The underrated Neil Young song Courtney Marie Andrews calls “perfect”
Neil Young is notoriously a difficult man to predict. In fact, the only predictable thing about him is the quality of his music.
Young is incredibly committed to what he makes, as he is constantly searching within himself for the right words and the right sounds. It seems that there is no limit on the various subject matters which Young is comfortable writing about; instead, he lives in the present and allows his songs to take the shape of whatever moment he finds himself in.
“Don’t chase the rabbit,” he said when discussing his songwriting process, and since he wants to feel a connection with what he creates, that means his songs need to occur pretty naturally. He’ll never force out a tune for the sake of it, and that’s reflected in how effortless so much of his music sounds.
“If the song happens, then it happens,” he added. “If the song doesn’t happen, then it doesn’t happen. It doesn’t matter.”
The only thing that Young puts ahead of his music is himself – according to former band members at least. During an exclusive interview with Far Out, Graham Nash spoke about what it was like to work with Young and what he does and doesn’t respect about the songwriter. Simply put, he respects the songs, but that acclaim often falls short when it comes to the man writing them.
“I think Neil is very smart. I do respect his connection with what he calls ‘the muse’ of his music. He follows that intently, and I understand that, and I respect that,” said Nash. “One of the things I don’t quite like is all the people who surround him, all the stage technicians, all the sound technicians, all the lighting technicians, to have a tour for six weeks in the summer all of a sudden cancelled because of whatever reason Neil wants to cancel it, all of those people can’t find a job, because the rest of the touring family are already out and running.”
He continued, “Now what do they do? That’s one of the things about him being associated with the muse that I don’t respect at all. But he is an incredible musician, and I’ve always enjoyed being on stage with him.”
It seems that Neil Young has been aware of how he potentially neglects people in the past. On his album Harvest Moon, among the array of stunning musicianship and heartfelt lyricism, we find the track ‘One Of These Days’. The song acts as an ode to friendship but also as recognition that Young might have fallen short of the mark on some occasions.
Courtney Marie Andrews also knows a thing or two about songwriting. You won’t find many artists who can tap into raw emotion the same way that she can, and her music, similar to Young’s, acts as a representation for a very specific and very real moment in time. She called ‘One Of These Days’ Young’s most underrated tune, given how open it is in its assessment of friendship, and because of how well it utilises harmonies. How ironic that a song about drifting apart brings people together so effectively.
“‘One Of These Days’ from Harvest Moon is a perfect song,” said Andrews, “I first heard this song when I was a teenager at a New Year’s Eve party… It was played right before ‘Auld Lang Syne’, and I was surrounded by friends, freaks from all different backgrounds.”
Concluding, “It’s a perfect ode to friendship. The sentiment always makes me tear up – the simplicity and truth of the statement ‘One of these days/ I’m gonna sit down and write a long letter/ To all the good friends I’ve known’ paired with the Linda Rondstadt and James Taylor harmonies. This song is one of Neil’s most underrated gems.”
