Neil Young, "Live at Massey Hall 1971"
CJ takes us on a journey through the past
CJ’s Pitch:
I’m embarrassed to tell you that I bought the Live at Massey Hall CD at Starbucks. It was back when they were trying to be cultural trendsetters by making the works of musical luminaries such as Patti Scialfa and Zucchero Fornaciari available in their coffeehouses. There it was, beckoning to me from its lucite display between the stale cake pops and questionable bacon gruyere egg bites. I picked it up and perused the track list as I was waiting for the Clover Coffee Machine (for which Starbucks paid $11K apiece back in 2008) to brew my grande Komodo Dragon. And I knew in those few pre-caffeinated moments that I was taking it home with me.
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When Neil Young took the stage on that cold (I’m guessing) Toronto night in early 1971, it was just him, an acoustic guitar, a piano and that contraption that holds your harmonica and possibly fixes your scoliosis. Possibly. At the time, he was 26-years-old with a songbook and career that would’ve been the envy of musicians twice his age. He’d already been a founding member of Buffalo Springfield, released three solo albums (two of which, Everybody Knows This is Nowhere and After the Gold Rush, went platinum), played a somewhat famous music festival called Woodstock, and joined forces with the Messrs. Crosby, Stills, and Nash.
Ever the curmudgeon, Young was already acting like a musician twice his age. Over the course of the evening, he tells meandering stories, complains about his aching back and even scolds a photographer. But none of that detracts from the fact that this was a magical performance.
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It’s not uncommon for artists to go out on tour in support of a new album. It is, however, rare for an artist to embark on said tour before the album has even been released. So, now you show up to this gig hoping to hear any number of Neil’s big hits and he tells you straight away that the evening is largely going to be devoted to new music. Songs from an album called Harvest that would arrive at record stores two weeks later. You’d think you’d been ripped off.
But the truth was, you just hit the fucking lottery.
Imagine being among the first on the planet to hear “A Man Needs A Maid,” “Heart of Gold” and “The Needle and the Damage Done.” Not to mention “Love in Mind” and “Journey Through the Past,” which wouldn’t appear on a Neil Young album for another two years(!) And just in case you weren’t blown away by the new stuff (and how could you not be?), Neil sprinkles in “Helpless,” “Ohio”, “Cowgirl in the Sand,” “Don’t Let It Bring You Down,” and my favorite, “Down by the River.”
Is it possible that this is both a Greatest Hits and a Greatest Hits Yet To Come album? I’d say it’s an absolute certainty.
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When Roger Clemens struck out 20 Seattle Mariners on a rainy (I’m guessing) April night at Fenway in 1986, there were just over 13,000 people in attendance. Nearly 40 years later, roughly 200,000 Bostonians claim to have been at that game. Strangely, about the same number of people insist they were at Massey Hall for this concert in 1971, even though the joint only holds a little over 2,700.
One thing is for sure, though. Both Roger and Neil were throwing some serious heat.
Mitch’s Response:
December 19, 1973
Dear Ed-
Here’s the record - however - because I liked it, I have substituted for the Neil Young record that actually came in this cover, an old and scratched copy of Mario Lanza’s Greatest Hits. I just know you’ll enjoy listening while crippled with the pain of gout. I love you both - Be Well - Your Friend, N. McT
Many years ago, I found a handwritten note tucked into a vinyl copy of Neil Young’s Time Fades Away. I had spent years tracking down that “lost” album in my Sisyphean pursuit to collect Neil’s entire discography on vinyl. And while I wasn’t crippled with the pain of gout, I was wounded by a lot of truly terrible ‘80s Geffen albums, and I gave up on my shaky quest.
I love the note because it’s as mercurial as Mr. Young himself. N. McT obviously never swapped the Neil vinyl (I still have it) and I doubt that Ed was really suffering from gout. I suspect that it was just two friends - two fellow Neil lovers - having fun with each other. But we’ll never know the true intention or backstory behind this letter. We just have to experience it.
It’s the same thing that’s asked of Neil Young fans. To love Neil you have to give yourself over to Neil. You can’t have any expectations, or make any demands of him. You can’t expect him to play your favorite songs - or in the case of Live at Massey Hall - practically any songs that you know at all. You just have to open yourself up to Neil and hope for the best.
A lot of times - back to those ‘80s records - it doesn’t work, and Neil seems like the worst famous musician in the world.
But when it does work it can be magic. And Live at Massey Hall is sheer magic - especially the sublime “Love in Mind”.
Pitch Successful (Peach gladly eaten)
Ken’s Response:
Neil Young walks onstage at Toronto’s Massey Hall in 1971, armed only with a guitar, a piano, and the belief that he doesn’t need anyone else to make magic happen. And he's right… sort of.
This album is the audio equivalent of watching paint dry, but it’s special Canadian paint, so it’s apologetically emotional, it’s kind and friendly like everything Canadian, and it’s definitely biodegradable and sustainably grown. Neil feels alone (because he is) like a moose deliberately lost among a grove of maples, performing some of his most iconic tracks ("Old Man," "Helpless") with the energy of a man whispering to his dog, Old King.
No backing band. No dramatic lighting. Just Neil, in a friggin sweater, sounding like he’s half-asleep but spiritually as awake as one can be. It's boring in the way a candlelit vigil might be boring - nothing’s happening, but your soul is aflame.
Each track is heartfelt and profoundly touching. You're lulled into a state that makes you question everything: your life choices, your lunch choices, your golf club selection, and whether it’s possible for boredom to feel this good.
The applause between songs is…we’ll call it polite, like the audience doesn't want to startle Neil out of his trance. It’s 100% Canadian.
In the end, Live at Massey Hall is proof that sometimes quiet, reflective boredom is exactly what you need to get you through your day. Boring? Yes. Breathtaking? Absolutely.
Pitch Successful (I am the one who knocks…on your cellar door)
Don’s Response:
In February 2009, I trekked to Levon Helm’s barn in snow-covered Woodstock to be among a small group of fans who attended the recording sessions for what would become The Black Crowes album, Before The Frost…
The twist was that the band performed and recorded their new songs live, in front of us. No overdubs. No studio tricks. It was riveting.
We witnessed multiple takes for some tunes. Others were nailed on the first try. We saw strings break and heard voices crack. We could feel their anxiety as they presented their new work. It was astonishing to see our favorite artists paint on a blank canvas, right there in front of us.
The Crowes were always willing to fly without a net. In fact, fifteen years earlier, in 1996, they unconventionally covered a brand new song by another artist just days after it was released, before most of the audience even knew it existed.
The song was “Big Time.” The artist was Neil Young.
Which brings me to Live at Massey Hall, a document of the 1971 show during which Young unveiled a slew of his own new tunes including “Old Man” and “Heart of Gold” a full year before they were released on Harvest. Can you imagine being in that audience, enthralled by some of Young’s greatest hits to date, mixed with stunning new tunes that were obviously going to be new classics?
The recording is stark. Just Neil, his guitar, a piano, and his utterly unique, indelible voice. The production is impeccable, bringing the listener out of the audience and onto the stage, as if one was sitting next to him. The acoustics are perfect.
It’s hard to believe Massey Hall was not released for 36 years. What a treasure.
Pitch Successful (Hey Hey, My My)
CJ’s pitch was successful and Neil Young’s Live at Massey Hall 1971 will be added to the Newbury St. Collection (alongside the already-inducted Psychedelic Pill). What’s your take on Neil and this legendary show? Please let us know in the comments.
Please join us next week as Mitch take us on a journey from the past to the present with a pitch for Neal Francis’s 2023 live release, Francis Comes Alive.
Welcome to our world, Bob. However, I think may have unwittingly encouraged him to go deeper into the thesaurus moving forward.
This was the first album I thought of when we decided to do live albums. But when Don led off with Dylan, I felt like they were too similar to do back-to-back. So I shifted to Tesla (much to Don's chagrin). I come back to the Massey Hall album every few months and especially in the fall for some reason (Harvest?). It never gets old for me.