Shakey

Sep 11, 2007 Nicholas Branigan rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people that aren't fucking commies!

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 musici...more

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Jun 25, 2012 Paul Lyons rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

Jimmy McDonough does an amazing job going through the ups and downs of a very complicated and unpredictable artist. A good book enthralls you with it's story, while a great book truly inspires you...SHAKEY is a great book, It delves so deep into Neil Young's persona that you truly believe you know him like you know yourself.

My understanding and appreciation of Young's music is now not only enhanced, but ingrained in my system. Even the structure of McDonough's book is a knockout. In each chapte...more Jimmy McDonough does an amazing job going through the ups and downs of a very complicated and unpredictable artist. A good book enthralls you with it's story, while a great book truly inspires you...SHAKEY is a great book, It delves so deep into Neil Young's persona that you truly believe you know him like you know yourself.

My understanding and appreciation of Young's music is now not only enhanced, but ingrained in my system. Even the structure of McDonough's book is a knockout. In each chapter, the author goes into detail about various events in Neil Young's professional and personal life...from The Squires and The Mynah Birds, to Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young to Crazy Horse and to the many solo albums.

Yet just when you think the story can't get any more compelling than it already is...we hear from Neil Young himself, in conversation with the author, commenting on his actions...and inactions. What's also great, is that Jimmy McDonough is a true fan of Young's music...yet also is Young's biggest critic, and often challenges Young directly if he feels Young's music, or performance is below par.

I was sad finishing the book. Who knew? I mean...I've never been a big Neil Young fan in the past. I had one or two of his records when I was a teenager, I think. Being a concert whore in my younger years...I first saw Young perform at Live Aid in 1985, then attended three Neil Young concerts in 1986, 1988 & 1991. Plus I saw him perform at the Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary show in 1992. Last time I saw him was 9 years ago at a Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young concert in Los Angeles (which sadly was an extremely unpleasant experience for me, due to a disruptive audience).

At the start of 2009, I owned a total of two Neil Young CDs...and only one of them I bought for Neil Young's sake: the 1970 classic AFTER THE GOLDRUSH. The other CD, MIRRORBALL, I only bought because it featured Pearl Jam as Neil's backing band on the entire album. What changed? Books!

I'd been trying to change my reading habits for years. I'd been very attached to a series of small, pocket books called 33 1/3...a series of books focusing on individual records, by a variety of musicians and bands. I've read over 30 of these books...everything from The Beatles LET IT BE to David Bowie's LOW to Guns N' Roses USE YOUR ILLUSION 1&2. Granted, not all of the books are good, and some are just plain awful (Jethro Tull AQUALUNG is among the worst).

Despite this, I love these books so much...and have even been inspired to buy an album, just so I can read the 33 1/3 book. My rule is...I won't read a 33 1/3 book unless I have the album. So, with that in mind...I bought Neil Young's HARVEST album (which is great)...as well as the 33 1/3 book. The book, by Sam Inglis, was just okay...hampered by the fact that Inglis didn't seem to like the album very much...making a point to let people know that TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT is Neil Young greatest album.

Nonetheless, the book got me thinking about Neil Young...and soon enough, I bought a few more Neil Young albums. Which lead me to picking up SHAKEY (on a whim) at a Borders book store in Century City...which lead to even more albums. I now have close to 20 Neil Young albums, and counting. So in essence...the music inspired the books, which inspired the music. Who knew reading could be so much fun! (less)

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Dec 27, 2010 Matt rated it 4 of 5 stars

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 bothered...more

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Oct 06, 2010 Ero rated it 3 of 5 stars

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

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Jul 08, 2010 Brian Bess rated it 2 of 5 stars

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

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Nov 14, 2009 Deborah rated it 1 of 5 stars

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 subject....more

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Sep 12, 2011 Michael rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, music, biography-memoir

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 less benevolent than y...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 less benevolent than you'd hope. Young had a much more exceptional youth than I expected from his everyman image - the son of a novelist and semi-pro golfer. It's great when McDonough connects events in Young's early life with specific lyrics from his songs. Young's a loner, as you'd expect, but also something of a lady's man, which you would not expect. Young's influences are a revelation in their omnivorousness, ranging from Jimmy Reed to Rick James. The trip from Toronto to LA strikes me as something right out of a Dennis Hopper movie.

