On This Date: Neil Young Returns to Winnipeg - January 13, 1971

 "Neil Young: Don't Be Denied - The Canadian Years" by John Einarson

On this date, Wednesday evening, January 13, 1971, Neil Young made his triumphant return to Winnipeg.

From "Neil Young: Don't Be Denied - The Canadian Years" by John Einarson (thanks HtH!)

On this date, Wednesday evening, January 13, 1971, Neil Young made his return to Winnipeg. It had been six years since he last graced a stage there and many old friends and fans came out to welcome him home. He had left Winnipeg years earlier as a rock 'n' roller with a dream; now he had returned as rock's premier singer/songwriter. It had been quite a journey.

With barely any advertising, ticket demand at the Centennial Concert Hall was so great that two shows were scheduled that evening [I attended both]. The word was out that Neil was back. Everyone entering the hall was checked for cameras and tape recorders. Neil did not like to be distracted by camera flashes concertgoers were informed as they shuffled through the turnstiles.

Appearing alone on the stark stage with just acoustic guitar and piano, lumberjack outfit and back brace that kept him stiffly in a wooden-backed chair, Neil proceeded to mesmerize the capacity crowd. Bent over his acoustic guitar, head down, eyes closed, long, straight hair draping past his shoulders, Neil spoke rarely, choosing, like he always had, to let his music speak for him. The odd reference was made to being home and to people in the crowd. "There's a guy out there in the audience who used to tune my guitar," he offered. The intensity of his performance led those in the audience to feel that they were in the presence not of a local boy-made-good, but a world-class singer/songwriter. It was a magical night.

Walking onstage without introduction and offering no greetings, Neil opened the show with the Buffalo Springfield's On the Way Home. It seemed a fitting number for the tour. Throughout the concert, Neil interspersed the familiar with new material, much of it written recently on his ranch. Some, like Heart of Gold, Old Man, and A Man Needs a Maid, appeared a year later on his HARVEST album. Others, like See the Sky About to Rain, Dance, Dance, Dance, and Bad Fog of Loneliness would wait much longer to appear on vinyl. For the Winnipeg show, Neil added Clancy to unrestrained applause.

Afterwards, Neil hosted a party for family and friends at the posh, downtown Winnipeg Inn. The general theme of the conversations floating about the room focused on how each individual present just knew that Neil would make it someday. Neil mingled among the patrons, hugging, shaking hands and reminiscing. As is the case with these post-concert soirees, the room was well represented by hangers-on, the radio and record company set, most of whom didn't know Neil's name from Adam two years earlier. Neil was disappointed that many of the former Squires were not present. In particular, he had wanted to see Allan Bates and Ken Smyth. "I was looking for them but I didn't find them," recalls Neil. "You never realize at the time that you'll never see people again." Asked years later about his absence that night, Ken replies, "We weren't sure if he would remember us." Pam Smith adds, "I was afraid that my life would seem so trivial compared to who he was now and all the things he had done. He was somebody and we were all still just here."

Neil spent some time the next day visiting a few old haunts but the hectic pace of the tour forced Neil to move on. His brief stop in his old hometown had been a personal triumph and a kind of reconciliation with his past.

The Journey thru The Past tour would bring Neil to Massey Hall, Toronto's premier concert venue, on January 19 for another triumphant homecoming and a reconciliation with his father. During the Massey Hall concert, Neil acknowledged his father's presence in the audience. He also sang Old Man which Scott Young heard as a note of reconciliation. The Massey Hall concert was recorded and released decades later as part of his Neil Young Archives series.

Thanks for this historic reminder from 50+ years ago John! 

And thanks to those of you who said to go ahead with this (you know who you are) and today's part goes like this: THE KEEPER OF THE FLAME: there is rock. There is roll. And there is Neil Young.

More on "Neil Young: Don't Be Denied - The Canadian Years" by John Einarson @ Neil Young Book Reviews. 

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CANARY: Progress on Neil Young's Newest Book

CANARYvia Neil Young Archives (Click photo to enlarge)  

Per Neil Young Archives, there's progress to report on Neil Young's newest  book titled CANARY.

Neil Young has been working on the science fiction book since 2017.

 CANARY: 5-10-23

via Neil Young Archives (Click photo to enlarge)

Back in 2020, we reported that  Neil Young had submitted a manuscript to a publisher for a fiction novel titled "Canary". At that time, Neil had been writing the book for over four years and hoped to have published by the end of 2020.

Previously, word had it that Neil met with Nils Lofgren's neighbor author Clive Cussler to discuss writing fiction.

Neil Young, Nils Lofgren & Clive Cussler
Photo by Amy Lofgren via NYA

CANARY will be the 4th book authored (or co-authored) by Neil Young.

In 2012, Neil Young published Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream.

'Waging Heavy Peace' by Neil Young
(Click photo to enlarge)

In 2014, Neil Young published Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars.

Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars by Neil Young - Fall 2014
Photo by rockbookshow

 

Neil Young on The Colbert Report Discussing "Special Deluxe" Book

October 14, 2014

  

In 2019, Neil Young co-authored with Phil Baker To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio.

"To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio"
by Neil Young and Phil Baker
Release Date: September 9, 2019

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Crosby, Stills & Nash: "Music is Love" Book

Crosby, Stills & Nash: "Music is Love" Book by Francesco Lucarelli
Published  8 December 2022
(Click photo to enlarge) 

The upcoming book "Crosby, Stills & Nash: Music is Love" by Francesco Lucarelli will be published on 8 December 2022.

This is the largest collection of Crosby, Stills & Nash stories and visuals ever put together – tickets, playbills, backstage passes, flyers, laminated passes, posters, magazine covers, picture-sleeve singles, as well as many never-seen-before photographs. The result is an amazing journey covering almost six decades of music with contributions from all five continents. 

Here's a video preview of  the book Crosby, Stills & Nash: "Music is Love".

 

The book also houses a large number of unpublished photographs featuring Neil Young. 

The 312 color pages tell the tale of more than 50 years of CSN as artists and men, with an intro by Graham Nash. Among the "voices" of the book: Bill Halverson (first CSN record engineer), Craig Doerge, George "Chocolate" Perry, Kenny Passarelli, Ken Weiss, Russ Kunkel, David Zimmer, Bonnie Bramlett, Rickie Lee Jones, Jeff Pevar, Roy McAlister, Paul Zollo, Mike Finnigan, Steve Silberman, Dick Boak, John Ferrentino, Glenn R Goodwin, Carolyne Mas, Pierre Robert. Plus managers, promoters, musicians, painters, luthiers, photographers, collectors from all five Continents. 

Unpublished photographs (and memories) by some of the greats: Henry Diltz, Rowland Scherman, Tom Gundelfinger O'Neal, Lisa Law, Guido Harari, Luciano Viti.

 Crosby, Stills & Nash: "Music is Love" Book

(Click photo to enlarge)

 “This is a wonderful collection of information about Crosby, Stills & Nash, and the photographs bring the reader even closer to the band. This information has been collected over years and years and is a ’must read’ for anyone interested in the band. I’ve enjoyed reading and looking at these stories for a while now and I’m pleased that you get a chance to do the same.”

~~Graham Nash, June 20^th, 2022, New York City.

The book will be available in two versions: 

• standard version (hardcover) 
• deluxe version* 
• 312 page full colour book
• 80-page colour photo book featuring never before seen backstage photographs from tours and venues over 30 years
• A pencil drawing by Gerard Huerta of the original ‘Illegal Stills’ album artwork printed on  vellum
• 3 Crosby, Stills & Nash gig setlists
• 3 Postcard photographs of David Crosby, Graham Nash and Stephen Stills
• CS&N pass from 1984
• Wembley stadium poster from 1974

 * The first 300 copies of the Special slipcase edition are signed by Graham Nash or Stephen Stills. Please specify whose signature you would prefer.

 

  Crosby, Stills & Nash: "Music is Love" Book(Click photo to enlarge) 

Full details here or order on Amazon.com.

