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!"
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Extra Extra
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I saw a man yesterday.
I asked him if he'd want to
Tell me what made him this way.
He said, when it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
He used to pick his friends.
An easy thing to lose,
The right to pick and choose.
When it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
He said he left his wife,
The back-bone of his life.
Another came along,
But now I guess she's gone.
When it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
I think I used to see
That old man on TV,
Can you be the same?
It seems like such a shame.
When it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
The world he thought he knew,
Has better things to do.
As I went on my way
I thought I heard him say:
When it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
In Neil Young's song, Extra Extra, the first-person narrator meets a man who sells papers on the corner and asks him what made him the way he is. The man replies in a cryptic metaphor, saying that when something is born, it starts warm but then gathers strength in lies. When it falls, it falls all over you. The man goes on to talk about how he used to pick his friends, but they left him in the end, and how he left his wife, who was the back-bone of his life, for another woman who has now gone. The man seems to be reflecting on the choices he made and the consequences of those choices.
The lyrics are open to interpretation, but one possible reading is that the man is talking about how life starts out innocent and pure, but as we go through it, we encounter lies and deceit that shape who we become. The man's decision to leave his wife and pick the wrong friends might be seen as examples of how we can make choices that shape our lives in negative ways. The chorus, which repeats the line about how things are warm when born, but then gather strength in lies, suggests that this is a universal truth that applies to all of us.
Overall, the lyrics to Extra Extra are thought-provoking and poignant, reminding us that life is full of choices that can have long-lasting consequences. The man's regrets and reflections on his life serve as a warning to the listener to make wise choices and not let themselves be consumed by lies and deception.
Line by Line Meaning
Selling papers on the corner,
Neil Young recounts a scene where he saw a paperboy selling newspapers on the street corner.
I saw a man yesterday.
Neil Young saw a man who caught his attention and piqued his curiosity.
I asked him if he'd want to
Tell me what made him this way.
Neil wanted to know more about the man and why he is in his current state, so he asked him to share his story.
He said, when it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
The man describes the cycle of life, how everything starts innocent and pure, but over time, it becomes corrupt and filled with deceit. And when it all falls apart, it’s a disastrous experience for everyone.
He used to pick his friends.
They left him in the end.
The man used to choose his friends wisely, but now they all abandoned him, leaving him isolated and vulnerable.
An easy thing to lose,
The right to pick and choose.
The man laments over his loss of the ability to choose who he associates with, a privilege that is too easily taken for granted.
He said he left his wife,
The back-bone of his life.
Another came along,
But now I guess she's gone.
The man talks about his personal life and reveals that he left his wife, who was the central pillar of his existence, for another woman. But now, even that new relationship has ended.
I think I used to see
That old man on TV,
Can you be the same?
It seems like such a shame.
Neil Young wonders if the man he met is the same person he saw on TV before. He expresses his disappointment in life and how it can break people.
The world he thought he knew,
Has better things to do.
The man has given up on the world, or rather, the world has given up on him, and he's come to terms with the fact that he no longer has a place in it.
As I went on my way
I thought I heard him say:
When it's born, it's warm,
Then it gathers strength in lies,
When it falls, it falls all over you.
As Neil Young leaves, he hears the man repeating the cycle of life and possibly resonating with it, implying that it's not just the man he met but all of us who feel the same way.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: NEIL YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind