Randomly Blogged: Promise of the REAL Takes a Break, Johnny Barbata RIP + More
- After 15 unforgettable years, Promise of the Real has decided to take a well-earned hiatus, and begin a new creative chapter in all of our lives | x.com/lukasnelson
- John Barbata, drummer for the Turtles, CSNY and Jefferson Airplane, dies at 79 | L.A. Times
- Getting closer to the real sound of Neil Young and the Restless | The Flying Scotzman
- The Weld “Briggs mixes” — yay or nay? | The Flying Scotzman
- Pine Knob Music Theatre (Clarkston, May 22, 2024), the Horse rides again | Only Castles Burning
- Neil Young and Crazy Horse’s Tour Is a Tribute to a Titan From Their Past | Rolling Stone
- CONCERT REVIEW: Neil Young & Crazy Horse bring ragged glory to sweet home Alabama | AL.com
- REVIEW: Fu##in’ Up by Neil Young & Crazy Horse | Pitchfork
- Weekly Neil: Revolution Blues, With Real Estate's Martin Courtney | Medium Rotation
- A cornucopia of comments by Neil Young fans on the "State of Affairs" | Thrasher's Wheat
Labels: neil young
by thrasher@PermaLink: 6/07/2024 11:28:00 AM
24 comments
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The Unbearable Lightness of Being Neil Young
Pardon My Heart
"We're The Ones 
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24 Comments:
Hey Rustie-Grainers!
You may have noticed that we slowed down a bit here @ TW on this tour compared to tours of past. Sometimes life over takes our fun little hobby.
But trust us, we still manage to read every comment we receive here @ TW.
And it seems that folks still have lots to say about Neil, The Horse and everything else ... literally.
We've always said that if the Neil community can find common ground, then there will be peace on EARTH. Call us a dreamin man, but it has been clearly evident that the TPTB are quite conCERNed that the "Divide & Conquer" tactics aren't working quite so well as in the past.
This is all part of "The Big Shift" which we've been blogging here for what feels like decades.
so peace & love to all of our brothers and sisters!
Thank you Thrasher for everything you do here. Your steadfast commitment to discernment and compassion for all is truly remarkable. Particularly now that the many of our citizens have taken off their gloves to physically and verbally attack those who disagree with them. I have always been willing to listen to different opinions with an open mind and heart. Unfortunately we may have already passed any opportunity for this to happen in our current state, so perhaps the Big Shift has begun in earnest now. Regardless of those who choose hate over love, I will stand steadfast in my belief that love and only love will prevail.
Peace to you 🙏
Dan: even when we humans are having very heated exchanges, I don’t think it means there’s no potential to make a positive difference. We are, of course, emotional beings as well as intellectual. Personally, I try to balance my striving for compassion and harmony with a will to tell the truth as I see it. Honesty can be painful and fraught, but if humans don’t level with each other, I don’t see how we can get healthier and happier.
Peace is a process, maybe better for thought of as a verb than a noun. Love can sometimes hurt and often involves work. It’s not easy to solve problems and conflict is sometimes unavoidable. How we manage that conflict is an indication of character. The capacity to step back a bit and expand our perspective lies at the heart of what it is to be human.
@ Dan & Meta Rocker - Pardon our hearts, but your words mean more to us than you'll ever know.
"Pardon my heart
If I showed that I cared
But I love you more than moments
We have or have not shared
You brought it all on
Oh, and it feels so good
You brought it all on
When love flows the way that it should
You brought it all on.
It feels so good
Thanks Thrasher for this cool blog post with lots of stories of interest. Election year or not, TW is my favorite location on the internet and I know a lot of us feel the same way. Thank you Thrasher!
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Your Brother Alan even in Election years…..
3rd item on this blog post w link to FlyingScotzman’s writing is very good. I personally have been very interested in hearing the electric recordings from Neil Young & the Restless…. Eldorado era pre-Freedom with Cocaine Eyes, etc. This is crucial missing stuff from the authorized releases and timeline concerts added thus far on NYA. Interesting writing on reverb and sound characteristics. Keep up the good work!
Your Brother Alan in Seattle
@ Flyingscotzman link has full show audio recording of that very era along with his own well written commentary. Good stuff!
I am listening to 4/89 AU right now but it’s Lost Dogs
Can we stand together as a nation? As long as nobody gets hurt, that is my wish. The planet is running dry & hot. We must get smarter about protecting our water. Trump as prez said it was cool to dump coal ash in a river people were fishing out of. He is blindly crazily pro fossil fuel. At some point we must switch over to Alternative fuels! Someday we won’t care about fuel as much, it’s all about the water. DAPL justice! Bring on the Big Shift! Love is the only way to stay alive together. Clean water, clean food (weeds picked by robots), no Roundup. No GMO. Organic, truly Organic.
