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15th out of 411 books
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305 voters
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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 fascina...more
Paperback, 816 pages
Published
May 13th 2003
by Anchor
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if you have any interest in the history of, fate of, or reason for american music in any sense, then you should pick this book up. even if you aren't an obsessive fan of ned young, this is a fascinating insight into a driven maniacs passive aggressive propulsion into super-fame. shakey (n. young's nickname) made moves that alienated him from his fans and friends alike, perhaps not even knowing that he hurt anyone in the process, and came out one of the most respected and admired american music...more
I don't usually read biographies, but I have been a fan of Neil Young's music for many years. And as I realized upon reading, this isn't your average biography.
McDonough obviously devoted several years of his life to researching and writing this book, with no guarantee that he'd be allowed the access he needed - or for that matter, that he'd finish it at all - due to Young's unpredictable nature. They don't call him Shakey for nothing. The writer editorializes constantly, which at first bot...more
McDonough obviously devoted several years of his life to researching and writing this book, with no guarantee that he'd be allowed the access he needed - or for that matter, that he'd finish it at all - due to Young's unpredictable nature. They don't call him Shakey for nothing. The writer editorializes constantly, which at first bot...more
Pretty interesting. The author comes across as wildly obsessive and possibly a bit stalkerish. And, do I really need to know this much about Young? (Many memorable takeaway bits-- his movie-making adventures, his epileptic fits, his passive/aggressive relationship with CSN, his intense relationships with his famil(ies) and disabled sons, his somewhat lunatic approaches to recording-- are somewhat swallowed by the sheer density of the book. After a while it's hard to remember or care which produc...more
Neil Young deserves a better biography than this massive piece of shit. The obnoxious author insists on inserting himself and his less than insightful critical assessments into every step of Neil Young's life. The man possess not one ounce of objectivity. While I have a lot of respect for Neil Young and love many of his earlier songs (which constitute much of what I have heard of him), I have never been a fanatic. This lack of fanaticism has limited my degree of fascination with his musical jour...more
Okay, I admit that, when I started reading this, I had h1n1. I got better; the book didn't. I finally stopped reading when, after about 300 pages, we still weren't out of the seventies. This bio is boring and repetitive, full of inane minutiae that only the most die hard Young fan could find interesting. It's not just that McDonough has absolutely no objectivity about Young and his work. Dave Marsh's bios of Springsteen are readable and informative, despite his obvious man crush on the subj...more
McDonough's exhaustive and exhausting bio of Neil Young simultaneously made me appreciate Young's best records more and hate his guts as a person. I can't think of many people in rock'n'roll who've left a bigger wake behind them, filled with buddies, women, session musicians, a son, all thrown to the wayside at Young's slightest musical or personal whim. Still, those records from '69-'78 are some of the best anybody has ever made.
Notes:
Young is both more of a rock star and ...more
Notes:
Young is both more of a rock star and ...more
This book has many good qualities. The author has definitely studied Neil's life and analyzed his works. He has interviewed many people and simply done massive backround work. The two problems. The book is way too long. Way more info than is necessary on almost every topic. Also, the author creeps me out as a complete jerk. He seems to repeatedly mock Neil's mom, which is way out of bounds. He attacks Neil for his extreme interest in electric trains, which I don't begin to understand. Doi...more
This book is written from a perspective of a true friend of Neil Young's. It seems very honest and gives a good view of what Neil thought and what state he was in when he created each of the albums up until the end of the 1990s. This is done through allowing Neil to do his own talking. It is interesting to see that his favorite swear word is not omitted and may be present in every five sentences or so. It's my favorite also. I have tried to read the other books and there was never anythi...more
Not a great book in the traditional sense, but somewhere in the course or reading this, the jumbled narrative that jumps around between different people and times, with its in-over-his-head smartass jerk author, becomes something great. Which is very appropriate for a Neil Young biography.
If nothing else, I doubt we are going to get a more significant chunk of unfiltered commentary from Young, so this is really as good as it gets. If you read between the lines, there's a lot of valua...more
If nothing else, I doubt we are going to get a more significant chunk of unfiltered commentary from Young, so this is really as good as it gets. If you read between the lines, there's a lot of valua...more
Excellent biography in that it catches a flavor of the subject, and informs you about many interesting details, without being either dully written or driven by any kind of base motive. Mcdonough likes his subject enough to do right by him, warts and all. Only flaws, for me: the "early life" section goes ON AND ON AND ON, so okay skim it if that bugs you, and the very last chapters have a little bit more Jimmy than I want to know about. But OK, that's nit-picking, this was overall reall...more
Well I not really finished, but close enough (I hardly ever use this site now).
