Vancouver Olympics Tribute to Neil Young Reviews

UPDATE 2/28/10: Neil Young News: It is Official! Neil Young Will Play Olympics Closing Ceremonies


Photo by Chris Pizzello


Tribute to Neil Young
Vancouver’s Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Twitpic by ncyvr

DEVELOPING - Check back - UPDATE:
Concert reviews

Reviews from the concerts were near universally praised.

From The Vancouver Observer - Vancouver Olympics News Blogs Events Reviews | "Vancouver 2010 Games Bring a Mix of Musicians to an Eclectic and Vibrant Neil Young Homage at Queen Elizabeth Theatre" by Insiya Rasiwala:

Canadian music icon Neil Young did not show up on the second night of a tribute concert in his honour, but the sold out crowds at Vancouver’s Queen Elizabeth Theatre didn’t seem to mind. The three and a half hour set-list that contained more obscure than well-known renditions of Young’s prolific song-writing legacy left the audience happily humming, “Only love can break your heart.”

It was a night to remember, one that successfully bridged the gap between the ages – whether you were a die-hard Neil Young fan; or from the generation that tolerated his undeniable significance to North American pop culture, there was something here for you.

Some tweets:

- Twitter / Amanda Mitchell: "EPIC!!"
- Twitter / Village Flowers: "Just saw the tribute to Neil Young concert here in Vancouver. Fantastic!"
- Twitter / Dean Delandreville: "Orchestral metal machine ala Lou Reed;"
- Twitter / hip baby: "neil young project last night was very cool. his work unfolded over 3 hours all interpreted by amazing musicians. elvis costello was great!"

More concert tweets here, here, and here.


Lou Reed
Photo by THE BACKSTAGE RIDER

Some blog comments by K.Frazer:

"Highlights for me included tunes by Emily Haines, James Blood Ulmer, Elvis Costello, Lou Reed, Teddy Thompson, Ron Sexsmith, Jenni Muldaur, and Ambrosia Parsley. Lots of great playing, but not always with much cohesion. Overall, it was a bit of a yo-yo affair, slipping from curious to stunning, from mush to captivating with disconcerting ease."

Critics. Lots of mentions that Neil didn't show up. Like that was ever even planned.

From The Canadian Press: Neil Young doesn't show, but spirited Olympic tribute a hit with fans by Nick Patch:

Neil Young didn't didn't show up for his Olympic tribute on Thursday night, but the more than two dozen artists who took the stage captured his spirit closely enough with a show that was heartfelt, stirring and delightfully rambling.

But the evening's highlights were borne from riskier renditions of Young's tunes.

From Spinner: Neil Young Project Honours Canadian Icon With Imaginative, Star-Studded Performance by Jenny Charlesworth:

There were plenty of magical moments throughout the evening, including the rousing cover of 'Don't Let It Bring You Down' by Elizabeth Powell from Land of Talk/Broken Social Scene, which was belted out with jaw-dropping intensity. The impromptu audience-made 'thunderstorm' mid-way through 'Walk On,' which Collett orchestrated with the zeal of a camp counsellor by directing the packed house to snap their fingers and stomp their feet, was another show-stopper.

The highlight of the affair, however, was undoubtedly Costello's hard rocking 'Cinnamon Girl,' which garnered the first standing ovation of the evening. Showcasing his formidable guitar skills, the talented UK expat led the ensemble to a blistering climax, giving the enraptured audience in the majestic theatre ample reason to applaud Costello's addition to the bill after the initial lineup was announced.

From Straight.com: Elvis Costello shines in Neil Young Project | Vancouver, Canada | By Alexander Varty:

But when it came to the one-two punch of “Cowgirl in the Sand” and “Cinnamon Girl”, both from Young’s breakthrough Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere LP of 1969, he simply killed.

Barely in control of a big, blond Gibson guitar that squealed and snarled like it was possessed by old Shakey himself, Costello stalked the stage with a flamenco dancer’s élan. Even a ridiculous leopard-skin trilby didn’t undercut his sinister—and, yes, weirdly sexy—intensity; he’d probably skinned that cat himself.

