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(top)
; William ; AndyPoncho ;
HippieGirlSmile ; NobbyTheMekons
; ARealCinnamonGirl ; Randy ; Steven
; RewritingTheRules ; Wonderin'Man
; Cannoneer ; Catman
; ExpectingToFly ; TheEmperorOfOhio
; VictimOfHerSens ; LookoutMama
; OldKing : Uli ; TheDamageDone ;
Rusty Words
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WILLIAM LAU :
"I certainly had heard Like_A_Hurricane before but I didn't really care who sang it. So a
real Neil encounter happened when I watched Year_Of_The_Horse. I watched it not for Neil, but
for Jim Jarmusch. I was reluctant to watch this film because my Neil image is a
Dylanesque harmonica/guitar "unplugged" singer. Imagine my surprise in seeing
Neil do noisy rock music and jam endlessly." (top)
-------------------------------
ANDY "PONCHO"
:
It was in 1970 when I walked into the record
shop where I used to buy all my music at the time,ie:King Crimson,Led Zep,Bowie,Tull
etc,when as I got to the counter and said hi to my fellow Hippie friend
Simon,I heard this piano start to play and then a song followed. I asked
him"who is that,it`s beautiful",well Simon says to me,"it`s
a song called Only Love Can Break Your Heart,and it`s by Neil Young,you
know that guy who sings with Crosby,Stills and Nash and was in the Buffalo
Springfield"well I said to him "what`s the album called,"and
of course I was told it was After The Goldrush. I just stood at the counter
and listened to all the record and then bought it. On Friday(wages day in
England)I bought Neil Young and Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere,and I have
not looked back since. My first Neil show was at the Rainbow Theatre at
Finsbury Park here in London on 5-11-73 and what a show it has turned out
to be,it`s hard to remember exactly my thoughts way back then but I know
that my friends and I was very impressed indeed,I know a lot of adverse
criticism has been written about that tour but I tell you all you had to
be there to appreciate the power of the music.!!! I know that I was disappointed
at not getting a ticket for the Royal Festival Hall show back in 71 but
the Rainbow sure made up for it for me.:-) My next show was at Wembley Stadium
74 for the final ever tour date for CSNY what a great day that was,I hardly
saw a thing but the atmosphere was incredible I can tell you,the music everything
that day will remain with me forever. Since then I have seen Neil twice
in 76 at Hammersmith Odeon(I was lucky enough to get Stringman one night.!!!),the
Transband twice in 82,twice in 87 with the Horse.Solo December 89 at Hammersmith,Finsbury
Park 93 with the MG`s,Reading 95 with Pearl Jam and Phoenix Festival and
Glasgow in 96. I will be attending my very first Bridge shows this year
in October and I am very much looking forward to this rare treat. To me
Neil is passion and his music takes me to where no other artist ever has
or ever will I think,Neil is a musical genius to me and I am proud to have
been aboard his ship for these last 29 years of my life. There has been
up`s and down`s for Neil and I have stayed the course I am glad to say,there
is no other artist who has produced so much diverse music throughout his
wonderful career. Whenever I see Neil live or listen to a show I am transported
to another plane,my body can not keep still and I have a look of ecstasy
on my face(so I am told)and my body gets full of passion and emotion from
this most wonderful of musicians. I look forward to wherever Neil is going
to take me in the new millennium as it`s going to be another long pleasurable
ride I hope.:-) Andrew. (Poncho) Look at a Andy pic !!! <debbiepic.htm>
(top)
-------------------------------
HIPPY GIRL SMILE :
I was 14 yrs old lived in a small farming village.
From the time that I was a child, I was always different . It seems as though
I did not want to live my life in the country being isolated. A modeling
scout passed thru and wanted to do test shots in hopes that eventually I
would get modeling jobs. mon mere refused to let me do that. As a result
I left home to hitchhike out to San Francisco and the Hippie scene which
only I read about in magazines. My Neil beginning was in 1967 and 1968.
We all used to hitch down to The Whiskey Au Go Go. We used to go to watch
The Doors. Jim Morrison was full of surprises. People were intrigued by
him. One night while at the Go Go, a band by the name of Buffalo Springfield,
opened for The Doors. That was when I first saw Neil dressed in his "
fringy" clothing. It was a special memory to have been there. In 1969
I saw CSNY play Woodstock. Whoo Hoo (top)
-------------------------------
NOBBY THE MEKONS :
It's hard to remember, cause it's a while back.
