NEIL

Saw Neil Young on 12.15.08 at MSG (Wilco opened) with Mike Toben, Tom Afflerbach and his friend John. It was a(nother) religious experience. I’ve been to this church 5 times before:

o Stills & Young with Aff at Nassau Coliseum (July 76)
o Rust Never Sleeps with Mitch Seiler at Nassau Coliseum (October 78)
o Neil with The MGs (Booker T’s) with Mike Toben at Jones Beach in the pouring rain – Aff & John were there (early 90s)
o Neil with Crazy Horse (Pretenders opened), at with Mike at Jones Beach (late 90s)
o Neil with Crazy Horse doing Greendale w FF at Radio City (2005?)

What made last night sacred? Imagine 18,000 strong at the Garden, singing lyrics not only to the chorus, but to the stanzas of Powderfinger, Cortez, Heart of Gold, etc… Picture “Day in the Life” as the encore, and during that last dissonant chord, he pulls the strings out of the bridge of his guitar, whips them against the fret board, then leans his guitar against a speaker and walks off the stage…..

Though I tried to keep a set list of the show, I couldn’t read my writing afterwords so here’s the gleanings from various reviews (with help from Tommy A and in no apparent order except the encore):

My, My, Hey, Hey, Powderfinger, Cortez, Light a Candle, Fuel Line, Hit the Road and Go to Town, Heart of Gold, Old Man, Mother Earth, Needle and the Damage Done, Cowgirl in the Sand, Rocking in the Free World, A Day in the Life.

The anecdotal consensus is, you either love Neil or you hate him. A lot of my friends wonder, "What’s the big whoop? He sounds like a cat, and only plays three chord songs (so I’m told)." So why has he been so popular going on 40 years? Why does he sound so vital to so many people (including me)? One word:

Essence

Defined in Webster’s Dictionary as “The constituent elementary notions which constitute a complex notion, and must be enumerated to define it; sometimes called the nominal essence.The constituent quality or qualities which belong to any object, or class of objects, or on which they depend for being what they are (distinguished as real essence); the real being, divested of all logical accidents; that quality which constitutes or marks the true nature of anything; distinctive character; hence, virtue or quality of a thing, separated from its grosser parts.”

Translated - no BS. He wears his heart on his sleeve with lyrics that ring true whether they're truths or stories, his musical vocabulary isn't rocket science, so it's tasty to those who love loud and/or acoustic, and he consistently delivers with Passion (capital P intended).

Who else besides Clapton, continues to crank out new music for 40+ years on a consistent basis?

After 9-11, who sang "Imagine" to the country on that fundraiser all the networks carried?

Nuff Said.