Elvis Costello
Photo by THE BACKSTAGE RIDER

From CHARTattack: Elvis Costello, BSS, Lou Reed Highlight Hal Willner's Neil Young Project In Vancouver by Brian Pascual:

It was like hitting shuffle on an iPod filled with Young's entire catalogue. Collett and Land Of Talk's Elizabeth Powell executed a perfectly down-home version of "Down To The Wire;" Metric's Emily Haines and James Shaw ignored the catcalls and whistles for Haines to offer a pretty faithful (and slightly sinister) "A Man Needs A Maid." When Haines pleaded, "When will I see you again?" it was killer.

Other highlights before the intermission included jazz/blues vocalist/poet Eric Mingus' very menacing and body-shaking "For The Turnstiles," Sun Kill Moon's (and former Red House Painter) Mark Kozelek singing "Albuquerque" and of course, the evening's two crown jewels.

Costello walked on stage to the night's loudest of cheers, and by politely shushing the crowd and immediately picking up his guitar, the message of the night was clear — this was a group, not individual, performance.

With a Burt Bacharach-ian horn section backing him, Costello crooned a lovely "Love In Mind" to the delight of a completely dumbstruck crowd wowed by the fact that they were watching one legend cover another legend.

Speaking of legends, Reed was bathed with a chorus of "Louuuuuuuuuuu" from the crowd before silently setting up and ripping into the great "Helpless." It was so sublime to listen to Reed's powerful yet calm and cool voice ring through the theatre while the full band blasted through the classic.

Leave it to Doiron to say what hadn't already been said — that it was an honour to be on the stage playing the songs of someone who has meant a lot to everyone on stage in some way over the years.

From THE BACKSTAGE RIDER:

Ron Sexsmith’s versions of “New Mama” and “Bethlehem” stirred the crowd, while Bill Priddle (Treble Charger/Broken Social Scene) sounded like a young Harvest-era Young on “Oh Mr. Soul” – just lovely. Emily Haines from Metric’s “A Man Needs a Maid” was flawless and came equipped with a kind of seething intensity.

And Eric Mingus? Genius. He bopped onto stage, booming: “Someone said we didn’t engage the audience enough last night…they may regret that” and then played and danced through a funky version of “For the Turnstiles”, winding it up with some totally bonkers scat singing. Later, he “destructurized” Young’s “On the Way Home” and turned into beat poetry. Brilliant.

Jason Collett strutted around the stage for a version of “Walk On” with Julie Doiron, Jenni Muldaur and Elizabeth Powell bopping in the background. BSS’s Sam Goldberg and Kevin Drew did a pretty groovy version of “Out on the Weekend” with awesome Hammond organ support by the most excellent ex-Bourbon Chris Brown.

Mark Kozelek from Sun Kil Moon/Red House Painters with Ambrosia Parsley (Shivaree) and Emily Haines doing “Sugar Mountain” sounded sublime.

Oh and Lou Reed? Coming on stage in trademark leathers and scowl, he blasted through a crunchy rock version of “Helpless” then stayed on stage to play back-up guitarman for Julie Doiron as she muddled through “Harvest”.

The winner, undoubtedly, though, was Oh Mr. Gold (sparkling suit-jacket to represent Gold medals), Elvis Costello. How much of a genius is he? *Holds arms wide apart* THIS MUCH.

The crowd swooned and cheered and tapped their toes and grinned like fools through the three tracks he played: “Love in Mind”, then later “Cowgirl in the Sand” and “Cinnamon Girl” with Joan as Policewoman. He was like snowboarder Shaun White – in terms of awesome, Costello was miles apart from anyone else on stage.

From Brunt's blog by Stephen Brunt:

Caught the Hal Willner Neil Young project at the Queen Elizabeth, which was a kind of glorious mess - three and half hours of others singing the music of the great Canadian garage rocker god, with enough highlights to justify the long, long haul.

Personal favourites: hearing Lou Reed sing the words 'There is a town in north Ontario...' in that Lou Reed voice, then hammer out a power chord; Elvis Costello playing an open-bodied electric in Young style and tearing up Cowgirl in the Sand and Cinnamon Girl; and Metric's Emily Haines with a splendid, subtle take on A Man Needs a Maid.

The show grafted Broken Social Scene - yep, all of them - with a core American group that included, among others, the great, and greatly idiosyncratic guitarist James 'Blood' Ulmer. It didn't all work, but no complaints here.