The first time I remember listening to For What It's Worth was one afternoon,
when I was sitting in our kitchen and listening to a radio programm with
US Billbioard charts. They played FWIT and I immediately liked it. So a
while later I went to town looking for the Buffalo Springfield LPI bought
it and brought it home only to find out that it was the second edition's
cover (with FWIW as the first song but the first edition's record without
FWIW. I was quite disappointed, but liked the record. I found the remareks
on the musicians on back quite strange. When the first Neil LP was relased
I didn't like it that much. I even lost it somewhere down the road. (I still
have the Buffalo Springfield though.) The LP that really got me hooked on
Neil was After The Goldrush. Ciao. (top)
-------------------------------
A REAL CINAMON GIRL :
Ahhhh, the memory of it............. It was
just last year, about April, when a guy I had met on AOL(go ahead and laugh)
told me he was working on a parody of Needle and the Damage Done. I said,
"what's THAT?" and he told me of a man named Neil Young of whom
I had never heard (mind you, I am not a kid, I am 29..but I was what you'd
call a Country girl). He was going to write a parody and call it "El
Nino and the Damage Done" (cause of the hurricanes and such at the
time) but he couldnt remember the lyrics to the original song. So I took
10 seconds to search the web, found HyperRust lyrics page, and sent the
lyrics to him. Then I told him he oughtta write a parody about all the shootings
that had just happened in the schools instead..and I sat here on my puter
and wrote him a parody...having never heard the song myself.Took me about
10 minutes. Here it is (go ahead and laugh again) :
I caught you barging through my High School
door,
I hate you, teacher, better hit the floor....
Ooh,ooh, the damage done.
I hit the grade school where the toys are piled,
I watched a pupil kill another child,
Gone, gone, the damage done.
I sing the song because across this land,
There's something happ'ning I don't understand,
Young blood keeps flowing out I seen the High
School and the damage done,
A little slug in it for every one,
Cause every pupil has a loaded gun Anyway, shortly
thereafter I spent time reading over some more lyrics....seeing how this
dude kept telling me i was like a hurricane....I HAD to read that one, and
he told me I was a cinnamon girl.....on and on, til I went to his apartment
a couple months later and saw Rust Never Sleeps on video. I thought, wow,
what an interesting dude that Neil guy is. He made the earth move. My pulse
raced...my breathing was heavy ....He was so intoxicating I nearly passed
out with pleasure. And when he was finished, I knew our souls had been united
for that brief, wonderful time....and I will never stop loving him.(YES
NEIL, NOT THE AOL GUY!!!!!) I am A Real Cinnamon Girl ....maybe the AOL
guy too :) (top)
-------------------------------
RANDY "TAKING MY ORDERS FROM
FOOLS" :
The year was 1969. I was 12 years old and living
in a small town in Ohio (and I am still there 30 years later!). My older
brother was into the psychedlic music of the time and really enjoyed the
music of Iron Butterfly, and had requested their "Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida"
album for Christmas. Our parents got him the album, and by chance, he also
received an Atlantic Recording Company compilation album which included
Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida in a shorter edited form. There were other groups on
the album, including Vanilla Fudge, the Rascals, others, and a band called
Buffalo Springfield. I had heard Buffalo Springfield on the radio before.
Stephen Stills's "For What It's Worth" was very familiar to me,
and I had seen them on television from time to time. The Springfield songs
on this album, though, were different. One was a Stills tune called "Bluebird."
The other was attributed to someone called "N. Young" and was
called "Mr. Soul." His voice, his guitar, his choice of words
got into me for some reason, even at that tender age. I wasn't long before
"4 Way Street" made it into my small collection, and the rest
was history. To me, Neil stood out above the other three initials in CSNY.