But we must try to be decent to our fellow humans & all animals, bees & insects which do so much work for humans. Let’s not hurt each other. But surely we can all agree that Racism is wrong. Tolerating it is wrong. Violence is wrong. Fomenting violence, fanning the flames of hatred, will only bring hell on Earth. We must try to live if not with one another, tolerant of one another.
Can we all agree mass murder & genocide is wrong? Our politicians in both aisles apparently can’t give a crap about Palestinian lives, which begs the question, “Why is that?”
The US abused Iran before they ever fought back. They had a democratically elected president. The US orchestrated a coup, put a dictator in power, the Shah, son of the former king. Some people had it good under the Shah. Others were tortured and murdered. Why do they hate us in the Middle East? Because all we have done is fuck them over. It makes perfect sense.
Are you with me people? We all gotta get along. “Ain’t no time to hate, barely time to wait.
Oh- oh what I want to know… is are you kind?” -Uncle John’s Band, the Grateful Dead.
Your Brother Alan in Seattle
Protect your Mother, Earth! #ExtinctionRebellion #SaveEarth #SaveTheHumans
@ Thrasher - Peace and love to you too. Hope all is well with you and yours.
Pardon My Heart is one of my personal all time favourite Neil Young tracks. Short, simple but such a beautiful song. The lyrics are great and Neil really sounds like he is feeling it.
I often play it and whatever my mood at that time I always feel better after listening to it.
'It feels so good' indeed.
@ Meta Rocker -
'Peace is a process, maybe better for thought of as a verb than a noun. Love can sometimes hurt and often involves work. It’s not easy to solve problems and conflict is sometimes unavoidable. How we manage that conflict is an indication of character. The capacity to step back a bit and expand our perspective lies at the heart of what it is to be human.'
Just wanted to acknowledge your words above - perfectly said to my mind.
PS - I also really enjoyed your observations on an earlier thread about Silver and Gold and the live DVD with tracks that went on the CSNY album instead. I always enjoy that film when it's on the Hearse Theatre on NYA or occasionally on TV here in the UK. I'm hoping we will get some solo Neil performances of Looking Forward and Slowpoke in future Archives releases to compare with the CSNY versions.
@ Dan
'Regardless of those who choose hate over love, I will stand steadfast in my belief that love and only love will prevail.'
That's a great perspective to take - well said.
'Don't forget love'
@ Alan
'Can we all agree mass murder & genocide is wrong? Our politicians in both aisles apparently can’t give a crap about Palestinian lives, which begs the question, “Why is that?”
You'd think everyone would have to agree it's wrong, but sadly it doesn't seem to be the case.
Or actually I think they do know it's wrong but they don't do enough to stop it or even call it out. So as you say "Why is that?"
I am grateful for this blog, it is endlessly fun and fascinating. I feel a sense of community. I am always gain insight from the group and enjoy joining in the conversation. Thanks Alan, Dan, MR, Dionys, etc, etc, etc and also all of you who know so much about music, much more than I ever will.
Scotsman's site is incredible, going up!
Ron and Alan… I think the simplest answer (though not the most satisfying) is that, tragically, we don’t live in a pacifist or non-violent world. I don’t know whether it’s possible, but if there were really consensus in the halls of power about the wrongness of war, violence, and genocide, nations wouldn’t keep standing armies. There certainly wouldn’t be a massive military-industrial complex. As is, these things are broadly considered acceptable and necessary political tools. Lives are, to some extent, expendable to those who believe deeply enough in a cause.
As I suggested above, it’s not always easy to achieve and maintain an equitable peace. Hell, our posts on here show how challenging can be for humans to work through conflict. Personally, I get mad but I don’t tend to stay mad for too long. That can help defuse things bur it takes two to tango… or not, as the case may be.
(Regarding Gaza and the middle east, I see a problem with American global policy generally. To wit: it’s wishful thinking to imagine another administration would handle it any better. #45 will say whatever he thinks will get him back in power, but I don’t see a dove in him. If anything, I see an overstuffed Trojan horse.)
@ Abner, Thank you! It is great having you here too. I like reading what you all have to say. Our favorite place in the internet! And knowing a lot of music… it’s a passion we all share. If you feel it in your heart, you are doing it right!
@Ron: Thank you.
@ Dionys : I agree with Dan that “Band of Gypsy’s” Machine Gun is epic Hendrix, truly one of his best performances. Many people say that his greatest performance is the long version of Voodoo Child on the Electric Ladyland album. His 3 studio albums are all masterpieces.
I am digesting a large and wonderful helping of Hendrix & this studio jam of Jimi’s final songs.
