Monthly Archives: January 2014

Read Neil Young’s “Honor The Treaties” Facebook Posts

While Neil Young was up in Canada for his “Honor The Treaties” tour, he was also posting on Facebook, sometimes signing his posts “The Passenger.”

Here are some of Young’s posts. The rest are here.

Neil Young
January 15
Stew
15/01/14

The Chief’s making stew in the crock pot on the bus. Smells fantastic. We’re rolling west after a night of cold clean air and good sleep in Thunder Bay. Nobody’s tired, nobody’s complaining, no downers on this ride – there is a lot of love in the camp. That’s what happens when music and cause come together.

It confuses me to hear people shouting at us that musicians should just shut up and entertain. Where the hell did that lame-ass idea come from? Music was, is and always will be about social condition and cause and change. Music speaks for the oppressed and downtrodden. Music launches revolution. Woody Guthrie and Hank Williams and Bob Dylan and Joan Baez and Johnny Cash and Joni Mitchell and Willie Nelson and John Lennon and Eddie Vedder and Neil Young and all the giants of the art know this. What the fuck kind of
music and musicians are these boneheads actually listening to?

Just wonderin’.
Onward
The Passenger

Last Leg
18/01/14
From The Passenger

Good morning. We are in Moose Jaw getting ready for the final haul into Calgary. Yep, we are on a bus and we’re burning bio-diesel, our cleanest available option. Yell all you want but it is way cleaner that gas or regular diesel. And please note, one more time, I am the passenger. I’ve been the passenger all along. I wrote a lot about our journeys on
lincvolt.com and it might be a good idea to check it out. The Passenger Chronicles. A little research never hurts.

The Driver put on an amazing show last night and the good people of Regina filled our hearts for this final push. We are really looking forward to Calgary. I’ve spent a significant amount of time there throughout my life. I love how the city has grown emotionally. Best mayor in Canada. I might have
a big Alberta rib-eye steak tonight. Can’t beat Alberta beef.

A lot of you are talking us down. Sorry you feel the way you do. For those of you with big opinions but little knowledge, check out this year’s nominee list for Grammy Awards. Yep, there it is – Psychedelic Pill – nominated for Rock Album of the year. Is that relevant enough for you?

In the last federal election the balance of power in 40 ridings swung on the absence of a significant Native Peoples vote. With a national voice of 1.6 million I’m thinking that the Native vote, if motivated, could help decide the next election – the one where Stephen Harper and his gang of in-way-
over-their-heads second raters are swept into political oblivion. I hope this message starts to get out there. The only true weapon of change we have is our vote. I am a proud Canadian – I vote.

We’re getting ready to roll. The prairie beckons. There’s much work to be done.

Onward.

Calgary

19/01/14

The Passenger

The sun is rising up off of the beautiful prairie. Orange and red and pink and purple. This is Indian country. My heart is full. Last night at dinner we took a look back down the trail we just rode. We remebered the people who danced outside Massey Hall and closed Shuter St. We remebered the people who showed up in Winnipeg in the freezing cold just to wish us safe travels. We remebered the fantastic audience in Regina that hung on every song The Driver played. We feel your love. We thank you for it.

Today is going to be a big one. This is, after all, the heart of the business of Big Oil. Here is where the predominently foreign owned corporations have built towering glass monuments to symbolize their extreme wealth and power. We don’t feel much love from them. But we do honour their commitment to their cause. My morning wish is that some of them take off their suits today, put on their jeans and come to the concert. If they can take some deep breaths with us and feel the music and feel the emotion of the people, maybe they will also start to feel the beating heart of Mother Earth. Maybe they’ll start to see something greater and more powerful than money.

We also honour the men and women who work in the tar sands putting their health and lives on the line No matter what they try to tell you we have never ever wanted you to lose your jobs. We honour your families and your lives. We just want your bosses to clean up the mess that’s been made and to stop expansion until they prove that can be done. Stop the empty television ad campaigns and do something real. We all know you are lying. We just want the oil-glazed governments of Alberta and Canada to stop supporting Big Oil at the expense of human rights. Remeber, if they can do this to the

First Nations, they can do it to you. Honour The Treaties.

Calgary – come on down to the demonstration. It is gonna rock.

Onward

The Passenger

Neil Young shared a link.
Yesterday
After Calgary
20/01/14
From The Passenger

Thank you Calgary.

We slept well last night thanks to you and to all the wonderful Canadians who supported us. Our financial goals for the ACFN legal defence fund were overwhelmingly surpassed. Global environmental forces have rallied to our cause. The legal effort to take on Big Oil and the Harper government will be fully funded. Our message to Stephen Harper is simple, we won’t take no for an answer. Honour the treaties.