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Decoding Neil: "The Musical Transcendence of Neil Young" by author Martin Halliwell

 

Here is a rather excellent essay by author Martin Halliwell which explores Neil Young’s long-running fascination with dreams.

From The Musical Transcendence of Neil Young by author Martin Halliwell:

Dreams for Young are sometimes a puzzle to solve and at other times a new geography to explore, corresponding to the two dominant dream theories of the 1960s: the Freudian theory in which dreams are a working through of repressed psychic matter; and the existential humanist view of dreams as an alternative topography. 

Dreaming is rarely a doorway to the state of lost innocence for which Young yearns in “Sugar Mountain,” but it has the capacity to transport the singer and the listener elsewhere. Through the act of dreaming Young can drift purposefully, pulling together sounds, images and colours in creative ways, and can explore the twists and turns of the unconscious where one image blurs with the next. The nature of dreams means that their shape keeps morphing. This can lead the dreamer towards deeper meaning, but can also drift away into impressions and noise. At times Young searches for direction–such as the quest on his 2007 track “Spirit Road” to discover the “long highway” within — and at other times escapes from meaning into a play of imagery and sound.

We can identify this second trend in one of Young’s early dream songs, “Broken Arrow.” This six-minute coda to the second Buffalo Springfield album Buffalo Springfield Again seems to be inspired by the early-summer release of The Beatles’ concept album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, leading Young to incorporate crowd noises from a Beatles concert and the opening distorted snippet of a live performance of “Mr Soul,” sung by drummer Dewey Martin. Despite its musical variety there is little input from the band, except for backing vocals by Richie Furay, added after Young had recorded the song in September 1967. Its power stems from Young’s sound experiments and the visually arresting figure of a Native American standing alone on a riverbank with an empty quiver. This image of the ‘vanishing Indian’ with a broken arrow suggests either surrender to an unstoppable force or an offering of peace. 

What makes this a mysterious image is that there is no discernible enemy in sight; instead the verses describe a triad of social pressures (fame, adolescence and marriage) as if modern social organization has defeated the nobility of the Native American.

 

Full excerpt at The Musical Transcendence of Neil Young by author Martin Halliwell.

 Neil Young: American Traveller (Reverb) by Martin Halliwell

Also, Martin Halliwell's new book is titled Neil Young: American Traveller (Reverb).

For more on Neil Young's dreams, also see:

• "All Those Dreams" by Neil Young from the album Storytone
• Americana and The American Dream
• Review: Neil Young's Dreamin' Man
• Chrome Dreams II Reviews

‘The Visitor’
by Neil Young + Promise of the Real

(see NEW ALBUM: ‘The Visitor’ by Neil Young + Promise of the Real)

 

 

"All in a dream, all in a dream
The loading had begun
Flying mother nature's silver seed
To a new home in the sun
Flying mother nature's silver seed
To a new home"

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Pete Long: 1950 - 2021

Pete Long with his partner, Caroline, in 1989

Pete Long, author of Ghosts on the Road -- the definitive published guide to Neil Young concerts, has passed away.

 

Ghosts on the Road by Pete Long

From Guardian News obituary by John Soane: (thanks Mark J.)

Pete chose a typically idiosyncratic approach to analysing – and appreciating – music. This was particularly evident in his self-published book, Ghosts on the Road (2007), in which, through meticulous research, he documented every live Neil Young performance from 1961 to 2006 – the venues played, songs performed and accompanying musicians – to create a unique perspective on Neil’s life and work.

Having established himself as an expert on all things Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Pete developed a great relationship and friendship with the photographer and musician Joel Bernstein. This led to Pete becoming part of the team Neil surrounded himself with for his archive releases. He also worked with Joel on Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young projects, including the 1974 concert series box set, receiving a Grammy nomination in the process. Graham Nash looked to them similarly on his solo reissue releases.

Pete Long ... gone but not forgotten ... 

Also, see Neil Young Appreciation Society's Broken Arrow Search Results (via Sugar Mountain) for Pete Long's huge contributions to The Society & BA. 

