The Real Story of Neil Young's "Like A Hurricane?": Celebrating the Song's 50th Anniversary

"Like A Hurricane"Neil Young - Hammersmith Odeon, March 1976
Photo by Tony Fahy

So who knows what "The Real Story of Neil Young's 1975 song 'Like A Hurricane?' " might be?  If you've ever wondered about the song's origins, here's an informative essay by Robert Broadfoot over on https://www.facebook.com/groups/ny.unreleased.nyu/

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Neil Youngphoto courtesy of  Robert Broadfoot

LIKE A HURRICANE – THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY

November 29 sees the official 50th anniversary of ‘Like A Hurricane’, one of Neil’s most iconic songs.

The story of its creation has taken on near mythical proportions, starting with a drug-fueled night out with the boys with Neil scribbling the lyrics on a handy newspaper, followed by a sleepless night bent over his Stringman synthesizer “playin’ away like Beethoven” looking like a “fuckin’ maniac”.  The backing track with Crazy Horse took shape almost accidentally and for several months it didn’t even have any vocals. And in between Neil underwent an operation on his vocal cords and couldn’t sing at all. It is certainly a fascinating story. However, in my view the ‘accepted’ dates for the writing and recording of the song are not correct. Everyone, including Neil himself, places the whole story after the throat operation in October 1975.

The evidence however suggests this is wrong.

It may not matter to many, but that whole period was such an important and wildly creative phase in Neil’s life. He emerges from the ‘ditch’, from the demands of his involvement with Crosby, Stills & Nash, and the shards of his tempestuous relationship with Carrie Snodgress, to rediscover himself and his music with a reformed and reenergised Crazy Horse. The summer of 1975 was a crucial period in which he created other major songs such as ‘Cortez The Killer’ and ‘Danger Bird’ and which saw the earliest known recordings of ‘Powderfinger’ and ‘Pocahontas’ for example. It seems important to get the chronology right.

‘Like A Hurricane’ was written during work on the album Zuma. Once finished, it became the  standout anthem of the amazing series of Crazy Horse shows in 1976, when I first saw Neil and the band live. That is one reason why the song is so important to me and why I think it is important to set the record straight. In my article, The Real Story Of Like A Hurricane?, you can judge the evidence for yourself.

I hope you find it interesting. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j8Oa8vWbSg1GhI8UHizmcBW6FlS9bwap/view?usp=drive_link

Robert Broadfoot

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Thanks again Robert for all the invaluable research! Definitely helps clear up a few of the myths and legends surrounding "Like A Hurricane".  (Also, see Rare Photo: Neil Young -  Hammersmith Odeon, March 1976.)

More of Robert and NYU research on Neil Young Archives: Answer to Answers #4 by Broadfoot/NYU. 

Also, here are details on Robert's other Neil Young unreleased music research:

DOWNLOAD FILE @ 

#NYU - Neil Youngs Missing Recordings V4.0 (c) Robert Broadfoot 2021.pdf (right click to "Save As")

If you see any corrections or updates, please share a comment below.

Neil Young's Unreleased Songs:
The Unofficial Archive - UPDATE Version 7 (Abridged): 12 November 2019

Also, see Neil Young's Unreleased Songs: UNCLE EDDIE'S CUPBOARD + The Unofficial Archive - UPDATE Vers. 7 + COTM.

Also, see Neil Young's Missing Recordings | NYU.

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And many, many eternal thanks to all the unsung researchers and their labors of love. 

... gone but NEVER forgotten ... 

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Micah Nelson Awaits:DangerBird/StringMan Descends for "The Hurricane"August 10, 2025 - Richmond, VA
photo by thrasher (Click photo to enlarge)

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Is "Down By The River" on Early Daze Album Really Take #1? + Comment of the Moment

Early Daze - Vinyl
 Neil Young with Crazy Horse
 (Click photo to enlarge) 

Last month, the archival Early Daze album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse  of ten early studio recordings was released and greeted "somewhat eagerly" by fans.

We say "somewhat eagerly" because our calling the release "non-essential" -- due to containing unreleased versions, alternative mixes, stereo mixes instead of mono -- was roundly pushed back on here in comments.

A new Neil Young with Crazy Horse album titled Early Daze, which is comprised of ten early studio recordings, will be released on  June 28.

Turns out, there have been a few revelations with Early Daze release. Not the least of which is whether the classic jam "Down By The River" was really the very take of the song?

Our Comment of the Moment on REVIEWS: "Early Daze" Album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse by Ron:

I have been pondering the Down By The River 'is it really take one' question myself.

It does indeed sound like the EKTIN version apart from the vocals, but could they really have nailed that performance on 'take one'?. Perhaps, if it had previously been rehearsed, but we know how Neil usually likes to work. According to the recording dates on NYA both versions were recorded on the same day. Ultimately it doesn't really matter, it sounds great, but I remain curious - maybe I will pen a Letter To The Editor and ask Neil.

When Early Daze was first mentioned I mistakenly assumed it would include recordings that predated EKTIN, but apart from the versions of DBTR and Cinnamon Girl they were all in fact recorded post EKTIN. Maybe some of the other songs that appear on Early Daze were tried for EKTIN as well but weren't up to scratch at that time. I have been really enjoying listening to Early Daze though, great sound and performances. I also enjoy the studio banter and Neil's voice sounds so young!

I reread some of the passages in Shakey that relate to this period last night, and I was surprised to read about an apparently great version of Helpless that they played in the studio which was 'lost' because the recording engineer hadn't pressed the 'play' button. Is this version on 'Early Daze' the 'lost' version somehow now found, or a similar version or a completely different version?

Also I am very curious who is playing the electric guitar part on Helpless - is it Neil or Danny? The credits on NYA just say 'guitar' for both of them. To my ears the tone and sound of the electric guitar part sound unlike any other Neil performance I can think of, so maybe it's Danny?

I guess the point I was somewhat clumsily trying to make on DBTR take 1 or not was, regardless of how much rehearsing of it they had done (and I'm sure there would have been at least some), it seems to me quite remarkable to capture the fully formed performance of the the musical parts of the EKTIN released version on a first take. It's not one of Neil's simpler pieces either, so bravo to them!

Regarding Winterlong, Decade was a big part of my Neil Young journey, and although not one of my all time Neil favourites I have always enjoyed it. I always find it interesting to hear different versions of Neil's songs, acoustic versus electric, with Crazy Horse versus solo or with someone else, etc. The Early Daze version is a worthy addition in my opinion.  

Many thanks to all the reviewers and comments - I have watched and read them all. Some great insights and observations - much appreciated.

Can't wait for Archives III !

Great question here Ron and many thanks for the CotM.

Maybe only Neil himself can clarify this?  Could the Early Daze version of "Down By The River" simply be just the same take as Everybody Knows but a different mix of vocals?  Or a different music take mixed with different vocal take?

 

Early Daze   Neil Young with Crazy Horse

Also, see:

• REVIEWS: "Early Daze" Album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse
• A Few Thoughts on Album Early Daze by Neil Young and Crazy Horse by Scotsman
  
• The Flying Scotzman just shared: "Early Daze #1: Look At All The Things"
• Early Daze #2: Winterlong  
• Putting the Early Daze of Crazy Horse in perspective  
• Early Daze: Neil Young with Crazy Horse Album Coming on June 28 

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REVIEWS: "Early Daze" Album by Neil Young and Crazy Horse

Early Daze  Neil Young with Crazy Horse
 (Click photo to enlarge)

 

Here are a few album review excerpts of "Early Daze" by Neil Young and Crazy Horse.

From First Impressions: Early Daze by Neil Young With Crazy Horse | The Old Grey Cat:

Archival releases are often aural Rorschach tests destined to confound casual fans and critics alike, while sending longtime devotees of the artist into a tizzy. 

Such is the case with Early Daze, a 10-track collection of leftovers from Neil Young’s initial run with the re-named Rockets. Neophytes and others will do better to crank Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere or whatever ad-hoc “best of” playlist the streaming services have on offer. The rest of us, however, will dig listening to all the notes, nooks and crannies.  

...

Early Daze isn’t a “lost” album in the same vein as Chrome Dreams, Homegrown or Hitchhiker, however. 

The tracks were recorded in Los Angeles throughout 1969, candidates for something yet set. Among the gems: a rendition of “Down by the River” that was recorded on the same day (January 17, 1969) as the Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere version. It’s a little looser and less polished, but not by much. It’s an enthralling jam. “Cinnamon Girl,” recorded on March 20, is on hand, too, though in its April 1970 single/mono incarnation meant to capitalize on Neil’s then-success with CSNY. The mix features a guitar outro not heard on the EKTIN LP, which was released 11 months earlier.

From Neil Young 71: Early Daze | Everybody’s Dummy:

The biggest surprise is Danny’s “Look At All The Things”, with Neil harmonizing and not quite at the level of the perfect take on the first Crazy Horse album two years later. 

It turns out “Helpless” was tried first with the Horse before CSNY got it, and has a slightly faster but still laid-back lope. “Birds” is the same take as the alternate B-side version, but here includes the second verse skipped on the 45. Then it’s back to the beginning of the year for the first take of “Down By The River”, this time with supposedly the original scratch vocal. 

The music on Early Daze is not incendiary; there are a lot of acoustic guitars, some country influence, and Jack Nitzsche on electric piano. While everything has been freshly mixed—as opposed to done and dusted in 1969—there’s a rehearsal vibe to a lot of it, as opposed to sounding like polished album tracks.

And here is Davy's video review of "Early Daze" by Neil Young and Crazy Horse.

From Weekly Neil: Look At All The Things | Medium Rotation by Patrick Hosken:

But I like focusing in on “Look At All The Things” to hear the real Danny Whitten instead of the myth, or the half-remembered version Neil evokes in a drunken haze midway Tonight’s The Night on the incredible “Come On Baby Let’s Go Downtown,” a song Whitten wrote about scoring drugs.

On “Things,” Whitten is bold and assured, his country croon fleshing out what’s really a skeletally thin song embodying horniness. The version he leads on Crazy Horse from ‘71 is borderline Spectoresque in its multi-voice grandeur — almost disorienting in how the voices swallow up the song and disappear down a black hole in stereo. Early Daze captures Whitten and Neil, two birds on the same branch, offering little more than a simple take on a version of a love song. I like that.

