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erin_miller215's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
4.5
sodavisions's review against another edition
challenging
informative
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Neil Young is one of my favorite artists, and it's equal parts fantastic and infuriating that this memoir is literally 512 pages of Neil's unfiltered & unedited conversations with the reader. One chapter could be a heartwarming tale of connection with his son or a tale of the road; and then it's bookended by ceaseless ramblings about Pono, his idea for a lossless iPod, or LincVolt, an electric car he's been prototyping. I know as much about Lionel Trains' inner workings now as I do Neil's songwriting process, and I'm not sure which peers more into his head.
In short; this is Neil as a person's autobiography. Not Neil the musician -- it just feels like Neil is your grandpa sending you text messages about whatever is on his mind at any given time. In some ways it's sweet; but in other ways you'll probably learn more about him from his Wikipedia article.
In short; this is Neil as a person's autobiography. Not Neil the musician -- it just feels like Neil is your grandpa sending you text messages about whatever is on his mind at any given time. In some ways it's sweet; but in other ways you'll probably learn more about him from his Wikipedia article.
toc's review against another edition
5.0
I'm less than a quarter way thru and already it gets five stars. This thing is a meandering mess of a book. Very little rhyme or reason as to the arrangement of chapters or topics. It's as if Neil just sat down and started writing. Which is exactly what he did! He does admit to having edited a single paragraph but that just makes me wonder what he changed. I am thoroughly enjoying this. I'll report back when I finish, in about another 42 chapters...
(By the way, I'm listening to the audiobook read by Keith Carradine so perhaps his excellent performance is part of my enjoyment. But that makes little difference to me!)
"...I induced dreams in the waking hours to snatch them in their innocence and commit them to song and melody and words captured. ... So now I am in the song machine gone awry. I wander the halls of straightness, not knowing how to hallucinate."
Can this guy write or not!?
(By the way, I'm listening to the audiobook read by Keith Carradine so perhaps his excellent performance is part of my enjoyment. But that makes little difference to me!)
"...I induced dreams in the waking hours to snatch them in their innocence and commit them to song and melody and words captured. ... So now I am in the song machine gone awry. I wander the halls of straightness, not knowing how to hallucinate."
Can this guy write or not!?
featurecreep's review against another edition
3.0
The book reads like a very personal blog which has been curated into something larger without the benefit of a professional editor. That gives it a very raw feel which is probably what Neil was going for. It took me a bit of effort to get through, I believe as a result of the editing. For example, individuals important to Young are reintroduced as if you've never seen them before, sometimes in adjoining chapters. Some of the story gets repetitive, but with novel nuggets strewn in.
All in all its a very personal and approachable piece that makes me feel like I know who Neil Young is much more so than I did before.
All in all its a very personal and approachable piece that makes me feel like I know who Neil Young is much more so than I did before.
musicsaves's review against another edition
4.0
FIRST LINE REVIEW: "When I was young, I never dreamed of this." Neil Young...love him or hate him. Well, maybe not hate. But I know plenty of people who just don't get him. Me, I've loved his music and voice since discovering his "Decades" LP at summer camp back in the late 70s. And now I've had him talking in my ear for the past four days while I listened to him ramble about whatever popped into his head at that moment. That's this book! Not a tidy, chronological autobiography, but rather...a bit, sprawling mess, full of fun stories, occasional rants, lots of repetition, but a lot of fun and heart, too! He's written as if he's just sharing without any filter (or editor) in the room and I came to appreciate that. Not a great book, but a very fun one. Side note: on the day I finished it, I visited the site of the Woodstock Festival. Perfect ending!
funknik's review against another edition
4.0
This is a fun book. Not especially well written, nor really a memoir or bio, it resembles nothing so much as sitting and listening to your favorite, but goofiest, uncle ramble after Thanksgiving dinner. Engrossing stories about Buffalo Springfield and CSNY are interspersed with tirades about the intolerable sound quality of the MP3 format and what repair work he's done on any number of classic cars that you've never heard of. Profound insight and quotes are juxtaposed with the corniest, endlessly groan-worthy quips "is that a song title or what?" Oh, Uncle Neil ... Overall, however, I must admit I really enjoyed the conversational tone and there's enough meat in here to make it really worthwhile -- also, for what it's worth, Neil's outlook on life is positive and valuable, so instead of being simply informative, this book made me feel good.
sbyerley's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
5.0
Absolutely love Neil Young, and have seen him love several time. Because of that, my review may be biased, but loved the stories from his career
zoroco's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
timinbc's review against another edition
4.0
Three stars by any rational measure - but somehow I'm giving it four anyway. It rambles, repeats itself, bogs down in detail or flies over important stuff.
It's easy to say it needs an editor or a ghost writer - but it wouldn't have been the same and might not have been better.
Near the end Young reflects that he might have been a better person. But throughout the book it's clear that for all his clashes and snap decisions, he has also spent time being a good person. We see who he worked with and who influenced him; we get a feel for the things he obsesses about.
We see a lot of evidence that Young has had a lot of money for a long time. If he sees something he likes, he buys it or funds it. Near the end he has eight houses on two properties. But he never once seems like a guy who was ever motivated by money. His laser focus on music is very clear. It's lost him friends, and made him friends, and brought in that money that lets him have hobbies.
And it's fascinating to see that the music focus perhaps spills over to his hobbies, in sort of a go-big-or-go-home way.
And we see a bit about his relationship with his two physically-challenged sons. It's clear that having money helped him deal with the challenges, but nevertheless it's quite remarkable that the boys appear as his friends who happen to need help doing things. A lot goes unsaid, but it's his choice.
And we gradually come to understand, now that he's clean and dry, the amazing extent to which Young spent decades marinading in drugs and alcohol, and managed to steer through when some close friends didn't.
Conclusion from book: he's really one of a kind, and interesting.
It's easy to say it needs an editor or a ghost writer - but it wouldn't have been the same and might not have been better.
Near the end Young reflects that he might have been a better person. But throughout the book it's clear that for all his clashes and snap decisions, he has also spent time being a good person. We see who he worked with and who influenced him; we get a feel for the things he obsesses about.
We see a lot of evidence that Young has had a lot of money for a long time. If he sees something he likes, he buys it or funds it. Near the end he has eight houses on two properties. But he never once seems like a guy who was ever motivated by money. His laser focus on music is very clear. It's lost him friends, and made him friends, and brought in that money that lets him have hobbies.
And it's fascinating to see that the music focus perhaps spills over to his hobbies, in sort of a go-big-or-go-home way.
And we see a bit about his relationship with his two physically-challenged sons. It's clear that having money helped him deal with the challenges, but nevertheless it's quite remarkable that the boys appear as his friends who happen to need help doing things. A lot goes unsaid, but it's his choice.
And we gradually come to understand, now that he's clean and dry, the amazing extent to which Young spent decades marinading in drugs and alcohol, and managed to steer through when some close friends didn't.
Conclusion from book: he's really one of a kind, and interesting.