say:
What we actually have is what one finds again and again: negative commenters who will resort to outright distortions about fans opinion in order to render it irrelevant, by claiming that "most fans" believe as they believe even where, as here, that claim is categorically false.
It's hardly surprising (except to an insular elite Neil fan maven) that regular Neil fans, who know that they will be subjected to one of the music world's harshest and most merciless critics if they break ranks, don't want Neil purists exempted from the rules of sycophancy. Imagine that.
Thanks Glenn.
Fellow Neilites -
There's a lotta wind a-blowing on this page.
But anyhow, I think of some lyrics I wrote awhile ago...part of which go...
"She hates to love me,
She hates to hate me too."
Now I can write a song about how I FEEL about things, but I could NEVER sit down and write one about how YOU FEEL. I could write about how I THINK YOU FEEL, but then it would come down to a debate of if I'm even close or not.
Sometimes when I read all this blather, I mean dialoge, regarding whether the new songs are good or if they suck, I just look at it and laugh.
NEIL YOUNG WRITES AND PLAYS WHAT HE WANTS AND WHAT HE CAN.PERIOD.
So while we can banter around and agree to disagree, it matters not one single little teeny tiny bit. It isn't gonna change anything. Like 'ol Neil tells us, he's blown in the wind by the thoughts, feelings, sounds, reactions, ok- MUSE, of what comes across his eye, mind and heart, modified by his experience, persuasions and intellect, and processed by his emotion, talent, amd intensity.
And if for the record matters any, I try not too judge to harshly regarding the new stuff of recent years. It's usually WAY OVER OUR HEADS the first times around anyway.
For what it's worth.
sony
well to start with MOST, not all, but most american media,including rock critics or full of shit..usa media has been impossible to respect and beleive for years...its all fucking rubbish..a small handful of magazines from the uk..MOJO and UNCUT..and maybe wax poetics and WIRE are well worth it but rock critics are generally morons whos opinions are utter bullshit..
.i mean even politically usa papers are crap..did they ever write about the worst ever president and the true evil lying that went behind them going to iraq..yeah i fucking hate the usa media..so what do i care what the fuck abunch of idiots say about neil..of course they hate him..HE SPOKE OUT AGAINST GEORGE BUSH AND THEREFORE IS ANTI AMERICAN...okay the new songs are no where near as bad as many say..ive been playing them on and off for a few months..and the response to the 3 shows i went to recently was great..the appluase after each songs was loud and fine..the few downloaded shows ive heard the response is the same...i dont hear booing or lack of applause at all..then again how could anyone say neil is washed up..he is as creative as ever..maybe not always good, but he is always throwing something new up at us..just look at all the controversy on this web page..what do u want a nice new safe van morrison yawn lp..or yaaawwwwn the eagles..or snoozze zzz james taylor..hey how about a csn lp...sorry gang but neil and bob are the only two left from the era still out there doin stuff, interesting creative stuff..fork in the raod is awesome..get around..awesome..light a candle..great...whats the problem??..i recall hearing utter hateful reveiews of greendale, living with war..and beleive it or not praire wind and chrome dreams to..is it cool to hate neil lp,s these days..??is everyone trying to prove they are different by not liking new neil??
All of this arguing is not even justified since the "Fork in the Road" album has not even been released. Can we all just shut up and judge the album later after we actual hear the songs in a traditional fashion.
- Jessie James
Sorry, but the pompousness is a little hard to bear on the main post and some of these comments. Let me understand: The reason that people (including the media and I) don't like the new songs is because we are "ill-informed", "ignorant", know "nothing about" Neil and just don't "get him"? That sounds a little desperate to me.
Actually, I know more about Neil than is probably healthy. I've listened to damn near every song the guy has ever put out and read freakin' books about him. And the mainstream media probably knows a thing or two about him too -- he's been around for about 100 years. I just think the songs are terrible, and the media (who, rather than being "ignorant" is perhaps a little more objective and distanced than the rest of us) shares this view. The songs are noticeably bad, and some news outlets have picked up on this. Nobody's trying to eviscerate the guy -- just calling a spade a spade.
Big Old Rig
Big Old Rig,
So calling a spade a spade is an argument based on some cogent logic?
So how about this?
Why don't you tell us about the last 3 concerts you attended? Who were they? What did you like & dislike?
t
May the force be with you Neil.
Luke
I have to say this.
I like this blog, but too often the language is so rough. Why is there so much shouting? Why are there so many 'damn's and fuck's and shit?
I even don't get the point why socialism is used as a term of abuse.
Had to say this.
Paul D
Hi Paul,
Yeah, it's a pretty rough neighborhood around here with punks tagging graffiti all over the place. ;)
We just like to keep the record straight. Esp after we called out the bogus "journalism" at Big Day Out in Adelaide.
Keep on taggin' in the free world!
t
I'm one of the more open minded people out there ... and can see the merit of almost any argument ... but its basically impossible to argue that Neil isn't completely on top of his game at this stage of his career ... he's basically taken it all to a new leve ... his live performances over the past couple years have been historic, his side projects -- LWW documentary, Lincoln Volt Project, policy articles on the auto industry, Bridge School interviews, new tunes, upcoming Archives in a cutting edge technology, all while being on some version of a never ending tour ... the guy was always prolific and dedicated but he's taken it up another notch to a place perhaps reserved for no other icon of his stature ... The 'Fork' video is on the bleeding edge ... Neil's creativity in producing it ..its just a masterpiece on so many dimensions .. its funny, relevant, addresses the snarky bloggers, speaks to the times, takes the vilians to task, expresses his views on downloading MP3s ... I think for those who can't initially jive with his new material the honest thing to say is, "I don't understand it yet" ... that's legit ... to bash it and bash him is really to miss the point and miss where he's coming from ... In other words its just another one of Neil's forks in the road ... let it age and I bet it will age well ... In the interim, throw in some old Neil and put the venom and negativity on hold
Shittyhorse. Nice story. Love to hear about how people got turned on to Neil's music.
Punkdaddy, you should CHARGE by the word. Your observations and comments are awesome.
And 4:24 p.m. I'm gonna dub you Powderfinger because you've packed a whole lotta bang in those fingers typing what you did.
Big Old Rig: Do you recall the reception that TTN and OTB got when it first came out? Not until every major band that popped up in early 90s cited it as their most influencial piece of work did it start getting the recognition it deserved.
In response to Thrasher (2/15/2009 09:52:00 PM): :) Thank you, it's nice to know other people can understand what I write. p.s. I still haven't responded to your email from last year, I will get back to you, I'm sorry, you know how time fades away!