Regarding Band of Gypsies, the 5CD album “songs for Groovy People” has all 4 sets from the 2 days Zthe band played. It would be much cheaper to just buy the original album, but another option after getting that one (which has Machine Gun, peak Hendrix experience!). Yes, after getting Band of Gypsy’s, the 2CD set Fillmore East has 2 other sets from the New Year’s Eve & prior day’s shows. Fantastic stuff! And Machine Gun features guitar screaming like bombs dropping and people screaming, protesting the Vietnam war and then there’s a 4th missing set (all sets included on Groovy People). It is the first set of the 2 day, 4 set shows. 4 in all. I bought “Machine Gun” because I already had the other sets. Machine Gun is a feature of each set in this performance incredible live document!
——————
Back in politics: can we all agree that it is insane for (Red) states to make it legal to hit and kill a protester in The street with your car(!!!).
Where is the free speech?! College campuses are locked down pretty tight. It’s hard to see free speech when 6 Corporations own all the media.
And Mark Z on Facebook is not going to let you post anti genocide stuff or any other contrary eyewitness accounts in Gaza, bombs falling like rain on 2 million people who are starving. Cholera is breaking out. The US rebuilt its Aid pier. First wave of aid saw none of it reach the people in Gaza. It is like a sick game. The aid truck was hijacked by Jewish protesters allegedly.
So they get all the bombs but none of the bread and water? How are we the good guys here to finally say “pump the brakes to Netanyahu at this late hour when the nation has been bombed to ruin. Starving and dying people everywhere. Mass graves UN schools being bombed.
Thrasher’s Wheat believes in free speech! Only place on the internet? Thank you Thrasher!
Your Brother Alan in Seattle
Any true solution to any situation requires compromise, but it’s difficult to come to a compromise when those in power refuse to budge. Here in the states we have a two party system that seems convinced that one is right, and the other is wrong. This is true on both sides of the aisle by the way. Both parties are guilty here, so continuing to blame one side or the other is like a dog chasing its tail. Nothing changes. We are literally stuck in a tape loop where change is impossible. I can’t possibly be the only person who sees this, but what can be done to move forward?
I don’t have the solution.
All I can do is get up every day, and be the best version of myself I can muster. Be kind to others, and accept them exactly where they are on that day, without judgement. I have an opinion, but I’m not here to judge others. I’m just attempting to get through this life without hurting anyone. That’s all I can do to make the world a better place.
I admire those who feel compelled to go out and protest against the wrongs being committed to others. Unfortunately I don’t see that it has any effect on our government. They just keep protecting their status, because they have it made right where they are. They have their healthcare paid for, they have their children’s education paid for. They have plenty of money in their accounts, and their lovely homes. As long as they play by the rules, they are set for life. Their children are set for life. Who would be willing to sacrifice all that by doing what’s right for all?
Obviously none of them, otherwise we would be addressing different issues other than the same issues they’ve been talking about every election year since the 1950’s. None of us are free until everyone is free, but first we need to free ourselves from relying on our government to fix our country. We need to take care of each other, because they’re always going to take care of themselves, while the rest of us keep fighting with each other. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. I know it sounds like a cliche, but at least it’s a positive approach. Just because it’s difficult doesn’t mean it isn’t possible.
Sorry for the long rant…. I hope I haven’t offended anyone.
Peace to all 🙏
Dan, Hard to imagine how anyone could be offended by your comments. Where there’s a will, I guess…
Undoubtedly, there’s plenty of blame to go around. That’s why it’s called systemic injustice. Of course it’s all much bigger than any one person, which possibly makes things harder because meaningful solutions would require many people making a concerted effort, from legislators to religious leaders, social media, and we, the Ordinary People. I think all of us are susceptible to tunnel vision and echo chambers. Plus various individuals and groups have vested interests that end up at cross purposes.
A first, tentative step might be to pivot away from blame and recrimination, focusing instead on a shared search for feasible, practical solutions. Extending the olive branch can itself be a courageous act. In certain situations, setting aside ill will is the first part of compromise. Does anyone remember John Lennon’s obscure b-side Move Over Ms. L? “I’ll forgive your trespasses, if you forgive me mine.” Not especially eloquent, and probably not the Lennon quote you’d expect to find here, but the point is there. (The line is playing on the Lord’s Prayer but the principle seems universal to me.)
Lastly, political ideology is somewhat of a red herring. For what it’s worth, I probably wouldn’t have a party affiliation except that it’s required for primaries in my state. (For anyone outside the US who’s not familiar with our primary system, consider yourself lucky.)
Here are the lyrics to my misquoted Grateful Dead song, Uncle John’s Band:
Well the first days are the hardest days, don't you worry any more
'Cause when life looks like easy street, there is danger at your door
Think this through with me, let me know your mind
Wo-oh, what I want to know is, are you kind?