I have spent the second most time in my life living in Alberta. I have always loved the spirit and pride and honour of the people there. In Alberta your word is your bond. So I know it must rattle you to know that Canada has not kept its word to the First Nations. To you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Please take control of your province and throw this corrupt gang of thugs running Alberta out on their asses. They are making you look very uncool. Vote.

To Randy and the multi-personalty bile spewing personae you have created. You have tenacity. I’ll give you that. You are well versed in the Preston Manning school of media manipulation. But your methods are old and tired. Just like your politics. We all know who you represent. We are not stupid. That’s your fundemental flaw – you underestimate us. We are Canadians. We read. We know things. You have no moral compass. I have nothing but disdain for your tactics.

To the woman from the editorial board of the Calgary Herald who asked the sophomoric questions about plane travel at yesterday’s press conference. You are dragging a once great newspaper – remember, I used to live in Calgary – into the muck. You are no journalist madame. Sneaking around our buses was petty and rude and intrusive. You represent a great city. It is incumbant upon you to show some class. I truly hope you can find some grace. It will make you a better person.

To the people of Sun News Media. What are you going to tell your children when they ask what believe in?

We are heading home. The Driver to California. Me to Ontario. We’ve earned a little r ‘n r. Our mission though has just begun. If you want, you can check in on lincvolt.com at the portal for The Passenger Chronicles to catch our next moves. See you down the road.

Onward

Neil Young
8 hours ago [January 21, 2014}
Check out a recent cartoon about the #honourthetreaties campaign.

Neil Young
6 hours ago [January 21, 2014]
Folks, whether you agree with Honour the Treaties or not, please try to back up what you say with facts as we have that will help your points. Diatribes against old rockers are water off a duck’s back for me and don’t help your cause or educate ours. If you are able to, try to add something meaningful when you contribute. everyone would benefit.
respect, ny #honourthetreaties

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Bob Dylan’s ‘The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration’ Expanded, Set for DVD, Blu-ray

On October 16, 1992, an amazing group of artists came to Madison Square Garden to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the release of Bob Dylan’s self-titled debut album.

From Bob Dylan’s website:

The four hour show, performed for a sold-out audience of more than 18,000 fans and live-cast around the world, brought together an unprecedented roster of artists and icons including Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, Lou Reed, The Clancy Brothers, Richie Havens, Johnny Winter, Roger McGuinn, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Neil Young, Eric Clapton, Ron Wood, Chrissie Hynde, The O’Jays, Eddie Vedder, Sinéad O’Connor, Tracy Chapman, George Harrison (then making his first US concert appearance in 18 years) and more. Providing musical backing throughout the show was an ensemble dream team featuring three members of Booker T. & The M.G.’s, G.E. Smith on guitar with Jim Keltner and Anton Fig on drums.

There was a a CD and a VHS tape released in 1993, but now, on March 4, 2014, Columbia Records will release an expanded version of the album, as well as DVD and Blu-ray versions of the video.

Promotional video about the new release:

More from Dylan’s website:

Struck from a new High Definition video master with remastered audio, The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration – Deluxe Edition makes this historic all-star musical event available for the first time on DVD and Blu-ray.

The 2DVD and Blu-ray versions of The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration – Deluxe Edition include 40 minutes of previously unreleased material including behind-the-scenes rehearsal footage, interviews and more.

The 2CD audio edition premieres two previously unreleased recordings from the concert’s sound check: Sinéad O’Connor singing “I Believe In You” and Eric Clapton’s interpretation of “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.”

The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration – Deluxe Edition includes new notes by pop music historian Bill Flanagan.

More info here.

Here’s Rolling Stone’s story.

Check out some of the original version of the concert:

Bob Dylan – The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration – Deluxe Edition:

Like A Rolling Stone – John Mellencamp
Blowin’ In The Wind – Stevie Wonder
Foot Of Pride – Lou Reed
Masters Of War – Eddie Vedder/Mike McCready
The Times They Are A-Changin’ – Tracy Chapman
It Ain’t Me Babe – June Carter Cash/Johnny Cash
What Was It You Wanted – Willie Nelson
I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight – Kris Kristofferson
Highway 61 Revisited – Johnny Winter
Seven Days – Ron Wood
Just Like A Woman – Richie Havens
When The Ship Comes in – The Clancy Brothers and Robbie O’Connell with special guest Tommy Makem
War – Sinead O’Connor
Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues – Neil Young
All Along The Watchtower – Neil Young
I Shall Be Released – Chrissie Hynde
Love Minus Zero, No Limit – Eric Clapton (Track Only Available on DVD/Blu-Ray Format)
Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright – Eric Clapton
Emotionally Yours – The O’Jays
When I Paint My Masterpiece – The Band
You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere – Mary Chapin Carpenter/Rosanne Cash/Shawn Colvin
Absolutely Sweet Marie – George Harrison
License To Kill – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Mr Tambourine Man – Roger McGuinn
It’s Alright, Ma – Bob Dylan
My Back Pages – Bob Dylan/Roger McGuinn/Tom Petty/Neil Young/Eric Clapton/George Harrison
Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door – Everyone
Girl Of The North Country – Bob Dylan

