Shakey Neil Young S Biography

Neil Young is one of rock and roll’s most important and enigmatic figures, a legend from the sixties who is still hugely influential today. He has never granted a writer access to his inner life – until now. Based on six years of interviews with more than three hundred of Young’s associates, and on more than fifty hours of interviews with Young himself, Shakey is a fascinating, prodigious account of the singer’s life and career. Jimmy McDonough follows Young from his childhood in Canada to his cofounding of Buffalo Springfield to the huge success of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young to his comeback in the nineties. Filled with never-before-published words directly from the artist himself, Shakey is an essential addition to the top shelf of rock biographies.

Neil Young is one of rock and roll's most important, influential and enigmatic figures, an intensely reticent artist who has granted no writer access to his inner sanctum - until now. Shakey is the whole story of Young's incredible life and career: from his childhood in Canada to the founding of folk-rock pioneers Buffalo Springfield; the bleary conglomeration of Crazy Horse and the monstrous success of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; to the depths of the Tonight's the Night depravity and the Geffen years; and Young's unprecedented nineties 'comeback'. Shakey (the title refers to one of Young's many aliases) is also the compelling human story of a lonely kid for whom music was the only outlet, a driven yet tortured figure who controlled his epilepsy via 'mind over matter', an oddly passionate model train mogul who, inspired by his own son's struggle with cerebral palsy, became a major activist in the quest to help those with the condition. This long-awaited, unprecedented story of a rock 'n' roll legend is uniquely told through the interwoven voices of McDonough - biographer, critic, historian, obsessive fan - and the ever-cantankerous (but slyly funny) Young himself.

Neil Young is one of rock and roll's most important, influential and enigmatic figures. This work presents a story of Young's incredible life and career: from his childhood in Canada to the founding of folk-rock pioneers Buffalo Springfield, the bleary conglomeration of Crazy Horse and the monstrous success of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.

The perfect gift for music lovers and Neil Young fans, telling the story behind Neil Young's legendary career and his iconic, beloved songs. “I think I will have to use my time wisely and keep my thoughts straight if I am to succeed and deliver the cargo I so carefully have carried thus far to the outer reaches.”—Neil Young, from Waging Heavy Peace Legendary singer and songwriter Neil Young’s storied career has spanned over forty years and yielded some of the modern era’s most enduring music. Now for the first time ever, Young reflects upon his life—from his Canadian childhood, to his part in the sixties rock explosion with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, through his later career with Crazy Horse and numerous private challenges. An instant classic, Waging Heavy Peace is as uncompromising and unforgettable as the man himself.

The life of rock's most durable troubadour in his own words Neil Young on Neil Young: Interviews and Encounters is a revealing anthology of Young's most significant, fascinating, and entertaining discussions, declarations, and dreams, chronicling fifty years of conversations, feature stories, and press conferences. With many interviews widely available for the first time—including new transcriptions and first-time translations into English—the book spans Young's words and ideas from 1967 onward: his early days with Buffalo Springfield and 1970s Harvest-fueled celebrity apex, an artistic rebellion and 1980s commercial dip, and the unexpected 1990s revival as the Godfather of Grunge through to his multi-decade victory lap as a living legend. Across the decades, Young's own words tell the story as he perpetually reinvents himself as a master of music and film, a technology pioneer and innovator, and a bold political observer and strident environmental advocate.

DIVSince his first recordings with Buffalo Springfield in 1967, Neil Young has been described as brilliant, cantankerous, confounding, ruthless, mercurial, and vexing. Regardless, his profound musical influence and his status as a critical favorite cannot be denied. Now the first illustrated biography to span Young’s 40-plus years as a recording and touring musician (and nearly as many forays into divergent musical genres, some wags might say), is updated through 2012./divFrom Young’s earliest days in the Canadian folk and rock scenes through his tenures with Buffalo Springfield and CSN&Y and on to his varied solo career backed by bands including the Stray Gators, the Ducks, the Bluenotes, Booker T. & the MGs, Pearl Jam, and, of course, Crazy Horse, every aspect of Young’s long and varied career is covered. The book features the work of rock photographers from the 1960s to the present, as well as concert posters and ephemera from around the world, including picture sleeves, LPs, ticket stubs, pins, T-shirts, backstage passes, and more. Notable musicians from around the world chip in with commentary, and the book is further complemented with a discography and sidebars examining topics like Young’s involvement with Lionel toy trains (of which he is a part owner), Farm Aid, and San Francisco’s Bridge School.

Neil Young es uno de los músicos más relevantes de la historia del rock. Su prolífico talento ha producido más de cincuenta álbumes y cuatrocientas canciones, entre las que se encuentran algunas de las más imperecederas de todos los tiempos: "Like a Hurricane", "Tonights the Night", "Down by the River", "The Needle and the Damage Done", "Old Man", "Rockin in the Free World", "Southern Man", "Cinnamon Girl", "Cortez the Killer", "Hey Hey, My My", "After the Gold Rush", "Heart of Gold" y un larguísimo etcétera. Jimmy McDonough, admirador a ultranza de Young, consiguió establecer una relación privilegiada con el músico, venciendo infinidad de resistencias y barreras, y se embarcó en un proceso de documentación exhaustivo y meticuloso que le llevaría casi diez años y no pocos quebraderos de cabeza, entre los cuales destaca la reacción adversa de Young al leer la biografía, cuya publicación trató de impedir a toda costa. Alejado de la hagiografía y de la previsible retórica de la mayoría de biografías de músicos, McDonough logró no solo ofrecer un retrato feroz del canadiense mostrando en toda su crudeza tanto su carácter errático, brutal y desconcertante como la esencia de su singular talento para componer canciones y una generosidad nada autocomplaciente, sino que consiguió plasmar de manera apasionada e intensa cuatro décadas de rock por las que brillan con luz propia, además de Young, prácticamente la totalidad de sus allegados, colaboradores y tanto los músicos de su generación como los que recogieron el testigo de su talento. Neil Young, nacido en Canadá en 1945 en el seno de una familia desestructurada, padeció de muy joven la polio, que lo dejaría marcado física y psicológicamente. Muy pronto empezó a aflorar una pasión por la música que lo llevaría a los veinte años a liderar la primera de sus míticas formaciones, Buffalo Springfield. No tardaría en empezar a grabar en solitario y con la superbanda de estrellas Crosby, Stills & Nash, colaboración que lo llevó a la fama mundial, aunque también suscitó innumerables tensiones fruto de la confrontación de egos, muchos de ellos enardecidos por las drogas y la pulsión creativa. Un Young cada vez más ermitaño, esquivo y atormentado por los frecuentes ataques de epilepsia, que lo dejaban destrozado, fue encontrando progresivamente su voz, sobre todo cuando se unió a los erráticos Crazy Horse, banda con la que ha compartido algunos de sus mejores momentos. Sin embargo, más allá de los datos oficiales, de los éxitos sobradamente conocidos, McDonough también desvela la parte más oscura de Young, sus fracasos amorosos, su lucha por ayudar a sus dos hijos con parálisis cerebral o su inveterada tendencia a desaparecer sin dar explicaciones y dejar a todo el mundo colgado La heteróclita e imprevisible obra de Young es una de las más originales y arriesgadas de todos los tiempos. Su estilo ha basculado de una obsesiva atención por el detalle y la producción minuciosa a la búsqueda del momento mágico de la interpretación en directo sin apenas filtros de producción o ensayos previos. En 1995 entró en el Salón de la Fama del Rock y sigue al pie del cañón, reinventándose con cada disco, fiel a su máxima "es mejor quemarse que apagarse lentamente".

Neil Young is one of rock and roll’s most important, influential and enigmatic figures, an intensely reticent artist who has granted no writer access to his inner sanctum -- until now. In Shakey, Jimmy McDonough tells the whole story of Young’s incredible life and career: from his childhood in Canada to the founding of folk-rock pioneers Buffalo Springfield; to the bleary conglomeration of Crazy Horse and simultaneous monstrous success of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; to the depths of the Tonight’s the Night depravity and the strange changes of the Geffen years; and Young’s unprecedented nineties “comeback” with Ragged Glory and Harvest Moon. No detail is spared -- not the sex, drugs, relationships, breakups, births, deaths, nor the variety of chameleon-like transformations that have enabled Young to remain one of the most revered musical forces of our time. Shakey (the title refers to one of Young’s many aliases) is not only a detailed chronicle of the rock era told through the life of one uncompromising artist, but the compelling human story of a lonely kid for whom music was the only outlet; a driven yet tortured figure who learned to control his epilepsy via “mind over matter”; an oddly passionate model train mogul who -- inspired by his own son’s struggle with cerebral palsy -- became a major activist in the quest to help those with the condition. Based on interviews with hundreds of Young’s associates (many speaking freely for the first time), as well as extensive exclusive interviews with Young himself, Shakey is a story told through the interwoven voices of McDonough -- biographer, critic, historian, obsessive fan -- and the ever-cantankerous (but slyly funny) Young himself, who puts his biographer through some unforgettable paces while answering the question: Is it better to burn out than to fade away?