Book Excerpts - Pete Long - Ghosts on the Road Reviewed By Tim Burgin Neil Young Appreciation Society's Broken Arrow

#	Pg	Subject
7	10	Photographs - Neil Onstage Hammersmith Odeon 1976 By Pete Long
7	20	Back Cover - Neil Onstage Hammersmith Odeon 1976 By Pete Long
17	8	Book Review - CSN The Authorised Biography - Dave Zimmer & Henry Diltz - Review By Pete Long
18	1	Front Cover - Hammersmith Odeon 1976 By Pete Long
18	28	Back Cover - Hammersmith Odeon 1976 By Pete Long
24	13	Photographs - 1980 Bread & Roses Festival, Greek Theatre, UC Berkeley By Pete Long
25	1	Front Cover - Hammersmith Odeon 1976 By Pete Long
30	36	Back Cover - Neil Young And Ann Hillary O'Brien, Bread & Roses Festival 1980 Via Pete Long
37	7	Album Reviews - Freedom By Pete Long
47	19	CSN - A Brief History - 1967 - 1970 By Pete Long
47	20	CSN - Box Set - Review By Pete Long
51	49	Buffalo Springfield CSNY - Complete Listing - Releases On Atlantic Records 1967-1978 - Update By Pete Long
60	26	The Ducks - 1977 Gig Dates Update By Pete Long
62	45	Book Excerpts - Pete Long - Ghosts on the Road Reviewed By Tim Burgin
96	1	Front Cover - 1973 Location Unknown - Supplied By Pete Long
96	2	Inside Front - Location Unknown - Supplied By Pete Long
96	7	Time Fades Away - Introduction By Pete Long
96	7	Time Fades Away - Retrospective By Pete Long
96	11	Time Fades Away - The Tour By Pete Long
96	20	Time Fades Away - Critics' Reviews By Pete Long
96	26	Time Fades Away - Album Review By Pete Long
96	32	Time Fades Away - Album Review - Press Cuttings By Pete Long
96	35	Time Fades Away - Tour Epilogue By Pete Long
96	70	Inside Back Cover - Time Fades Away Collage By Pete Long
107	20	Book Review - Pete Long's 'Ghosts On The Road' - Revised, Updated, Expanded
113	68	Live At Canterbury House 1968 NYAPS00 - Review By Pete Long
120	5	Ben Keith 1937 - 2010 - An Appreciation By Pete Long
120	18	Ben Keith - A Selected Discography By Pete Long
124	74	Old Ways Saga - Comment And Update By Pete Long
128	55	Album Reviews - Psychedelic Pill - By Pete Long

 

Thank you again Pete for your invaluable contributions which have made the The Society, BA and rusties around the world so much richer for your dedication and devotion to the subject.

Long May You Run, our friend!

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Neil Young Submits Manuscript for Science Fiction Novel Titled "Canary"

Neil Young, Nils Lofgren & Clive Cussler
Photo by Amy Lofgren via NYA

 

In 2020 we reported that Neil Young had submitted a manuscript to a publisher for a fiction novel titled "Canary". At the time, Neil had been writing the book for over four years and hoped to have published by the end of 2020.

Earlier reports were that the book was of a science fiction nature. Some time ago, word had it that Neil met with Nils Lofgren's neighbor author Clive Cussler to discuss writing fiction. (See undated photo above of  Neil Young, Nils Lofgren & Clive Cussler. Not incidentally, Clive Cussler has since passed away.)

Last week, Neil Young said that he had again "handed in" a manuscript to a publisher for a science fiction novel titled "Canary". 

So we're not entirely sure what might have happened between then and now, but we would have to speculate that the 1st manuscript needed some editorial work, as Neil mentions his editor by name as "Ed" - no kidding.

This will be the 3rd  4th book authored (or co-authored) by Neil Young.

In 2012, Neil Young published Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream.

'Waging Heavy Peace' by Neil Young
(Click photo to enlarge)

In 2014, Neil Young published Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars.

Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars by Neil Young - Fall 2014
Photo by rockbookshow

In 2019, Neil Young co-authored with Phil Baker To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio.

