Neil Young Concert Reviews - Portland, Oregon, July 19, 2010
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Concert review from Concert review: Neil Young reminds us why he's a legend | OregonLive.com by Michael C. Zusman.
Neil Young will be performing tonight at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland, Oregon. Special guest Bert Jansch will open concert.
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by thrasher@PermaLink: 7/19/2010 11:54:00 PM
20 comments
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20 Comments:
Dave from Vancouver Wa. says.....WHAT A SHOW!! Neil tore the freaking roof of the place....crowd was polite...no play this,play that....he seemed happy and my wife and I were blown away....if you get a chance to go...GO!!!!
I had a great seat at the concert in Portland tonight and I really enjoyed the show. Having said that, it would have been a better show had Neil had any interaction with the enthusiastic audience. He came out, did his thing, played some amazing electric guitar (in my view the highlights of the show washis expert electric guitar playing) and, towards the end, looked at and acknowledged the audience. In the absence of same, earlier on, he seemed a bit surly. People paid a lot of money and waited in lines to see him - I think he could have been more respectful towards the audience. But, he is Neil Young and he is a legend and I'm not holding a grudge. The only other comment would be to the rockers in the audience who felt it was their place to scream ('yeehaw') and try to whoop it up for others by literally standing up and facing back towards the crowd to get everyone going. To those who did that: news flash: we were there to see AND HEAR Neil Young, not you. When you play the Schnitzer, we'll buy tickets for you (or maybe we won't).
Thank you for Buying me Tickets, I will be good tomorrow, respect the King, MR. Soul...
Inda Yokes Das Kin Skincho...
For a heavy rustie, this was pretty solid. Knew what to expect, and was worried the PDX crowd wouldn't be down with it. Got to be aware that NY is going to play whatever he's into, and be on the trip with him. Crowd was super respectful and mellow during the new tunes. The Schnitz was a great venue, the reverb-driven acoustic songs and solo-electric tunes got a great Low "E" drone that powered through the theatre. Kept it focused. Was worried about the mixed reviews; I want to hear Neil play whatever he's into at the moment, but aware that the boomer crowd is looking for a "Best Of" set worthy of the money they shelled out. The new tunes meshed well with the classics, and kept the braying at a minimum. Lots of over-aggressive hall-monitors working the aisles, but a good crowd overall and a solid Neil show, despite early flubs. As much as I love NY, I often feel like I'm on a different plane than the rest of the crowd. Not the case tonight. Rock on.
red sum of ya'lls diff threds here n there, spyed on few hundreds of exhibitions both centuries, always and places enjoyed being allowed to share in moments of muse, tunes, family, friends and folks, never felt like an audience never expected to be treated like one.
never disappointed never expected to fly. but i did.
I agree, it would have been nice if he had been a little more interactive with the crowd. I loved the new songs and can't wait to hear them more but felt we deserved a bit longer set from him for the money spent. I was also very frustrated with the audience constantly getting up from seats back and forth. what is the problem? are they all like 5 year olds who can't sit still? very distracting for other concert goers and I think it's disrespectful to the artist. I don't like the Schnitz's policy of allowing drink in the aud and think that adds to this problem.
Lee Ann from LA
I flew out for the show from Colorado and had a great time. My favorite part of the show was the crystal clear sound...at least where I was down on the floor, out from under the balcony. I'm not sure I've ever heard Neil's voice so purely. It was a real treat to hear that. It is just not the same effect when he does his 3 song acoustic set inside the hockey arenas, like he did during the last couple of Chrome Dream tours.
The first 3 songs were a powerhouse and I loved "You Never Call", "Peaceful Valley", and "Walk with Me". The show definitely had a Greendale feel to it with the new songs. As pointed out on other posts here, there seemed to be a common thread running through all of them, and it was fun to try and listen carefully to hear all the new lyrics.
I love when he does new songs, and I can tell you I wouldn't have traveled from Colorado to hear a Greatest Hits concert...Ok, I probably still would have come, but this was so much more rewarding.
I will say this wasn't the best NY show/tour I've seen, but seeing him in a small theater with the great sound made it all worth while.
Neil is an enigma. True fans know him well (Yah, me, this was my 6th NY concert). He doesn't like the audience to yell at him, to play this or that. He wants to be repectected for the incredible
artist that he is. He deserves that! It's not that he is ignoring the fans, he just has to do his own thing, being true to himself. This is a man I grew up with and grew old with. I love you Neil!!!
I thought Neil really enjoyed himself, largely because the audience was respectful and gave him the space to get into his zone. He did get there, and played played for an hour and forty minutes straight through. He acknowledged the audience, and offered them the respect of not just mailing it in, but he didn't spend a whole lot of time on useless banter, which tends to invite an outsized reaction from the yahoos in the audience that scream every time he takes a sip oif his beer and constantly demand this song or that. I've seen him mail it in whenthe yahoo factor gest too high, and he didnlt last night. I thought it was a really mature show from an artist in complete control of his material.