I also like to consider the alternate timeline where Whitten cleaned up his act enough to join Neil on the Harvest tour in ‘73 and remained with it enough to sing a tune in the middle of the set, exposing his talent to new audiences. It didn’t happen. But both Rod Stewart and Everything But The Girl covered Whitten’s song “I Don’t Want To Talk About It” — which bears more than a passing resemblance to The Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses,” a song released a few months later — and found mild chart success in the years after his death.

Also, see:

• A Few Thoughts on Album Early Daze by Neil Young and Crazy Horse by Scotsman
  
• The Flying Scotzman just shared: "Early Daze #1: Look At All The Things"
• Early Daze #2: Winterlong  
• Putting the Early Daze of Crazy Horse in perspective  
• Early Daze: Neil Young with Crazy Horse Album Coming on June 28 
  

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A Few Thoughts on Album Early Daze by Neil Young and Crazy Horse

Early Daze  Neil Young with Crazy Horse
 (Click photo to enlarge) 

Here are a few thoughts on Early Daze by Neil Young and Crazy Horse by Scotzman.

“There’s no real murder in it.”

That’s what Neil Young once said about Down By The River, in its early daze.

Oh, many versions since—including, for example, the lunatic version from Dallas 1989—are vicious enough to make us question whether the narrator of the song has a body stashed underneath his bedroom floorboards.

But that’s in the future. Listening to the newly-released edit of the original 1969 studio version of Down By The River (the same band performance, but with an early lead-vocal overdub and different backing vocals), there’s not only no murder, there’s no suspicion of murder, either.

It’s sensitively performed. But Lieutenant Columbo stays home with his wife.

1969 feels like a different era… a very different era. Bassist Billy Talbot and drummer Ralph Molina are 25 years old. Neil Young is still 23, and is decades away from writing Cocaine Eyes, Eldorado or Rockin’ In The Free World.

Even Like A Hurricane doesn’t exist! Neither do the big Rust-era “amplifiers”.

Mirrorball hasn’t been recorded yet; the members of Pearl Jam are only about 3 years old.

For those of us either not yet born or still very young in 1969, it’s a time we don’t remember, but instead *imagine*. We see it on a movie screen in our minds. Palm trees, bright sun, classic American cars, a slightly gritty and grainy picture. The music on Early Daze is the soundtrack.

In 1969, Neil is still finding his range as a performing artist. He’s still discovering he can play different characters, each representing a different part of his psyche.

But more than that, there’s a through-and-through innocence to the sound of these recordings. Jangly and bright and care-free. Slipping down as easy as honey liqueur, with a touch of edge as the alcohol hits.

A rolling start.

Before super-fame. Before the fed-into-the-waste-disposal-machine grind of the Time Fades Away tour.

Back when Danny Whitten was still alive.

Consider: If we were to make a two-part movie about Neil Young’s career (working title: “Before and After”), where would we put the dividing line… the gap between before and after?

One temptation, I think, would be to start ‘part two’ in 1996: just after Neil’s producer David Briggs died.

But of course, Briggs’s immense influence on Neil’s music has carried on beyond his death. That’s why a recording like, say, Walk Like A Giant has such spiritual guts to it. Because others—not least guitarist Poncho Sampedro—have carried the torch and kept the spirit alive.

Instead, perhaps, the second film should begin with the aftermath of Danny Whitten’s death in 1972.

Because that’s when everything changes. That’s when the sun goes in, and when the chilled and relentless rain falls into greasy urban puddles.

Listen to Winterlong on Early Daze… then listen to the agonized (and perhaps artistically superior) version on Decade — recorded after Danny’s death.

Listen to Heart of Gold on Harvest… then listen to the grating, tone-deaf din of Tuscaloosa.

Listen to the newly-released Down By The River, innocent at heart…. then watch the thrilling slasher version from Concord 1993.

Listen to Come On Baby Let’s Go Downtown… then listen to Mellow My Mind.

Listen to Leave the Driving (a story of drug-related death/murder) and Carmichael (a story of the ensuing grief).

It’s not just the “ditch” period. It’s everything since Danny died. The music—metaphorically, at least—is haunted.

In the early seventies, Danny Whitten was a very sick man. He needed help, and he didn’t get it. That’s the tragedy. It’s no wonder the next few years of Neil Young music are so bleak, so tortured.

Drummer Ralph Molina said “we should’ve been able to do more for Danny”. And on one level, maybe he’s right.

But of course, it’s near-impossible for any one person to know *how* to help. How, exactly, do you help a man addicted to heroin? It’s not a question most of us—self included—are trained how to answer.

It’s a bit like the question “how do you help a family member who is clinically depressed”?

Everybody wants to help… nobody (other than a trained specialist) knows how. The end result is that nothing gets done, with no malicious intent whatsoever.

I know Neil has blamed himself, so has Ralph, so have Danny’s other friends. That’s because they are good people who care. Not because they’re actually to blame.  

It’s one of those situations where we wish we could change the past, but can’t. Nobody intended for Danny to die, but that didn’t stop it happening.

In 1973, “all that glitters is not gold”. “Everything’s cheaper than it looks”. Neil Young has found fame, but the trappings of fame have made him unhappy. And along with his bandmates, he feels a great deal of guilt about Danny’s death. Tequila and art take the place of therapy sessions, and one way or another, the survivors find a way through.