As David Crosby would later remark, Neil had the songs. He still does. He
is a poet/songwriter/visionary for the ordinary people, "les genes
ordinaires." >From the Etats Unis to Rusties in France, NOUS VOUS
AIMONS!!!!!! (Sorry if that is incorrect, it's been 27 years since my last
French class!) Best regards, Randy shadow on the sky (formerly known as
i take MY orders from fools) (top)
-------------------------------
STEVEN :
Our teacher of Dutch was (and still is) a huge
Neil fan. When he didn't feel like teaching (that's why I think he's one
of the best teachers I'll ever have), he put on some music he always carried
around with him. It were four tapes, 90% was Neil, all very calm, accoustic
songs.When the music was playing, he used to let us write poems and stuff,
so we would be busy, but not making a sound. I remember that Heart of Gold
& Out on the Weekend made an impression on me, but I didn't pay too
much attention to the rest of the songs.One day, when I was walking around
in the library (where they also rent cds), I noticed a few Neil Young albums.
I decided to go for it and rented Harvest, Unplugged, Mirror Ball and Arc/Weld.
I came home, put it on, liked Harvest and Unplugged very much, but I had
this URGE to just THROW away Mirror Ball and Arc/Weld! It SUCKED!!! (they
are now among my favorites :) ).The next day, I was in a naughty mood: I
decided to ask my teacher those 4 tapes. Those tapes were considered to
be his religious possession, nobody ever dared ask for them. So I did; he
said: "Sure! I'll spin you some copies and you'll have them tomorrow!"
Oh boy, was I happy!!!It still took a month before I got them, but I DID
eventually! Everybody jealous as hell of course... And after having listened
to them in decent way, I was hooked. And I've got this feeling that it's
going to be an adiction for life. Of course, I'm (normally) not a selfish
guy, so I borrowed the tapes to my friends and so it happens that from my
high school, about 6 people graduated from the same class with the same
music taste: Neil.Afterwards, the teacher told me that he has had some students
who turned into Neil's music,but he admitted he hadn't seen them yet in
groups of 6 per class. :)So, to conclude, if there's one way we, Neil-Young-fans,
can take over the world, we all have to become teachers and teach our students
well!!! :)
Steven
~Across the Ocean~ (top)
-------------------------------
SAM CARSTENS :
Christine........ my 1st memories: I was probably
3 or 4 years old, my dad was a big neil young fan.. he'd put on Everybody's
Rockin and I'd dance around and tap my feet to Jellyroll Man, Bright Lights
Big City, Kinda Fonda Wanda.... I also remember some of Live Rust... but
not much. sam (top)
-------------------------------
DEBBIE "REWRITING THE RULES" :
Hippy Girl's Smile wrote to me that you are
looking for Neil stories. Here's mine: I was about 15 or 16 years old, and
went to visit a neighbor, my good friend Bob. He had a new stereo, and a
new pair of headphones. This was a time when FEW people had headphones!
They were new technology, even stereo sound was just becoming common. Anyway,
Bob told me to sit down, he put the headphones on my head and a record on
the turntable. It was Neil's After The Goldrush. I just sat there, stunned,
and fell completely in love with that VOICE. I become devoted to Neil in
that moment. Thirty years later the fire is still burning...................
I got married when I was 20 years old, and spent a lot of years building
a family. I didn't have time or money for much music. The first time I saw
Neil in concert was the Weld tour, February 1991, I think (I don't remember
dates very well). It was at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
(my home town). Some of the Weld video was shot at that show, although I'm
not in any of it. I was about 20 rows back from the stage. Once again, I
just was in awe of Neil. The first time I MET Neil was in Akron, Ohio on
April 27, 1999.....just a few weeks ago. The first time Neil HUGGED me was
in Chicago, Illinois on May 1, 1999!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll send you THAT story,
too, if you want. Just let me know. I hope this is the kind of story you
want. I also hope your *LGO* fest is successful!!!! Have fun, Debbie Rewriting
the Rules
And then Debbie talks to us about Neil's blue
eyes...
Did you read my rust post about Akron? The M&G
was so cool, very low key, Neil was there a long time. I gave him a couple
of gifts (which he took directly from me, I didn't have to hand off to the
body guard), we had a short conversation (that voice!), phenomenal eye contact
(blue eyes that see every secret), I got my autograph and a handshake, and
I grinned all the way back to Pittsburgh the next day...and days after.
