All in a Dream

Massey Hall is a magical place. I saw Neil Young perform last night for an imperative cause. My cheeks were in high colour and I kept feeling like I was going to cry. Why? Because I love him and I can’t stand the thought of losing him.

Neil Young is an amazing man.  Musician (guitarist, pianist, organist, harp player, etc.), performer, writer, inventor, environmental activist… The list goes on. Genius might be the right word. I adore him. Am I making that clear?

What a night! The audience was energized and receptive. If you have the CD Live at Massey Hall 1971, you might get the idea of what it was like to be there with Neil in 2014. Highlights for me were hearing “On the Way Home” and “Helpless” back-to-back, “Old Man,” “A Man Needs a Maid,” “Ohio,” and “Heart of [freaking] Gold”!!

The evening ended with the perfect encore:  “Comes a Time” (one of the only Neil Young songs that I can play comfortably on the uke) and “Long May You Run”(I love the little nod to the Beach Boys in that song: “Caroline, No”). I realize that I’m practically naming the entire set list. Truly though, I loved it all. What a treat! Whenever I think of complaining about anything for the next while I’m going to remember that I saw Neil Young at Massey Hall and know that dreams really do come true. The song that’s in my mind this morning though is “After the Gold Rush.” Neil revised the lyrics last night to “Look at Mother Nature on the run / in the 21st century.” With the tar sands issue in Alberta and recent talk of recruiting astronauts for a mission to Mars, the song seems chillingly premonitory.

Because I didn’t get to sleep until after 2:00 a.m. last night (I was too wired!), I briefly considered driving my daughter to school this morning. Remembering the message last night though, we bundled up and walked instead with the sun in our eyes, crunching ice underfoot, and beautiful music in my mind. 

“All in a dream, all in a dream / the loading had begun / They were flying Mother Nature’s silver seed / to a new home in the sun.”

Neil Young

My mind was active last night. It’s been active a lot lately. I was dreaming that I was interviewing Neil Young. There he was with his acoustic guitar playing beautifully for me. (We were at the bookstore I used to work at and knee-deep in flood water, but it was so natural and real!) ;) 

I have this connection with Neil Young. I’ve always appreciated him on some level, I guess. He’s a Canadian legend. He’s cool. But this past winter I would say that I became intimate with his music. I must have listened to Decade disc 2 a zillion times. It was a lifeline to me. I wonder if artists of this calibre ever know how much their contributions are appreciated/needed?

Last month I saw Neil in concert. It was a strange experience. I went with all of this imagery in my mind and the reality was such a contrast. (A mostly pot-filled haze thanks to the guy sitting directly behind me who kept billowing smoke and spontaneously shouting, “Yeah, Neil!”)  Neil has aged. He’s not a young man any more. I felt a tremendous sense of compassion for him as he energetically performed. The songs on the album Psychedelic Pill conjure up the same emotion for me. The lyrics are revealing in their simplicity. I respect that Neil has remained true to his art form. He hasn’t compromised himself; rather, as all amazing artists do, he continues to be extremely vulnerable in his work. Bless him!

His autobiography Waging Heavy Peace was published in September, which I hope to acquire soon. I was leafing through a copy at the Superstore and was surprised to learn that his life situation has been anything but easy. On top of only just recently quitting his excessive alcohol and marijuana use, his son Ben was born with cerebral palsy. The song “For the Love of Man” has deeper meaning when you know this about Neil’s son: “Who could understand what goes on. / What is right and what is wrong. / Why the angels cry and the heavens sigh / when a child is born to live, / but not like you or I?” (By the way, Ben is doing amazing and has his own organic free-range chicken farm in California.)

I’m still getting acquainted with Psychedelic Pill, which is a good thing. Winter is coming (it’s snowing like crazy as I type this) and who knows how dark it will get. Thanks Neil Young for everything. You have no idea how much my poetic heart needs you. (♥)