Here’s Neil himself, speaking to biographer Jimmy McDonough about the end of the early daze of Crazy Horse:

“We knew what we had. We all knew it was really good. Then to see it get f**ked up was really depressing. Seeing drugs come in and f**k it up, seeing the whole thing just go downhill. The inexperience of not knowing how to deal with heroin use, not knowing what it was, being too young for certain kinds of decisions. But that was the hand I was dealt at the time. The destruction of Danny’s life…”.

The Early Daze album, meanwhile, comes before. Bright and relaxed; chilled out, with an effortless rock ‘n’ roll edge. Neil records with his show-biz buddies CSN—his day job, of sorts—and then has fun playing with Crazy Horse in his spare time.

The in-studio banter is relaxed and charming and inviting; the music, too. It’s a record that documents a band enjoying the journey of making art for its own sake. With David Briggs in the control room: the ringleader, the motivator. Another unseen and much-missed member of Crazy Horse.

And with Danny Whitten still alive, still healthy, sharing the spotlight, playing and singing beautifully, for us all to hear and enjoy.

-Scotsman.

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Stream on Demand: "Harvest Time" & "Weld: Buffalo" | Neil Young Archives

Neil Young: "happy new year"
via Neil Young Archives (Click photo to enlarge)

 

From Neil Young Archives comes news that Harvest Time and Weld: Buffalo are now in MovieTone to stream on demand for Rust & Patron subscribers.

ANALYSIS: What Harvest Time Reveals About Neil Young

 

Back in 2020, Neil Young announced a new "Weld Series" planned for Neil Young Archives and the full concert of Neil Young & Crazy Horse in Buffalo, 1991 is now streaming on demand on MovieTone | NYA

"LIKE A HURRICANE" (encore) by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York - 1991-02-16
frame via Hearse Theater | NYA

 

1991 Buffalo's "LIKE A HURRICANE" 12+ minute encore and considered to be "Mind Blowing" -- even by Neil himself.  Be sure to watch last few seconds of the encore from the CRAZY HORSE - BUFFALO WAR MEMORIAL film with  a very special treat for those with eyes open to see for. HINT: It shows the calm in the eye after the storm and will break every rusties heart.

Two recordings from Buffalo concert are on the live album "WELD" -- the "stunning towering majesty" of an electric Bob Dylan cover of "Blowin 'In The Wind" and the "Mind Blowing" encore of "Like A Hurricane".

Rolling Stone's Andy Greene writes: "It’s Young at his Godfather of Grunge prime and a great gift for fans stuck in their homes."

The following comment was posted by the ever so faithful and fearless Scotsman:

The long-awaited video of Like A Hurricane from Weld is now streaming on NYA.

One of the greatest Crazy Horse live performances ever (admittedly there are a fair few others, maybe several thousand).

If (for some strange reason) I had to pick just one officially released Crazy Horse track, this would be it.

It really is an incredible performance that just builds up to an outrageous level of intensity. Set aside 13 minutes this evening and watch it; then set aside an hour to get your breath back.

The complete Buffalo 1991 show is set for its premiere on Sunday. Stay home and enjoy it.

Scotsman.

Broken Arrow Magazine - NYAS #44, August 1991
Cover Photo by Steve Babineau

Previously, a "blistering" 8 minute+ "Crime in The City" version by Neil Young & Crazy Horse was screened.

Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, USA - 1991-02-16
Ticket Stub via Sugar Mountain

As mentioned, the 1st release from the "Weld Series" will be from Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, on 1991-02-16. A preview clip was posted on NYA of "Campaigner" from Buffalo which indicates that this will be a performance oriented release concert as opposed to the original WELD release which contained vast amounts of audience reaction. Apparently, Manager Elliot Roberts was quite opposed to the WELD editing that favored audience over band. Neil seems to be correcting this decision by saying: "Well Elliot, you got it. Better late than never my old friend."

"Crime in The City" by Neil Young &Crazy Horse
Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York - 1991-02-16
frame via Hearse Theater | NYA
(See NOW PLAYING: A "Blistering" Version of "Crime in The City" by Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Buffalo, 1991)

"How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
Yes, 'n' how many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind."

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Comment of the Moment: Reappraising "Life" Album by Neil Young & Crazy Horse

Life Neil Young & Crazy Horse
1987

Earlier, we posted on the oft maligned Neil Young's "The Geffen Years": ~1981 - ~1988.

 

As a followup, here is the Comment of the Moment on reappraising Neil Young & Crazy Horse 1987 "Life" album by Tomatron:

Starting with its absurd title, the 1987 Neil Young & Crazy Horse record is over the top. 

Say what you want about Life as a whole, (most will target the objectionable production effects), but Mideast Vacation succeeds at what it set out to accomplish. The song gets under the skin with its acidic narrative and synthetic presentation. In modern parlance, it’s a banger. The originally unreleased Letter From Nam gives a glimpse of how Long Walk Home *used* to sound, but an additional decade and a half of neoliberal interference cements the American Empire reading of the song. Digitally induced bombast is absolutely required here. The digital reverb on the drums is so huge one can visualize the entire perimeter of the arena, half full and brimming with the aroma of spilled Bud Light.

