Neil Young : Reflections in a broken glass

by Sylvie Simmons

In 1966, an aspiring singer-songwriter drove a battered funeral car two thousand miles from his native Canada to Los Angeles to seek his fortune in the music business. Thirty-five years later, Neil Young is still going strong, the survivor of an astonishing career that has taken in the Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, numerous collaborations, and more than thirty solo albums. Featuring new and previously unpublished interviews with close friends and musicians, Simmons's book provides startling new insights into Young's music, shedding fresh light on his family life, behind-the-scenes relationships, and health problems.

Genres: Music, Biography

228 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[kieran · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a fan on the young(er) side of his audience this unpicks, as Beck described Neil’s music: in a relatively “direct and unfiltered and simple way without being absolutely trite”(p202)
Contextualising (successfully) his steady influence from the 60s to the 2000s this book perhaps lacks the grit one could expect from a Neil Young biography.
No half stars on here? It can have the 4 for him being my guitar hero

[Sheffielder · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very enjoyable biography, and very easy to read. A couple of the "facts" concerning peripheral figures are actually urban myths [for example, the suggestion that Mama Cass choked on a ham sandwich, when she actually suffered a heart attack:], but there's no reason to doubt the authenticity of the main biography, based as it is on extensive quotes and detailed interviews. Only 7500 copies of the book were ever printed, so grab a copy if you find one.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

For Neil Young fans only. Very few quotes from Young, most of those are third party, unverifiable. But has plenty good information about the singer. Author's slant seems to be somewhat negative, however.

[Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

I expect there are hundreds of Neil Young biogs out there but I have nothing to compare it to and as a massive fan I'm enjoying it anyway.

[Lee Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I licked it.