"To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio"
by Neil Young and Phil Baker
Release Date: September 9, 2019

(See  BOOK SIGNING: To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio)

 

Neil Young on The Colbert Report Discussing "Special Deluxe" Book

October 14, 2014

 

Patti Smith Discusses Neil Young's Memoir "Waging Heavy Peace"

@ BookExpo America - New York City, June 06, 2012

 Patti Smith & Neil Young
(See "Don’t Chase the Rabbit", Neil Young Says To Patti Smith)Photo by The Great Gray Bridge 
Conference Badge for Patti Smith & Neil Young
Photo by The Great Gray Bridge
(See LIVE BLOG: Patti Smith Interviews Neil Young at BookExpo America in New York City )

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Neil Young Creativity Update: "Canary" - A Fiction Novel Completed

Neil Young on The Colbert Report Discussing "Special Deluxe" Book

October 14, 2014

Ok, here the latest update today on Neil Young's creativity.

On NYA, Neil Young has announced that he has submitted a manuscript to a publisher for a fiction novel titled "Canary". Neil has been writing the book for over four years and hopes to have published by the end of 2020.

Earlier reports were that the book was of a science fiction nature. Some time ago, word had it that Neil met with Nils Lofgren's neighbor author Clive Cussler to discuss writing fiction. Incidentally, Clive Cussler just passed away very recently.

Neil Young, Nils Lofgren & Clive Cussler
Photo by Amy Lofgren via NYA

This will be the 3rd book authored by Neil Young.

In 2012, Neil Young published Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream.

'Waging Heavy Peace' by Neil Young
(Click photo to enlarge)

In 2014, Neil Young published Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars.

Special Deluxe - A Memoir of Life & Cars by Neil Young - Fall 2014
Photo by rockbookshow

In 2019, Neil Young co-authored with Phil Baker To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio.

"To Feel the Music: A Songwriter's Mission to Save High-Quality Audio"
by Neil Young and Phil Baker
Release Date: September 9, 2019

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EXCERPT - "Chasing the Muse: Canada" by Lloyd Walton

Chasing the Muse: Canada
by Lloyd Walton

Author Lloyd Walton is a long time Neil Young fan, Canadian and adventurer extraordinaire.

By adapting a code of conduct at a young age (the "Code of the Trail"), Lloyd embarked on a lifelong quest to live out his every dream. He became a pilot, he had a brush with the big time in the NHL, he flew with the Snowbirds, he had remarkable encounters with Pierre Trudeau, Bob Dylan and Neil Young, and found a job that paid him to have fun.

Lloyd sought to gain entry to a world that had closed itself off. To gain entry, he first had to prove himself as an artist. Bolstered by the sounds of fellow Northerner Bob and fellow Canadian Neil, he undertook a sixteen-year odyssey of knowledge and understanding.

But the sixteen-year search for ancient wisdom, hidden in rock paintings and carvings (pictographs and petroglyphs), an often-dangerous odyssey, brings rewards and consequences unexpected and revelatory. In often very funny, often very moving episodes, Chasing the Muse: Canada, reveals new insights into Canadian history, identity, and landscape.

Here is an excerpt from Chasing the Muse: Canada by Lloyd Walton:

Thirteen years after the curious and powerful Neil Young tour truck vision, I was wearing a backstage pass, given by a friend, wandering down below the Air Canada Centre in Toronto and there they were, the Neil Young tour trucks. Neil Young was there as part of the super-group, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. A rumble of expectation was building from the huge crowd. All of the sound, rigging, and lighting personnel had gone to man their show stations. The roadies were in their makeshift dining area, finishing a hearty meal, planning to catch a bit of sleep before the hectic load-out in three hours.

Stephen Stills walked up, introduced himself to me, and said he was lost. I put my arm around his shoulder and guided him towards the mounting crowd roar. We talked about the show he had given the night before, and how their music over the years had nurtured my artistic muse. At the end of a long dark hallway, we approached three men grouped in a huddle. Then there I was, locked shoulder to shoulder in the pre-show pep talk with David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young. I felt the brotherhood.

