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/
Two Old Friends
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And met God there,
With the glow of love in his flowing hair.
I'm dreamin' of a time when love and music,
Is everywhere.
Can you see that time comin'?
There's things to do.
The world has changed since I first met you.
Back when The Band played Rock of Ages,
In their prime,
And the old juke joint was rockin'...
Oh Lord there's so much hate,
In a world where we're from another place.
Show me how to be like you.
See no evil, hear no evil,
Feel no evil in my heart.
In my heart, in my aching heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my old black heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my beating heart.
Sky had turned a lotta shades of gray,
As they walked on,
And a gentle rain fell down on them.
They found faith in the way things are and,
The way things change,
And they said goodbye like two old friends.
Take me up to the mountains high,
Or a building top where the spirits fly.
Show me how to be like you.
See no evil, feel no evil,
Fear no evil in my heart.
In my heart, in my aching heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my old black heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my beating heart.
Oh Lord there's so much hate,
In a world where we're from another place.
Show me how to live like you.
See no evil, hear no evil,
Feel no evil in my heart.
In my heart, in my aching heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my old black heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
In my beating heart.
The first stanza suggests a preacher visiting heaven and meeting with God, who is portrayed with "glow of love in his flowing hair". The following stanza has the singer dreaming of a time when love and music exist everywhere. The preacher, however, suggests that this time is gone because of the new responsibilities that need to be addressed in a changing world. The third stanza alludes to The Band and the juke joint era, and yet prescribes that there is plenty of hate in the world that we face today. It calls on the Lord to instruct the singer to see no evil, hear no evil and feel no evil in his heart, teaching him to be like God.
In the final stanza, the skies have turned gray, and a gentle rain falls as two old friends found faith in the way things are and the way things change. The singer asks for guidance to take him to places of spiritual significance and help him live like the Lord, free of evil in his heart. The lyrics appear to suggest a world that has lost its way, and the singer is searching for guidance to live with love in his heart. The overall message is a plea for compassion and understanding—the songwriter seems to be searching for a world of peace through love and music, symbolizing the power of music to bring people together.
Line by Line Meaning
Preacher went up to the Golden Gate,
The story starts with a preacher who arrived at the golden gate where he met God
And met God there,
The preacher had a chance to meet God in person
With the glow of love in his flowing hair.
God is depicted as having love radiating from him, people can see it in his hair
I'm dreamin' of a time when love and music,
The artist is thinking of a time when there was more love and music in the world
Is everywhere.
He wishes that love and music can be present all around the world
Can you see that time comin'?
The singer is asking if his friend can see a future where love and music become widespread
No my son that time has gone,
His friend tells him that his vision of love and music everywhere is from a time that has already passed
There's things to do.
There are more important things to focus on rather than dwelling on the past
The world has changed since I first met you.
The friend explains that the world has changed since they last met
Back when The Band played Rock of Ages,
The artist reminisces about the time when The Band played Rock of Ages
In their prime,
The Band was at its peak during those days
And the old juke joint was rockin'...
The juke joints, where people came together to enjoy music, were lively and fun
Oh Lord there's so much hate,
The singer is expressing his despair at the abundance of hatred in the world
In a world where we're from another place.
The singer feels like he and his friend don't belong to this current world
Show me how to be like you.
He asks his friend to teach him how to be like him
See no evil, hear no evil,
It is important to remain oblivious to anything that causes harm or pain around us
Feel no evil in my heart.
He doesn't want to let negativity and ill feelings consume him
Sky had turned a lotta shades of gray,
The sky changed colors from bright and sunny to dark and gloomy
As they walked on,
The singer and his friend keep walking despite the change in weather
And a gentle rain fell down on them.
They were caught in a light rain while walking
They found faith in the way things are and,
Despite everything, they held onto their faith in how things are
The way things change,
They have faith in the idea that everything is constantly changing
And they said goodbye like two old friends.
They bid farewell to each other like people who have been friends for a long time
Take me up to the mountains high,
The artist wants to go to a high place to experience a sense of elevation
Or a building top where the spirits fly.
He wants to go to a place where he can feel free- in this case, up high, like where birds fly
Show me how to be like you.
He repeats his question to his friend, asking him to teach him how to be like him
Oh Lord there's so much hate,
The singer once again voices his concern over the abundance of hate
Show me how to live like you.
He now asks his friend to teach him how to live like him, rather than just be like him
In my heart, in my aching heart.
The words refer to the artist's emotional pain in his heart
In my heart, in my heart,
The singer repeatedly emphasizes the heart to show how much it pains him
In my old black heart.
The heart is cited as being old and black- a symbol of immense pain
In my heart, in my heart,
Continuing with the emphasis on the heart
In my beating heart.
Even though his heart is hurting, it still beats with love and passion
Lyrics © Silver Fiddle, O/B/O CAPASSO, Peermusic Publishing, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: NEIL YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind