An Unexpected Lost Treasure From Neil Young

One of the coolest things about writing a book on a guy like Neil Young is the unexpected gifts you get from even more unexpected places.

One such unexpected surprise arrived in my mailbox earlier this week. It was a long since forgotten video of Neil during his country period with the International Harvesters on the PBS concert showcase Austin City Limits from 1984 -- sent to me as a gift from the ACL folks.

These days, Austin City Lights features artists covering a wide variety of genres -- you are just as likely to find folks like Arcade Fire and Wilco performing on the show, as you are someone like Willie Nelson. But what people forget is that in its infancy, ACL started out mainly as a showcase for country and roots performers. So having them feature someone like Neil Young back in 1984, during his short lived -- and some would say, misguided -- attempt at crossing over from rock to country, was in fact a pretty big deal.

Like most of his various genre experiments during the so-called "lost eighties," Neil Young's country fling on the album Old Ways was by and large a commercial flop. At the time it was seen -- and in retrospect, perhaps somewhat rightfully -- as simply the latest in a long line of weird vanity projects, including dalliances in rockabilly and New Wave influenced syntho-pop, that left everyone from the critics to the fans scratching their heads in collective bewilderment.

In the case of Neil's rockabilly album with the Shocking Pinks, the howls of discontent from Neil Young's fanbase were mostly deserved too. Everybody's Rockin' was a particularly wretched album, and it hasn't grown any more listenable with the passage of time (unlike the synthetic electro-pop of Trans, which has spawned a much more apologetic critical reassessment in recent years).

But of all of Neil Young's eighties genre experiments, his country period is perhaps the most misunderstood of them all.

For one thing, Neil had a hell of a band back then in the International Harvesters. This band of Nashville cats may not have blown down arena doors with the same ferocity as Crazy Horse or, for that matter, Pearl Jam. But as this 1984 ACL concert proves, they could more than hold their own with Neil Young on an extended version of "Down By The River." In fact, a very young at the time Anthony Crawford's guitar interplay with Neil here, very nearly pulls off the enviable trick of summoning up the ghost of the late Danny Whitten himself.



For further evidence that these guys could rock, one only need to listen to the barnstorming "Grey Riders" from 2010's concert recording A Treasure, originally recorded during the same period. Sadly, the ACL performance does not include this amazing track, a lost treasure in and of itself.

But what you do see here is a surprisingly relaxed Neil Young, playing his new country tunes before a surprisingly receptive audience -- and one which had every right not to trust the former hippie rock star (remember, this was the very polarized Reagan eighties era). Neil's country songs are serviceable and decent, if not particularly memorable here -- although his love song to newly born daughter "Amber Jean" comes across as genuinely heartfelt.

Mostly though, they are saved by the International Harvesters, a great band who, looking back with the benefit of hindsight, may have been one of Neil Young's best ever. The late, great Ben Keith is particularly amazing (although he looks pretty funny sitting behind the pedal steel in his hippie headband and vest). Spooner Oldham's piano is likewise pure honky-tonk heaven.

But the guy who really tears the house down is fiddle player Rufus Thibodeaux, bringing otherwise paint-by-numbers country tunes like "Are You Ready For The Country?'' roaring to shit-kicking life.

One other thing that should be noted about this performance though, is the way that the International Harvesters positively nail the studio sheen of songs from Neil Young's Harvest period, particularly on a letter perfect "Heart Of Gold." It seems there was much more to this band than Neil Young's brief flirtation with country music after all. Much like the album of the same name, this lost 1984 performance from Austin City Limits is a real treasure.

2012 Concert Tour Preview: Who Rules the Road?

Barely a week into the new year, and 2012 is already shaping up to be a potentially huge one for the concert industry. Step aside Lady Gaga, because it looks like classic rock and legacy bands are going to rule the road in 2012. Among the biggest tickets already confirmed for an arena near you sometime in 2012, are the Van Halen reunion and a long awaited Radiohead tour.


Bruce Springsteen's first American shows with the E Street Band since the death of longtime right-hand man, Clarence "The Big Man" Clemons, are also expected to be announced any minute now.

Ditto that for dates reuniting the Beach Boys with creative genius Brian Wilson. A 50th Anniversary reunion tour from the Rolling Stones — including former Stones Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor, according to some reports — is also heavily rumored for 2012.

Figure in the other tours expected to do big business this year — including Coldplay, Roger Waters performing The Wall, and a possible Madonna run following her Super Bowl warmup — and all the ingredients for a record breaking concert season appear to be in place. But of course, there are also the inevitable intangibles.


With the economy still reeling, and so many big names to choose from this year, the question of ticket prices becomes a larger one than ever.

So far, Coldplay and Radiohead have kept their top seats at about $100. or less, and Springsteen has traditionally held his prices at about the same level.

The Stones on the other hand have never shied away from charging the big bucks for their stadium extravaganzas. It's hard to imagine things will be any different for the much bigger deal of an anniversary run — especially one that's been teasing the return of a few names from the band's legendary past.

The Stones are also said to eyeing arenas, rather than stadiums this time around, which could mean even higher prices.

The Beach Boys reunion with Wilson is probably the biggest question mark though.

While Brian Wilson has mainly toured solo in theaters and small halls, the Mike Love/Al Jardine led version of the Beach Boys has been a staple on the oldies circuit for years, performing mainly at county fairs and the like.
Both acts have also drawn significantly different crowds.

The Beach Boys draw a more conservative group of oldies fans who just want to hear the hits, while Wilson's audience are just as likely to come out expecting something like SMiLE or Pet Sounds, as they are "Surfin' USA" and "Barbara Ann."

Fortunately for fans, both have kept ticket prices low. It will be interesting to see if they continue to do so on the reunion tour.

Here is what we know (so far at least), about some of this year's biggest concert tours:

Van Halen:


The reunion of Van Halen "Mach One" with original vocalist "Diamond" David Lee Roth kicks off February 18 at Louisville, Kentucky's KFC Yum! Center, and wraps up on June 26 in New Orleans.

Tickets for the first shows will go on sale January 14. Roth joins Eddie and Alex Van Halen, along with Wolfgang Van Halen on bass (replacing Michael Anthony, which has angered some fans). Fans of the latter, "Sam Halen" version of VH featuring Sammy Hagar, will likewise be disappointed.

Opening the shows is Kool & The Gang, the original seventies/eighties funk band responsible for hits like "Jungle Boogie" and "Let's Celebrate" — a choice which is bound to leave some longtime VH fans scratching their heads. Van Halen will also release a new album (with Roth) called A Different Kind Of Truth, through Interscope Records on February 7. If a warm-up date at New York's Cafe Wha! club was any indication, the band looks to be in top form and fans can expect to hear all the hits of the Roth era, from "You Really Got Me" to "Jump!". A complete list of tour dates can be found here.

Radiohead:


Radiohead's three week American arena tour supporting last year's The King Of Limbs album, gets underway with stops in Miami and Tampa at the end of February, and continues through March 15 with a date at Glendale, Arizona's Jobing.com Arena.

Most of the shows are already sold out.

From there, Thom Yorke and company will be in Europe for most of the summer, before returning to America for a pair of shows at New York's Roseland Ballroom at the end of September. Since their current itinerary leaves all of August, and most of September wide open — and nothing at all has yet been announced for the West Coast — it is almost certain that more dates will be added. You'll find the complete schedule posted at Radiohead.com.

Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band:


Since the original announcement of a 2012 E Street Band album and tour back in November, all we really know at this point is that Springsteen will be spending a lot of time in Europe this summer.

Beyond that initial burst of news, the Springsteen camp has remained frustratingly silent about any American dates, fueling all kinds of thus far unsubstantiated rumors in the fan community.

The most common story is that Springsteen will do a string of U.S. dates this spring, and his keynote address gig at this year's South By Southwest conference in Austin seems to back this scenario.

However, with March fast approaching, and still no word, that window is also closing fast. There has likewise been no word of a replacement yet to fill the very big shoes of a certain very Big Man. There has also been no release date set for Springsteen's new album, which likely consists of sessions recorded last year with producer Ron Aniello, and has been described by Bob Seger as "really unusual" and "the best thing that he’s done in years.”

The most likely scenario for an American tour at this point looks to be a fall run, although I would love to be proved wrong and see a few, select stateside shows in March. The best place to check for any new info on Springsteen dates is Backstreets Magazine.

This article was first published at Blogcritics Magazine.

In Defense Of Coldplay

After watching them blow up the Space Needle here in Seattle, I spent a quiet New Years Eve at home.

Channel surfing through the various network offerings ringing in the New Year — which included a surprisingly hot Kathy Griffin stripping down to her bra and panties in Times Square, with an aghast Anderson Cooper looking on over on CNN; and the Ryan Seacrest/Dick Clark crapfest on ABC — I finally settled on the Coldplay Austin City Limits concert on PBS.

Now, before you go shrieking in horror at the mention of Coldplay, let's get something straight.

I like Coldplay.

The fact that this brings me considerable grief — both from my friends, and among some of my cohorts at Blogcritics — is really of little circumstance. The fact is, I think Coldplay are a very decent band, that gets nowhere the respect they deserve. That said, I also completely understand the criticism.

"Chick band?" Check.

Chris Martin's whiny falsetto alone virtually guarantees this charge. In fact, one of the funniest things I have ever heard in my life, was listening to a three hour Tom Leykis radio show driving home from work one night, that was devoted to the sole subject of why any real man would never be caught dead at a Coldplay concert.

Even though I had no choice but to agree with Leykis, I also couldn't help but admit that I'm one of those ball-less guys who actually likes them.

Of course, on the other hand, I can think of few other bands out there plying their trade today, that draw as many beautiful single women to their concerts since the eighties heyday of Journey.

Food for thought, gentlemen?

But let's get to the crux of the matter, which of course is the music. Tonight's New Years Eve Austin City Limits concert on PBS was a perfect example of why Coldplay actually is a pretty great band — especially in a live setting.

First off, they've recorded some really great songs.

And in A Rush Of Blood To The Head, they also have one certifiably great album. The gorgeous ballad "The Scientist," and especially "Clocks," — which features the single catchiest piano-based riff of the past ten years — solidifies Rush Of Blood's position as one of the best rock albums of the past ten years on it's own. And yes, rock it does.

Honestly, there isn't a clunker in the bunch. Track for track, it's a great album. Viva La Vida was also a damn decent record, especially that album's standout track, "Lost."

Of course, Coldplay have also made some less than stellar records.

But even their lesser albums like X&Y and the current Xylo Myloto, contain some great songs. On the former, Coldplay's stab at the grandiosity of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" on the song "Fix You" particularly stands out, while on the current, largely underwhelming Xylo Myloto, I still can't help but be sucked in by the gorgeousness of "Paradise."

But then there is Coldplay live, and this is where the band truly stands out. One of the things I most enjoyed about the three Coldplay concerts I've seen — and particularly the last one I saw on the tail end of the Viva La Vida tour at the Gorge in Eastern Washington — is the way they engage the audience.

Outside of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, I would be hard pressed to name any single rock and roll band today who captures a similarly communal feeling between audience and performer in concert.

The "whoa-ohs" exchanged between the guys onstage, and the folks in the crowd — and did I mention they draw some of the hottest looking girls you'll find at a rock show anywhere these days? — just really leave you with this warm and fuzzy effect, once you leave the arena. Girls aside, and for you rocker dudes out there, it should also be noted that Will Champion just pounds the living crap out of his drums in concert.

But the other thing that needs to be mentioned here, is the fact that these seem to be genuinely nice guys. Current crop of "The" bands aside (Cage "The" Elephant, Foster "The" People, etc.), the idea of earnest rock bands, particularly at a time when average working people are really hurting, is a really welcome one right now.

From what I can tell, Coldplay is a band that wears their hearts mostly on their collective sleeve. Sure, they would love nothing more than to be U2 — especially since Brian Eno started producing their records.

Xylo Myloto is not an album that has me rushing to buy tickets to Coldplay's concert in Seattle this April (much as I like the one song, "Paradise") either.

But watching them at home alone tonight on PBS beat the crap out of Gaga, Bieber, and the rest of the "New Years Rockin' Eve" crap over on that other station.

Given the alternatives, Coldplay deserve a break.

This article was first published at Blogcritics Magazine.