Neil Young, the obvious leader of the group, was conjuring the spirits to help them put on an exceptional show. He was using his hypnotic powers to motivate himself and his mates, just before they were to walk out to an excited crowd of twenty thousand people. This was their preparation ceremony to summon their strength, power and energy

His words were so inspiring that I was emotionally charged—I was prepared to walk out on stage with them. "What the hell?" I thought. "I know all of the words and harmonies." That was some trance!

I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Elliott Roberts, their manager. He said very politely, "You don't need to be here." I humbly backed away.

I watched the show from the workspace of Neil's guitar tech, Larry Cragg, one of the co-creators of the signature Neil Young guitar sound. Larry never stopped working the whole evening to make sure his boss sounded great. Watching Larry, I reflected on the loyalty of so many friends, fellow workers, and technicians over the years who have stood behind me and my work.

Lloyd's writes to us to say that the source of his pursuit, the "Teaching Rocks", is a few miles northeast of Omeemee, the town in "North Ontario."

"Teaching Rocks" - Ontario

Lloyd has received more than 35 provincial, national, and international awards, including the Academy of Canadian Cinema, the American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco, and the World Festival of Tourism Films in Milan, Italy.

As a painter, he has had five solo show of oils and acrylics of scenes from across Canada. Texas Governor George W. Bush made Lloyd an Honorary Texan.

He was the creative director for a gift from the Province of Ontario to HR Queen Elizabeth II.

While filming, he was twice kissed by a moose and once surrounded by black bears. He has been alone in the middle of a herd of caribou, stared a polar bear in the eye and had tigers jumping over him. His films have been translated into French, German, Dutch, Japanese, Cree, Ojibway, Ojicree, Inuktitut, and Russian.

Author Lloyd Walton

More on Chasing the Muse: Canada by Lloyd Walton
(Please shop locally & independently. But if you can't, we appreciate your supporting Thrasher's Wheat by clicking this link
. Thank you!!!)

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BOOK REVIEW: Neil Young: Art of Gold

Neil Young: Art of Gold
by Herman Verbeke

Just before Thanksgiving, we received a review copy of the new book Neil Young: Art of Gold by Herman Verbeke.

Over the years, we've reviewed quite a few books on Neil Young from biographies to song analysis, illustrated books, songbooks to comics. But we can tell you that this Neil Young book Art of Gold is unique, especially if you're drawn to the creative arts.

Belgian Herman Verbeke has collected more than 200 drawings, painting, cartoons, caricatures, murals, comics, sketches and other artworks about Neil Young. His compilation published this Fall by the publishing house Witsand Uitgevers, is a hardcover with 256 pages. Artists from all over the world brought their art and their love for Neil and his music to this brilliant collection. Each artist added his or her comment and tells us about the how, the why, the when & the where they created their piece.

In our correspondence with author Herman Verbeke, he relates that when so many artists paint, draw, cartoon or "mural" Neil Young's image, then "One must be great in what he does."

"Neil Young: Art of Gold", is Verbeke's proud tribute to Neil Young, as well as a tribute to the many visual artists who contributed to the project. Author Verbeke adds that he truly appreciates the artists sharing their art and talents free of charge. Incidentally, Verbeke did not receive a fee from the publisher of this book either.

Earlier this year, Herman sent a letter to Neil Young Archives, where the following was published:

Neil Young Archives | NYA

And here's a short movie of the book by one of the artists Kirk Andrews, who did a charcoal image on page 183.

I am honoured to have my Neil Young charcoal portrait included in this ace new book, Neil Young: Art of Gold by Herman Verbeke. Featuring work by artists from around the world it is a beautiful collector’s item for anyone who loves Neil Young and his music.#NeilYoung #art pic.twitter.com/Ff0yCwgrxp

— kirk andrews (@the_kirkinator) November 23, 2019

Herman Verbeke - Neil Young: Art of Gold
Publisher Witsand Uitgevers
ISBN 9789492934277
Hardcover, 196 pages, 24,99 Euro

via tweet by Andre Koekemoer | Twitter

Orders can be placed at bei Witsand and bol.com.