How these comments have grown! Hah. I love Neil Young fans. Full of undying passion.
And also in response to burntoutbasement's comment just before mine (2/16/2009 07:19:00 PM): "And 4:24 p.m. I'm gonna dub you Powderfinger because you've packed a whole lotta bang in those fingers typing what you did." that is the most amazing comment ever! :P
I am somewhat surprised how much attention the trolls get here. I know you're kinda between a rock and a hard place Thrasher on what to do with the trolls and the sensorship issue. How about starting a section just for trolls. When they get a bit out of hand simply move their comments to the "Trolls" section of your blog. Then you can easily say that you are not deleting or editing their comments...just moving them to a more comfortable place for them to reside (love me daddy) for all and anyone that care to read them....No Good?
i don't know if the new songs are any good or not. except for "fork in the road" i haven't listened to any of them. but this preemptive strike by neil fans is pretty desperate and lame. who cares if anyone else likes it? all that matters is if you do.
btw, fuck the comments policy.
53 COMMENTS!..Whoa, ya certainly it a raw nerve on this one thrash!
53 COMMENTS!..Whoa, ya certainly hit a raw nerve on this one thrash!
This much madness brings too much sorrow..its impossible to make it today!
sorry ,spelling mistake.
I agree with the person who wrote about not having to warm up to albums like OTB,TFA, TTN. I agree.
I ahve bought every Neil record ever made in addition to hundreds of boots and tapes and CDs. When TFA came out, I loved it and listened hundreds of times.Same for OTB.TTN is my favorate Neil record ever.I've listened thousands of times.
But I think anyone who is familiar with all Neils songs, must be honest and realize most of the new songs realy realy REALY SUCK !
I'll buy the CD when it comes out and give it 5-10 listens, but what I have heard so far is realy bad writtign and realy bad music.I can write like that, but noone would ever dream of lettign me make a record of songs like that.Just garbage so far.Hoping there may be a few hiddens gems on the CD when it comes out.
I think Neil shoudl stop writting.
He is older now, life very stable, doesnt get so fucked up like his younger days ..... and it shows in these songs.When did he write stuff like "Like a hurricane " ??
After hanging out all night and getting fucked up !!! I think at this stage Pegi would dunp him if he went back to his "Old Ways".
We love you Neil, but dont record and release shit like this !!!!
Waiting for my Archive Vol 1 on Blu-ray ! Now that I'm excited about.
Yeah, theres a fork in the road Neil, so please dont go down that road of shitty songs being recorded and released.Go for the ditch like you always did.
You make a very good point stumbling upon this amazing human phenom of needing artificial substances or personal or social or ideological chaos or schisms to reach your creative genius.
Neil's sister wrote in her autobiography that "Prairie Wind" was his first album he made without smoking pot. To me, "Prairie Wind" is a pretty honest piece of work, don't you think?
Is it any less of a masterpiece because he did it without smoke?
"Fork in the Road" is an honest piece of work,too. It's fun satire. (And I think his message to the bloggers was a positive message ... not critism... because our newspapers & television have failed us miserabley.)
But asking an artist to sacrifice his happiness to go down that dark road again is pretty selfish if not ridiculous.
Comic genius John Belusi thought he needed cocaine to be funny.
Where is he now?
Here's a little human history lesson, folks: "Ends never justify the mean. Ever."
AK, I'm surprised you're not more vocal about "Fork in the Road" because this is right down your pure-hard core rock-n-roll alley...
I mean if anyone knows real Rock-n-roll from rip offs it's you & Punkdaddy.
Good God. get a life people. Most of all YOU "Thrasher"!!! I would expect this kind of artist adoration from a 12 year old, but most of you freaks must be at least 60!!! Neil's a fucking "Rock Star".... get a life you losers!! There are a few more important things in the world right now than the color Neil shits.
OK, now you've got me REALLY ANGRY!!!!!
It's one thing to go on and on about how you don't like Neil's new songs. That's your right, BUT
to say Neil shouldn't be writing anymore...how dare you!
Your ego stinks!!!! You hide behind "Anonymous" to spew your venom. What did Neil ever do to you?
I'm thankful that Neil doesn't have to obey you! I'm sure some of his greatest songs are yet to come and may be on the new album.
And I gladly sign my true name!
Marian M.
Dear Anonymous...I know we're all guilty of spelling mistakes and it is very easy to hit the wrong key by mistake..but jeez your spelling is atrocious! Please check your own lyrics before knocking Neil's.
Oh hey, Dr. Dip. Do you know any good proctologists in the house there? I think somebody's got a bug up their derriere this morning.
Oh. And My Dear Sony,
In response to that comment you left way, way up there, I don't think anyone here would ever have the audacity to expect any artist to create what their audience is feeling or expecting. Some do, but that's called popular music.
Heart of Gold is a good example.
The point is that Neil's hits most of those emotional chords, runs through that gauntlet of human emotion.
"Fork in the Road" is pure parody.
Like Monty Python.
Thrasher, I realize I've been an inspiration for many things along the way, but never, ever did I think I would become troll bait.
Sorry man.
"Good God. get a life people. Most of all YOU "Thrasher"!!!"
Do you realize that he's not REQUIRED to run this site for us? If you don't like it, why don't you switch to HyperRust for your Neil news? ;)
Hi T-
It seems your blog is reaching the level of snarky, mean-spirited criticism on any manner of topics (new logos, election, etc.) since the release of LWW.
Why is that?
My thought is that it is far easier to bitch and moan, complain and find fault with everything because their own lives. JMHO.
Think of it: it's easier to bitch and comment: 'he should just stop writing' anonymously, than approach one's manager and say 'what this company is doing is just wrong'.
Thrasher, you are the bartender, hair dresser, priest, taxi drive, therapist--you are stuck!
(Let's talk over a few Tequila shots sometime!)
Do I like what I've heard of the new Neil? Not particularly. Then again, I don't like the new Bruce, either. Should he stop writing, too?
What I love about Neil: he put's all his heart and soul and passions out there for us..
We don't know anything, yet, regarding the criteria of these new songs: rock album, film soundtrack, road experiment? It makes a difference and get this: it may never be released! You never know with Neil.
So, take a deep breath, see how you (Pinto & Carmichael) can make positive change and find outrage where there really needs to be outrage.
Peace.
-Chicago
mother nature on the run-i'm indifferent towards "fork in the road". i do know i prefer it over anything on prairie wind.
and punkdavid, this is some cowardly shit
"P.S. Thrasher, it is clearly time to de-troll this blog's comments. It must either require sign-ups that you can regulate, or you have to impose IP bans on anonymous posters who are just stirring up shit."
of course i expect this kind of attitude from you. you don't like what someone says? don't fucking read it. for someone who supposedly hated bush you sure are quick to grab on to a few of his gestapo tactics.