I also started *schmoozing* Elliot in Akron. Friday night in Chicago...Neil
made lots of guitar mistakes, but the show was wonderful. At the M&G
I showed Elliot a picture taken of me and Ben Young at Bridge in '97, along
with a picture of some of the kids I work with, told him I wanted to give
them to Neil. I said to Elliot, "And it would mean so much to me to
be able to show these kids a picture of me and Neil". This was after
the big *NO CAMERAS, they will be confiscated and you will leave* speech
we were given. Elliot says, "we'll see how it goes. If not tonight,
tomorrow night". I told him I'd be there Saturday too! I met Neil Friday,gave
him the photos. He said he thought the shot with Ben was really good, seemed
happy to see *my* kids, but he was kind of rushed, not looking at people,
it was sort of weird. But I had autograph #2 at least. And contact. Saturday
night. The show was absolutely phenomenal!!! Neil was so ON, the crowd was
cool. M&G time. I immediately went up to Elliot, shook his hand and
said "You made me a promise last night. I don't want to be a jerk and
if you tell me *no* I will go away. But if you tell me *maybe* I can be
relentless." He tells me "We'll make it happen." Neil comes
in, people almost mob him (gently). I just stepped back to the center of
the room and waited. Neil came over my way, I got my autograph (again),
I thanked him for the tour, exchanged a few words (I don't even remember
them, I just kept concentrating on his eyes...)and I turned away. I thought
he had a lot of other folks to talk to. But he was just standing there with
no one else around. So I stepped closer and said "Neil. Would you fulfill
a 30 year old fantasy for me?" and I put my hand out for (another)
handshake. He took a step closer AND HUGGED ME!!!!!! I was in the ARMS OF
NEIL YOUNG!! My cheek touched his face! Oh my, can that man give good hug........I
thanked him again, and just stood there grinning, my knees shaking so bad
I could not have taken a step if I had to! Neil moved on to some other fans.
All of a sudden somebody grabs my elbow and moves me toward Neil. It's Elliot,
he says "Get your camera ready". I handed it to Kathy HGS and
Elliot tells Neil "This lady has been to a couple of shows and works
with disabled kids. She'd like a picture with you." Neil says "Sure,
cool" and stands there next to me for a picture, flash and all! I couldn't
believe it! I truly have wanted that moment for 30 years. Again, I thanked
him for everything and moved back to the middle of the crowd. I hear a bunch
of people talking and wondering who the hell I was that Neil hugged me and
THEN I got a picture after it was expressly forbidden! I felt like some
kind of celebrity myself. But the truth is, Neil is tired of thin blonds.
He has now had his arms around a *comfortable* brunette and life will not
be the same for him. Look at the Mona Lisa grin on his face.................;-)
On Monday, my 16 year old daughter Megan was at school, and a couple of
kids were complaining about the rules not being fair. The teacher in the
class told them "Let me tell you about not fair. I flew to Chicago
on Saturday, hoping to get a picture of Neil Young. I went to this reception
and they told us absolutely NO CAMERAS. But some lady gets hugged by Neil
and SHE gets to have a picture taken!! I'd love to know what that was all
about" Megan said she put her hand up and told him "That was no
lady, that was my mom!" So, that's my Neil story. I am the luckiest
person alive right now. And the most grateful.......... (top)
-------------------------------
DAVID "WONDERIN MAN" :
The first time I saw Neil, I was sooooooo far
away, I really didn't even see him. It was on July 25, 1974, at Mile High
Stadium in Denver, Colorado. Three friend and I got tickets to see CSNY,
and we were there that night. We had seats in the upper deck of the stadium,
and CSNY looked like ants from where we were seated. Sometimes the wind
would start to blow, and it would literaly carry the music away. They would
be playing, and then there would be no music, then it would come back all
of a sudden. At first, I thought I had smoked too much weed, but everyone
around us noticed it too. What a relief that was, I thought I was going
deaf. Jessie Collin Young was the first act, followed by the Beach Boys,
then came CSNY. What a night that was. It started about 6:00pm, and finished
up about 12:30AM. Then we had about an hr. ride back to the army base we
were stationed at. Got to see him do Ambulance Blues that night. That has
to be one of my all time favorite Neil songs. I was 20 years old at the
time. Hope this is what you were looking for. Keep On Rockin' In The Free
World..!! Later David aka Wonderin Man!!! (top)
-------------------------------
CHRIS HORN "CANNONEER" :
Have fun at the LGO Rustfest in July!!!!!
My first exposure to Neil was the song "For What It's Worth" by
the Buffalo Springfield. At the time I did not know who Neil Young or BS
was. The first time I heard it, I was 13 years old and at a friend's house.