Also, in 2017 Herman Verbeke published the book Neil Young: En Ik (In Dutch of course), with 65 thoughts and musings about Neil by journalists, professors, theater people, writers, poets, and many others from Belgium and Holland).

Neil Young: En Ik
by Herman Verbeke

Author Herman Verbeke & Neil Young - 2009

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Tell Me Why: A Conversation with Neil Young (1997)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JULY 8, 2012 - UPDATED: SEPTEMBER 9, 2018 & 10/21/2019

Neil Young
Slamdance 2012
(Click photo to enlarge)
Editor: We are updating this post upon learning of the publication of the book "I NEED TO KNOW: The Lost Music Interviews" by Bill DeYoung. The book contains two vintage Neil Young interviews included in the new anthology. The first one (Sept. 16, 1985) was only recently fully transcribed from the original cassette. Neil talks passionately about Farm Aid (the first concert was six days away), and why he was so into country music ("Old Ways" had just come out), why it resonated with him as a family man, and why rock 'n' roll just wasn't doing it for him any more. He then reads the entire "Open Letter to President Reagan" he'd just finished writing, and would send to USA Today the next morning.

The second interview is from H.O.R.D.E. in '97, explaining (among other things) why he skipped Buffalo Springfield's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that year, which is partially excerpted below. (More book details below)

"I NEED TO KNOW: The Lost Music Interviews" by Bill DeYoung

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ORIGINAL INTRODUCTION PUBLISHED JULY 8, 2012
A little blast from the past, an interview with Neil Young before the 1997 H.O.R.D.E. tour, TELL ME WHY: A conversation with Neil Young by Bill DeYoung.

Funny how some things never really change...

Goldmine: Six of your catalog albums remain unavailable on compact disc [For the record, the missing titles are Journey Through the Past, Time Fades Away, On the Beach, American Stars 'n' Bars, Hawks & Doves and Re*Ac*Tor.] Recently, you told an interviewer you would burn the tapes before you let them come out on CD. Why?

Neil Young: Until we get the technology. I'm pushing for better technology. And CDs don't cut it, to me. HDCD is a real great improvement on digital sound, no matter what the format of the sound is. That's a process you can make CDs through, and it makes them sound more detailed. If you have an HDCD playback system, it sounds incredibly more detailed.

Goldmine:Is that one of those technologies that we'll 'see by the year 2000'?

Neil Young: It's out there now. There's about 40 different companies, small audiophile companies that make stereo equipment that carries the HDCD chip.

Goldmine:There are something like 15 of your albums out on CD on Reprise. How come they're out, and these six aren't?

Neil Young: Those were made during the beginning of CDs. When it hadn't really dawned on everybody how inferior the CD was. But during the mastering of all of those, and listening to what we ended up with compared to what we started with, everyone became aware of the problems. And that was maybe more than 15 years ago. And there's been no improvement, in 15 years, from a bad standard.

Meanwhile, we got 64-bit video games, and 32-bit this, and 16-bit sound. Running at a slow speed. So we really need to get a standard together for recorded sound that doesn't destroy it.

Goldmine:But Reprise is still making those discs.

Neil Young: Oh yeah, that's right, you can't stop that. But I'm not gonna do any new ones until there's a standard.

Goldmine:Let me play devil's advocate. Since you're committed to this, can't you just put a stop to those that are still in print? Can't you tell the label 'They sound like shit; let's take 'em out'?

Neil Young: You can do that with the new ones. When you put out a master, you put it out , OK, it's out. Until then, you have it.

Goldmine:You know, those six albums aren't available on vinyl or cassettes, either. They've all been deleted.

Neil Young: I 'm trying to use that leverage to get some tonal quality on the recordings.

Goldmine:Well, what can I do? I'll make a call. As a fan, it bugs me that I can't put, say, American Stars 'n' Bars on the CD player.

Neil Young: It's tough for me, too, but I'm not gonna put out 'Hurricane' sounding like a piece of shit. That's the way it is. There's the ability to have it better, and I can make a statement. I'm not gonna let it keep happening.