"Oh. And My Dear Sony,".....
"Fork in the Road" is pure parody..........
Mother N. - I get that. But isn't it being used to convey his thoughts and postions? Is that not emotion/reaction/sarcasm?
I guess I'm just recognizing that for a recipient of the new music to pre-define that the next thing the artist puts out 'should' be anything other than what it is will create an immediate let down as it doens't meet the listener's expectation. I guess it is natural reaction. But isn't it far better to not have that expectation, especially with Neil?
sony
I miss your ranting so ... I always thought you and Punkdaddy were like the Huntley & Brinkley of Rock-n-Roll... screw the trolls.
Good night, Chet. Good night, David.
Good night, Moon.
GOD! YOU PEOPLE ARE SOOOO FUCKED UP! I MEAN REALLY NOW! THIS ALBUMS ISNT EVEN RELEASED!...GET IT? NO ONE HAS HEARD IT YET! HOW CAN YOU BASH SOMETHING YOU'VE NEVER HEARD? GOT A CRYSTAL BALL? ARE YOU ALL GYPSYS WHO CAN TELL THE FUTURE? GOT A MAGIC 8 BALL THAT CAME UP SAYING: "THE NEW NEIL YOUNG ALBUM WILL SUCK!"? Or Maybe all the EIGHTBALLS YOU’VE SNORTED BACK IN 80's TRUELY FUCKED UP YOUR JUDGEMENT! ARE YOU AN ALL KNOWING, ALL SEEING GOD?
THE ALBUM 'FORK IN THE ROAD' ISNT OUT YET! ...LET ME REPEAT! THE NEIL YOUNG ALBUM “FORK IN THE ROAD” ISNT OUT YET...THE NEIL YOUNG ALBUM FORK IN THE ROAD HAS NOT YET BEEN RELEASED! I HOPE THIS IS NEIL’S GREAT RECORD EVER JUST SO WE CAN TELL ALL YOU DINGLESBERRIES TO STICK IT!
JUST LIKE THE TICKET PRICES.....EVERYONE COMPLAINED BUT NO ONE COMPLAINED AFTER THE SHOW!
THE ALBUM FORK IN THE ROAD HASNT BEEN RELEASED YET! OK GOT THAT? LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ME TO REPEAT IT FOR YOU AGIAIN?
INSTEAD OF BITCHING ABOUT SOMETHING YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT (NO, NOTA, ZIP, ZERO, NONE, ZILTCH!) GO LOOK FOR A JOB, OR TAKE CARE OF YOUR KIDS, GO MAKE LOVE TO YOUR SPOUSE (OR GO LOOSE YOUR VIRGINITIES, LOSERS), GO BACK TO SCHOOL, BUILD A SCHOOL FOR THE HANDICAPPED, BUILD A SUPER-EFFECENT HYBRED CAR and THEN come on here and try to speculate on something that you know NOTHING ABOUT! DIP-SHITS!
PS-NEIL YOUNG, by the way, SHITS LIGHT-BROWN, LONG, WELL-FORMED, SLIGHTLY SMELLY CACA-DOOKIE… I”VE SEEN IT, SMELLED IT, FELT IT (I picked up that turd he left floating in his GOLDEN toilet and squeezed it in my fists until it came oozing out between my fingers, corn, peanuts and all..then I rubbed it all over my hairy chest…then I licked my hands clean…then I kissed the toilet seat where is dimpled, wrinkly, cottage cheese, ass had just sat) ARENT YOU JEALOUS BITCHES!
oh Sony. My last comment was meant for Chet & David, not you.
I see what you mean. There is that expectation & disappointment that follows when it's not met.
But I don't think "Fork in the Road" as a concept album as a complete wash.
It's Neil.
It's the kind of music you crank up to eleven, roll down the windows, and enjoy.
Take it or leave it.
@12:36 pm
That is the funniest thing I've ever read. I actually have to get up to change my pants now...
“Think I'll pack it in and buy a pick-up
Take it down to L.A.
Find a place to call my own and try to fix up.
Start a brand new day.”
"Don't let it bring you down
It's only Castles Burning
Just find someone who's turning
And you will come around"
Are all those nay-sayers f'ing nuts? We don't direct Neil, we just sit back and enjoy the ditch, the ruts, the smooth road...didn't we learn anything from the Geffen years....Neil is the Godfather of Grunge, for God's sake! Trust him, he's never let me down....
Thrusher..there will be another one
to bother..
over you, beneath the sun
see the things that never come.. today
C'MON....everybody sing now.. lets join hands...MNOTR, PUNK DADDY,shittyhorse..Lets get back ta woodstock...peace ..C'mon people now..smile on ya brothers..everybody get together and luv one another right now!!!
"No matter where I go, I never hear my record on the radio"
Don't need no more lies.......
we got youtube!
I think Yogi Berra said it right....
"When you come to a fork in the road, you take it!"
sony
Oh by the way MNOTR..I did study to be a gynecologist..but I was about an inch away from becoming a proctologist!
Hi Thrasher and all you freaky fanatics,
I am kind of to busy to join the "debate". But it all sounds like fun to me. It's not that bad at all. So, I will not join the discussion, just want to let you know the results of the Amazon poll until now:
5 stars >>> 28 votes
4 stars >>> 5 votes
3 stars >>> 7 votes
2 stars >>> 4 votes
1 star >>> 24 votes
And, YES, this is all about ranking the unreleased Archives Vol. 1.
Neil Young master of the "unreleased-albums-debate!".
BecauseSoundMatters
is it just me or is this site a bit slow? it seems like there's a huge amount of links and applications and whatnot on the front page. maybe this site needs to be decluttered a bit? i dunno.
Regarding the Fork in the Road video: I've watched it too many times than is probably good for me, but every time it gets about 1 minute 46 seconds into it, when Neil starts smiling, I just want to get up and dance dance dance with him. Maybe the rest of you folks are simply reading too much into it. Stop analyzing and get up and DANCE! Carol in Michigan
When you da-ance ooooh ooh
I can really love!!!!!!!!!!
A to the motherf#%^in K, homeboy wrote:
and punkdavid, this is some cowardly shit
"P.S. Thrasher, it is clearly time to de-troll this blog's comments. It must either require sign-ups that you can regulate, or you have to impose IP bans on anonymous posters who are just stirring up shit."
of course i expect this kind of attitude from you. you don't like what someone says? don't fucking read it. for someone who supposedly hated bush you sure are quick to grab on to a few of his gestapo tactics.
