Nov 10
9
Neil Young – Live at Massey Hall 1971
Well, the cold weather is finally creeping in for good. The kind of cold where you need a bit more than just a simple flannel shirt. Yes, it’s getting cold, but there’s always Neil Young and the warm glow of his acoustic guitar. I suggest some hot coffee, an early morning window, and this album…
Live at Massey Hall 1971 documents a show Young played during the bitter cold of January in Toronto, Canada. The songs are stripped to their barest essentials with just Neil alone with his acoustic guitar and, on a few songs, his piano. It is a stunning display of a man baring his very soul to an excited audience, the intimate recording capturing every nuance perfectly and in stunning clarity.
As Neil is greeted by a very enthusiastic Canadian crowd he launches into “On the Way Home” and the sound is simply incredible. His voice and guitar seem to jump right out of the speakers and suddenly Neil Young himself is right there in your living room making everything alright. The warmth of his Martin acoustic, punchy and almost percussive, is stunning and coupled with his clear as a bell voice it makes for an entirely organic listening experience. I have heard a lot of recordings over the years but this completely blew me away in terms of clarity – the 1971 analog sound is simply glowing with life and shows just how great recorded sound can be with the right conditions.
Stripped so bare, the songs all take on a new meaning and you can really get inside of Neil’s mind and almost understand what the heck he is singing about. Young’s lyrics are sometimes cryptic and lost to interpretation but here, in these simple but powerful presentations, you somehow understand him on a deeper level. You can hear the joy, the torment, and the collective thoughts of a young man’s life so clearly it’s as if you were having a late night conversation with him, passing the time with stories long gone between sips of bourbon.
Neil’s breadth of songwriting is on full display as he traverses among some of his most popular songs. But, we have to remember that at the time most of these songs were new and being heard for the first time. It is quite an experience to hear old classics such as a haunting “Old Man,” a perfect “Needle and the Damage Done,” and a truly, truly powerful “Ohio,” in this stripped down setting. With each song Neil proves just how powerful a songwriter he is, his ease of delivery and simple song structures striking deep within your very soul.
It is also extremely fascinating to hear his classic electric songs such as “Cowgirl in the Sand” and “Down by the River” done without the aid of electricity and instead relying on the power of just a man, his voice, and his acoustic guitar. In this respect the songs are almost more powerful than their electric versions, the sweet and haunting sound of his voice bringing the lyrics ever closer to reality. They are truly spellbinding and in those few short moments there are no electric versions. No, there is nothing else except Neil and his guitar and that is all that matters. Amazing.
As if this album isn’t amazing enough on it’s own, you also have the option of purchasing it with an accompanying DVD that contains vintage footage of Neil Young performing in Stratford, Connecticut just a few days later. The Massey Hall audio is laid over top of the footage which might seem a bummer to some but I find it fascinating. It recreates, as best as possible, what the appreciative Canadian crowd witnessed and allows you to delve further into this fantastic material. There is also some great video footage of Neil on his Broken Arrow ranch talking with an old man that turns out to be the old man from “Old Man.” And if that weren’t enough there is bonus footage of Neil performing “The Needle and the Damage Done” live on the Johnny Cash Show. Awesome!
Live at Massey Hall 1971 is a fantastic, haunting album that is both dark and beautiful. The songs are all perfectly played (Neil’s guitar playing in particular is fantastic and at times it sounds like there are two guitarists), the sound is beyond all expectation, and it’s about as intimate and close to Neil Young as possible without him actually coming over to dinner. This album renewed my interest in Young’s music in a major way, and I can’t thank Wifey enough for springing it on me for no reason other than to spread a little love. In my mind it is one of Neil’s best albums by far, a stunning feat when you look at his huge catalog of work, and realize that this was simply a man and his guitar on a stage in Canada somewhere in the winter of 1971.
Simply stunning.
Tracklist
- “On the Way Home” – 3:42
- “Tell Me Why” – 2:29
- “Old Man” – 4:57
- “Journey Through the Past” – 4:15
- “Helpless” – 4:16
- “Love In Mind” – 2:47
- “A Man Needs a Maid / Heart of Gold Suite” – 6:39
- “Cowgirl in the Sand” – 3:45
- “Don’t Let It Bring You Down” – 2:46
- “There’s a World” – 3:33
- “Bad Fog of Loneliness” – 3:27
- “The Needle and the Damage Done” – 3:55
- “Ohio” – 3:40
- “See the Sky About to Rain” – 4:05
- “Down by the River” – 4:08
- “Dance Dance Dance” – 5:48
- “I Am a Child” – 3:19