Young's time in Buffalo Springfield is tortuously chaotic and unhealthy, so there is no wonder he quit. McDonough presents Young's story as the story of those around Young - CSN, Roberts, Briggs, Mitchell, Crazy Horse. Young's an outsider even among an outsider culture, like the hippies in Topanga Canyon. Young's and Dylan's take on the excess and superficiality of the Woodstock festival is eye-opening. Young, with The Broken Arrow Ranch, created a world of his own, completely separate from the rest of the universe.

Neil's darkness always seems to be controlled, almost as if he says "I need to be trashed to do this right" and then gets trash in a very controlled, calm way. He comes off as a pretty big dick who doesn't care much for his family. Young's extreme drug use and partying lifestyle is a bit disillusioning for someone who has no use for drugs. Neil is not only inconsiderate to his family, but also to his closest friends and musical companions. Young, unlike most of his peers is both prolific and consistent and has never stagnated in one particular style for too long. It takes the diagnosis of his second son, Ben, with cerebral palsy to bring Young down to earth, to knock him on his ass.(less)

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Mar 09, 2013 Craig rated it 4 of 5 stars

I started reading this book because I've been a little obsessed with the Ditch Trilogy for a couple months now, so perhaps it's a little unfair to fault this aspect of the book, but it seems like a lot of Neil Young fans are really into certain periods or facets of his career at the expense of others in a way that Dylan fans don't seem quite to be. You have a lot of Neil Young fans that will listen to anything Crazy Horse has every recorded but can't stand Harvest, or who love a song like "Needl...more

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Aug 06, 2012 Cynthia Harrison rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir

Some really interesting stuff here but sometimes the structure is a little loose. Like when McDonough asks interview questions and simply records pages and pages of responses. He also sometimes goes a bit too far out of topic. Still I am learning so much about NY. It's amazing to see what he had to overcome to get where he is. His first band in L.A.(Buffalo Springfield--or Stephen Stills in particular)would not let him sing his own songs because his voice was too weird. I am glued to it in fasci...more Some really interesting stuff here but sometimes the structure is a little loose. Like when McDonough asks interview questions and simply records pages and pages of responses. He also sometimes goes a bit too far out of topic. Still I am learning so much about NY. It's amazing to see what he had to overcome to get where he is. His first band in L.A.(Buffalo Springfield--or Stephen Stills in particular)would not let him sing his own songs because his voice was too weird. I am glued to it in fascination except for the times my eyes glaze over when McDonough name drops record execs and hangers on for pages at a time that I know nothing about and care even less. Just give me Neil! He's hilarious (there is also extensive quotation from him and his voice is incredible) and such a survivor.

May be spoilers...

So many things I thought I knew were wrong. He talked about Southern Man and Alabama, also Sweet Home Alabama. He loved the line "I hope Neil Young will remember, southern man don't need him around anyhow." Here I spent years indignant whenever I heard that song and Neil says it's a better song than Southern Man. He apparently does a mash up of the two songs live. He admired
Lynryd Skynerd and heard that when one member died he was buried in an old Neil Young concert t-shirt he loved.

I love all that insider stuff. It's called "Shakey" because of Neil's epilepsy, another thing I did not know about him. When he was in Buffalo Springfield, he'd invariably have a fit during their closing song and someone would have to hustle him off the stage. Strobe lights could also set off a fit. He is a weird character but in a really interesting way. I do hate "A Man Needs a Maid" (So does a woman, Neil), and "Down by the River"--I always thought that was an old blues song so I let Neil off the hook. But nope he wrote it. And he says it is not about murder but a break up.
"Dead, I shot her dead" is apparently a metaphor. (Way to go with imagery, Neil!)

He took far less dope than his cronies and never did heroine, while I thought he'd been a junkie for a while. We find out who he was referring to in "The Needle & The Damage Done."

Lots more to come. I'm not even half way in.

At about 80% this book is becoming a bit of a slog for me, mostly because Young is so prolific that there is a lot of his music I didn't even know about. I really wanted to know how Rust Never Sleeps came about and that was a great section with some real insights but now I'm onto a period of the "Country" Neil, his fights with Geffen Records, his love/hate relationship with CSN, Crosby's drug issues. Stills' drug issues. Neil's flirtation with cocaine and tequila which didn't last too long. There is some interesting stuff (or as Young would say) "innaresting" about Young's reaction to his two sons from two different women being born with cerebal palsy, all he went through, the dark nights of the soul, and just the heavy sadness of that. Young's wife Pegi seems to be (finally) the "one" but other reports of Young go from sweetest/meanest guy in the world. He could be a real jerk, and he could be a real sweetheart. Let's just call him human.

I think in the end, I will be glad I read this book, even though it is really for more hard core fans than I am...that or else it could have used a good edit and cut of about 25%. Young, however, never likes to cut out anything. He likes rough drafts, he likes leaving in the mistakes, and although he is not the author of this book, it is very much in his style. Much to my dismay. And yet I read on because I want to know what happens next. Where I'm at now he has done 4-6 bad projects in a row, so I want to get to the Silver & Gold times:)

The book ends abruptly sometime in the 90s before Neil's "Silver & Gold" album or tour when his wife Pegi joined the band! In the end, I liked it very much despite that. I feel like I know Young inside and out. As for the writer's structure, it is much like Young's career with its ups and downs.

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Feb 24, 2013 Paul Childs rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really wanted to like this book, and for the first third of it, I really did. The problem is McDonough is about my age, so by the early 70's he's reviewing the music and putting his personal context on it, instead of putting in a biographical context only.

Eventually it starts to read like a book written by Comic Book Guy on The Simpsons. Albums he likes, a qualified okay. Albums he doesn't like (hint; anything to do with CSNY, or just S) Worst. Album. Ever. The best tracks from one period? Un...more

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Oct 18, 2011 Steve Bennett rated it 3 of 5 stars

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. Doing drug...more

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Jan 10, 2009 Scott Simon rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: any Neil Young Fan

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 anything out t...more

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May 29, 2011 Aras rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, public-library, highly-recommended

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 valuable stuff ab...more

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Jan 21, 2009 5 rated it 4 of 5 stars

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 really good - a...more

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Jun 12, 2011 Paul rated it 3 of 5 stars

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 obsession.

I enjoyed it on the whole - except where he...more

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Apr 28, 2011 Thomas rated it 5 of 5 stars 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 particul...more

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Jun 22, 2011 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars

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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May 21, 2010 Darcy McLaughlin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, owned

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

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Nov 27, 2012 Mat rated it 5 of 5 stars

Brilliant. this is probably the best rock biography i have ever read. Barry Miles' biography on Paul McCartney & The Beatles - Many Years From Now - was very well written and this book is as exhaustively researched as the Behind The Shades biography on Dylan by Clinton Heylin minus Heylin's overly subjective assessments of Dylan albums, which often conflict with the majority of dylanfans.

this author walks the perfect line in this beautiful bio between mouth-dropping adulation of Young's work...more

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Dec 17, 2011 Jason rated it 4 of 5 stars

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 he had a dif...more

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Nov 02, 2010 Mark rated it 3 of 5 stars

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 author...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 author. This allows you to read between the lines and, seemingly, get an understanding of what kind of person Neil Young really is. From his early days as a shy kid growing up in Canada to the path that made him one of the most influential people in 20th century music, Shakey draws a picture of the events and people that shaped Young's life.

And still there's mystery about Neil Young. It's clear that no one could guess what he would do next, or why after the fact. Although this book does give great insight into Young's motivation for the drastic changes he made musically. When everybody expected a record just like his latest hit, he'd make something absolutely different, because he wanted different, he wanted change. But most of all, Young made music that he felt, not music that others thought he should make. He didn't force it, he didn't try to make something that wasn't there, he felt his music and played it how he wanted.

Shakey is an incredibly detailed journey through Young's life, from his early struggles at home, to his reserved persona during his early career, the very good and very bad times with CSN, the raw, powerful feeling of the music with Crazy Horse, his constantly changing recording styles, and so much of his personal life. This is not a particularly easy book to read all the way through. I found myself looking forward to the end as it got nearer and nearer. And unfortunately, it seemed like McDonough became a little repetitive in his writing in the final few chapters. However, I think Shakey does much of what Young stated he wants in a biography: the fantastic things and the shit, the highs and all the lows that paint the true picture of his life, including the details that make it most interesting.(less)

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Oct 22, 2010 Rodney rated it 4 of 5 stars

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

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Dec 13, 2009 Jay rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: biographies

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 an im...more

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Jul 16, 2008 Bill rated it 4 of 5 stars

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 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 a Bush in the White House we could take consolation in the fact that at least we'd get some decent music out of Neil Young-- unfortunately it hasn't happened yet.

I was surprised at how much I knew about Young, and how much I'd known but forgotten. Part of the initial rush of the book came from seeing this enigmatic figure come into focus-- and part of the letdown came from the fact that once he is in focus, it is clear that he is really kind of a jerk. In fairness to Young, McDonough's portrait injects a great deal of McDonough into the process, and McDonough seems pretty burnt out about Neil Young by the time Young is into his fourth or fifth renaissance. At first McDonough's strategy of injecting himself into the narrative seems brilliant. He often starts chapters about a portion of Young's life off by describing his contemporary impression of some person who was important to Young at some time in the past. He then weaves that individual's recollection into a narrative that also includes excerpts from his interviews with Young conducted over the course of the project, other third party accounts, and omniscient narrative drawn from other sources. This works well for a while, but gradually McDonough becomes a more and more important character, and we find that we are reading more about McDonough's impressions of a particular gig or recording than we are about anyone else. Since these impressions are frequently negative, the appeal of reading them pales pretty quickly.

Another problem is that quite a few people who you'd think would be important to talk to declined to be interviewed. Bob Dylan might or might not have something interesting to say. Stephen Stills would certainly. Robbie Robertson. John Lyndon. Young's wife Pegi is virtually absent-- McDonough cites her desire for privacy, then moves on, and we are left with a void. David Geffen is not heard from. McDonough provides a list of these and others, and probably anyone who is interested enough in the subject could supplement the list themselves. (Where's Bill Graham, for example?) Not too many people come off well. Nils Lofgren does, which makes the absence of his Spindizzy catalogue from print feel all the more painful. (My copies reside in the Antipodes, except for Nils' final Grin album, "Gone Crazy", recorded at about the same time as "Tonight's the Night" and concerning more or less the same things.) Stills comes off badly, hardly a surprise. David Crosby is not particularly vivid-- I get the sense that he was pretty strung out when most of this was written, but it is just as likely that he is a self-absorbed jerk. Graham Nash is a wimp-- but that is hardly stop the presses stuff. Jack Nitzsche seems distant and dangerous, also hardly a surprise.

Young's first wife, Carrie Snodgrass, (who died last year)comes off as a sad case-- a bright, talented and attractive person who got sucked into the worst of the Sixties. Young divorced her because he felt she was unfaithful, she denies it, weakly, and Young's infidelities are glossed over-- hey, that's rock'n'roll, baby.

Similarly, the incredible amount of drug use is just staggering. It is not glamorized, particularly, but it is plain that the drugs took their toll on everyone. Norman Mailer talks about how drugs affected his creative process in "Advertisements for Myself" in a knowing way, essentially concluding that drug use is borrowing from the future at a high rate of interest. It isn't hard to conclude that the same conclusion can be drawn with Young, but McDonough doesn't draw it-- or any other real conclusion, for that matter.

Finally, how a book like this can exist without even a stab at a discography is a mystery. For that matter, very little effort is put into noting what the critical response to particular albums was, which would have been interesting. "Shakey" will be a good starting place for the definitive Neil Young bio, but that book is a long way from being written.
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Jul 03, 2008 Richard MacManus rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: music fans

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.