Actually, son, it comes from the perspective of someone who has been a moderator on large message board for over four years and has learned the difference between disagreement on substance and having no substance whatsoever.
I LOVE debate with people whom I disagree, especially when they can support their opinions and challenge my own. However, "trolls" can't support anything they say. They just spew venom, with the sole motivation of angering people and sitting abck and watching the fires they start. In my world, those people don't hang around long.
After four years, I barely even need to touch the moderator control panel anymore. People behave, and the people who remain bring respect and get it in return. The comments section here is starting to look as depraved as the comments on the local newspaper's website.
It's the price of fame for Thrasher. It's an open blog, and it will attract some douchnozzles.
82 COMMENTS!..Whoa, ya certainly hit a raw nerve on this one thrasher!
This much madness IS too much sorrow..its impossible to make it today!
punkdavid-oooooo! thanks "dad". a big bad MODERATOR! moderation is often just an extension of cowardice. the ignore button is built in on a computer mouse, didn't you know that? unless a law is being broken, code is being tampered with or the comment is obvious spam (such as porn links) then you are really just deciding to play thought cop. thanks dave, but myself and others like me can think on our own. you may feel the need to flex your cyber muscles on "trolls" but i just skim right over their posts without a second thought.
"This much madness IS too much sorrow"...Thanks Anonymous.
I bastardised the lyrics deliberately..I got permission off Neil!
By the way I never new "anonymous" could be such a popular name!
Show ya hands wussies... its only words...between the lines of age.
Neil's not washed up live, but his albums haven't been that great lately. There's been a few stand out tracks here and there like No Hidden Path, but overall his muse seems to have left him. And that whole new is better than old thing is complete bullshit. New is only good when you release something worthwhile. Otherwise you're just wasting everyone's time and ripping them off. And I'm not even going to get into a long rant about the Archives. The whole marketing of the Archives has been ridiculous. I think it's the ultimate form of arrogance and cheek to promise something and then not deliver. Everyone knows Archives will be better than Fork in the road, so why doesn't he just release the Archives? And once the Archives are out he can take the time to record a really good album. I know I haven't heard FITR yet, but from what I've heard from the live recordings FITR doesn't look very promising.
Matt
I know this is pretty much off topic, but Matt's comment reminded me of a question that's been bugging me. What exactly is going to be so great about the Archives, again? From everything that I've read, it mostly consists of songs that have already been released and that we've all had in our collections for about 30 years; Live at Massey Hall and Live at Fillmore, which we already have; a film that looks kinda fun, but that is supposedly quite bad; and only about a dozen truly new songs. Why should we pay $300+ for this? Honestly, I'm not asking this question rhetorically -- I want to get pumped up for the Archives, but the actual substance seems deflating. Thanks.
Big Old Rig
Hey Thrashees and Rusties!
I'm writin'a book on the fans of Neil Young, totally based on comments from topics and subjects thrasher has thrown into the wheat silo. I'll be interviewing fellow bloggers, trolls and critics and taking direct comments from the blog.
I'm gunna call it..."Shonky".
By the time I collate it,have thrash edit it and release it...it should be out with the Archives!...
watch this space!
is there any new buisness?
Hey, doc.
Why don't ya call it "Shnarkle"
Combine Shakey, snarky, and fickle.
Hey dip.. "that'll be a best seller" for sure!
shnarkle: \sh-nar-kəl\
1. Marked by annoyance and erratic changeableness, adj.
2. A Neil Young fan who looks a gift horse in the mouth, n.
Mother Nature,
Very clever. I'll be sure to add to my thesaurus. ;)
t
Thread is much to long to read, so forgive me. I haven't been on this site for awhile because I was sick of listening to all the haters. Anyways, watching this video, I think I more or less realized (not that I didn't believe it before) why Neil is quite simply the man. For someone who's already cemented themselves, for better and worse, in the history of rock and roll, accomplished what he has for so long, to continue to do what he feels is important with no regard for the critics our there...like it or hate it, if you can't appreciate what he's doing (putting things he cares about ahead of his own legacy), there's something wrong with you.
Here's a man that could stop playing today, release the archives, never see a stage again, and ride off into the sunset as one of the most successful rock and roll musicians of all time. But what does he do, he decides to use his stage to bring awareness to issues he cares about with no regard to anything else.
Even if you believe that his new music is junk, if you can't appreciate the fact that he still puts himself out there for things he believes in, you are missing the essence of what makes Neil Neil while failing to appreciate that in the end what he is doing (no matter how many times he says his motives are his and his alone) is trying to make a positive impact in a world led astray by the powers that be.
I wish more people in the world carried the set of balls Neil owns, I'm sure we'd all be better off.
All hail the omnipotent Thrasher.
Let us bask in your glory and rejoice in your wisdom as we move back to our turntables we should never have abandoned in the first place. Wrath and vengeance be upon the heretics who dare question your faith in Neil and blessed be such circumstances that allow us who were once without Blu-Ray players to feed at the trough of "new is always better".
Verily I say unto thee, repent!
Sell thine albums and Cds lest ye doom us all to everlasting new Neil albums. Let fear strike the hearts of the unbeliever, let lightning strike him down as another Archives release date comes and goes with his heresy.
The Archives God is coming, kneel before his representatives on earth and tremble at their unreleased and hidden tracks. To those who would say that Fork in the Road is classic and that fans do not have a credible opinion, ye are most despised of people. You shall be placed upon a media altar and your credibility laid to waste with outraged rhetoric and many, many bad reviews by inconsequential critics. But for thee who will wither and die a little inside every time a new song begins, for thee who lie awake at night worrying that somewhere a Blu-Ray Archives DVD is left un-played, I say unto thee. Blessed art thou you most frightened of fans, for you shall inherit the world after the big collapse of Neil's career. You shall be the ruler of all the MP3's and schlock rock, and none shall doubt your absolute knowledge.
Let it be so.
Ah Briggsie, I too have read "the Book", Neil Chapter 2, Verse 63...
"I shall come to thee on Sugar Mountain...Yonder stands the sinner..For I am a child on this journey through the past!..Let thee anti rustie cast the first(rolling) stone...I will rise from the dead..thy loyal follower will flourish in my reincarnation of my chrome dream..This has been a mere test for my true disciples..for there is no hidden path!!.....
see the sky about to rain?...
Forgive me Neil for I have sinned
Your blog and guitar ..they comfort me..I have been "Obalmed"
Where will this lead oh chosen one?
And I say unto thee.... bow at my all-powerful and all Seeing Eye.... for I am Gandolph the Grey ruler of all Mordor! And even I say that you! Sniveling, Small pitiful Frodo Baggins wannabe! Go fourth and banish yourself from these lands! Better yet! Heave yourself off the misty mountains for you, cowardus, yellow one! Play far too much Dungeons and Dragons! And for that I cast you away from here in direr shame for you will FOREVER remain a VIRGIN until you reach your cowardly and painful end for you are not worthy of the dirtiest vagina on an HIV positive wart hog. David Briggs you are NOT! Imposter! Neil Young wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.... for are an insignificant little shit-ant worse than Gollum... I beg of you! KILL YOURSELF this instant and spare the universe one more turd…
Gandolph...Can ya say what ya REALLY feel!
Hey thrash...Makes my interview with Neil in Ozz look pretty tame doesn't it!...Now don't be hypocritical now will you!..consistency is the word here
Hey MNOTR...I feel a comment coming on...Where is it?
Just when I thought I was running outa intravenous DRIPS,along comes one..thanks, Only one more nightshift to go..Yahoo!
Hey Gandolph the grey...
Gandolph had a little bit more tact then that!
I think you're on to something here, Doc, about that book.
Telling the story through short vignettes about washed up Neil Young's music as imagined by his fans.
We can call it "With A Full Moon In My Eyes"
Scene One: Shittyhorse is blowing out a few doobs with his pals listening to "Hey Hey, My My" and he's totally freaking out.
Scene Two: Unborn Blogger "Thrasher" inside his Mother's womb listening to "Out on the Weekend"
Scene Three: Marian M. dancing with her kids to "When You Dance"
Scene Four: A young Al Gore being jeered wearing his military uniform while "After the Goldrush" is playing the background.
Scene Five: College kids circa 1970 gathering petitions to end the war while "Ohio" is playing.
Scene Six: Young girl hitchhiking her way across the US on her way to concert and get's picked up by farmer playing "Heart of Gold"
Oh heck, we can have fun with this.
Ya know, Doc, "After the Goldrush" is really Al's song.
Like many of our young men back then, he was down in that burnt out basement waiting for his draft number to come up.
Although Neil was unaware that many people intepreted his song that way, the point is that his songs have a special meaning to the listener.
Washed up?
I don't think so. As long as there are dreamers & schemers, his songs will always have a place in our hearts.
Scene Seven: Punkdaddy & AK (alias Dark Helmet ... and ...uh...) in crowded hazy bar listening to "Hurricane" with an occasional utterance of "WTF" formed by their wet, thrrsty lips while reading a magazine's tepid review of "Stars 'N Bars."
I think this page and topic are now washed up.
sony
Ya know what MNOTR..I'm really starting to warm to you.....I didn't realise this was an RSVP site!?
anyways its time to wash up now!
Scalpel,....Sutures!
Ah, hell.. I said I wasn't going to comment anymore, but I lied...
a few points:
-being labeled "Trolls" and "Haters" because one thinks Neil's recent output is crap. Do you people have any critical skills at all? Ask yourself - is there anything, anything at all, that Neil could put out that I wouldn't prostrate myself in front of? I swear Neil's sitting at home laughing (I mean, I read Shakey, too - this can be a mean guy. Eat a Peach, anyone) saying "Hey, Peggy - look at these guys. I think I'll record an hour of my own farts and put in on a CD and watch these people faint over how profound it is.
One is not being a hater or a troll when one's intent is to get Neil to look in the mirror and realize that he's naked. (hence the "nothing like a friend" quote. You said it, Neil, not me.)
To the person who wrote that the point here is how proud we should be of Neil's engagement in the real world and the very worthy causes he espouses. I couldn't agree more. I just wish he would espouse them with some decent music.
And finally - Thrasher, dude - this business of collecting a dozen media pieces questioning Neil's current artistic quality and "answering" them by getting a couple of your bar buddies to say Neil is still God and then babbling on endlessly about how you "won" the argument - come on, dude. I mean, that's just pathetic.
Over and out
Yo Pinto/Flounder,
So couldn't resist coming back for more punishment, eh?
Look, dude, you know you're wrong. Give it a rest.
You are in an extreme minority of one.
Don't you read the comments and reviews? The only folks who agree with you are incompetent reviewers like Harvilla @ VV.
You need to move on from the '70's. They're not coming back. If you think Neil is going to drop another DBTR, CG, CTK, LAH, RITFW, etc classsic you'll be waiting a long time probably.
Let's face it Neil's best years may behind us but he's left us enuf great stuff to keep our grandchildren busy.
And I know your best years are behind you too.
So look in the mirror Old Man. Neil's NOT a lot like you.
Roger, over & out, good buddy.
You know, I didn't prostrate over all of CDII, most of Prairie Wind, some of RU Passionate. LWW blew me right out the F@#$%G door! For weeks I couldn't let it go. Sometimes it's not the notes and the melody that make Neil so good. It's the all-out assault he can take to carry the vibe/feel/message to my brain. FITR, now for sure it's not the most melodic and transfiguring of his work(s). But people - he slams his face into your space on F!@#$%g Youtube for free! yeah, it's gonna come out on a disc in a while. But NOBODY uses the tricks and tools of the trade better than this guy. He is consistantly so far out in front that there is no one in his rearview mirror.
Maybe for an encore he can take his next tour on the back of a freight train and play out of the boxcar. He's a pure wildman - can't, wont be tamed.
When Neil Young ran into a buzzsaw of criticism over the Greendale tour in 2003 about "not giving fans what they expected", Young responded:
"People have become complacent. They forget that artists have the right to do whatever they want to do. We don't work for anybody. A real artist is creating and that's what I like to do. It's my right. If people get upset because they don't understand what I'm doing, that reveals more about them than it does about me."
I said I was Gandolph THE GREY! I'm a sleezy, woman beater with a heavy gasoline huffing habit and genital warts. Gandolph THE WHITE as all the class!