Ron Sexsmith
Photo by THE BACKSTAGE RIDER

From The Province: Young does Young best by Stuart Derdeyn:

The concert ventured far too often into mere bar-band mimicry, offering up tame to lifeless versions of classics and more obscure tunes from the massive Young catalogue, with plenty of opportunity to let the guitarists wank. Trouble is, as cool as Apostle of Hustle is, their take of "Mr. Soul" with Julie Doiron was just too spot-on to matter.

Of course, fans were freaking over a track they were really familiar with.

Let's see, "mere bar-band mimicry" but "fans were freaking"? Doesn't seem like a bar band...

From The Globe and Mail: It wasn't just Neil Young that was missing by Marsha Lederman:

The musical mishmash produced some phenomenal moments, but they weren't enough; they failed to fuse to make this the legendary night so many fans had hoped for when they fought their way through jubilant post-hockey crowds and into the theatre.

OK, "some phenomenal moments, but they weren't enough".? Hmm, it seems most folks would be happy with a "phenomenal moment" in a day.

From Vancouver Sun: Neil Young tribute bold, inventive by Francois Marchand:

Interestingly, the show seemed to work especially well when it went completely off the wall: spoken word artist Eric Mingus's reinterpretation of For the Turnstiles, which went from strange, clap-along beat poetry to full-blown, apocalyptic wall of noise, Metric's Emily Haines and James Shaw delivering A Man Needs a Maid with piano and chimes, and Joan as Police Woman sending electric violin bolts through the audience on On the Beach. Wow.

It wasn't always pitch-perfect, but that probably wasn't the point. When dealing with Young's material it's probably a pro more than a con -- you need some real, honest grit to make it feel right, and there was plenty on Thursday night.

Considering the sheer magnitude of the undertaking and the absolute brilliance of the man's work, one couldn't help but be amazed by the whole thing.

From The Music Box, March 2010, Volume 17, #3: Hal Willner - Tribute to Neil Young - Vancouver - February 2010 (Concert Review) by Douglas Heselgrave:

By nature, musical tributes are risky propositions. There are several reasons for this, though the most obvious is that it often is impossible to supplant an original work. Any musician participating in a concert honoring an icon inevitably must find a way of breaking through the wall of listeners’ preconceptions. On occasion, cover versions of songs — Jimi Hendrix’s All along the Watchtower and Jeff Buckley’s Hallelujah, for example — become revered and accepted on their own merits. However, this is the exception to the rule. The more idiosyncratic and individualized that a performer’s work is, the more likely it will baffle those who attempt to interpret it. Arguably, Neil Young’s output falls into this category. Though his tunes are relatively easy to play, at least from a technical perspective, very few of those who have recorded his material have succeeded in embodying its spirit.

The recent MusiCares tribute to Young is a good example of a well-intentioned event that went awry. It featured talented musicians but failed to say anything new about Young’s work. Despite some rather wonderful performances, the whole effort fell inexplicably flat. The show should have yielded an incendiary night of music. Instead, it rarely escaped its pedestrian predictability. Perhaps, this was because only the most obvious songs were performed. Or, maybe, it was the selection of artists who were invited to honor Young. With few exceptions, the singers failed to put their own egos and personas aside, and this prevented them from grasping the things that are essential about Young’s material.

Thanks http://purplewordsonagreybackground.blogspot.com/!

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Tonight and tomorrow, tribute concerts will be held to celebrate the music of Neil Young as part of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

The concerts will be at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre and will be produced by Hal Willner, a veteran organizer of multi-artist tribute shows.

Artists scheduled to appear include:

Chris Brown
Vashti Bunyan
Robert Burger
Brendan Canning
Fred Cash
Jason Collett
Elvis Costello
Julie Doiron
Kevin Drew
Sam Goldberg
Emily Haines & James Shaw of Metric
Shahzad Ismaily
Colin James
Eric Mingus
Sun Kil Moon
Jenni Muldaur
Ambrosia Parsley
Justin Peroff
Ben Perowsky
Joan as Policewoman
Elizabeth Powell
Bill Priddle
Lou Reed
Alasdair Roberts
Ron Sexsmith
Teddy Thompson
James Blood Ulmer
Andrew Whiteman
Doug Wieselman

For more details, ticket info, etc. see Event Listings : Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

Got a report? Drop a comment below. No registration required.