This is a book that is well worth reading if like Neil Young you like "innaresting characters".
It is too long. The author got too close to his subject I think and started to think he was "cool" because of it.
A great deal more is revealed about the people around Young than I would have expected. Just as much as a biography it is a (partially unconcious) depiction of o...more
This is a book that is well worth reading if like Neil Young you like "innaresting characters".
It is too long. The author got too close to his subject I think and started to think he was "cool" because of it.
A great deal more is revealed about the people around Young than I would have expected. Just as much as a biography it is a (partially unconcious) depiction of o...more
Thomas
rated it
Recommends it for:
singers/songwriters/guitarists
Recommended to Thomas by:
James Moeller
A fantastic in-depth review of Neil Young's career (through the release of Mirror Ball) including early history and tons of direct quotes throughout. I learned the stories behind numerous lifelong favorite songs and the history of each of the great albums of his career. I also learned what was going on in his head during the mid to late 1980s when his output was gawd-awful! It's brutally honest and, I believe, paints an accurate picture of an inspiring artist and a unique personality. I part...more
The purpose of a music biography is both journalistic and critical in nature. You want to get the facts of the subject's life, but great biographies of musicians combine those facts with an enlightening critical analysis of the artist's work. I think McDonough does a very good job on the first count but fails somewhat on the second. As with many music critics, McDonough falls apart when he is disparaging. He attempts to form grand theory of sorts which separates Young's good music from his bad. ...more
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Pretty good biography for the most part. Maybe a little TOO in depth for the casual fan, this one is probably best suited for the fanatics. I got kind of irritated once it reached the point where the author had inserted himself into the story. He came off like an ass, always leaving in bits where he'd criticize Young about his music, almost trying to be like that kid in the school yard that brags about standing up to some bully but is really just a loser. Luckily, that was only a brief part of t...more
At 700+ pages, the amount of time and research that went into this book is pretty staggering. In fact, I think a little too much time was spent on Neil's early years and origins (I didn't read this book to learn about his grandparents' childhoods). Thankfully, after 150 pages of this, we get to the Buffalo Springfield years, and from then on the book is impossible to put down.
In his 20's, Neil suffered constant Epileptic seizures, which seemed to send him to an alternate world where ...more
In his 20's, Neil suffered constant Epileptic seizures, which seemed to send him to an alternate world where ...more
Shakey is the fascinating story of Neil Young's life, exhaustively researched by the author, Jimmy McDonough and presented in a way that differs from many other biographies. It is not the usual one-sided compilation of facts presented from an outside perspective, but a long and detailed journey of Young's whole life, with Young's input, thoughts and opinions included for nearly every event. Almost every other page contains dialogue from Young, gathered from hundreds of interviews with the auth...more
The definitive Neil Young bio. If you're even a casual Neil fan, or a fan of rock n' roll, this is a highly recommended read. Neil has always been, and continues to be, one of music's most intriguing personalities. Right up there with Tom Waits, Bob Dylan and Frank Zappa. This book exhaustively covers Young's life and career up through the early 2000s. In many biographies, the appeal of the subject can get lost in all the attention to details. The forest gets lost for the trees, so-to-speak. Thi...more
Shakey is a great book. As a musician, I feel slightly embarrassed to admit that I'm not well steeped in Young's music. Before this bio, I knew only the bigger hits, and when added to the rest I was familiar with it still only probably totaled about 8-10% of his catalog, if that. Since I started Shakey, I've purchased/acquired/DL'd a lot of Young's music, watched countless youtube videos, and am proud to admit that I can now probably claim knowledge on about 20-25%. Ugh, that's not much of a...more
I'd started out with this in a state of exhilaration, and found myself carrying it in airports, reading it in cabs and generally just gripped by Young's story, but it began to fade for me, just like Young's music can. There was a stretch in his career when I found that every side he laid down was essential stuff, then, like Dylan, he went through a prolonged drought, then he bounced back, and was essential again. Some time ago (six years ago, thereabouts) I cracked that if we were going to have ...more
Just finished Shakey, after reading it over a few weeks at night (post blogging, so around 10ish) and in the weekends (particularly on a Sunday, where my habit is to loaf around in bed and in the lounge, reading and eating and drinking tea).
I really enjoyed this biography. Firstly it taught me a lot about Neil Young -- real innarestin' character, heh heh. It made me want to explore all his old music, especially the 70's stuff. I've already borrowed a number of CDs from the library. ...more
I really enjoyed this biography. Firstly it taught me a lot about Neil Young -- real innarestin' character, heh heh. It made me want to explore all his old music, especially the 70's stuff. I've already borrowed a number of CDs from the library. ...more
Disclaimer: if you are not a mondo Neil Young fan, you really don't need to read this book. If, however, you have at least ten albums and put him in your top ten list of artists, this is a really enjoyable and informative read.
