A Huge Impact on the Trajectory and Future of Music as an Art Form by Neil Young - Research Paper Example

 Few artists could be said to have had as great an impact on their generation and its culture than the folk rock musician Neil Young. The 1960s were a time of great change as the Baby Boomers came of age. Young was there—ready and willing—to write anthems and sing introspective songs that changed the way people thought about morality and their place in the world. His songs also often chronicled his own life in a way that let people feel that they really knew him. A number of his songs had a political and social context that had rarely been seen in popular music before. Added to this, his unusual personal behaviour and character, and Young exemplified much of what was special in the age. It is also important to note that like Dylan he often portrayed himself as a bit of a loner and this gave him broad appeal. The 1960s and 70s had a specific philosophical and moral background. This was the time when Young was at the height of his powers (Chong, 56). A lot of traditional ideas were changing and people were becoming less judgemental and more relativistic. Since relativists usually are agnostic or atheists, they might well also call themselves existentialists. This is a very depressing worldview which can mean exactly the same thing as nihilism. There is no meaning to the world. Since God does not exist everything is permitted by everyone. Many relativists might not go this far, but some do. They take as there starting point the idea that humans live in a world devoid of meaning; and they take this as their starting point because they cannot prove to themselves beyond any doubt (not just a reasonable doubt) that there are foundational truths. In the 1950s and 1960s, philosophers like Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre were famous for their thinking on this subject. Part of this thinking suggested that their lack of belief, or exclusive self-belief, a.k.a egoism, inspired the notion that they were free and that they had the will to choose how to live, another part suggested that their lives are circumscribed by things beyond their control. This is in part the milieu that Young was entering when in the early 1960s when he became famous. Many of his song lyrics deal with alienation and show his independence both morally and politically. In a sense he was a long voice railing against in favour of the personal against the large engine of the world which tried to reduce that personal life. There are a number of important lessons to be taken from Young's oeuvre. I will list some of them here. First, the age-old lesson that wealth and fame is corrupting applies to the idols of the counterculture as much as everyone else who came before them. It is very hard to keep your head grounded when fame and fortune comes your way, no matter how much of a loner or a rebel you are. This is a pretty simple human truth. To Young's credit, he recognized and attempted to avoid the trappings of fame and fortune. He did his best to stay above the fray. Sadly, however, he apparently started life with an illusion of egoism that was only magnified by wealth and fame. The same things could also be said of the many of the figures of this period. They thought they were not only great musicians but great people—and this wasn't always true, as they would find out the hard way. It seems to be a reality of life that wealth and fame only magnify whatever it is that you are, good and bad. Fortunately, Neil Young was not that bad a guy, but he did live through a period of great turmoil and this had a big impact on his personal life. It can sometimes be difficult for such people to remember that having musical talent doesn't make you in any way better than anyone else. It is what it is: musical talent. It isn't different than being talented on the baseball field, the battlefield, or even the kitchen. It just is something that society and the culture seems to put a high value on. They want a soundtrack for the times and they want something that makes them feel. This was, to his credit, something Young was very good at delivering—but it didn't always have the best effect on his personal life. Another useful observation of Young's music and life: it is very interesting how beautiful music somehow rises to the surface in the middle of such suffering and selfishness. That is the inspiring and compelling phenomenon running throughout the story of Young's career (Einarson, 78). No matter what is happening to him he is able to transfer and translate it into music that touches peoples lives. That truly is a gift. Music is a unique form of communication. The body is not the only way to communicate without using words. Is music a form of non-verbal communication. Some may claim it is a language—as it does have a kind of syntax—but it can definitely be non-verbal. So much can be said in music that cannot be said in words. Indeed, those men and women who become world famous musicians have a special place in our hearts and in our culture. They are very rewarded. They speak to us in a way other artists do not. Where does music’s almost unique power to communicate deep emotions come from? Why is it present across all cultures and all times? The answers to these questions seem key to unlocking the power of non-verbal communication. To truly understand Young's work, it is important to understand the social and political milieu that shaped him when he was coming up on the scene. Much has been written about his upbringing in Canada and his loneliness there, but what figures more importantly are the events happening in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s The Vietnam War was a terribly traumatic experience for the United States. More than 55,000 soldiers died during the long period the war was fought. What made that loss so much more unbearable was that with the Fall of Saigon, the American effectively lost the war as South Vietnam succumbed to the Communist North. During this time there was a real schism between generations. Young people couldn't understand why the war was being fought and they felt that they were being lied to (Einarson, 12). They stopped trusting the government and older people and they were profoundly disillusioned. This is very much present in the music at the time. There is a real sense that “every man is an island” and to create anything beautiful or worthwhile is very difficult. These feelings are very much present in Young's work. In songs like “Ohio” and “Southern Man” we see the changes that the country is undergoing and the divisions that are being created. In the middle of it all is the troubadour trying to make sense of it all. Of course, Young also had clear political opinions which he was not afraid to share in his music. Unlike many pop musicians out there, Young understood the world and he understood what powers does to people, how it can infiltrate personal lives and potentially destroy them (Chong, 89). Only nature offers any real respite from this. There is also the philosophical context of the time to take into account. Young was a well read man and he had an interest in contemporary philosophy. Throughout his musical oeuvre we see songs that yearn for freedom such as Cinnamon Girl and also those that talk about the ties that bind us to this world. A similar philosopher reveals a great deal about Young's personal philosophy and thinking during the time. Albert Camus was a famous French philosopher who died in the 1950, but had a big impact on the 1960s and beyond. He believed in a sense that men were trapped in thsi world. Although people try again and again attempts to assert their independence and embrace the passions of the world, they are consistently foiled. This was a strain of thinking that can be seen in Young's music (Heatley, 78). Camus writes, “Many years more he lived facing the curve of the gulf, the sparkling sea, and the smiles of the earth. A decree of the gods was necessary. Mercury came and seized the impudent man by the collar and, snatching him from his joys, led him forcibly back to the underworld, where his rock was ready for him.” His freedom is really an illusion. This is not to say there are any deistic powers. The gods in this version of the story could simply stand in for the natural limitations of life. In the story, the man, Sisyphus, enjoyed many years living by the sea before he died, before he was forced to leave this world. In existential thought, the absence of a god or gods does not in any way connote true freedom. One can choose to do anything, but there are no real consequences to these choices. It is similar to flipping a coin. This was something Young believed at the time. Freedom is only freedom of being in the world, and this being is sharply circumscribed by reality, which places significant restrictions on what people can do. Indeed, these restrictions are often not even knowable in advance—they come and go and sometimes hide from sight. There are many illusions and we are judged in part on how we deal with them. So we can see that even existentialism which seems to offer the idea that anyone can do anything offers no real freedom either. Camus, more than Sartre, however, offered up a possible approach to this problem. If one chooses to believe the world is empty of meaning, that the values of religion have no grounding in reality, and all we have is our physical existence, how can we stand the tedium and repetition of so much of life? It is indeed difficult. But music can help and the community derived from music can help. In his books, Camus tries to provide a kind of instruction on how to live. As the critic Lev Braun wrote: The subject of the Myth of Sisyphus is suicide—especially philosophical suicide . . . Having rejected all belief in God or in any superior principle, Camus casts a desperate glance at the inexplicable universe around us, at the meaningless routine of social life, at our mortal fate. Then, reflecting on the impotence of our reason, entangled in its own contradictions, Camus wonders why the most lucid among us do not simply finish it all by suicide. Yet, the wish for happiness and meaning is so strong as to sustain a proud and vital man against his fate . . . Attitude is all, according to Camus. This is definitely something Young could agree with (Heatley, 82). Being conscious, a person is free—not to do anything—but to choose how to respond to the humiliations of life of which there may be many. With this world view, the key is to be a rebel: to strike out on an attitude of defiance, even if the rock again begins to slip from your grasp. This type of existentialism does appeal to me because it is not so mopey—it actually affirms something and is a lot less emo than many other philosophies out there that I could name. It could be said that Neil Young was one of the significant singer/songwriter philosophers of the 1960s. He was able to encapsulate what a lot of people were feeling at the time about their lives but what they couldn't say. Which of Young's albums are most relevant to his average way of thinking? In a real sense, Neil Young's third album, After the Goldrush, delivers these goods. It is testament to his eloquent songwriting skills. Some of his finest work can be found on this recording. The album is mainly a mix of acoustic guitar and piano driven material, along with some electric intensity reminiscent of his second album, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. This album, After the Goldrush, may be about forty years old, but is still relevant. It also serves as an excellent historical document as based on the observations above. Young writes plaintive songs, full of yearning; there is a sense of being trapped, of doing whatever one can to try to seize one's destiny. Highlights include the wistful title track, the angry "Southern Man" written about the plague of racial inequality, and the defiant and amazing "Don't Let It Bring You Down". Throughout the album there is the typical Young's pastiche of melancholy, redemption, and yearning. Redemption of course is the hardest part. Throughout the album the piano is bright and vibrant, individual notes ring out from the acoustic guitar, and the electric guitar snarls out from the speakers. Background vocals have a real clarity to them. Young is at the top of his game. He is asking questions of his listeners: questions there are no real answers to. This is a key to his mystique. He asks to think about our lives in a way that is impressionistic. There is no real definition or answer, simply a feeling that we can't go on, but we must go on. Young was able to prove that music was not just something to dance to, but it was also something to think about. He married poetry and rock with a stunning effect. His songs have been covered by hundreds of people. They tell stories that are philosophical and relatable at the same time, about people who must fend for themselves in a difficult world. In some senses it is about the Boomers growing up and learning the ways of the world (Landford, 121). Young’s influence on his generation and on the 1960s is difficult to overstate. He had a huge impact on the trajectory and future of music as an art form but he also was able to galvanize a number of political responses and become a rallying point for those who criticized traditional culture and corrupt politics. Works consulted Lankford, R D 2005 Folk Music USA: The Changing Voice of Protest New York:Schirmer Heylin, C 1995 Bob Dylan: The Recording Sessions 1960 – 1964 New York: St Martin’s Griffin Doggett, P 2007 There’s A Riot Going On: Revolutionaries, Rock Stars And The Rise And Fall Of ‘60s Counter Culture Edinburgh: Cannongate. McDonough, Jimmy. Shakey: Neil Young biography. Anchor, 2003. Chong, Kevin (2005). Neil Young nation: a quest, an obsession, and a true story. Vancouver, Berkeley, CA: Greystone Books. Downing, David (1994). A dreamer of pictures: Neil Young – the man and his music. London: Bloomsbury. Dufrechou, Carole (1978). Neil Young. London: Quick Fox. Einarson, John (1992). Neil Young: don't be denied: the Canadian years. Kingston, ON: Quarry Press. Heatley, Michael (1997). Neil Young: in his own words. London, New York: Omnibus Press Read More