UPDATE 2/28/10: Neil Young News: It is Official! Neil Young Will Play Olympics Closing Ceremonies

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Archives Comment of the Moment: A Journey Through The Past

Some of you may recall last year we posted a few videos of folks opening their Neil Young Archives boxes for the holidays. We had a pretty amusing one from SONY who comments on his thoughts on NYA on the Commentary Open Thread:

A few archive thoughts:

The 'credit card' for the download that comes with the BD set was a great treat for me. I downloaded the whole thing to a hardrive and made CD copies out of 'em, copied the artwork from the BD sleeves and now have a traveling set. An extra bonus for me as I don't listen off the computer too much or an ipod. Next step is to make CD's of just the previously unreleased stuff. I'm 'up' on that download.

Haven't got the "setup" setup for the internet BD update downloads yet. Have heard some bitchin' on that. When I get there I get there, no a big deal to me.

A review of the 'book with no name' shows a tremendous number of 'cuts' that are not included in the archives. Some have already been released on other issued LP's CD's etc. Some may not be listenable from the acetates, who knows. BUT, the possibility that they might be released via the BD downloads later gives me hope that the extra money spent will bring returns down the road.

Journey Through The Past took me by complete surprise for sure. The crazy cover with the hooded horsemen disguised the contents of the film, at least to me as I had never seen it. That is a treat in and of itself. The Fillmore show...the complete ticket, especially Cowgirl in the Sand - took me to a whole other planet. I had not heard that before as I didn't buy the CD when released.

And the other kicker..I haven't even watched/listened to the whole thing yet after 6 weeks in tow. I treat it as a vacation I'm on that I don't want to end, gonna get a few more days out of it before I fly back to reality.

I would think that as long as the additional volume sets keep coming, it can only get better as the technology has grown since the early days and probably Neil's dedication to the historical aspects of his career. Full concerts, road trips, interviews, anything like that is probably a gold mine in waiting up in the old barn.

........and away we go!.........

Thanks SONY!

More Archives Commentary.

ps - No, we don't know when the next BD download will be. But checking our widget in the right sidebar, the next full moon will be Feb. 28.

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Interview with Neil Young on BBC 2 on YouTube

Here's a blast from the not too distant past.

The Culture Show on BBC 2: In a rare TV interview, singer-songwriter Neil Young talks to Mark Kermode about the changes of direction his music has taken over forty years.

While originally broadcast 13 Oct 2007, the amazing thing is how relevant the interview is today.

In fact, the interview seems to resonate as a more timely commentary than it did in 2007. Eerie, indeed.

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Tribute to Neil Young Show: Bethesda, MD - 2/18/09

A tribute to Neil Young show by Jeff Taylor: Neil Young Tribute coming up this Thursday Feb. 18th at 9:30PM.

Parker's Classic American
4824 Bethesda Ave
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-654-6366
http://www.parkersbistro.com

If you can't make the show, definitely check out Jeff's new website: Jeff Taylor: Neil Young Tribute. The opening page load is a joy to behold!

Excellent website, Jeff.

Also, see other tribute bands covering Neil Young songs (always linked over in far right sidebar).

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Comments of the Moment: "Powderfinger" - What the Heck is that Song All About, Anyway?

Lots of interesting comments -- as usual -- on the never-ending debate over the meaning of Neil Young's "Powderfinger".

A comment by Greg M (A Friend Of Yours)

Well, after reading all 80 some comments from the link, and other interpretations over the years, I am not about to take a stab at a definitive take. I was fascinated though by some of the interpretations I never would have even begun to think of, e.g. suicide and nihilism.

Made me think.

I will say this, the name Emmy Lou tells me it is definitely the story of a white southerner. It’s an assumption, but I don’t see an Indian or black woman with the name Emmy Lou. By extension, Emmy Lou being taken by the river tells me the setting is river life somewhere in the south. Moonshiners, TVA resisters, people living off the grid, etc., or the nature and source of threat isn’t really relevant to me.

Ultimately, it’s the story of ill prepared and confused youth - could have been you or me or anyone, but for the grace of God, confronted and overcome by overwhelming forces and circumstances. Although I don’t think it’s what Neil intended. For me, 22 can also be seen as a metaphor for Man as yet still in its infancy, confronted with Life in all its complexity. The heartbreak and sadness is that the overmatched kid simply ended up on the losing end of an attempt at life that we all have to make sooner or later. It may come really early, big and fast, it may come in fits and starts, or it may just be a slow dribble over the course of a lifetime.