I know this is off topic but..Can't help but wonder if Capt.Phil Harris was a Neil fan?Heard that he liked toolin' around in his 'vette while blastin' some tunes.ALOT of Neil's music is GREAT for doin' just that.RIP Capt. Phil Harris.
Rancho Relaxo
To Charlotte Francis, Great take on the subject!! Any true NY fan could not have said it better than you. (This Saturday nite will be my 6th as well). True respect for any artist comes from the viewer's / listener's heart and mind. Folks should really stop the whining and complaining about this and that...Twisted Road could be the last time we have this opportunity to see and hear Neil. (Man, I sure hope not, but ya never know).
A great radio interview with Neil from February 11, 1969 (I think he ended up alone at the microphone here a bit) can be be heard at the following addy: http://archives.cbc.ca/search
The interview touches on the breakup of Buffalo Springfield, music in LA etc, etc. Very insightful....a better understanding of the artist known as Neil Young.
Bill in Calgary.
ps...nobody ever asked Van Gogh to paint 'A Stary Night" again, now did they!?
Ok, so I'm one of those boomers and, yeah, I do like a lot of his old stuff. I grew up with it. Some of my earliest musical memories (and associations) are with great old Neil Young songs. But I like his new stuff too and I would never be so disrespectful as to hoot out what I want him to play. We all know how Neil feels about that. But, also, all performers play a mix of new and old stuff. And it's always good to hear what they've recently been doing. A couple of the new songs last night were really good. Walk With Me is a great guitar piece. Loved the room rumbling Low E's too. And I agree with someone above who said the crowd control people were a bit too aggressive. Once I got a flashlight in my face while I was just sitting there. I didn't have a camera or cell phone. I think she was pointing it at someone else but she flashed several of us just to be sure or something. Then she kept coming back and staring up and down our row (and others around us). It was kinda deathcamp guard for crying out loud.
Hate to dissappoint all you die hard NY fans but I thought he sucked last night. One electric guitar and Niel singing just didn't cut it in my book. Acoustic is ok by yourself but this sounded bad! FYI I first saw Niel with Buffalo Springfield in 67 and have been a loyal fan since.
Jim fr. Boise Says, My daughter i made it from Boise on a marathon road trip, but fulfilled a dream since this tour began last spring. The guitar work, the clarity of Neil's voice, never sounded better, the chords on the harp, the White Falcon, and old Black. I closed my eyes several times so i could delight in opening them to see NY on the stage doing his swaying dance, fingers pounding and flying head rocking in time with the music. Thanks Man, it was the best!
je
the guy who hated the show last nite you miss spelled neil.some fan mr.67z
a first legger says, NO problem with Neil and his Muse(ic) and the deliver(y). The rest is up to us!
It was a real treat and privilege to see Neil play again, especially all by himself. He is aware that he is approaching the end of his career, and he doesn't have to do these concerts, yet he goes on and does them, for us and for him. He is a musical genius, and from start to finish this concert was a work of art. The acoustic, and the electric, and the musical instruments, and the lighting were all great. Out back the four buses and truck waited to carry the company to Seattle and Canada and beyond. Thank you Neil for visiting Portland, Oregon, again. We will miss you until you return.
I agree with the postings above that the yahoo yellers in the audience are a selfish pain in the ass. And that the crowd control people were too aggressive. It's okay if they stop someone from recording the whole concert, but they don't have to go overboard in stopping someone from taking a non-flash photo.
Even with these minor irritants, it was a memorable concert, not to be missed.
NYs performance was fabulous. Every song was solid... Favorites were Leah (sp?), I believe in you, and hitchhiker.
I'm a new dad, so the intro to Leah was extra cool (my girl was home with her momma)
I was moved/touched many times. I go to a fair amount of shows and no one else can make that happen. It's just a special deal.
Appreciate the intimate venue, and the sound and light controls were sweet.
Hope to maker to Farmaid again this year.
Plowshare
Some times you wonder if people's comments are from the same concert!
how can some comments be so diverse.
I know its each to his own, but geesh it still puzzles me
a fiend of jonathan
"One electric guitar and Niel singing just didn't cut it in my book."
You have to wonder why someone with this attitude would pay the money that we did to see Neil.
It seemed to me that Neil was trying to play The Definitive Version of each song. DBTR sure came close. And he was trying just as hard to defined the NEW songs.
My take on the solo electric was that VERY FEW people on earth could pull that off, and even fewer would ever try. Clapton, Santana, Knopfler ... maybe. It was AMAZING in my "book."
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