And I say NOW, UNTO THEE: ALL FANATICS OF THE ONE, TRUE, GREAT NEIL PERCIVAL YOUNG! SHOW YOUR PLEASURE AND PRIDE THAT ONE OF GREATEST MUSICIANS AND COMPOSERS OF THIS REALEM; a TRUE SORCER OF WORDS, A POET! A TRUE BARD! AND A WIZARD OF ALL CHORDOPHONES WHOSE MAGIC AND ORIGINALITY ON THE STRINGS IS MATCHED BY NO OTHER LIVING IN THIS DIMENSION IS RELEASING A NEW MUSICAL COLLECTION OF ORIGINAL SONGS! REVERE HIM! FOR THOSE PETTY FOOLS WHOM CLAIM TO BE A FAN AND THEN SPIT IN THIS GREAT HUMAN'S FACE SHALL BE CAST INTO A LAKE OF PURE FIRE, LAVA AND BRIMSTONE TO SUFFER THE WORST AGONIES IMAGINABLE FOR THREE ETERNITIES! FORK IN ROAD WILL BE REVERED, PRAISED AND WORSHIPED FOR 86 HUMAN GENERATIONS! IT WILL CHANGE MIDDLE EARTH AND THIS EARTH FOREVER...WHOLE FAITHS WILL BE CREATED DEVOTED TO THIS ALBUM, TRASPORTATION WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AND OIL WILL BE EXTINCT! AND HUMANS AND HOBBITS AND ElVES AND ORKS ALIKE WILL NEAL AT THE ATAR OF NEIL PERCIVAL YOUNG AFTER ARRIVING TO BROKEN ARROW RANCHO IN THIER HUGE LINCOLN AND CADILLAC AUTOMOBILES ALL UNDER A CLEAR SKY AND CLEAN AIR! BUY THE MP3 TODAY!
WORD IS BORN!
I must be missing the boat here. I think I gotta tune in a little clearer. I gotta ramp this worhsip thing up a little. Don't wanna be left behind. I gotta start huffing or something. I'm feeling all alone. There must be something wrong with me.
When u least expect it Neil will Neil will break out an album that will blow everyone away ... but give respect to the process that's created the greatest canon in Rock and Roll. Chill out, respect the man for doing his thing and have some patience ... we heard all of these complaints and more then he broke out 'Ragged Glory' putting the haters and complainers to shame ... if u don't like the new material, be comforted by the fact he puts out a new album every year ... close your eyes and it'll be 2010 and he'll have some new material out .. in the interim you have over 40 albums to throw into your ipod or turntable to keep you busy
Ah Gandolph!...Middle Earth is a wonderful place..I've been there!
I'll letya into a little secret..
Neils other projects..Forget the archives,lincvolt,obama etc..they're just fronts for his real passion......
LOTR the MUSICAL! Yes thats right.. Neil's writin', directin' and starrin' in it!
Neil's to play Frodo.
Peg's to play galadriel.
Crazy horse play ..well.. they just play!
All you bloggers..you are to play the trolls.
and you thrash..well you are to play.....GOLLUM....Precious!
flinto: (flin-to)
1. A person with a brain made of dark quality chert or quartz known for annoying and credulous comments, n.
2. A Neil Young fan who read "Shakey" and cannot distinquish the real deal from caricature Neil.
Shnarbit: (shnob-bit)
1. A person characterized by erratic changeableness, willful subordination, hairy feet, and voracious appetites.
2. A Neil Young worshipper who cannot correctly spell the name of the Tolkien character he or she is trying to impersonate even though the name appears over 856,000 times in the trilogy.
(Heavy set lady dressed like a valkyrie enters the stage)
"When faceless and anonymous
Come to beat down your door
And say you're all washed up and done
You can just say they have nothing in store
To touch this soul
Because they just don't know
They just don't know
The way"
Oh my god..
Ok, I am running risk to be labeled as Troll or Hater, even more because I have no legit registration for my comment.
But please. Let people say their opinion. It is okay to think that Neils latest output isn't up there with his classics and his usual "standard". It is also okay to think that the stuff is great and on a level with the old stuff.
Its not about the different opinions on Neils music.
What is really bothering me, is way people deal with negative comments here. Yeah, some of those comments are not well founded. But there are also many postings among these 100+ comments that are honest and thoughtful meanings about Neils new stuff.
And Thrasher. I really like your site and I am a regular visitor. But sometimes one gets the impression, that you are almost getting payed not to get any negative press about Neil. You are almost supressing negative opinions and thoughts.
Let them be. Its ok. Neil is no god. He's just a man, just like you and me. He can do wrong sometimes and he is allowed to do mediocre stuff sometimes. Its ok. It would be scary, if he would never fail.
And so its okay for us to think open minded about what he does. We all here love his music and what this man has done all the years and we love what his music means for our lives.
And still, it is allowed to think, that his newer stuff is not to someones likings. It doesnt touch his old stuff. Its a matter of personal taste and opinions.
Having said this, I will also contribute my opinion on Neils recent work.
I have seen Neil two times on the last tour and those shows rank among the best I've ever seen in my life.
And I was shocked, when I heard the first recordings of the new FITR songs. Those songs dont stack up to any of his backcatalog. They lack soul. They are musically very simple. Neil has often written technically simple music. Cortez exists of three simple chords. And it is miles and miles away from, lets say, When worlds collide. Cortez is an extreme example, but you get what I mean.
I also agree, that he somehow has lost his genious. The Neil I am seeing now is not the one he was a few years ago. He is settled.
I cant imagine him writing those FITR songs e.g. on the 1996 Tour. These were different times.
His latest records lack this very special magic his music usually had for me. I listen to them rarely.
Well, okay. That doesnt change a bit, that he has created the soundtrack for my life. His music will always be connected with my life.
But its a bit sad to see, where he is going the past years. its like losing a dear friend.
Okay, and please understand. This is my personal opinion. I am not bashing anyone. Not you, not Neil. But this is a Neil-Website. Where else should I be able to express those sad thoughts?
its okay to have them. To talk about them.
There is no need to fight about it.
MNOT...Am I on the right Blog site?
blog:v
:To go on with incessant babble
blogger:n
The incessant babbler
For your INFORMATION I am Gandolph the Grey
We all know Gandalf the Grey but he's a sissy...I'm the Real Deal YO! You best Check Yo self fore you wreck yo self! Fooo!
Dingleberry:1. crusty piece of poo stuck in the hairs next to the anus that is often hard to remove but makes a great snack for a later time.
2. A Neil Young fan with nothing better to do except correct others blogging errors and playing off others creative literary meanderings instead of writing anything even remotely original...this person also, strangely knows how many times a name appears in a Tolkien trilogy. And is often identified as one having WAY too much time on their hands
So it's come this.I mean we've got Jesus,Hobbits and Gandalf,Pinto and or Flounder.?I mean what the hell!?This is what we've come to?My suggestion to Neil is just do a saturation bombing.Release of product wise that is.I mean just release Archives 1 and 2 at least along with the new album.Everybody on here and their brother at least would buy all I suspect.I know that's not the point but...END THE MADNESS ALREADY!!!Joel Bernstein's just one of the people working on the Archives series right?Has he even kissed a girl?Move outta Neil's basement already.Get a life.Just kidding Joel.You're alright.There.I've said my piece along with the rest of ya's.I'll just end with this.I love Neil Young and agree with a lot of his ideals.In the end it's his work,music/visuals and his choice to release or not.I'm out.