Neil may hate the way Around The World turned out as an example of the supposedly botched Crazy Horse performances accompanying the metronome, but that tune is a lot of fun. They get a dumb synth punk thing going that morphs into new wave (a style honed on the previous record) and that absolutely ridiculous spoken breakdown. Around The World perfectly skewers the 80s while still being completely of its time. Some of Neil Young’s records have a timeless feel to them, but Life offers no escape from the confines of the epoch. Inca Queen is no exception, as heard in its proliferation of processed instrumentation. Nevertheless, it is just so damn epic. And I can’t think of another song where Crazy Horse do backing vocals in that particularly low chanty way again. “Inca Queen has. Inca Queen has. Inca Queen has come.” She’s here; ‘bout time!

Side B is where it starts feeling more like the Crazy Horse we know. If Mideast Vacation is the six-year sonic continuation of Shots, Too Lonely could be the long-awaited follow-up to the rest of re•ac•tor. It’s just gleefully mean and too great to be in tune. Year Of The Horse showed us how amazing tunes like Prisoners Of Rock ‘n’ Roll and When Your Lonely Heart Breaks can be when the band is given free rein. It must be conceded that those later performances are the definitive editions, but they’re not half bad here in their original incarnations. Prisoners makes clear the title of the album is a sentence rather than a celebration, yet still it revels in its rebel primitivism.

We Never Danced has ample atmosphere as the album closer. It could’ve fit right in to the Bluenotes repertoire with a horn arrangement dropped in to replace the keyboards. But the real winner of Side B is Cryin’ Eyes. It’s quick and catchy, approaching a garage-y DEVO attitude but looser. They could trot that one out at any show from ‘86 on and have us jumping in the aisles. Dig that sick guitar tone on the lead!

Briggs would bring it on home in a few years for Ragged Glory, reminding us how the Horse could drink when led to water. He was operating outside his wheelhouse this time, but you gotta credit him for giving it a go. The tunes’ production may run counter to what people expect of the band, but they’re not boring. There are plenty of NY albums I wasn’t into before and now I adore unreservedly. 

This realization brought me back to the Geffen years to find joy in Life and the weird vibes of the times!

Thanks much for reappraising Neil & The Horse's album "Life"  Tomatron! Hope we can see some more  reappraisals of the oh-so misunderstood Geffen Years releases.

For us, one of the most fascinating aspects of the album "Life" is the cover itself.

Closeup of "Life" Album CoverNeil Young & Crazy Horse (Click photo to enlarge) 

If you look very closely at the cover, you see Neil literally behind bars, with 4 strokes and a cross (symbolizing #5), scratched on a prison wall.  5 being the number of albums Neil Young released on Geffen Label.

So Neil headed onto the Freedom album and the rest is history. 

For more on Neil Young and "The Geffen Years", see post on Neil Young's Uncut, Never-Before-Seen Interview | 'Inventing David Geffen' | PBS American Masters Archive.

 Neil Young - November 29, 2011 Inventing David Geffen |  PBS | American Masters

More on Neil Young's "The Geffen Years": ~1981 - ~1988.

Also, see Album Cover of Neil Young's Life on Geffen Records and Reassessing Neil Young's Life on Geffen Records. 

David Geffen, Elliot Roberts, & Neil Young
Frame from 'Inventing David Geffen': American Masters
(Click photo to enlarge)

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Comment of the Moment: Thoughts on Neil Young's BARN and Chrome Dreams II

BARN
 by Neil Young & Crazy Horse

After emerging from the hibernation of 2021 due to our "unplanned/forced sabbatical" here at Thrasher's Wheat, we've been trying to re-engage more with the Neil / RUST & TW grain communities. 

And after a post attempting to re-invigorate our TW comment threads, we managed to launch a good old fashioned classic comment shit storm with what we thought was an off hand observation. 

So without further ado, we reach back to 2021 for some comments on BARN by Neil Young & Crazy Horse on First Impressions: Summer Songs by Neil Young | Old Grey Cat + Rick Rubin Interview w/ Neil Young from Ian; The Metamorphic Rocker:

I'm not certain this is the ideal place, but mobile app ate previous comments I tried to post on the Barn reactions thread, and I still have a few lingering feelings. As I write, the extended coda of No Hidden Path from CDII, reminding me more than ever of the "all one song" mantra. When I make comparisons or draw parallels between Barn and previous albums or songs, it doesn't mean that Barn can't stand on its own. Neither do I hear the songs being particularly derivative.

If anything, there are "family resemblances" between (for instance) SWA, CDII, and Barn (maybe Abner will dig this particular analogy). Less fancifully, it just means that NY and CH, like many artists, probably revisit and expand on older ideas to see if they can do it even better this time. And I enjoy hearing these echoes.

It may also help, when I relate one album to another, to talk about the precise qualities I'm detecting. Here I direct attention to Dan's previous comments on the track list sequencing of Barn. In my listening experience (which I like to think is not excessively narrow), no one sequences like Neil Young. Maybe it's the old Briggs influence, but even post-Briggs albums have a special way of weaving songs together, drawing out and exploiting the tension points, the push and pull between and within numbers.

Case in point: CDII. Who the hell sequences Ordinary People at the beginning, rather than the climax, of the album? Someone who has Shining Light, Spirit Road, The Way, and No Hidden Path up their sleeve. Colorado front loads She Showed Me Love--and I think it's a bold, fantastic choice.