The question for me becomes: how have I, or will I face up to my own Powderfinger moment? 22 chose to raise the rifle to his eye instead of running, and died in regret. Was it nobleness in the act of death, or some form of foolishness? Who knows? Life, and the meaning of the life of another, like the song Powderfinger itself, can sometimes seem ambiguous. It all comes down to the individual. How are you going to make your stand? This makes me start to think about the advisability of the individual trying to take the world on by themselves, and all the alternatives to such an individual stance, but I don’t think this is what the song is about.

In the end, it seems 22 just didn’t feel like he had a lot of choice, and suffered the consequence.

Greg M (A Friend Of Yours)

From Matthew Lintzenich:

What HAVE we settled on with this? I mean, obviously there's a kid of barely 22 left alone to protect the ol' homestead, and here comes a white boat, with a red beacon, numbers on the side, a gun, and a man on the rail.

The kid obviously KNOWS that this is not good, remembers the words of his father, who told him to run when he see's red (to me, obviously this is the beacon he's referring to), decides to stand his ground anyway, uncertainly, and terrified, raises his father's rifle, and gets shot by someone on the boat.

His face splashing into the sky is the reflection of his face in the water as he's falling forward.

And he has a few last-second thoughts and regrets, and then that's it.

That's all apparently, to me, obviously correct, but if I recall the debate mostly centered on the SETTING, in terms of TIME AND PLACE, and that's where the confusion came in.

I believe that Neil made it kind of vague so it could be more universally interpreted, that is, you can put your own time and place into it so as to better identify, but I could be incorrect in that.

Neil has been vague about it, which seems to support that theory, but then again...

the names of the people (Emmy Lou and Big John) seem to indicate a very specific intent from Neil - that is, that the time and place are known to him, and are quite specific, but that, in typical Neil fashion, he leaves any direct references to that out, except for the names and description of the boat, so that we have to spend the next 30 years scratching our heads and arguing and debating about it.

heh heh heh.

So was there ever a conclusive agreement on the where/when of the song?

Still not sure what Powderfinger is really all about it?

Or -- more to the point -- what is up with the fascination of some people who analyze lyrics to Neil Young songs anyway?

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Email Trouble

We've been having some e-mail trouble over past several days.

So if you sent something, please re-send.

Thanks!

thrasher ATSIGN thrasherswheat.org

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Poll Results: Ten Random Neil Young Videos That Showcase His Range and Depth

Earlier in the week, we posted ten Neil Young videos and ran a little poll on folks' favorite.

In retrospect, it probably wasn't a good idea to include the song "Thrasher" -- which came in with most votes. It sorta invalidated the whole exercise for a number of reasons. Nevertheless, here's a breakdown of the results.



Polls are still open, so stand and be counted.

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"Powderfinger": What the Heck is that Song All About, Anyway?

So get this.

It seems -- incredibly -- that there are still some folks out there that can't figure out what Neil Young's song "Powderfinger" is all about.

Imagine that.

Over on MetaChat, there's the usual amusing speculation and over-blown lyrics analysis which we do so disdain here at TW.

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Really. C'mon now. Isn't it just totally obvious?

It's not too hard to say the meaning of this song "Powderfinger"?

Is it?

If you enjoy a little chuckle at the expense those without true rustie enlightenment, drop by MetaChat by jonmc:

Powderfinger by Neil Young. What the hell is the song actually about?

I've heard it a million time and musically it's incredibly powerful, but I can't put my finger on the topic. Neil himself is mum on it. Are the protagonists frontier soldiers/ homesteaders? in Vietnam? Drug smugglers?

I'm baffled. Still a great song, though.
post by: jonmc

Go to MetaChat and then check back on why you should shelter me from the powder in the finger.

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Comment of the Moment: Memorable Neil Young Concerts

Neil Young
Wembley Stadium, London, Endgland - 1974-09-14
We had a lot of reactions to the recent posting on understanding Neil Young's music. One reaction was what we'll call the Comment of the Year by Mr. Henry who shared his life story to a Neil soundtrack.