Goldmine:Hawks and Doves, a great record. Can't hear it. That makes me a little sad.

Neil Young: Right, me too! I feel the same way. When it comes out, it'll sound great.

Goldmine:What about your long-rumored multi-disc Archives project?

Neil Young: It's the same thing there. We're close enough to the new standard. There's all kinds of people throwing ideas for the new standard around. The latest new standard that came out for sound is worse than the CD. That's the DVD. That is totally a piece of crap. A thousand times more distortion, and I'm not exaggerating. That is a clinical number.

It's a terrible thing, and they say that you can play CDs on it. You can play 'em, but they have to be interpolated and translated and everything before your ear hears 'em; by then, they're so distorted, they're just not there any more.

So what they've done is, they're killing an art form through greed, and not being able to focus on using a decent standard. They're more interested, it seems, in putting out more product, and more real time information on a disc, than they are in putting out more quality on a disc. And one plays against the other.

So a lot of things have to be worked out before the new standard is set, but the wheels are turning right now, it's happening.

Goldmine:Do you have a time frame, i.e. 'They'll be out in four years' or something?

Neil Young: They may never be out on the market if the standard's not right.

...
Goldmine: You're 51 now. What does life look like to you?

Neil Young: Well, I love playing. I love playing music, and I love being around lots of other people who play music. That's why the H.O.R.D.E. tour is so much fun.

It absolutely feels just as good.

More on TELL ME WHY: A conversation with Neil Young and the book "I NEED TO KNOW: The Lost Music Interviews" by Bill DeYoung. (Thanks Howell!)

"I NEED TO KNOW: The Lost Music Interviews" by Bill DeYoung

I Need to Know includes 23 revealing conversations with seminal music artists including Tom Petty (four lengthy interviews conducted between 1985 and 1993), Beatles producer Sir George Martin, Neil Young, Merle Haggard, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Bo Diddley and others.

The majority of the in-depth interviews have never been published in their entirety. They were conducted for various newspaper stories – which utilized a few quotes here and there – or for the international music magazine Goldmine.

“These lost-and-found interviews don’t just form an important historical document; they’re also a trove of musical and personal insights into important artists of our time,” said John Capouya, author of the acclaimed Florida Soul: From Ray Charles to KC and the Sunshine Band. “DeYoung’s subjects – partners, really – clearly know and trust him, so they offer deeper and less guarded responses then we’re used to seeing in music journalism. Highly recommended.’’

In I Need to Know, Petty talks in detail about the formation of the Traveling Wilburys, what he learned from Bob Dylan and the creation of the albums Southern Accents, Let Me Up I’ve Had Enough and Full Moon Fever; Martin reveals which songs he would have preferred the Beatles left off the White Album; Young explains his passion for Farm Aid, and his reasons for skipping Buffalo Springfield’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; Haggard explains what led him to pen the controversial “Okie from Muskogee.”

Ronstadt confesses her disdain for many of her biggest hits. “Sometimes,” she says, “they just flat out bored me until I was cross-eyed.”

As a bonus, the book includes never-before-published conversations with acting legends Gregory Peck and Robert Duvall.

A native of St. Petersburg, Bill DeYoung was Arts and Entertainment Editor of the Gainesville Sun for 20 years, before moving on to publications in South Florida and Savannah, Georgia. The author of the Florida-centric books Skyway: The True Story of Tampa Bay’s Signature Bridge and the Man Who Brought it Down and Phil Gernhard Record Man, he currently writes and edits the Culture section of the St. Pete Catalyst. DeYoung is one of the interview subjects in the forthcoming documentary film The Skyway Bridge Disaster.

I Need to Know includes conversations with:

Tom Petty, Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Seals & Crofts, George Martin, Mary Hopkin, Emmylou Harris, Merle Haggard, Dave Mason, Rodney Crowell, Rosanne Cash, Linda Ronstadt, the Bangles, Guy & Susanna Clark, Bo Diddley, Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson and Martin Barre, Robert Duvall, Gregory Peck.

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