What I'm really hearing, and trying in my own small way to articulate, are musical and spiritual threads that run throughout all these albums. It's not that Barn requires comparison. Rather, it warrants comparison by way of appreciating the scope of an going 50+ year body of work.

I must take just a moment to address CDII. I keep talking about it elliptically and it's time to spell this out, though I'm sure some will disagree with me. Ordinary People is a landmark--however, No Hidden Path makes the album. It's the foundation, the beating heart of CDII, and, I suggest, one of NY's most important songs post-Y2K. And many of the best moments don't even have words. Just Old Black sawing away, cleaving through the forest of Neil's (and our) dreams. When I listen to this track, I hear a grunge raga. Nowhere near as complex or disciplined as the Indian classical mode, but the rawness is what makes it grungy.

All of which is to say: 1) When I liken Barn to CDII, that's not a slight on either album. And 2)If you haven't listened to CDII in a while, considering giving it a fresh try. At over an hour long, it requires time and some patience but has been, and continues to be, one of NY's most cohesive, rewarding, and--in my view--deeply significant of Neil's newer albums.

If you've gotten this far with me, many thanks and happy 2022 to all! I look forward to NYA3 and--dare I say it?--perhaps even the long-awaited appearance of Toast in the coming months. Peace and cheers!

[ps, on ATTENTION TW COMMENTERS: Thanks and A Suggestion]

We were road-tripping over New Years, so my access to TW was especially spotty... however, I'm just happy that my previous comments have resonated with and inspired a handful of people, especially insofar as folks have actually gone back and listened with fresh perspective to some of the albums or songs we've been talking about.

Nothing's quite as rewarding as knowing someone is actually "hearing" you, even if they are light years away in cyber space.

Per my responses to my recent comments, yes, CDII and other such albums are colored deeply by contributions from Ben Keith, Rick "the bass player" Rosas, Pegi Young... a roll call of absent friends. Of the older songs on CDII, I find Bluebird the most sublime fit with the "new" ones. It sets up a nature/spirituality theme that culminates with No Hidden Path.

Ralph M, of course, contributed drums and backing vox to much of that aalbum. The somewhat unusual combo of Ralph and Rick is, to say the least, effective: have you heard the drum fills on No Hidden Path or the bass on Boxcar? The reason I keep returning to CDII is probably because Barn carries such strong echoes of it. Human Race (a real grower for me) turns the raw angst of Spirit Road up to 11. Don't Forget Love definitely comes from the same family of songs as The Way--ymmv on the absence of any children's choir. And the first time I heard Tumbling Through the Years, I was struck immediately by the arrangement: an almost perfect mirror of The Believer.

For me, the piano songs (Tumbling, Shape of You, Don't Forget) are some of the most pleasant surprises, and an important counterpoint to the heavier, more urgent moments of Barn. This kind of balance marks many of Neil's best (or should I say, many of my favorite?) albums. Song of the Seasons and Welcome Back, among others, will command repeated listening. It seems NY likes to start an album strong and, if possible, end even stronger.

"If heaven had a window where the sun came shining through, like a beautiful bluebird I'd come flying back to you."

 

Chrome Dreams II by Neil Young: Reviews - 2007

 

As always, many thanks Ian! Your contributions here at TW are most welcome and enjoyed. Making a connection between BARN and Chrome Dreams II is most inspired.

MORE BARN!!!

 Produced by The Volume Dealers – Neil Young and Niko Bolas, the album is available on vinyl (special edition), CD, cassette and Deluxe Box set. The special edition vinyl contains 6 behind-the-scenes photographs from the Barn sessions. Available as a numbered first pressing, the Deluxe Box set contains the special edition LP, CD and Blu-ray of the film Barn.

 

(Watch out for The Greedy Hand, but you'll be supporting Thrasher's Wheat. Thanks!)

More on BARN  by Neil Young & Crazy Horse:

 

 

Comment of the Moment: BARN by Neil Young & Crazy Horse 

UNBOXING VIDEO: BARN by Neil Young & Crazy Horse

Thrasher's Wheat Radio 2.0 Vodcast - Episode #12 | BARN - Neil Young Album

INTERVIEW: Neil Young - ‘Barn’ with Crazy Horse and Being Future-Forward with Care for the Past | Apple Music 

BARN by Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Official Release Today - NOW STREAMING On NYA + NEW VIDEO 

"Neil Young Has a Lot More To Give" | Rolling Stone Interview + BARN Track List 

BARN: A Band - A Brotherhood - A Barn: A Documentary

UPDATED: New BARN Video + Neil's Message + 

1st IMPRESSIONS: "Song Of The Seasons" by Neil Young & Crazy Horse

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The Essentials: "Sleeps With Angels" by Neil Young & Crazy Horse | Old Grey Cat

 Sleeps With AngelsNeil Young & Crazy Horse

Here's a look back at a very essential album by Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Sleeps With Angels (1994).

In particular, this review looks at the album as recorded chronologically -- as opposed to the actual album sequencing -- and makes some very interesting observations.

Over on Old Grey Cat, a re-review from  "The Essentials":

An album’s sequencing is an important factor – it’s somewhat akin to putting together a puzzle without a picture to work from. 

