Neil Young Born 1945

Background Neil Young is a famous Canadian rock and roll singer/songwriter. He has been called the Granddaddy of grunge. His career started in the 1970s and included being part of some major bands like Buffalo Springfield, Crosby Stills Nash and Young. He now has his own band.

His Childhood Neil Young was born on November 12, 1945 in Toronto, Ontario. Young suffered from a bout of polio in 1951, in what was the last major outbreak of the disease in Ontario. After his recovery, his father left his mother. Due to the breakup of the family, Neil went to live with his mother, who moved back to Winnipeg, while his brother Bob stayed with his father in Toronto. It was then that his musical drive really kicked in.

Neil’s Garage Take a look through his website . What are your initial impressions about the look of his site? http://www.neilyoung.com/index2.html

General Info Young has directed a number of films. Young is an environmentalist and outspoken advocate for the welfare of small farmers, having co-founded in 1985 the benefit concert Farm Aid. He is currently working on a documentary about electric car technology. In 1986, Young helped found The Bridge School, an educational organization for children with severe verbal and physical disabilities.

The Beginnings Young began performing in a group that did covers in Canada in 1960, before moving to California in 1966, where he co-founded the band Buffalo Springfield. He later joined Crosby, Stills & Nash in 1969.

He released his first solo album in 1968 and has since forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, spanning over 45 years and 35 studio albums. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame website describes Young as "one of rock and roll's greatest songwriters and performers.”

Buffalo Springfield (1966–1968) Here are two of his earlier songs with his first big group. For What its Worth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp5JCrSXkJY&list=PLlFoudhGc6a75xSqfGUala5BJGUX8Vpxs Blue Bird https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ki5KVZ5RQuM&index=2&list=PLlFoudhGc6a75xSqfGUala5BJGUX8Vpxs

Going solo: Crazy Horse (1968–1969) After the breakup of Buffalo Springfield, Young signed a solo deal with Reprise Records, who also managed his friend Joni Mitchell. He immediately began work on his first solo record, Neil Young, which received mixed reviews. For his next album, Young recruited three musicians from a band called The Rockets: These three took the name Crazy Horse, and his next album called Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere,is credited to "Neil Young with Crazy Horse". It was recorded in just two weeks. The album has some of Young’s most popular song. (Cinnamon Girl, and Down by the River) Young reportedly wrote these two songs on the same day, while nursing a high fever of 103 °F in bed. Neil Young took a break from his solo career from 1969-1970 to join a group for a year called Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.

Life Goes On Young continued to write, record, and tour for the next 10 years up until 1980. In that year he focused more on domestic medical concerns relating to his second disabled son, Ben. Young had little time to spend on writing and recording.

After that he continued to release albums but didn’t always tour After that he continued to release albums but didn’t always tour. Some years he would only play one show! The first year without a Neil Young album since the start of Young's musical career with Buffalo Springfield in 1966 was in 1984. Young's lack of productivity in the early 1980s was largely due to the ongoing legal battle with his record company. He was frustrated that the label had rejected his 1982 country album Old Ways. 1984 was also the year when Young's third child, this with his second with wife Pegi, was born: his daughter Amber Jean, a child who was later diagnosed with inherited epilepsy.

Back to the top! (1989–1999) Young's 1989 single "Rockin' in the Free World", which hit No. 2 on the U.S. mainstream-rock charts, and accompanying album, Freedom, rocketed him back into the popular music. The album's lyrics were often very political. "Rockin' in the Free World" deals with homelessness, terrorism, and environmental issues, and directly criticized the governmental policies of President George W. Bush.

Grunge! The use of heavy feedback and distortion on several Freedom tracks was very similar to his Rust Never Sleeps (1979) album, and foreshadowed the new genre of grunge. The rising stars of the genre, including Nirvana's Kurt Cobain and Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, frequently cited Young as a major influence, contributing to his popular revival. He continues to rock out today and is still putting out new albums!

Southern Man This song is ranked as the 9th most revolutionary songs of the 20th century. Southern man better keep your head, Don’t forget what your good book said. Southern man, change gonna come at last. Now your crosses are burning fast.

Southern Man Continued Lets listen to the song and look at they lyrics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5ksBqCtMlI What is the song protesting? How is it an example of rock musicians influencing society?

Meaning The lyrics of "Southern Man" are vivid, describing the racism towards blacks in the American South. In the song, Young tells the story of a Southern white man (symbolically the entire white South) and how he mistreated his slaves. Young pleadingly asks when the South will make amends for the fortunes built through slavery when he sings, "I saw cotton and I saw 'bac, tall white mansions and little shacks. Southern Man, when will you pay them back?" The song also mentions the practice of cross burning.

The Needle and the Damage Done This song is a tribute to Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. The song was a huge hit for Neil Young. Lets listen and look at they lyrics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo7L7c53WMQ Young himself has not been involved with drugs but he feels that drugs were a major reason that some of his bands broke up in the past.

A Key Lyric “Every junkie’s like a settin’ sun.” This line was written 40 years ago. Does it still have relevance today? Can you think of any great musicians that have died recently due to drug overdose?

Some other songs Rockin in a Free World https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdiCJUysIT0 Heart of Gold https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO8kTRv4l3o Harvest Moon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2MtEsrcTTs&list=RDn2MtEsrcTTs Down by the River (my favourite!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1gxkRve4Q0 Old Man https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYUgGs9IStY Old Man with a modern twist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGt54Ozo8LQ

Neil Young Today