It's a buck dancer's choice my friend, better take my advice
You know all the rules by now, and the fire from the ice
Will you come with me, won't you come with me?
Wo-oh, what I want to know, will you come with me?
God damn, well I declare, have you seen the like?
Their walls are built of cannon balls
Their motto is "don't" tread on me"
Come hear Uncle John's Band, playing to the tide
Come with me or go alone
He's come to take his children home
It's the same story the crow told me, it's the only one he knows
Like the morning sun you come and like the wind you go
Ain't no time to hate, barely time to wait
Wo-oh, what I want to know, where does the time go?
I live in a silver mine and I call it beggar's tomb
I got me a violin and I beg you call the tune
Anybody's choice, I can hear your voice
Wo-oh, what I want to know, how does the song go?
Come hear Uncle John's Band, by the river side
Got some things to talk about
Here beside the rising
YouTube link to live version of the Grateful Dead’s classic Uncle John’s Band :
https://open.spotify.com/track/0jwzvZ3uDBQcU8i9YKTVeV?si=1tGiVEdKQPGRNre6CdyM6g
@ Ron : yes, Pardon My Heart is a fantastic song. A worthy choice for “favorite song.” I have been lucky to see Neil play it several times. I have a real love for the Year of the Horse live version of Barstool Blues. It’s like 9 minutes long. Grunge rock classic.
Live version hit a sour note at the latter height of the song, so check this out:
https://open.spotify.com/track/0kp728Knw5PYvU3QzMZ0yJ?si=ci-TiAiATzO8eSD-k08lyw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSIajKGHZRk&pp=ygUSdW5jbGUgam9obidzIGJhbmQg
Today (and during the last week in Italy and the Netherlands, Czechia, and other countries) 350 million EU citizens are having the chance to vote. While the EU is less than perfect, in itself it is an expression of the political will - after murderous wars for centuries - that Europeans do not want their fate to be decided on battle fields anymore. The last 80 years within the countries adhering to the EU and its predecessors are proving that this can be done, no matter how different our world views and experiences are.
Of course one can be of the opinion that the last five decades or so just were an historical open window for two generations of Europeans to maintain prosperous and peaceful societies and that now the crises (climate, covid, Kremlin. etc.) are catching up with us. But that does not justify to fall back into political avatism as can be seen elsewhere in the world.
Because this is a Neil Young blog and about live music: If not for the common ground of open European societies there would have been occasional NY & CH outings to the UK and maybe the Netherlands and Scandinavia, but not much more. Today there are probably a lot more Neil Young fans all across Europe than in English speaking Britain and Ireland. On the side: The idiotic Brexit most likely made things a lot more complicated for the well oiled European touring network based on Elliot Robert's Lookout Management (all the logistic tour support, the buses and the trucks, is based in the UK). Within Ehe EU the so-called four freedoms (persons, capital, goods and services) made for easier access to all member states.
The fear concerning the outcome of today's election is, that the nationalist right might gain and the European perspective gets out of focus. So if you are EU citizen assert your right to vote today - and do it wisely. If you are a citizen of a North American country: maybe it's helpful to look at other democratic cultures to avoid their mistakes and some of your own.
@ Alan
I would love to see Pardon My Heart performed live. I understood it was rarely played though - Sugar Mountain list only two performances both in 1974?
Barstool Blues is a good tune too. I should re-listen to the Year of the Horse version again. I haven't listened to that album as many times as many others - I have never quite been able to accept the electric version of Pocahontas though and it put me off the whole album, haha - my loss.
I'm going to check out the Dead's Uncle John's band too - like the lyrics you posted.Thanks
In case this info is useful to anyone (either as a primer or a reminder), both the EU and United Nations evolved as concerted diplomatic efforts to avoid repeats of World Wars I and II. These bodies certainly have weaknesses and openings for corruption, notably in the quasi-imperialism of wealthier, more powerful countries (the ones with bigger militaries and more dangerous weapons) carving up smaller territories for ulterior reasons. To be fair, we’ve avoided further World Wars in the last 80 years. Instead we’re prone to proxy wars, in which the US and the former Soviet Union (each backed by their respective allies) more or less take out their frustrations on “third world” countries. I’m referring to spheres of influences, domino theories… etc.
Another, more subtle problem is that WWII is fading out of living memory and with that, anything resembling a postwar consensus is being gradually watered down and forgotten. Many people concerned about the perils of globalism have significant reasons for mistrust and frustration, but some degree of international cooperation and integration is necessary for any hope of avoiding cataclysm through conflict and/or environmental devastation.
I prefer a relatively cosmopolitan viewpoint, no matter how out of fashion it may be.
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