Neil Young’s Most Intimate Concert
Red Rocks in Colorado? Slane Castle in Ireland? Or maybe the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, New York? Any of these venues would be life-changing to hear Neil Young and his music with a few of your closest friends. His music is legendary, and he is still creating, performing, and connecting with his fans throughout the world. Have you checked out neilyoungarchives.com? You’re in for a treat. Music, history, and the buzz of social commentary are all presented in a retro format that makes even the youngest boomer feel at home. My favorite feature? I can open a digital “file cabinet” to search for a song. There’s nothing like the sound of opening a metal file cabinet drawer and rustling through manilla files. When I scroll through with my mouse, it sounds exactly the like the real thing. It’s pure genius.
Why does this even matter?
Well, I stumbled upon this site when I wanted to listen to Heart of Gold one Sunday morning. I was working on my book and remembered a young boy I worked with as a hospice music therapist. He loved Neil Young’s music. I memorized his chords and lyrics so I could play and sing them during my visits. That was ages ago, but it seemed appropriate to listen to some songs to remember. So, I found the archives, opened the file cabinet, and sifted through the hundreds of folders with worn edges and a million invisible digital fingerprints until I found Heart of Gold.
The lyrics clung in my mind like the bumpy labels stuck to file tabs. I listened to the song again and again while I looked through the archives. I scrolled through photographs, concert posters, and new music videos. I felt nostalgic. Neil Young also has a newspaper called the NYA Times Contrarian. It’s printed on aged looking paper with a typeset to match. There is a balance of current news, what’s happening in music and how the Earth is struggling more than we are to survive. There is also a column dedicated to letters to and from his fans. All I could think about was the young boy, and the impact Neil Young had on him. The impact they had on me. So, I opened a new file of my own and wrote to Neil Young. And he wrote back to me.