Your right!...lets stop the madness! None of this as anything to do with Fork In The Road...When it comes out we can judge if we like it or not. If you like it throw it in the trash or give it to a Neil fan who does!
I mean if you dont like it...
Now that that's settled, do we know what color Neil pukes?
Actually YES! I know the whole story.....Neil Young, after a few too many IPAs and big bowl of fruit salad tends to throw up a great many colors...in fact he once threw up and looked in the toilet and the muse visited him...quickly he wrote down "Green to green Red to red Yellow to yellow In the light
Black to black When the evening comes
Blue to blue In the night" but he thought this couldnt be the first verse so he wrote on.
The first verse originally was writen
"The Puker stood
Before the bowl
His head was spinning everywhere
He felt the urge then he ran for it
Soon the vomit flew through the air
He drank the wine
He drank the beer
then he knew it was too many
But in the end
It all came out
Some even got in his hair
If you drink a bunch of beer
You shouldn't drink Wine
If you drink a bunch of wine
Don't touch
those
Beers...
Robin in Bonn, Germany,
Thank you so much for your comment.
I guess this affords the opportunity to clarify some things. At the risk of boring everyone, most of what I've said on the matter is contained in the Comments Policy which is linked on every comment thread.
To boil it down, I certainly welcome Neil criticism. I think if you read the site regularly,we post negative stuff quite a bit. We also deconstruct it if we find it invalid. Somehow, we find it amusing.
But this is a thread that's been hijacked by someone and their aliases who seem to have an agenda. Neil can do no right in their mind. If it's not FITR is a lousy song, it's the setlists that are too heavy on new songs, the ticket prices are too high, Pegi can't play, and on & on. We're just find the unrelenting negativity by the same person to be disruptive and are trying to put a stop to it.
Folks have let me know they do not like the bad neighborhood feel of TW comments. I'm not trying to make this a total Neil love fest but something enjoyable.
So sometimes I delete comments that are repetitiously negative. It's old news and doesn't advance new arguments or theories.
So we like to think we're tolerant here @ TW. You'd be amazed probably at the amount of crap we let slide as well as the amount we have to trash.
It truly is a pain that makes us wonder why bother? We can turn off comments. we can moderate them. we can require registration.
All of those things would bring the problem to a halt.
And then we'll have our perfect little pristine Neil village.
Thanks for your comment Robin. And most of all your honesty, providing a name and location.
Hope to see you back again someday my friend.
Dear Thrash,
For the first time in my life I'm going to be sincere and serious here!
I've got to admit, I'm only a relative "new blogger" to your enjoyable and informative site.Christ,if I wasn't a loyal Neil fan and I didn't enjoy the banter on your site, I wouldn't visit.I visit 'cause I do get a buzz out of the interaction and debate between fellow bloggers. I do appreciate your position as the originator of this site, to mediate, arbitrate, edit or delete any comment, be it pro or con on the subject in question. I know as a "new kid blogger"on the block, there are many loyal bloggers to your site that have probably been with you from your inception. A relationship of mutual respect and credibility has obviously developed over the years between you and them. For you to sift out the "husks from the chaff"in the wheat so to speak, would be difficult at the best of times.As I said in one of my serious previous comments,it's amazing,the diversity of people's morals and ethics.What one person finds offensive another would find utterly unoffensive.It would be a pretty boring old world if we all took life so seriously as some do and all had the one anal personality.Fortunately this is not the case.
Thrash, it has NEVER been my intention to degrade,embarrass, offend or slur on this site. I do comment with tongue firmly implanted in cheek. From my somewhat miniscule amount of time that I have been involved on TW, I've really come to the conclusion that not everybody shares my sense of humour and I respect that.To those that can see the funny side and enjoy the banter that's great. All's I'm trying to do is "lighten up" some "very serious in life thashees".If any blogger is totally disgusted with my contribution I apoligise. At least I don't hide behind the name of "Anonymous"...Happy harvesting!
Right on Thrasher.... that is TOTALLY what do you do...to a "T' I see negative Neil Young comments here ALL THE TIME....Lately (SADLY) more than ever. Sometimes people do come on here and post the same negative crap over and over again...and who wants to see that? To say Thrasher is into censorship and anti freedom of speech is like saying George W was a peaceful president...its pure bullshit! Thrasher..hats off to you my friend, for running such an excellent and informative site for us Neil Young "fans" to banter, praise, bitch, complain, sing, bash, worship, argue,listen, learn and sometimes just spout nonsense. You do a great job...most of all you do a great job patiently and with a lot of class. I couldn't do it. You are NOT a Gestapo...(hell most of my bullshit posts make it up here) Thrasher's Wheat always has an even amount of different view points and perspectives...which makes this the most enjoyable Neil Young (dare I say musician) news/blog site out there. More Props for Thrasher! Thank yoU!
LOL
To the nimrod who wrote this:
"2. A Neil Young fan with nothing better to do except correct others blogging errors and playing off others creative literary meanderings instead of writing anything even remotely original...this person also, strangely knows how many times a name appears in a Tolkien trilogy. And is often identified as one having WAY too much time on their hands"
Dear Nimrod, I made those numbers up. The point was that even if you only read the book cover, you would know how to spell Tolkien's Gandalf.
Creative meanderings? Oh, you got that right. But I won't waste my time pointing out your own ignorance there, either.
As to how much time I actually have, I just raised $50,000 in grants for smart boards. At least I can account for my self worth for the time I spend online rather than what a very small minority bring here which is nothing more than a sycophantic preoccupation with "poop on a stick."
Ramble on.
Thrasher,
Music Radar.com seems to get FITR, below is the link and their commentary:
http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/neil-youngs-new-song-and-video-fork-in-the-road-191872
Neil Young's new song and video, Fork In The Road
Best thing he's done in years!
Joe Bosso, Tue 13 Jan 2009, 8:17 pm UTC
Neil Young - he keeps coming back with the goods
View in gallery
You gotta love Neil Young. When other rockers his age are dusting off their dozen hits for big-money dates, ol' Neil fires up a brand-new song like Fork In The Road, and it's the best damn thing he's done in years.