Which -- of course -- precipitated more reactions. Ahhh, the virtuous web we weave. So here's the Comment of the Moment on Neil Young concert memories:

Mr. Henry, what a ride, thanks. It makes me think of all the concerts I’ve seen, and all the circumstances that surrounded them- nothing as cool as a wife to be, or the birth of children, but still, so many good memories, and so many stand out moments.

Like Big Chief, I saw every concert that came through the Detroit area from the Stray Gators in ’73 to CSNY in ‘07(?), with a bonus Freedom show outside Boston (where I spotted Kevin McHale on the way to the men’s room), and then what unfortunately remains the last show I saw, due to finances and lack of proximity, Greendale at the Rosemont in Chicago.

Highlights I can think of right now? Hmmm… Well, there was RNS where I smoked my first joint, and my friend was pissed at the Woodstock piped in soundtrack (said it was old news), Ten Men Working at The Palace with a stirring Ordinary People, the time he stopped playing his guitar during Heart Of Gold, and nodded in approval as the crowd continued singing the lyric without missing a beat, or stopping mid song during the Rosemont show, and yelling at an idiot screaming for Southern Man: “Fuck you, shut up!”

Geez, I could go on, but it’s just my version of what everyone’s memories are going to be, and Mr. Henry already captured the moment. But, in line with Mr. Henry’s recitation of non Neil concert moments, I have to mention the greatest single concert moment I ever experienced, which was the first and only time I saw Dylan in concert. I showed up at Pine Knob outside Detroit with no ticket, and purchased one from a guy in the parking lot. I remember him being pissed because he wanted a ridiculous amount of money, and I told him I wasn’t going to pay more than the face value, which he had to take just before the concert started. What a turn of luck for me, the ticket turned out to be the best seat I ever had for a concert anywhere- eight rows from the stage, dead center.

I remember focusing on each musician specifically to try to appreciate their talents on an individual basis for several songs (G.E. Smith in particular), and then the unbelievable moment when each instrument melded into one overarching sound coming out of the center. I hate to use the word, sorry, but it was a sustained period of sound that simply transcended the musicians, and I’ll never forget it.

I will say this Big Chief, I was at that Shocking Pinks concert at Pine Knob, and remember it specifically as one of the great guitar performances I ever saw out of anyone. I mean, Neil’s guitar picking was so fluid and straight ahead, no fuzz or distortion, just screaming R&B, it was amazing- complete with fedora and sun glasses (alas, no pink suit or greasy pompadour). I also remember it fondly because I ran into a friend who I hadn’t seen in a while, and the first thing out of his mouth was “I knew you would be here!” Even the friend I was with caught the significance of that.

But, I have to say that what I don’t remember is the concert being particularly short, or being disappointed in any way- not that I wasn’t and just don’t remember it. It must have taken a lot for Neil to be pissed off at a Detroit crowd, though, as he’s always been partial to Detroit.

Ironically enough, it does bring up what for me is the one disappointing thing in general about Neil’s concerts- they were always too short for me. Not that they were any shorter than a normal concert, or that I felt I was deliberately being short changed, I just always wanted them to be just a little bit longer. So much material that never got played, that might have had a chance had the concerts been a little longer.

I know what they say about “always leave them wanting more”, and of course I would always want more no matter what, but… Not really a quibble, just remembering how special each and every concert I saw was, how great the anticipation was, and what a big pay off it was when Neil finally strolled out on stage, usually with the characteristic single greeting arm over head, and not infrequently a drawled “Hello, Detroit”.

More Neil Young concert memories and understanding his music.

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Ten Random Neil Young Videos That Showcase His Range and Depth

Later this week, there will be a tribute concert to Neil Young at the Vancouver Olympics.

In the spirit of the games, we take some artistic license from
LA Weekly's Randall Roberts who put together "Ten Randomly Great Neil Young Clips That Showcase the Range and Depth of His Powers".

Wonderin', with the Shocking Pinks

"Sample & Hold," from Trans

"Interstate," live from Farm Aid, 1985

Back to the Country

The Needle and the Damage Done

Neil Young with the Band, "Helpless"

Neil Young improvised the solo-guitar soundtrack to Jim Jarmusch's classic Dead Man, starring Johnny Depp.

"Down By The River"

"Thrasher"

Neil Young: 'Johnny Magic' - LincVolt In Wichita

Neil Young | MySpace Music Videos
"Johnny Magic"

So which video is your favorite?

