Neil Young (1945- )

1980 1981 1982 1983
1985 1986 1987 1988

Geffen: sued Neil Young for US$ 3,000,000 for
making “unrepresentative,\" noncommercial music”.
Neil Young: sued Geffen for US$ 21,000,000

1993

1988

1989

1989

1969 1979 2000

1975 1979

Rockin’ in the Free World
There's colors on the street Keep on rockin' in the free world,
Red, white and blue Keep on rockin' in the free world
People shufflin' their feet
People sleepin' in their shoes We got a thousand points of light
But there's a warnin' sign on the road ahead For the homeless man
There's a lot of people sayin' we'd be better off dead We got a kinder, gentler,
Don't feel like Satan, but I am to them Machine gun hand
So I try to forget it, any way I can. We got department stores and toilet paper
Got styrofoam boxes for the ozone layer
Keep on rockin' in the free world, Got a man of the people, says keep hope alive
Keep on rockin' in the free world Got fuel to burn, got roads to drive.
I see a woman in the night Keep on rockin' in the free world,
With a baby in her hand Keep on rockin' in the free world
Under an old street light
Near a garbage can
Now she puts the kid away, and she's gone to get a hit
She hates her life, and what she's done to it
There's one more kid that will never go to school
Never get to fall in love, never get to be cool.

first performed live in concert:
February 21, 1989

Jun 5, 1989

Nov 9, 1989

Nov 17, 1989

“LOVE IS ALL WE NEED”
Neil Young in Berlin, 1982.

NBC Television
\"Saturday Night Live\"
Sep 30, 1989
(10 days before the album release)
Neil Young (g,v)
Frank “Poncho” Sampedro (g)
Steve Jordan (d)
Charley Drayton (b)

“Yeah, well I was. I don't like TV. Never have.
It always sucks and there's nothing you can do about it.
You can't just walk on and do 'Rockin' in the Free
World,'
or you'll look like a fuckin' idiot.
To perform that song the way it's supposed to be performed
you have to be at peak blood level,
everything has to be up, the machine has to be stoked.
To do that I had to ignore Saturday Night Live completely.
I had to pretend I wasn't there.”

“I removed myself from the whole fucking scene, went
to a room in the other end of the building, never hung out, never
watched the show, completely ignored the skits.
Steve Jordan and Charley Drayton were playing with us on the gig
and Poncho (Frank Sampedro) and I went up and trashed
their dressing room, fucking graffiti, broke everything
in it and painted it with spray-cans.
In my mind, you gotta be jacked into it, man. It’s fucking life
and death and you’re only as good as your last note.
So I had to ignore what was going on there. I never do live Rock ‘N’
Roll on TV - that was a huge exception to the rule - and I probably
never will again. I was very, very lucky that I played well and
everything came off good.”

1990

White Line
I came to you, when I needed a rest
You took my love, and put it to the test
I saw some things, that I never would have guessed
Feel like a railroad, I pulled a whole load behind.
That old white line is friend of mine
And it's good time we've been making
Right now I'm rollin' down the open road
And the daylight will soon be breaking.
I was adrift on a river of pride
It seemed like such a long easy ride
You were my raft but I let you slide
I've been down but I'm coming back up again.
And I'm rollin' down the open road
Where the daylight will soon be breaking
Right now I'm thinking 'bout these things that I know
But it's good time that we've been making.

1991

1991

The First Gulf War (1990-1991)

1992

Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)

All Along The Watchtower
\"There must be some way out of here,\" said the joker to the thief,
\"There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth,
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth.\"
\"No reason to get excited,\" the thief, he kindly spoke,
\"There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we've been through that, and this is not our fate,
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late.\"
All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too.
Outside in the distance a wildcat did growl,
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.

1992

Harvest Moon
Come a little bit closer When we were strangers
Hear what I have to say I watched you from afar
Just like children sleepin' When we were lovers
We could dream this night away. I loved you with all my heart.
But there's a full moon risin' But now it's gettin' late
Let's go dancin' in the light And the moon is climbin' high
We know where the music's playin' I want to celebrate
Let's go out and feel the night. See it shinin' in your eye.
Because I'm still in love with you Because I'm still in love with you
I want to see you dance again I want to see you dance again
Because I'm still in love with you Because I'm still in love with you
On this harvest moon. On this harvest moon.

“it’s better to burn out than to fade away”
Kurt Cobain’s death letter, 1993

1994

Sleeps with Angels
She wasn't perfect She was a teen queen
She had some trips of her own She saw the dark side of life
He wasn't worried She made things happen
At least he wasn't alone But when he did it that night
Too late She ran up phone bills
He sleeps with angels She moved around from town to town
Too soon Too late
He's always on someone's mind He sleeps with angels
He sleeps with angels Too soon
Too late He's always on someone's mind
He sleeps with angels He sleeps with angels
Too soon He sleeps with angels

Jim Jarmusch and Neil Young

1995

1997

Eddie Vedder and Neil Young, 1993

1995

F*!#in’ Up
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!

1996

2000

Buffalo Springfield Again
Used to play in a rock 'n' roll band,
But they broke up.
We were young and we were wild,
It ate us up.
Now I'm not saying who was right or wrong.
Looking out on a big green lawn,
Girls and boys
Playing in the afternoon sun,
Life's a joy
I heard an old song playing on the radio.
Buffalo Springfield again.
I'd like to see those guys again,
And give it a shot.
Maybe now we can show the world,
What we've got.
But I'd just like to play for the fun we had.
Buffalo Springfield again.
Buffalo Springfield again.

2002

2003

2005

Ryman Auditorium, Nashville

2006

2008

2007

2009

Fork in the Road About this year
We salute the troops
Got a pot belly, They're all still there
It's not too big In a fucking war
Gets in my way It's no good
When I'm driving my rig Whose idea was that?
Driving this country I've got hope
In a big old rig But you can't eat hope
Things I've seen I'm not done
Mean a lot Not giving up
Not cashing in
Friend has a pickup Too late
Drives his kid to school
Then he takes his wife There's a bailout coming but it's not for me
To beauty school It's for all those creeps watching tickers on TV
There's a bailout coming but it's not for me
Now she's doin' nails
Gonna get a job I'm a big rock star
Got a good teacher My sales have tanked
But I still got you
There's a fork in the road ahead Thanks
I don't which way I'm gonna turn Download this
There's a fork in the road ahead Sounds like shit

Keep on bloggin'
'Til the power goes out
Your battery's dead
Twist and shout
On the radio
Those were the days
Bring 'em back
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you
It's for all those creeps hiding what they do
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you
Bailout coming but it's not for you
Got my flat screen
Got it repo'd now
They picked it up
Left a hole in the wall
Last Saturday
Missed the Raiders game
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you
It's for all those creeps hiding what they do

五四三
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