Over a chugging Bo Diddley beat and a gritty guitar riff,Young delivers his version of the State Of The Union. It's not pretty, but what's surprising is, it's pretty funny:
"Got a pot belly/ it's not too big/ gets in my way/ when I'm drivin' my rig
My friend has a pickup/ drives his kids to school/ he takes his wife to beauty school
I got hope/ but you can't eat hope/ I'm not done/ I'm not givin' up
I'm a big rock star/ my sales have tanked/ but I still got you/ thanks"
The video is about as subtle as a trainwreck. Wearing a "Tube Amp Repair" t-shirt and eating an apple (with earphones plugged into it - get it?), he sings about a world gone haywire while in the background, repo men are hauling his flat screen TV away.
Oh, and he plays some mean-ass air guitar too. Like we said, you gotta love him.
It's been confirmed that Fork In The Road is the title track of Young's forthcoming album. If this is any indication of the rest of the record, we're there. Check out the video!
Thrasher,
Here's another one. Adam Sandler on Letterman playing a pretty good version of Hurricane:
http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/adam-sandler-covers-neil-youngs-like-a-hurricane-196328
Dan
In my first pass of "Fork in the Road" I was kinda half-listening and thought, wtf, what a waste of space. I figured it out on the 2nd pass: the old Canuck just keeps getting wiser. Forget the musical droning; it's about the song! It's one of those rare moments, like "This Note's For You" where the video is part of the schtick. The Apple and the ear buds, amp tubes, TV repo'd...it's all kind of a prelude to "Rockin' in the Free World." Congrats, Neil - ya pulled it off again with having the last laugh!!
talk about a perfect example of a person who can dish it out BUT CAN NOT...in ANY WAY, TAKE IT! LOL I love those who get off on starting with people by bashing what they have to say but when someone mocks them by doing the SAME EXACT THING (only funnier) they JUST DID they throw a hissy fit and go off on a tirade about what they do for a living, how much time they have and what the the other person wrote when only four posts before they wrote the SAME THING...started it actually...only the other person, I'm sure, realizes it was a joke and isn't justifying anything...like "for your information I wont the spelling bee five years in a row at school and I know EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT LORD OF THE RINGS AND TOLKIEN and can spell ALL the characters name correctly in in 17 different languages...HAHAHA.
Well......Who's havin' the last say on this thread before its dead and buried!.....
C'mon Thrash, finish it off and put it to bed!!
Dear Thrasher;
"If you think Neil is going to drop another DBTR, CG, CTK, LAH, RITFW, etc classsic you'll be waiting a long time probably."
That's your quote, not mine. That clarifies a lot of the noise around here. So you and your friends/colleagues are comfortable with the philosophy expressed above. That's cool. The era of diminished expectations. Not for me. I'll keep waiting for another classic, but there's no point in coming back here to argue how crappy his current output is. You already know that. You just said it.
Have a good trip.
Dear Nimrod,
Your delusion that anyone here cares what you & I have to say to each other is rather amusing. How about taking this little fantasy you have about me, my tone, and what I think, over to my web page I created just for you.
You won't have to read anything. It's all pretty pictures.
Fondly,
Mother Nature
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Dear Flounder-Pinto,
Remember, Neil is still making music. Whether his current stuff can stand up to the stuff he did in the past, only time will tell.
The idea of something becoming "classic" is based on the definitive. After it is complete.
It's only when we look back on something in it's entirety and see the influence can we determine whether or not something is "classic."
I see what you mean though. All those songs you listed are considered "classic" Neil now. All those songs have become used as reference point to mark or define his best work now.
The point of contention begins with what you define as "classic" and what I will define as "classic" because I'm not using the same "measuring stick" as you. I'm using a different reference point.
Only until I can look at the entire body of work, the influence it had, and how it survived the test of time, can I make that determination.
Mother Nature;
Nicely written. It is not often enough that we are reminded of the difference between a review and criticism - time.
While I don't think that Neil's recent work will stand the test of time, I may be wrong. So my review would say - not so good, but future criticism might say the opposite.
And part of this has to do with one's own age. When I first heard "Cowgirl" I was 18. I think of what had come before and what has come after and it's just damn hard to write and record something in 2009 that stands out forty some years after the Beatles. But I'm also thinking about a concert recording of early Simon and Garfunkel I was listening to recently where they were talking about how long it took and how many tries before Simon was ready to record "Dangling Conversation." Then I read these stories about artists writing a bunch of songs right before they go in to do a new album (this, most recently, in an interview with Springsteen about "Magic.") and I wonder if the same energy and effort goes into the process when you're 64. I don't really believe that "Thrasher" was a spontaneous outpouring of inspiration.
One thing I'm sure of is that we'll all keep listening (and hoping.)
Nice pictures, too.
Hi Flounder-Pinto,
Going by what he's said in interviews as recently as Charlie Rose, most of his stuff is very spontaneous.
He wrote "Cowgirl" after a fever?
Ya know those crazy expressionist artist who throw paint on a canvas?
In a way, I think Neil's stuff is very spontaneous - expressionistic like Pollack. And sometimes, he tries some other variation like impressionismz or romanticism. And sometimes he breaks free and just lets loose, re-inventing himself each time.
It really broke my heart to read that one comment from Robin from Bonn who feels like she lost her best friend. I think Neil should include "Interstate" just for her.
Mother Nature
Agree that Robin should get the prize for most heartfelt comment. A lot of this, I hope, is perceived in the spirit it's rendered - just good fun between people who all have the same love for the artist - otherwise why would we be here?
But there's an aspect of seriousness - this site is IMPORTANT, if you acknowledge that Neil Young is important. There is nowhere else that I know of where people come together to discuss, in depth, one of the cultural touchstones that defines who we are and how we got here. Neil matters, but I'm not sure it matters much to him these days.
I just found this quote in a new biography of Stephen King, who is another of my cultural touchstones (and if that brands me as hopelessly lowbrow, I'll accept the label with honor.) King says:
"The worst advice I've ever received is 'Don't listen to the critics.' I think that you should, because sometimes they're telling you that something is broken that you can fix. If you stick your head in the sand, you won't have to hear any bad news and you won't have to change what you're doing. But if you listen, sometimes you can get rid of a bad habit. Hey, none of us like critics, but if they're all saying something's a piece of shit, they're right."
Game, set, and match to Steve.
Best wishes.
My dear Flounder-Pinto,
It use to be record stores were great places to talk music and contraband magazines the best places to read about good music.
As usual the only good discussion about music these days are in college dorm, bars, or on a few blogs like this one.
As for debating the atributes or failings over material, well, to each his or her own.
It's nice to get to know you.
Hi guys, fork in the road is a brillllliant song...the best from neil since ages, we`re tired of epic rock rides and boring acoustic ballads...let`s go for some low-fi blues!!!
long live the travelling echoes
Paolo India
Is there anybody out there?
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