We were in a tent set up in his yard, listening to the radio. When the song
came on, he said his parents thought it was a bad song (they did not agree
with the anti-war protesting at the time). I thought it was a great song!
We were also smoking our first cigarettes! :-)~ cough cough A few years
later, I listened to the Deja Vu album. I also heard "Heart of Gold"
"Cinnamon Girl" and "Down By The River" on the radio.
I still was not a big Neil fan at the time (Beatles music and POCO were
my favorites). At one point, my younger brother told me to listen to Neil,
REALLY listen to him. The album that got me hooked was 'Tonight's The Night'.
I would lay in bed with headphones, listening to this music. Then when Zuma
came out I really liked that one too, especially "Cortez The Killer".
Finally, when I saw Neil and Stephen live July 1, 1976 (POCO was the opening
act :-), it completed my total admiration of Neil. He has been the most
important musician in my life ever since. Chris Horn CW Cannoneer (top)
-------------------------------
CATMAN :
Osmosis ! He didn't come crashing in like a
tidelwave for me. It was more like a long, gentle, time consuming process.
I am 45 years young and so I have pretty much grown up with Neil's music,
as almost a guide in many cases ! He affected an entire generation in much
the same way. I just consider myself VERY luck to have grown up in the S.F.
bay area where his music was appreciated early on by the local radio. I
graduated from High School in 1971 at the peak of his popularity. I can't
imagine my life without his music. Even from the Buffalo Springfield days
I always liked Neil the most because he was the deepest and most sincere
of all the talent at the time. Other music has always been a part of my
life also, the Dead, Hot Tuna, New Riders of the Purple Sage, the Youngbloods.....gosh....
the list IS endless but by far and away it has always been Neil's music
that got me through in a jam.....returning again and again to his songs
for inspiration and comfort. If I had to pick THE song it would have to
be DBTR but only because I did have ALLOT of fun back then and I don't really
remember THE song but DBTR was the one that got so much of the air play
at the time....of course, "For what it's worth" was the first
'Big' song but that was He and Stills together at the time with B.S. My
first Neil Album was After the Goldrush.... I think....I wasn't into spending
my money on things that you couldn't eat or smoke back then, but THAT"S
another story........:) catman.....tymll Ps.......Hope your festing is over
the very TOP !!! (top)
-------------------------------
MIKE "EXPECTING TO FLY" :
Here's my entry: In 1970, I was 14 and listened
mainly to heavy metal bands like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Grand
Funk Railroad; bands I never listen to now. Anyway, I think my story of
my beginnings with Neil is unusual because I couldn't stand him the first
time I heard a song on the radio I knew was by him. The song was "Only
Love Can Break Your Heart" and I thought his voice was so whiny and
high-pitched and unusual. The song stuck out for sure but I didn't think
I liked it. I made friends with a guy who had lived in Europe who had all
this stuff they didn't play on the radio much. Like Jeff Beck and Fleetwood
Mac (the Peter Green version.) I thought this guy's record collection was
really cool. He had one album by Neil, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere.
When he played it, I recognized Cinnamon Girl and Down By The River because
I had heard them before; I just hadn't known it was Neil and it was hard
to believe this great music was by that same whiny voiced person I had heard
on the radio. Around the same time, I heard about CSNY from another friend.
We played the album at his house and Neil's songs really stood out for me,
especially Country Girl. I was getting used to his voice by then. Then I
heard "When You Dance I Can Really Love" on the radio and thought
that was fantastic. That was it. I started buying all the Neil Young albums
I could find and afford and never looked back. I remember once on a school
bus not long after I had really been into the ATGR album singing "Birds"
on the way home from school. She was a nice girl I admired and I was glad
to know others knew Neil's songs. That's it; I discovered the Buffalo Springfield
and all the rest of the albums and I've been a big fan ever since. And I
really like that "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" song very much
now! Mike Cordova. (top)
-------------------------------
BOB "THE EMPEROR OF OHIO" :
Yotha, Here's how I found Neil: This loser of
a guy who could play great guitar was trying to teach me some chords, mostly
blues and stuff like that. I was really into Dan Fogelberg at the time and
this guy starts playing "Needle and the Damage done" and I was
just so blown away I had to go buy the album. Then I bought Freedom and
was equally blown away. I had of course heard Neil before but had never
"heard" him...you know what I mean? Anyway, that was like 7 years
ago and I have never looked back. I have every album on CD and many, many
hours of bootleg. The Emperor of Ohio (top)
-------------------------------
LAUREN "VICTIM OF HER SENS" :
When I was 14 I decided I wanted to learn how
to play the guitar. It was the beginning of a long summer vacation, and
I was bored silly. My Mom and Dad have a massive vinyl collection, which
I listened to when I was a kid but had been ignoring as of late... but I
went to her to see where I should start, as far as an easy song to play.
