“I can have a good time”: The blues artists Neil Young always looked up to
Neil Young’s iconic discography is largely built upon simple ideas conveyed with nuance. Packed with emotion, Young’s work has an uncanny ability to speak to the heart of its listeners, regardless of the era they are listening in.
Songs like ‘Old Man’ and ‘Ohio’ are prime examples of Young’s ability to dance between the personal and political, telling stories that have a deep sense of universality to them despite managing to create such a specific sense of imagery. While Young is an iconic and accomplished guitar player, many of his significant hits have comprised as little as two open chords throughout their verse and chorus. But still, they’re played with such personality that for a modern songwriter to be compared with Young acts as the highest of praise.
Within his music, there existed a staunch commitment to authenticity and an unwavering artistic intent. The result wasn’t an approach to songwriting that replicated what had established success but rather a following of personal instinct, whether in production or, perhaps more importantly, vocally.
At his most prolific, Young’s peers would have been Joni Mitchell, Mavin Gaye, and Bowie—all artists with a distinct but traditionally revered vocal style that showcased a wider range than Young. However, such was his authenticity that what may have been considered blemishes in Young’s voice were merely a reflection of humanity and always served the broader purpose of the song.
On After The Gold Rush, his 1970 album that many fans consider his opus, the vocal takes are raw and emotive and more importantly, provide the necessary familiarity for songs that foreground a tender storyteller.
However, in 2002, decades after his records had cemented their cultural success amongst music fans, and the legacy of Young’s work and voice wasn’t in question, he still reflected on his vocal performances with relative nonchalance.
In an interview with Pulse he said: “Leadbelly, Howlin’ Wolf, Hound Dog Taylor—all these guys who played so great. And I also really loved the fellow who sang in Canned Heat—he was a great singer with a wonderful voice, a great blues voice, I can’t remember his name [Bob ‘The Bear’ Hite]. But I love that kind of music. And I can’t sing as well those guys, but I can have a good time and make up my own songs.”
While Howlin’ Wolf had a truly distinctive voice and Bob Hite’s gravelly injection in Canned Heat’s songs provided the songs with a hearty blues undercurrent, Young’s strength wasn’t his power.
During his Desert Island Discs interview with the BBC, former Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters spoke about Young’s vocals on ‘Helpless’ and the impact it had on him: “There is an honesty and a truth in everything that he’s done,” he continued. “You feel the man’s integrity and passion. I can feel the hairs standing up on the back of my neck now, remembering the purity with which he hits the first notes of this song. It’s extraordinarily moving and eloquent.”
While it may have been all part of having a good time and making some songs up, Waters’ testimonial is one of many in the catalogue of adoration Neil Young has and the impact his performative style had on the way we listen to art.