If the songs had been laid out in the order they were recorded, well, it would have been a great album. But by sequencing it the way that they did, Neil and Briggs upped it to a greater realm. I should add, I suppose, that Neil did little to promote the album after its release – no interviews or tours. Instead, he let the music speak for itself. One result, I think, is that it’s become somewhat overlooked in the pantheon that is his oeuvre. To those who’ve never heard it, I say play it today; and for the initiated, give it another listen. It’s a powerful piece. 

As I said way back when, it ranks with his best ever.

Full review of "The Essentials: Sleeps With Angels by Neil Young & Crazy Horse" | Old Grey Cat.  

Here is the 14+ minute track "Change Your Mind" (see Lyric Analysis).

 

'Sleeps With Angels" Film - Directed by LA Johnson| Neil Young Archives

 (see details @ NEW SCREEN ADDED: 'Sleeps With Angels" Film Now Playing on #3 | Neil Young Archives)

 

Also, see Sleeps With Angels: Neil Young, Crazy Horse -  Neil Young Album Reviews: Sleeps With Angels + Preview Tracks)

all of which is "too late, too soon" ...

He Sleeps With Angels

Kurt Cobain and Neil Young

 

Neil Young and Producer David Briggs, 1995
Photo by Pegi Young

(See David Briggs and Neil Young: "How Survivals, Grief and Legacies Unfold in American Music")

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Neil Young's "Road of Plenty"/Eldorado EP + 1991 "Crime in The City"/"60-0" | NYA

"Crime in The City" by Neil Young &Crazy Horse
Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York - 1991-02-16
frame via Hearse Theater | NYA
(See NOW PLAYING: A "Blistering" Version of "Crime in The City" by Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Buffalo, 1991)

 

This 8 minute+ "Crime in The City" version by Neil Young & Crazy Horse is from Buffalo on the WELD Tour in 1991 and is "blistering", per Neil.

Neil Young writes on NYA on "Crime in The City":

From The ‘Weld Series’ ‘Crazy Horse - Buffalo’ is a wonderful example of The Horse at full gallup! ‘Crime in the City’ is an excerpt of a longer song - 60-0 (sixty to zero) . That song is about 15 minutes with 10 or 11 verses. I wrote a few long ones about that time . . .’Ordinary People’ was the other big one from that period.

‘Sixty to-Zero will be included on the album ‘Road of Plenty’ - coming on 2021. ’This ‘Crime in the City’ rocks like only the Horse can rock. Enjoy it right now and turn it way up! Do whatever you want to do to get prepared. it’s a big ride!
love,
be well
ny

Watch it now at the HEARSE THEATER.

 "Crime in The City" by Neil Young w/ Crazy Horse

 

Also,  Neil Young's "Road of Plenty"/Eldorado EP+ appears now on NYA Timeline on March 26th, 2021 as Original Release Series 21.

In March 2020, Neil Young announced a new "Weld Series" planned for Neil Young Archives and the 1st clip has now been posted on Hearse Theater | NYA.

As mentioned in March 2020, the 1st release from the "Weld Series" will be from Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York, on 1991-02-16. A preview clip was posted recently on NYA of "Campaigner" from Buffalo which indicates that this will be a performance oriented release concert as opposed to the original WELD release which contained vast amounts of audience reaction. Apparently, Manager Elliot Roberts was quite opposed to the WELD editing that favored audience over band. Neil seems to be correcting this decision by saying: "Well Elliot, you got it. Better late than never my old friend."

Here is an in depth look at one of Neil Young's most lyrically intense song:  "Crime in The City"/"60-0". And -- as with so much of Young's song writing gems -- it remains unreleased in all of its full ragged glory splendor. The following analysis looks closely at the very interesting and unusual development of the unreleased epic 18-minute "Sixty To Zero" into the shorter rocking "Crime in The City".

More on THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN EPIC NEIL YOUNG SONG: FROM “SIXTY TO ZERO” TO “CRIME IN THE CITY”.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN EPIC NEIL YOUNG SONG:

FROM “SIXTY TO ZERO” TO “CRIME IN THE CITY”

(Also, see Yes, There's Corruption on THE HIGHEST FLOOR: Yet More Inconvenient Truths in Greendale.)

 

Neil Young - 1989

Per an early 2020 posting on Neil Young Archives, another archival album is planned for 2021 titled "Road of Plenty".

Working with producer Niko Bolas, "Road of Plenty" will contain recordings made in the run up to "Freedom" in the late 1980s. The album has live takes of "Crazy Horse", studio recordings with the "Bluenotes", as well as, the 1989's legendary "Saturday Night Live" musical guest (see Neil Young on SNL: "Considered to be one of the most intense live television studio performances ever".)

"Probably the greatest guitar rock album ever"
~~ UNCUT Magazine's Allan Jones
"Eldorado" - Neil Young and the Restless

"Road of Plenty" has also appeared as an import titled "Eldorado". An album review UNCUT Magazine's Allan Jones modestly said: "The simple fact is that 'Eldorado" is probably the greatest guitar rock album ever." Jones continues describing the album's sound as: "holocaustal, post-apocalypse ruptures and manglings, great bloody swathes of feedback, random distortions, and gashes of sound, the reckless weather of psychotic abandon."

