Having success on his own for a bit, he later joined the folk rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash as a fourth member in 1969, thus forming Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. He forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, releasing his first album in 1968. His career has since spanned over 40 years and 34 studio albums, with a continual and uncompromising exploration of musical styles; his musical vision is notably referred to by his autobiographical tune"The Loner". Music critics have often called him one of the best single artists of all time, and several tunes such as "Heart of Gold" and "Rockin' in the Free World" remain popular on rock radio.
According to the Don't Be Denied Songfacts, the 16-year-old Neil was raising chickens and selling the eggs, with plans to go to Ontario Agricultural College and be a farmer. Only his leisure activities foretold his future, when he would hide from his family problems in his room with his transistor radio playing local station CHUM. From this, Young experienced a growing admiration for rock n roll originators such as Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and, of course, Elvis Presley. In 1958, his father bought Neil his first music instrument, a plastic ukulele. His father would later recall, "He would close the door of his room... and we would hear plunk, pause while he moved his fingers to the next chord, plunk, pause while he moved again, plunk."
In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Neil started his professional music career in the mid-60s with a number of bands in Canada, including the Squires and later the Mynah Birds, which also included fellow future Buffalo Springfield bassist Bruce Palmer and future funk star Rick James. When the Mynah Birds broke up, Young and Palmer headed to California to meet Stephen Stills, whom he had met in Thunder Bay, and the result was Buffalo Springfield. That band split up after releasing three critically acclaimed albums, particularly achieving international fame for their tune "For What It's Worth".
Showing his strengths as a cynical yet experimental songwriter in the group, he also sung prominently in some of the band's songs such as the biting satire of 'rock star' life "Mr. Soul". Neil soon started his solo career with the release of 'Neil Young' on November 12, 1968. The album did not do very well commercially, but it included several strong tracks, including "The Loner", said to be a portrait of Stephen Stills but also being deeply auto-biographical.
On May 14, 1969, he recruited members of Crazy Horse and made the critically acclaimed 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'. This was a much more consistent album, being the first to introduce longstanding collaborators Crazy Horse and beingbuilt around the balanced interplay between the guitar playing of Young and the talented Danny Whitten. The album also featured two lengthy classics, "Down by the River" and "Cowgirl in the Sand". The critically acclaimed solo album "After the Gold Rush" came out in 1971, featuring such classic songs as "Southern Man'", "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" and "Don't Let it Bring You Down". Harvest followed in 1972 with the hit"Heart of Gold".
During this time he also enjoyed considerable success as a quarter of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
Neil's subsequent work has zig-zagged across genres - dabbling in country rock on "Old Ways"; electronics on "Trans"; hooking up with the Shocking Pinks in a homage to old-time Rock 'n' Roll on "Everybody's Rockin'"; creating a wall of feedback on the live Arc-Weld; and cementing his status as Godfather of Grunge when collaborating with Pearl Jam on Mirror Ball.
His idiosyncratic approach to genre even led to him being sued by his record company (Geffen) in the 80s for making "uncharacteristic" music.
Young has also dabbled in film, most recently on the album/concert series/dvd Greendale.
Young is often known by the nickname "Shakey." According to his biographer Jimmy McDonough, the name was given by his friends after noticing very unsteady results holding a camera for home movies.
Young founded Pono Music, whose mission was to bring a digital player, download store, and streaming service devoted to hi-res music. It was a commercial flop and was shut down in 2016. Young has stated that the labels would not agree that "All songs should cost the same, regardless of digital resolution."
The film Canadian Bacon includes the line "Canadians are always trying to figure out a lot of ways to ruin our lives. The metric system, for the love of God! Celsius! Neil Young!"
For recent news see: http://www.neilyoung.com/
Down By The River
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There is no reason for you to hide
It's so hard for me staying here all alone
When you could be taking me for a ride, yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead, ooh
Shot her dead, ooh
You take my hand, I'll take your hand
Together we may get away
This much madness is too much sorrow
It's impossible to make it today, yeah
Ooh, yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away, yeah
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead, dead, ooh ooh
Ooh ooh shot her dead
Shot her dead
Be on my side, I'll be on your side
There is no reason for you to hide
It's so hard for me staying here all alone
When you could be taking me for a ride
Ooh, yeah
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away, yeah
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
The lyrics to Neil Young's song "Down By The River" are open to interpretation, but many believe it to be about a man who kills his lover by shooting her down by the river. The song opens with the singer asking for his lover to be on his side and reassuring her that there is no reason for her to hide. He then expresses his desire to leave with her, saying that it is hard for him to stay alone when she could be taking him for a ride. The lyrics suggest that the two of them might flee together to escape a world that is filled with madness and sorrow.
However, about halfway through the song, the tone shifts abruptly. The singer says that the woman could "drag me over the rainbow and send me away," which has been interpreted as a reference to being high on drugs. He then sings, "Down by the river, I shot my baby. Dead." The repetition of the line emphasizes the gravity of the situation and the shock of what has happened. The song leaves the listener to fill in the blanks about the details of the murder.
Overall, "Down By The River" is a haunting and enigmatic song that captures the darkness and mystery of violent crime.
Line by Line Meaning
Be on my side, I'll be on your side, baby
Let's be on each other's side, we don't need to hide anything from each other
There is no reason for you to hide
You don't need to keep any secrets from me
It's so hard for me staying here all alone
It's difficult for me to stay by myself
When you could be taking me for a ride, yeah
We could be together having fun instead of me being alone
She could drag me over the rainbow
She has the power to take me to higher places
And send me away
And show me a world beyond my imagination
Down by the river
Near the river
I shot my baby
I killed my lover
Dead, ooh
She is dead
You take my hand, I'll take your hand
Let's join hands and be together
Together we may get away
We may escape from our troubles if we are together
This much madness is too much sorrow
There's so much chaos and sadness around us
It's impossible to make it today, yeah
It feels like there's no way out of our problems
Down by the river
Near the river
I shot my baby
I killed my lover
Dead, dead, ooh ooh
Lifeless, lifeless
Ooh ooh shot her dead
I killed my lover
Down by the river
Near the river
I shot my baby
I killed my lover
Down by the river
Near the river
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: Neil Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
gnikrelyt1
This Live album is fantastic, just Neil and his instrument.
Susan Barry
50 years ago and it's still one of the greatest songwriters/musicians ever.... and #till going!!
Northern Canadian Rustic LandScapes
A true Canadian Legend!!!!
Ariel Añez
Justin Bieber too
Bashford’s World
my favorite version of this song
Amanda Catherine
The more I listen to Neil, the more I have to agree. This Massey Hall performance is something else.
Rock Girl
payne street brawler mine too
Bryan Canales
Niel Young is a legend!! He is also a heavy inspiration and influence to me!
Shogo Ito
It's soooooooooo good!!
yyz
Positively wonderful and beautiful!