She suggested 'Helpless' from Deja Vu. I was not sure about this Neil Young
person. I remembered being 12, in 1992, when Neil appeared on VH-1 Center
Stage, and seeing commercials of him singing 'Harvest Moon.' Thought he
was some sort of mega hick country boy. I did not think he would be the
place for me to learn to play rock and roll. But, I trust my Mom, and I
didn't have any other options, really, so one day when no one else was home
I pulled out Deja Vu, stuck it on the turntable, and sat behind the couch.
I remember crouching with my knees tucked up under my chin as the first
haunting strains of that song floated through the air. I didn't breath for
a second - I couldn't believe how beautiful it was. I thought to myself,
I have found something big here. I knew that Neil was going to be an integral
and important element in my life within those three minutes. :) And I was
right ! Haven't turned back since. But I never did learn to play 'Helpless'
on the old 6-string... I think the first song I really caught on to was
'After the Goldrush'....... and that's my first Neil story :). Almost five
years later here I am with almost 20 albums, twice as many tapes, and I
WENT TO THE AUSTIN 5-27 SHOW ! :)* (top)
-------------------------------
SHEILA "LOOKOUT MAMA" :
....... Here's my story: I first noticed Neil
when I was back in Junior High School. I was living in the Chicago area
and had heard For What It's Worth on the radio. I liked the song but was
very much a Hollies fan back then. One day my friends and I went to the
store to buy records and I saw the Springfield's album. Immediately I was
drawn to those eyes. So was my friend Merry. She bought the album and we
took it back to play it. That started my love affair with Neil. In those
days I was all of 12 years old so what drew me to musicians was more how
they looked than how they sounded and what they wrote. And, although something
about Neil touched my soul he just wasn't "cute". I decided to
stick with Tony and Graham and Merry could have Neil. That started a few
years of rivalry between us - who was better, Neil or the Hollies. When
I left Chicago and moved to New York I was already 15 and was more into
what the music had to say. At that point I REALLY started to listen to Neil's
stuff and became a huge fan. I was also a big CSN fan as well and when Neil
joined them it was a dream! Oddly though I still wasn't completely hooked.
I had seen Neil solo in concert and stuff - even got my first real job,
stuffing fanny pads into girdle pockets so I could pay for the tickets -
but for some reason I liked Crosby the best with Neil now my 2nd favorite.
In August of 1974 I had the priviledge of seeing CSNY about 4 or 5 times
in the New York area. To this day I have no idea what happened to me or
why, but the day they played Roosevelt Raceway on Long Island was THE turning
point. I went with the idea that I couldn't wait to see Croz. But as soon
as Neil hit the stage I could not take my eyes of him. I even found myself
watching him backstage as opposed to the other 3 guys on the stage. I feel
completely head over heels in love with Neil Young!!!! His music spoke to
me like nothing else ever had. And I'm still hooked on him to this day.
Neil's music has seen me thru some great times (the night my daughter was
born in 1992 Neil was on Saturday Night live) and has gotten me thru some
terrible ones as well (when my family was in a car accident I spent 3 hours
in the emergency room with my daughter & I singing "Powderfinger"
while they stitched her head shut). Over the years I've been lucky. I've
had the opportunity to meet Neil and most of his family. He's a charming,
gracious man, but I'd hate to be on his bad side! ; - } Actually I think
I like Pegi the best - she's so nice. And I got to say thank you to her
the last time I saw her - thanks for sharing your man with all of us. Anyway,
that's a little bit of my story. Hope it helps. I hope all you guys have
fun at the Rustfest - should be a blast! Sheila {Lookout Mama} (top)
-------------------------------
OLD KING :
On September 29, 1967 I was a 17 year old gangly
frosh at Albany (NY) State University. I'd never been to a rock concert,
they were a new item back then. We got our Rock 'n Roll at dances, and concerts
were reserved for folk singers. So when it was announced that Janis Ian
would be "in concert" for our Fall Homecoming (rah! rah!) I was
raring to try one out. Ian was very big in '67. Her single "Society's
Child" had spent most of the summer at Number1 despite the fact that
it was banned in much of the South due to the fact that it dealt with an
inter-racial love affair. Ian coming to Albany was a very big deal! Tickets
cost a buck and a quarter, or $2 if you dragged along a date, which I did.
Can't remember her name, but it might have been Deb Regnier, or somebody
else named Deb. The opening act was a group called Buffalo Springfield.
Never heard of them, and neither had anybody else. Maybe they were from
Buffalo? Or maybe Springfield? A dorm mate, who was in the know told me
that they were damn fine. I wasn't impressed. I was going to see Janis Ian!
The concert was suppose to be in our brand spanking new gym, seating 3000,
but the gym wasn't done and instead they scheduled two shows in the Campus
Center Ballrooom, seating 400 tops. Me and Deb got there early (I insisted)
and scored great seats near the stage. BS hit the stage and the next 40
minutes changed my life. To this day I have not been able to really really
describe the impact the immensity of the sound that night had on me. It
was as if my entire life had been spent in black and white and now I was
finally introduced to the colors of the spectrum (infra-red and ultra-violet
included). It was the loudest thing I had ever heard. But every note was
perfect. I was quite suddenly alone in that room with these five guys making
the most stupendous music I had ever heard. I was cocooned by the sound.
Total immersion. Don't ask me about a setlist. I didn't know a thing about
them, but for some reason I do recall "Go And Say Goodbye" quite
clearly. Between songs Dewey and Stills did all the talking. I remember
Dewey saying, "Wow this place is small as a coffin. Hope we aren't
too loud." Some folks actually left because of the volume (Deb was
covering her ears), but I loved it. "Louder!", I kept saying to
myself, "Louder!" About ten feet from me, up on the stage and
off to the left was a brooding guy, immersed in playing guitar and not paying
much attention to anything or anybody, only intent on his playing. I couldn't
take my eyes off him. He was all buckskin fringe and hair, and I was convinced
that this was the coolest dude I had ever seen in my life. Deb was not impressed,
she thought Stills was the groovy one. I'd like to be able to say that I
became an instant Neil freak from that moment 30 years ago today, but unfortunately
it wasn't until "Cinnamon Girl" a year and a half later that I
became a full fledged disciple, and a while later to make the connection
between CG and that cool dude from Buffalo Springfield. And thanks to Rust
I've met up with fellow Rustie Tim Niland who's presently a student at my
old alma mater. He was nice enough to trundle off to the University library
and photo copy the review of that concert in the student newspaper from
30 years ago. I got a huge laugh out of it: "unkempt and too loud,
but versatile" was the faint praise heaped on BS by the student reviewer.
BTW, Janis Ian sucked. Well maybe not that bad, but definitely anti-climatic.
I'd be curious to know if any other old old Rusties had the unique opportunity
to hear BS? I know HippyGirl has, but her memories of the Summer Of Love
in San Fransisco are understandably clouded. :-) Has it really been 30 years?
Shit! Well thanks for the ride Neil, and here's to 30 more! *OLD KING* (top)
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ULI :
Hi, here's the story. I should have needed more
time to write it so it's a collection of thoughts and incomplete. It's hard
to tell when my Neil story began. This must have been in the late 70s The
only song Neil song I knew at that time was Heart Of Gold. I was 10 years
old when Neil released this song. It took some more years til I listened
to CSN&Ys 'Four Way Street' for the first time and I hated it. This
was a kind of music I never heard before. At home we used to listen to the
radio and Neil's msuic wasn't played there. And the Raido Music was absolutely
different to this kind of music. But I had no chance ;-) I spent a lot of
time in our local youth club and this club only had a small budget and a
limited quantity of ninyl albums. So I had to listen to 4WS once or twice
an evening. It was the same place were a guy 1980 brought a album called
'Live Rust' with him one evening. I'll never forget when 'Like a hurricane'
started at a maximum volume level. Wow, what was that? Only a few chords,
repeating again and again, a guitar sound, wild and distorted. . . and a
voice like no other voice. Nobody realised that this was the same guy who
did the soft-sounding 'Heart of Gold'. It was only a few weeks later when
I bought my first bass guitar. I didn't know how to play it but we started
practising and founding a band. The songs we started with were Jumping Jack
Flash (Stones), Woman of Gold (T.Rex) and 'I'm a man' by Muddy Waters. We
played these songs over and over 'til we thought we should have one more
song. And this song was called 'Like a hurricane'. 1982 That was when my
real Neil story began. Shortly after that I attended my first Neil Show
in Mannheim with the Trans Band. Since that time I missed no Neil tour and
started collecting Neil's albums discovering his musical sources and Buffalo
Springfield But I had no contact to any other Neil fans at that time. My
only access to Neil's music in the following years were his official albums.