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The Neil Young Project: Vancouver Tribute by Hal Willner

UPDATE 2/28/10: Neil Young News: It is Official! Neil Young Will Play Olympics Closing Ceremonies

UPDATE: See Concert Reviews of Vancouver Olympics Tribute to Neil Young.


Hal Willner
Director of The Neil Young Project

This week, there will be another tribute to Neil Young at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Broken Social Scene, Iron & Wine, Sun Kil Moon, Ron Sexsmith, Joan As Police Woman and Lou Reed, among others, will pay tribute to Neil Young's music.

Called "The Neil Young Project" the program is being directed by Saturday Night Live's music supervisor Hal Willner. From Hal Willner's taking risks with his Neil Young Project | Vancouver, Canada | Straight.com by Alexander Varty:

“We know the songs are great, and we know the artists are great,” he explains. “So the thing we can guarantee is that it's going to be something really worth seeing.”

His approach, Willner says, is a mixture of studious research and spur-of-the-moment inspiration. He begins by studying the source material, which in the case of the Neil Young Project involved listening to something like 600 songs. (“I've always loved his work,” he notes wryly, “but I wouldn't have been able to answer a Trivial Pursuit game on him before we did this.”) Once he's chosen the songs he wants to work with, he begins assigning them to the different artists.

“By the time we get on the stage, there will be a script,” he says. “And I always find if you know exactly what's going to happen next, then the artists can be loose within that. A lot of magical moments come out of that.

“It's a lot of risk,” he adds, confessing that he hasn't quite finished planning his Vancouver shows. “But what happens then is that you're guaranteed some once-in-a-lifetime, magical things, and you're guaranteed stuff that's not going to work. So what you hope for is that 95 percent of the show is the magical part, right? And usually it works out that way.”

From Olympic tribute set for Neil Young | Music | Entertainment | Winnipeg Sun By DARRYL STERDAN, QMI Agency:

“They asked me to do it two years ago,” says the 52-year-old Willner during a busy day in his New York office. “We had done a Neil Young Project in 2004, so I thought, why not. The material is really cool to work with.”

“The way I prefer to do it is to go listen to everything the composer has written,” says the veteran producer, who has also helmed tributes to Leonard Cohen (I’m Your Man), Kurt Weill (Lost in the Stars and September Songs) and others. “Then I put the show together just from the material. I want something that balances the well-known and unknown, and covers all styles and approaches.

“After that, I start approaching artists that I think would be cool. Basically, I cast it like a movie. But the trick is to have a very well-thought-out, very tight script ahead of time.”

It’s somewhat remarkable — and perhaps a testimony to the respect Willner commands — that the artists he casts are usually happy to check their egos and go along with his suggestions.

“If somebody comes in and has a particular song that they’re attached to, we’ll try to fit it in, or take out something that was similar — or sometimes we try to talk them out of it. But that doesn’t happen very often.”

Besides, surprises are welcome, he claims.

“You never know what’s going to click or not. The worst thing that can happen is that you’ll see something that can never be repeated. And usually you can be guaranteed to see stuff that’s incredible and magic, and you’ll be talking forever about how you were there. Sure, there’s stuff that doesn’t work. But when it does, 90% of it is great.”

Among the stuff Willner expects to work: Broken Social Scene, who will serve as one of two house bands; avant-garde guitarist James Blood Ulmer, who will team with Reed on “some good noise”; and Canadian troubadour Sexsmith, described by Willner as a “risk-taker (who) could have written some of these songs.”

That’s high praise, Sexsmith says. But for him, just being invited is a bigger compliment.

“Neil is part of that old guard,” he says. “There’s Leonard and Gordie and Joni and Neil. They’re four of the most influential songwriters in the world. Whenever I’m writing, it’s so daunting when you think of the history you’re up against. I’m always conscious of the work that they did, and I always try to walk in their footsteps.

“I used to do a lot of Neil Young songs when I started out in the bars. I could play Neil all night and nobody could complain. That’s probably still the case."

UPDATE: See Concert Reviews of Vancouver Olympics Tribute to Neil Young.

UPDATE 2/28/10: Neil Young News: It is Official! Neil Young Will Play Olympics Closing Ceremonies

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