Concert Review of the Moment: Neil Young - Richmond, VA, April 17, 2011

Neil Young
Durham Performing Arts Center
Photo by ROBERT WILLETT - NewsObserver.com

The Concert Review of the Moment is from Neil Young in Richmond, Virginia on April 17, 2011 by Brenna. Brenna is responding to the review in the Richmond Times-Dispatch "Neil Young concert could have used more old, less new" by BILL CRAIG.

It ought not be surprising to either this critic or the one who reviewed the opening show in N.C., that Mr. Young has chosen to support his most recent work. I'm always left scratching my head when reading a review that criticizes a musician for performing pieces from their latest effort.

The sell out crowd for the opening show at the Durham Performing Arts Center was incredibly enthusiastic with every tune and for that matter, every note. Young is one of the few artist who's truly ripened with age as his playing and singing have not diminished in the least. Neither this review nor the one for The News and Observer elaborated on Young's playing or vocals but rather chose to discuss other "essentials" like his fedora and stage "sauntering."

For those of us for whom the music matters, we watched and listened to a man who survived polio as a child, an adult lifetime of epileptic seizures, tragedy beyond measure in his personal life with the devastating illnesses of two children and a brain aneurysm that should have killed him just a few years ago, give of his time to share his art with those who still want to hear it. Neil Young doesn't have to do this anymore. He's given "at the office" for almost five decades.

This commentary should have, at the very least, reflected some appreciation for what Mr. Young is still able and more importantly, wanting to give us.

Neil Young doesn't require a "review" from a newspaper writer following a performance in Richmond. A simple re-cap of the songs he chose to play for his fans would more than suffice. Of course, Mr. Craig obviously decided it's his "job" - or perhaps "privilege" - to offer a critique of Neil's musical offerings tonight. Sadly, he is sorely lacking the musical, historical, and perhaps generational experience to fill the shoes of one capable of doing something along those lines.

Brenna

More on Neil Young in concert in Richmond, Virginia on April 17, 2011.

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