ELDORADO
1989 - Reprise 20P2-2651 (CD-EP, Japan and Australia only)

"Cocaine Eyes" – 4:24
"Don't Cry" – 5:00
"Heavy Love" – 5:09
"On Broadway" – 4:57
"Eldorado" – 6:03

"Eldorado"'s band The Restless consisted of Chad Cromwell and Rick Rosas. The EP contains different mixes of three songs that subsequently appeared on Young's 1989 album Freedom, "Don't Cry," "On Broadway," and "Eldorado," and two tracks not available on any other recording, "Cocaine Eyes" and "Heavy Love." The "Don't Cry" track on Eldorado is longer than the later version published on Freedom (5:00 vs. 4:14).

From Album Review of Neil Young and the Restless: Eldorado by Allan Jones:

The simple fact is that 'Eldorado" is probably the greatest guitar rock album ever.

Parts of it are like nothing you've ever heard, holocaustal, post -apocalypse ruptures and manglings, great bloody swathes of feedback, random distortions, and gashes of sound, the reckless weather of psychotic abandon. It's almost as if Young listened to the rather docile, reverential cover of his songs on the "Bridge" tribute album, listened to The Pixies and Soul Train and Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. and thought to himself, "Hey, kids - THIS is how you do it..."At which point, he plugs in his guitar, cranks the volume up to max and begins to roar.

(Full review @ Album Review of Neil Young and the Restless: Eldorado by Allan Jones.)

Young & The Restless
via 1989-02-18, Municipal Auditorium, Eureka, California, USA | Sugar Mountain

More on Eldorado from the FUNHOUSE! reviews by Steve Vetter (Farmer John).

Also, see Eldorado: Albums In Order Review Series by Mike "Expecting 2 Fly" Cordova.

Also, see 1986 Buffalo Springfield Rehearsal with Neil Young, Stephen Stills & Richie Furay rehearsing songs "Road of Plenty" and "Eldorado".

Also, see NYAS Broken Arrow Issue Number 036 - August, 1989 Eldorado: Albums Review by Ian MacCarthy, page 35.

NYAS Broken Arrow Issue Number 036 - August, 1989

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Comment of the Moment: 'Sleeps With Angels" Film Now Playing on #3 | Neil Young Archives

"Sleeps With Angels" Documentary Film by Larry "L.A." Johnson
via Subscriber News | NYA

Much, much excitement in the Rust community over the latest NYA Subscriber News and the premiere of a work in progress documentary of the making of the album Sleeps With Angels by Neil Young & Crazy Horse.

Primarily, the enthusiasm centers around watching the late David Briggs -- Neil Young's long time associate and Producer -- collaborate in the studio. Our Comment of the Moment in on the post 'Sleeps With Angels" Film Now Playing on #3 | Neil Young Archives by David R.:

Nice to see.

Pity all the music seems to be the same as the final studio versions. Great to see Neil with short hair and at one point even no sideburns. Cool to see him on the flute and playing distorted harmonica. Made me wonder if the characters in Trans Am are the start of the sort of thinking that led to Greendale.

I loved this record at the time and listening back I am still astonished by how good it is. Personally I think it might be Neil's best. I never thought about how different the sound is to Ragged Glory though it is true it is on a different planet. There is something of David Lynch to it, it would work as a soundtrack to one of his films, and I recall alongside grunge that was a major cinematic line art followed in the early 90s. Listening again I can feel Neil really tapping into that here and it is notable and logical that he then followed it with Dead Man.

I know a lot has been said about how Neil might have lost part of his muse when he lost Briggs, though sadly that is also clear listening again. Ever since Neil I feel has relied too much and too often on the just plug in and play approach that was first tested ironically here with Piece of Crap. Sleeps with Angels is very much so a studio record and feels and sounds like the product of one of those long experimental spells in the studio that started with The Beatles in the 60s and maybe ended with Radiohead at the millennium. The timing for Neil was perfect too, it was late enough after the 80s to not go over the top with studio sounds, drum machines, synths etc, and still early enough to have the enormous music industry support that allowed bands to really indulge themselves making a record.

I guess that is it, Neil has always blown with the wind of his own muse, though back then there was also an entire industry and experienced team that in this prime of his life blew behind him too.

Much thanks for sharing your thoughts here David!

The late David Briggs was Neil Young's producer on several key albums including Tonight's The Night, Zuma and Ragged Glory. Briggs' influence on the recording process has been lauded as a major contributing factor to Neil Young's recording success bringing a unique "discipline" to the process.

Neil Young and Producer David Briggs, 1995
Photo by Pegi Young

"How Survivals, Grief and Legacies Unfold in American Music"
by Caryn Rose @ 2019 Pop Conference at MoPop - Seattle

See David Briggs and Neil Young: "How Survivals, Grief and Legacies Unfold in American Music".

Also, see:

• Friends of Neil: David Briggs
• Comment of the Moment: Producer David Briggs and Neil Young
• David Briggs in Memorium
• David Briggs Obituary - NY Times, 12/3/95
• Interview with Elliot Roberts on working with David Briggs

"Sleeps With Angels" Film Now Playing on #3 | Neil Young Archives
See https://t.co/YQSQlIC61M
☮️♥️@NeilYoungNYA @CrazyHorse4HOF @Nirvana pic.twitter.com/TtHLaVmQz3

— ThrashersWheat (@ThrashersWheat) July 11, 2020

not!

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