While I was working in the record store in my teens, my friend Robin introduced me to Neil Young's music, a rich and vibrant catalog of well written songs that alternated between acoustic and electric forms. Robin's influence meant that albums like "Harvest" and "Live Rust" were in high rotation at the store, and when Young announced a solo acoustic show at Kingswood Music Theatre in 1989 it was kind of a forgone conclusion that I'd be there.
Neil Young played a solid set of music that night,
an acoustic guitar, a little bit of harmonica, and a whine about riding
the Tilt-a-whirl, no doubt inspired by the amusement park that lay just
beyond the venue. He played simple but powerful versions of songs that
spanned his career, both as a solo artist and through his time with
Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. He played The Needle and The Damage
Done, and Ohio, and Helpless, and an early version of Rockin' in the
Free World which would be released on the "Freedom" album a few months
later. There's something inspiring when you see an artist like Young with such an amazing collection of songs, and there's a certain awe when you think about all the music that he's written over the years.
It was a good night, kind of laid back and easy. It had
been a warm day, that end of summer kind of heat, and a nice light
breeze in the evening during the show cooled us all down a bit. I've
seen Neil Young a handful of times since then, he's always put on a good
show, but none of those shows were nearly as enjoyable or as inspiring
as this one...
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