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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Silver & Gold
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Never notice how
the time slips away
People come, seasons go
We got something
that'll never grow old.
I don't care
And the rain keeps pouring
down on me and mine
'Cause our kind of love
never seems to get old
It's better than silver and gold.
I used to have a treasure chest
Got so heavy that I had to rest
I let it slip away from me
Didn't need it anyway
so I let it slip away.
I don't care
if the sun don't shine
And the rain keeps pouring
down on me and mine
'Cause our kind of love
never seems to get old
It's better than silver and gold.
I don't care
if the sun don't shine
And the rain keeps pouring
down on me and mine
'Cause our kind of love
never seems to get old
It's better than silver and gold
The lyrics to Neil Young's song "Silver & Gold" speak to the fleeting nature of time and the value of love over material possessions. The opening lines describe the monotony of everyday work and how people come and go while time passes unnoticed. In contrast, the singer emphasizes the permanence of love, which will never grow old, despite the passing of seasons.
The chorus reinforces the idea that the singer's love is more valuable than silver and gold, two of the most highly prized material possessions. The mention of not caring if the sun doesn't shine and the rain keeps pouring emphasizes the idea that material possessions are fleeting and easily destroyed, while the power of love endures despite external circumstances.
The second verse continues the theme of the relative worth of material possessions, with the singer describing how he used to have a treasure chest that he let slip away because he didn't need it. This reinforces the idea that love is the most valuable possession, as it is something that cannot be taken away or lost, while material possessions can be lost or stolen.
Overall, the lyrics to "Silver & Gold" are a powerful reminder of the intrinsic value of love and relationships, and they urge the listener to focus on what truly matters in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Workin' hard every day
I am always working hard every day.
Never notice how the time slips away
I am so busy working that I do not realize how quickly time passes.
People come, seasons go
People come into my life and seasons change, but my love remains constant.
We got something that'll never grow old.
We have a special love that will never fade away with time.
I don't care if the sun don't shine
I am not bothered if the sun does not shine.
And the rain keeps pouring down on me and mine
Even if it keeps raining on me and my loved ones, I am okay with it.
'Cause our kind of love never seems to get old
Our love is timeless and never becomes outdated or boring.
It's better than silver and gold.
Our love is more valuable than material wealth like silver and gold.
I used to have a treasure chest
I used to have a collection of valuable possessions.
Got so heavy that I had to rest
It became so heavy that I had to take a break.
I let it slip away from me
I let go of my material possessions.
Didn't need it anyway
I realized that I did not need material possessions to be happy.
so I let it slip away.
So, I got rid of my material possessions.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Neil Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind