Ben, some days I might call that 'insipid.' I can hear it as inspired, too,
depending on my mood.

I think he will be remembered as an important figure and I'm glad he still
has a strong following today, however uneven some of his recorded work has
been. Recordings are only one aspect of a musician's work; for many not
adequately representative. Unfortunately, they are accorded too much
importance in many cases, as understandable as that is.

Recordings remind me of the Monty Python animation, where archeologists dig
up a big toe. "From this fragment, we have reconstructed the entire
prehistoric creature." The toe becomes the nose of a mastodon.

For Neil Young, Inc., there might be little choice but to release
recordings. It becomes a business necessity. He's responsible for many
people's incomes.

If recordings don't become an important part of their career, many musicians
just don't accord them much importance. Discs are an accessory or a
promotional device or, as one person suggested, a look in the mirror.
(Backwards and too fat.) It's a defensive posture as well as practical. They
generally have a different relationship to recordings than do
consumers/collectors/historians. This would be something to explore in
detail, if it hasn't already been attempted. I'm sympathetic to Celli's
point of view, whatever it was exactly (see other thread).

-----Original Message-----
From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of James Roth
Sent: Friday, June 01, 2012 10:09 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Hang it up, already

Mm-m-m, Neil Young.......
His "After The Gold Rush" album is my favorite, but his "Down By The River"
with about 3 minutes of guitar jamming using only D7 & G7 chords is
inspired.

I hope the comment isn't inappropriate.

Ben