I read the first half a long time ago, stopping when I got to about 1980, the reason being that I hadn't really explored his music past this date and didn't want it ruined by the book. That gives you a taste of the level of detail in here - every album is discu...more
I read the first half a long time ago, stopping when I got to about 1980, the reason being that I hadn't really explored his music past this date and didn't want it ruined by the book. That gives you a taste of the level of detail in here - every album is discu...more
Jared Busch
rated it
Recommends it for:
anyone with even the vaguest interest in Neil Young's life and has hours and hours to kill
Shelves:
music
I'm not a Neil Young super-fan by any means but I could not put this book down. At 800 pages I thought it'd be a book that I'd just peruse, reference whenever I heard an album for the first time, etc., but I have to say this is one of the best music biographies I've ever read. That said, the author did annoy the shit out of me by about page 400 by repeatedly inserting his own review of each album, and pretty much trashing everything Young has done since the early 80s (he also makes himself som...more
Rock autobiographies are a dime a dozen and usually poorly written, nothing but extended reports for a "History of Rock" class. This book, written in the style of a crazy old hippie was extremely entertaining, and paints Neil as an anti-rock star who simply loves playing music for the joy of playing it. I often got the impression that Neil likes to be left alone and surrounds himself with people who will get things done in his life, no matter how crazy they are.
Neil is often port...more
Neil is often port...more
Being both exceptionally weary of rock biographies and a huge Neil Young fanatic I was very reluctant to pick up this book. Fortunately, 99% of my worries were alleviated by the book's conclusion, and I was left with a remarkably intimate view of Neil Young's music and persona. "Persona" is a term that is key to understanding Young's image and artistry as he is infamously protective of his family and personal life. No one understands this more than Jim McDonough, who chooses let the ho...more
A really interesting read, but a long read. Really more than I needed to know
about Neil Young. I'm almost thinking I liked him better before reading this book,
no fault of the author. I'm glad I read it, it was fun to read and I think it was
honestly written and well researched. If you LOVE Neil Young, it's a must read.
If you don't, then it's going to be somewhat indulgent about a talented guy whose
just a bit of an asshole, so read something about Lincoln or Church...more
about Neil Young. I'm almost thinking I liked him better before reading this book,
no fault of the author. I'm glad I read it, it was fun to read and I think it was
honestly written and well researched. If you LOVE Neil Young, it's a must read.
If you don't, then it's going to be somewhat indulgent about a talented guy whose
just a bit of an asshole, so read something about Lincoln or Church...more
Easily the best rock (or any) bio I've read; it sweeps along with the narrative flow of a novel and is as revelatory as any portrait of this notoriously publicity-shy figure will ever be. It's not perfect - McDonough suffers from a classic case of fan entitlement which grows especially evident after Neil has stopped making albums that reach his lofty standards; and it's telling that it isn't until the final third of the book that the author explicitly recognizes his subject as a flawed human bei...more
This is the best rock biography that I have ever read. Around the time I read this book I started to realize that The New Yorker was publishing some really great pop music writing and between the NwYrkr articles and this book I started to realize the full extent to which the people Rolling Stone and Spin can't write for shit. It's amazing how much jealous, bitchy, sophomoric bullshit makes up the bulk of pop music criticism and history.
This book, on the other hand, is meticulously resea...more
This book, on the other hand, is meticulously resea...more
An engrossing record of one of Rock and Roll's most innaresting icons.
This book greatly benefits from not being an autobiography. I had read Clapton's book, and while the first person narration is nice, you get a better overall picture of Young through the journalist profiling that McDonough uses.
The structure of the book is fantastic with tons of interviews from all sorts of people woven together with long commentaries by Young himself. I also appreciate McDonough's o...more
This book greatly benefits from not being an autobiography. I had read Clapton's book, and while the first person narration is nice, you get a better overall picture of Young through the journalist profiling that McDonough uses.
The structure of the book is fantastic with tons of interviews from all sorts of people woven together with long commentaries by Young himself. I also appreciate McDonough's o...more
Scott
is currently reading it
I feel like I will never finish this book. I read a chapter a year. Some really good stories, but the author is annoying. He is irrationally dismissive of CSNY (I have no problem with not liking CSN(Y), unless you're writing a book on one of them) and talks too much about his personal experiences. One gets the sense that Neil was down with being a part of the project and then got tired of talking to this guy.
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