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/
F*!#in' Up
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Carry such an easy load
It's how you look, and how you feel
You must have a heart of steel
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
I can see you on a hill
Curves beneath your flowing gown
Only I could bring you down
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
Dogs that lick and dogs that bite
Hounds that howl through the night
Broken leashes are all over the floor
Keys left hanging in a swinging door
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
Keep fuckin' up!
The lyrics to Neil Young & Crazy Horse's song "F!#in' Up" describe the thoughts of a mindless drifter who is carrying an easy load on the road. The drifter is struggling with his own inadequacies and wonders why he keeps messing up. He sees a comatose figure on a hill, who is walking mindlessly but yet her gown is flowing with curves that entice the drifter. The drifter feels like only he could bring her down from that hill.
The drifter then describes the dogs that lick and those that bite, how they howl through the night, and the broken leashes that scatter across the floor. The scene creates a metaphor for the drifter's own behavior, as though he's just as uncontrolled as those dogs, in need of restraint, and he sees the keys left hanging in the swinging door as a symbol of his inability to leave his current situation behind.
The repeated phrase "Why do I keep fuckin' up?" shows the frustration and self-blame the drifter is grappling with. Despite this struggle, there is an underlying sense of hopelessness in the lyrics that suggests the drifter's flaws may be too deeply ingrained within him to overcome.
Line by Line Meaning
Mindless drifter on the road
I am aimlessly traveling through life.
Carry such an easy load
I don't have many responsibilities or burdens to bear.
It's how you look, and how you feel
My appearance and emotions dictate my behavior.
You must have a heart of steel
I need to be emotionally strong to endure my lifestyle.
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
I keep making mistakes and I don't know why.
I can see you on a hill
I can envision a graceful and peaceful image of you.
Comatose but walking still
You are physically present, but emotionally distant.
Curves beneath your flowing gown
Your feminine and alluring figure is revealed by your clothes.
Only I could bring you down
I am the only one capable of causing you harm or distress.
Dogs that lick and dogs that bite
There are friendly and hostile people in the world.
Hounds that howl through the night
The sounds of the night can be ominous and unsettling.
Broken leashes are all over the floor
People often fail to control their impulses and actions.
Keys left hanging in a swinging door
Opportunities are available and easy to access, but often neglected or abandoned.
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
Despite my observations and experiences, I am plagued by my own mistakes.
Keep fuckin' up!
I am frustrated and repeating my mistakes, but can't seem to break the cycle.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Silver Fiddle, Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: Frank M Sampedro, Neil Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@TheRAGE154
Mindless drifter on the road
Carry such an easy load
It's how you look, and how you feel
You must have a heart of steel
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
I can see you on a hill
Comatose but walking still
Curves beneath your flowing gown
Only I could bring you down
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
Dogs that lick and dogs that bite
Hounds that howl through the night
Broken leashes are all over the floor
Keys left hanging in a swinging door
Why do I keep fuckin' up?
Keep fuckin' up!
@neilyoungchannel
Hi, this is Neil. Link to the NYA info-card for this song with press, documents, manuscripts, photos, videos. Look around NYA for fun and listening! ALL my music in high resolution at https://neilyoungarchives.com/info-card?track=t1991_0227_05
@acomplexkid
AcomplexKid.com thinks: Thank you Neil and it's awesome for you to have writing the theme song of my life. And no, I'm not done yet. Peace-out, Mikey
@MrCretemaniam
Thanks Man !!!
@MrCretemaniam
Hey Neil....I know it's ancient history but does it seem possible that about 1972 you could have been cruising with Stephen Stills in a beigh colored pick up from the Topanga Center to the valley ( which fortunately has not yet been sucked into cracks in the earth...yet ) I was 13 and hitchhiking from the beach home to Canoga and 2 guys picked me up like that . The thing that kind of ties it in for me is you guys had a guitar in the cab of the truck between ya and some beer so it was crowded. So the possible blonde haired Stephen guy goes " Hey kid can you hold this guitar back there and be real careful with it !?!? " It was a D28 Martin pretty sure , my dad being a professional player . I didn't know who you guys were yet but shortly thereafter got into your music and saw your picture on album covers and went "Wow , I think these guys picked me up hitchhiking " So where you around Topanga in '71 ? Just trying to figure out if I hallucinated the whole thing or not ! Thanks for everything !
@marciocouto3543
@@MrCretemaniam wait... 71 or 72?
@MrCretemaniam
@@marciocouto3543 Do you mean what year it was that I think Stephen Stills driving and Neil in the truck picked me up hitchhiking in Topanga ? I think I was 13 or 14 ..... leaning toward 14 so that would make it 1972. I'm 62 now . Why do you ask ? If I may ask ?
@joshwilltraveladventuresco5452
I worked on this music video. Shot at the Troubadour in West Hollywood. Neil is so f*ckin' cool. He wanted a real PA system (not playback) to play it LIVE and LOUD. And he wanted an audience, so I'm sitting at one of the tables down front watching them perform for the master shots. And they shot a live "Farmer John" vid when I was off set too. We also shot the "Mansion on a Hill" video that week at Queen of Angels Hospital.
@artvallejos1460
We Were Born To Rock We'll Never Be Opera Stars.
@chrissemenko628
Cool story!
@SuperC888
Cool