DVD Bonus Tracks:
Leopard-Skin Pill-box Hat – John Mellencamp
Boots Of Spanish Leather – Nancy Griffith with Carolyn Hester
Gotta Serve Somebody – Booker T. & The M.G.’s

DVD Bonus Features:

Behind The Scenes (40 minutes of previously unreleased rehearsal footage, interviews and more)

CD Audio bonus tracks:

Sinéad O’Connor – I Believe In You (from sound check – previously unreleased)
Eric Clapton – Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright (from sound check – previously unreleased)

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Video: Watch Neil Young’s Entire Amazing Carnegie Hall Concert – Jan. 7, 2014

Neil Young at Carnegie Hall, Jan. 6, 2014. Photo via the New York Times website.

I’ve posted video clips from this show before, but now Reelife Productions has put together a terrific concert film based on “crowd sourced” material from the January 7, 2014 Carnegie Hall show.

The audio is quite good and so is the video.

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Pussy Riot, Flaming Lips, Lauryn Hill to Participate in Amnesty International Human RIghts Concert

Sixteen years after it’s last human rights concert, Amnesty International has organized a new concert and Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina will be there.

On February 5, 2014 The Flaming Lips, Imagine Dragons, Ms. Lauryn Hill, The Fray, Tegan and Sara, Cold War Kids, Collbie Caillat, Cake and others will perform for the human rights organization at Barclays Center in Brooklyn .

According to a press release about the concert, Tolokonnikova and Alekhina “will address attendees at the concert to raise awareness about prisoners of conscience.”

In a statement the two Pussy Riot members said:

We are happy to support Amnesty International’s work on behalf of human rights and political prisoners. We, more than anyone, understand how important Amnesty’s work is in connecting activists to prisoners… A month ago we were freed from Russian prison camps. We will never forget what it’s like to be in prison after a political conviction. We have vowed to continue helping those who remain behind bars and we hope to see you all at the Amnesty International concert on February 5th in Brooklyn!

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Audio: Bob Dylan Plays ‘The French Girl’ with The Band and the Grateful Dead

Françoise Hardy and Dylan in Paris, 1966.

One of the songs Bob Dylan and the group that would soon call itself The Band recorded during the “Basement Tapes” sessions in 1967 was an Ian Tyson (of Ian and Sylvia) composition, “The French Girl.”

Was Dylan thinking of Françoise Hardy, who he met in Paris the year before, when he chose to record the song?

During the “Basement Tapes” sessions Dylan and his band did two takes. And then the song was dropped for 20 years until Dylan resurrected it in 1987 during rehearsals with the Grateful Dead in San Rafael, Ca.

I particularly love the “Basement Tapes” version. Dylan’s interpretation of the song is amazing — he turns it into a Bob Dylan song. But the version with the Grateful Dead is a good one too. Jerry Garcia on pedal steel!

Below are a version of the song played with The Band, and a version with the Dead.

Bob Dylan and The Band play “The French Girl,” “Basement Tapes” sessions, 1967:

Video about Bob Dylan rehearsing “The French Girl” with The Band and the Grateful Dead with portions of both versions:

Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead play “The French Girl,” 1987:

The French Girl by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

For more on “The French Girl,” head here.

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Watch: Volcano Choir Play New Song at Fonda Theater – Jan. 18, 2014

Photo via Volcano Choir Facebook page.

Check out this new song, which Volcano Choir played a few nights ago (January 18, 2014) at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles.

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Prominent Canadians Support Neil Young As He Fights for the Rights of the First Nations Communities

Photo via The Globe and Mail.

A group of Canadian authors, musicians, and climate scientists today (January 20, 1014) released a letter of support to the “Honor The Treaties” campaign.

Here is the text of that letter:

On his Honour the Treaties tour, Neil Young is doing what poets do – forcing us to examine ourselves. This is hard enough on a personal level and it can be even more difficult when we are being asked to examine the direction in which our country is headed.

The time has come for Canada to decide if we want a future where First Nations rights and title are honoured, agreements with other countries to protect the climate are honoured, and our laws are not written by powerful oil companies. Or not.

Neil’s tour has triggered the Prime Minister’s Office and oil company executives. They have come out swinging because they know that this is a hard conversation and they might lose. But that should not stop the conversation from happening.

Instead of focusing on Neil Young’s celebrity, Prime Minister Harper should inform Canadians how he plans to honour the treaties with First Nations. This means ensuring the water, land, air, and climate are protected so the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nations and other First Nations communities be able to hunt, fish, gather plants and live off the land. Canada signed a treaty with them 114 years ago, and this must be honoured.

The world is watching as we decide who we will become. Will we disregard the treaties we have with First Nations? Will we continue to allow oil companies to persuade our government to gut laws, silence scientists, and disassemble civil society in order to allow reckless expansion of the oil sands?

We are proud to stand with Neil Young as he challenges us all to think about these larger, more profound and humane questions.

Now is the time for leadership and to honour promises that we have made, not personal attacks.

Michael Ondaatje, author, Officer of the Order of Canada
Margi Gillis, dancer, Member of the Order of Canada
Clayton Ruby, lawyer, Member of the Order of Canada
Dr. David Suzuki, scientist, Companion of the Order of Canada
Dr. David Schindler, scientist, Officer of the Order of Canada
Stephen Lewis, Companion of the Order of Canada
Joseph Boyden, author
Gord Downie, musician
Sarah Harmer, musician
Naomi Klein, author
Dr. John Stone, scientist
Tzeporah Berman, author
Amanda Boyden, author
Neve Campbell, actor
Wade Davis, author
Dr. Danny Harvey, climate scientist
J.B. MacKinnon, author
Dan Managan, musician
Sid Marty, author
Andrew Nikiforuk, author
Rick Smith, author
John Valliant, author
Ronald Wright, author

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Listen: Stream Beck’s New ‘Blue Moon’ Song

Beck’s “Blue Moon” is the first song off his upcoming album, Morning Phase, that we get to hear in full.

Morning Phase will be released February 25, 2014. I can’t wait to hear the new album.

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Audio/ Video: Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday with ‘Protest’ Songs of Bob Dylan

When Bob Dylan began writing his own material in the early ’60s, he wrote a number of songs dealing in one way or another with racism and the abuse of African Americans in this country. So I thought it fitting on this day in which we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday (he was born January 15, 1929), that we listen to some of the powerful ‘protest’ songs of Bob Dylan.

On August 28, 1963 Bob Dylan was at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. for the “March On Washington,” performing “When The Ship Comes In” with Joan Baez and “Only A Pawn In Their Game” solo before Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his remarkable “I have a dream” speech:

Most of the songs I’ve included below made it onto The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan and The Times They Are A-Changin’. One is from Another Side Of Bob Dylan.

One, “The Death Of Emmett Till,” was recorded for The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan but didn’t make the cut.

I’ve also included “Maggie’s Farm,” which may not be as direct as some of the earlier songs, but is certainly about the oppression of the poor by the wealthy (and plenty more).

These are powerful songs. They hit home when they were first released, and all these years later they have lost none of their potency.

Certainly great strides have been made in the area of equal rights since the early ’60s, but things are far from perfect. Consider the Supreme Court cutting the Voting Rights Act last year, and the how badly President Obama has been treated by Republicans in the House and Senate. Or the needless death of Trayvon Martin.

These songs are heavy, and they remind us of what’s at stake, and of the power of music.

“When The Ship Comes In,” August 28, 1963 (performed with Joan Baez at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.):

When That Ship Comes In by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Only A Pawn In Their Game,” August 28, 1963 (performed at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.):

Only A Pawn In Their Game by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Blowin’ In The Wind,” 1963 (Town Hall, New York):

Blowin' In The Wind (Live Version) by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“The Death Of Emmett Till” (The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan outtake):

The Death Of Emmett Till by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Oxford Town”:

Oxford Town by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Ballad Of Hollis Brown”:

Ballad of Hollis Brown by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll”:

The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Chimes Of Freedom”:

Chimes of Freedom by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“The Times They Are A-Changin'”:

The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

“Maggie’s Farm”:

Maggie's Farm by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-

Listen: Freaky New Track From Youth Lagoon, ‘Worms’

Here’s a track by Youth Lagoon, “Worms,” off an intriguing album titled The Space Project.

Youth Lagoon writes:

FYI: although there’s no real sound in the vacuum of space, it’s possible to translate the electromagnetic radiation fluctuations and charged particles of these celestial bodies into conventional sound. So now that you’re no better of a person at all for knowing that,
A collection of artists have come together to take audio recordings of planets that were gathered by the Voyager 1 & 2 space probes and manipulate these frequencies in music. This is my piece.

-– A Days of the Crazy-Wild blog post: sounds, visuals and/or news –-