The general interest in my hometown Neil's music was very low so sometimes
I felt as if I and my fellow band members were the only stupid guys who
liked this kind of music. So nothing extraordinary happend 'til 1996. I
bought his albums, went to his shows as often a I could, bought song books
and biographie and listened to his music. My personal highlights during
these years were the Neil/Pearl Jam shows at a small festival in the swiss
alps and the Booker-T Tour. This story changed in 1996. I bought myself
a modem for the computer and got access to the internet. For the first time
I noticed that I was not alone in the Neil world :-). Everything accelerate
very fast. The RustList, new and unbelievable, my first trades of Neil shows,
the first contacts to other german Rusties, a fast growing Neil collection,
the Archives Be Dammed tapes, horrible mailing costs and a new acces to
Neil's music by listening to shows and songs I didn't know before. In 1997
the first german RustFest took place in Stuttgart around the announced and
later cancelled Neil Tour 1997. For the first time the names I only knew
from mails got faces. I met people I never met before and it was like we
knew each other since 20 years. The weekend the Harcoremotherfuckers were
founded. Other Highlights, some thoughts: 1997 Contributing Like a Hurricane
to the Tribute 'Zain's Glasses' ('our' LAH, 16 years later, finally where
it belongs to) 1997 my first Bridge Benefit and IRF (meeting the international
Rusties, one of the best moments I ever had), playing with the IRF-Band
1998 practising 42 Neil songs with my local band NX 4 U 1998 RustFest Stuttgart
1998 NYAS camp 1998 Bridge and IRF together with two friends of mine, members
of the Harcoremotherfuckers , a lot of music around the campfire 1999 RustFest
Stuttgart 1999 . . . .? (top)
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JENS (THE DAMAGE DONE) :
I don't remember exactly when and what turned
me on to Neil.... I think I've known him and his music from sometime in
the mid-70s. At that time I was a teenager and being more into Deep Purple,
Jethro Tull, LZ and other stuff that I still listen to occasionally. But
Neil wasn't "heavy" enough for me at that time.... The first album
I bought was Harvest - and I liked it - but it was no revelation to me...
Then around 1980 I started living in a dormitory and I remember being ill
and having a fewer when I found out they were showing this movie called
Rust Never Sleeps. Even though being ill I went there anyway and I saw the
movie like in a haze but the power of the music, sound and pictures really
amazed me. I still wasn't really hooked though - at that time I more listened
to stuff like Steely Dan, Lee Ritenour a.s.o. The next Neil-thing I did
was to buy Re-Ac-Tor and it grew to be a standard whenever we were playing
pool etc. at the dorm. But still I wasn't hooked.... But then Neil started
speaking to me. It must have been around 1994 or 1995. I had had various
personal problems - my mother died in 1988 of sclerosis, my middle brother
got diagnosed that he has the same disease, my wife got a depression and
got hospitalised for a while.... At the same time this was when we got our
kids - happy stuff - and you see that many things - ups and downs - took
place in this period. And somehow I must have remembered and needed the
Neil-fix..... I don't know exactly what did it or when - but all of a sudden
the Neil-obssesion took hold of me. I can't say that many people around
me understand this obsession - and I am more relaxed about it today - nevertheless
the music did speak to me... Not so much the words but rather the feeling
that the music transferred to me. It still does - I'm hooked - my wife thinks
that the songs are too sad - and I understand what she mean - but the songs
hit me right in the heart everytime and moves me like no other music.....
So to find the rusted brotherhood out there has been a great relief and
source of many great experiences. I hope to be part of it for a long timne
to come - even though I don't write to the Rustlist very often done
.... Rust in peace, Jens .the Damage (top)
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