The fascinati...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.

The fascinating thing about Neil Young is that he changes constantly, even his bands and who he records / tours with. It makes it very hard for some of his core band mates, e.g. Crazy Horse has more than once been dumped. There was a poignant bit near the end where Young recorded and toured with Pearl Jam in the 90's (Mirror Ball), which left Crazy Horse crestfallen.

But Young changes so much precisely because it drives him to discover new ways to make music. There's a wide range of musical styles he's done and people he's recorded with, but at the base of it all is the artist Neil Young. If you listen to his solo records, with just him and his guitar and harmonica, you can recognize the huge natural talent of the guy -- beautifully vague lyrics which enable you to read into them what you must, great harmonies and riffs, raw real guitar playing. I've been listening a lot to his 1971 Massey Hall CD (the year I was born!) as well as his 90's MTV Unplugged performance. The author of this bio actually dismissed the Unplugged one, but I disagree. Young's rendition of 'Mr Soul' in Unplugged is riveting. The author is at pains to note that Young was the driver in most of his projects, including ego-soaked hippy supergroup CSNY.

Overall, the author did a very thorough job with this book. There is a lot of commentary from Young himself throughout, but the author also analyzes his topic and music. I felt that sometimes his analysis of the music wasn't that strong, a bit overdone. For example he totally dismissed Pearl Jam's influence on modern music, which is a mistake IMHO. But overall he did describe the changes in Young's musical journey quite well, certainly enough to make me want to dive into Young's back catalog in a big way.

If you're a musichead like me, you will love this book. It's a weighty tome, but well worth a few weeks poring over.(less)

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Mar 04, 2008 Casey rated it 4 of 5 stars

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 discussed in pain...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 discussed in painstaking detail, including who played on it, how they were chosen, the producer, meanings behind various songs, etc. Which is outstanding if you love the album, but if you've never heard it, who cares?

Anyway, after a couple attempts ("Old Ways" and "Mirror Ball"),I finally realized I was never going to delve deeply into his 80s or even 90s catalong, because it was as mediocre as everyone said it was. So I decided to finish the book.

The guy is the type of writer where you can't classify him as 'good' - he uses way too many cheap phrases to describe music, e.g. "so powerful it hit you like a Mack truck," etc. - but the writing is consistently engaging and easy to understand. He's obviously a huge fan boy, which some would consider a turn-off, but I actually dug, because it gave him passion for the subject matter.

First half of the book is incredible, detailing Young's childhood, every step of his musical career, his drug use, the way he abandoned friends to follow his muse, his influences (did you know Devo was involved in 'Rust Never Sleeps'?), and more. All of this is interspersed with interviews, often very revealing, of Young himself, which are great. The Tonight's the Night sessions are a high point (or low point, depending on how you look at it), revealing what had to be one of the saddest and most bizarre recording efforts in rock history, yet which led to one of his best albums.

The second half - or more like the last 200 pages - is not as good. The author basically hates most of what Young did post 1979, and so you read synopsis after synopsis of albums that describe why they sucked. Which gets old. There's also a large portion describing Young's entry into the model railroading business (seriously). This might be interesting as a couple pages, but that's about it.

Overall, you're left with an extremely deep and comprehensive understanding of Young's career, and a pretty good idea of who he is and what he believes. Frankly, the guy is an egotistical, selfish, heartless prick that screws over the people who care about him in a never-ending effort to 'stay true to himself.' But when I listen to "Zuma" or "After the Gold Rush" or "tonight's the Night," I could care less. These albums are incredible, adn this book provides some great background and context that allows you to appreciate them even more.

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May 15, 2008 Jared Busch rated it 5 of 5 stars 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 somew...more

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Dec 13, 2007 Andy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Music Fans

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 portrayed as being c...more

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Aug 26, 2007 Dan rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: readers

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 hours of int...more

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Feb 15, 2010 George rated it 3 of 5 stars

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 Churchill instead.

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