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Countdown of my top 101 Neil Young songs. Now with entries 102-204, notable covers and other stuff (2 Viewers)

51. No Hidden Path (Chrome Dreams II, 2007)
This is Neil's best guitar blowout of this millenium and his second-best since the Ragged Glory sessions. It's not just the fireworks from Old Black, there is groove and purpose throughout. It's an absolutely thrilling ride live, and the version I caught in December 2007 was jaw-dropping. And it was filmed by Jonathan Demme -- and I still haven't seen it (Neil Young Trunk Show). 

Studio version: https://youtu.be/_-MfMhruMTo

Live version from 2008 (27 minutes!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fZ1yigpTRA

Tomorrow morning: The ranking that is my equivalent of @krista4's for Come Together and Penny Lane. I am fully expecting to hear objections. 

 
Pip's Invitation said:
Tomorrow morning: The ranking that is my equivalent of @krista4's for Come Together and Penny Lane. I am fully expecting to hear objections. 
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:popcorn:   Come Together was really polarizing, though.  For as many people who love it, there seem to be those who despise it.  It ended up in the bottom of my top half, so I guess splitting the difference (not intentionally).  Penny Lane is almost universally beloved, so I expected that to create controversy.  

 
Pip's Invitation said:
52. Broken Arrow (Buffalo Springfield Again, 1967)
Until 1967, pop and rock musicians did NOT make records like this. Every bit as experimental as what the Beatles were doing with Sgt Pepper, this multi-part epic covers everything from LSD use to massacres of Indians and is equally diverse musically. It announced Neil as a major talent to be reckoned with, even by the high standards that Springfield had already set. And unlike many experiments of the time, this one still holds up today.
I have no idea why he used this title again for a 1996 album (the song does not appear there).

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5b3igkzRhk

Live at Canterbury House 1968 version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFULl3T-sPM

Live version from Bonnaroo 2011 with Buffalo Springfield: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EWbapFEDzk

Wilco cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgixYK1_248

Youtube search on this is a pain because not only is there an album named after this song, there is a Neil tribute band named after this song. 
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This really is spectacular.

 
Pip's Invitation said:
That's football-stadium-crowd-noise volume. Stills and Young DID get that on the CSNY reunion tour in 1974 -- but probably not to the same extent since their audiences were stoned out of their minds. 😆
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The 74 CSNY tour was the first stadium show held at Milwaukee County Stadium.  Teenage Eephus remembers the controversy about using the venue for something other than sports.

There's a good RS article about that tour.

ETA:  They had a 32 song set list for that show

 
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Pip's Invitation said:
That article is the one I called out in the first post.

The first show of that tour in Seattle had like 41 songs!
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The CSNY 1974 live album isn't on Spotify.  I vaguely remember listening to it when it came out and don't think I would have gone through the bother of downloading it.  Like a lot of live albums, you had to be there.

 
Eephus said:
The CSNY 1974 live album isn't on Spotify.  I vaguely remember listening to it when it came out and don't think I would have gone through the bother of downloading it.  Like a lot of live albums, you had to be there.
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It's not on Youtube, either. I have it on CD but that doesn't help here. 

I am fascinated with it, as I was with the bootlegs from the tour I acquired during my Rust List days, because it produced some stuff that was incredibly awesome and some stuff that was a hot mess. Knowing the backstory -- most of which I acquired from the article cited in the first post (which, my mistake, is not the same as the one you linked; mine was a contemporary account and this is a retrospective) -- makes one more willing to overlook the hot mess parts. 

There's an entry in the 40s whose history is very much entwined with this tour, so I'll have more to say when we get to that. 

 
Entries 50 to 42 are longer on average than usual because, as I mentioned, some of them are ranked higher than where most people would have them, so I felt the need to go to bat for them, and #50, as I mentioned, is controversial. And a few are important to me for personal reasons. I have on average less to say about 41 to 22 because they're slotted about where you'd expect them to be (maybe a surprise here or there), and anyone who is familiar with Neil's material on a deeper level than the radio hits probably already knows them pretty well. The top 21 are songs I care very deeply about, and I probably have ranked each #1 at some point in time, so I will get wordier again starting around there. 

 
I'll make one more point about CSNY 1974 since it doesn't involve a Neil song.

From the article Eephus linked: 

Nash: “We couldn’t find a good version of ‘Carry On’ and I didn’t want to put an inferior piece of music in there. If you believe me, we tried five times to find a ‘Carry On.’ We mixed five versions. We tuned five versions, but in the end it wasn’t there. With all other takes on the forty tracks, you know the best take when you hear it. We never found one with ‘Carry On’ and I tried my best since it’s one of our most important tracks and it would have showcased Stephen brilliantly.”

Compared to the incredible version of Carry On on Four Way Street -- one of the best things I've ever heard on any live album -- all the versions I'd heard on bootlegs were massively disappointing. Carry On was always the last or next-to-last song of the regular set or part the encore, and came after they'd been playing for 2.5 to 3 hours. Every version I'd heard until this year sounded rushed at best and tossed off at worst. Based on what I've heard, Nash is right, there wasn't a satisfactory version. They were either way over curfew or couldn't wait to get to the hookers and coke, or both. 

However, I had never heard the Wembley version. I decided to seek it out when someone posted in the YouTube comments "the Wembley 1974 version makes this one sound like an afternoon tea party." So I sought it out. All I could find was that someone posted the second half of the show with video and very poor sound quality. Unlike the others, this one was not rushed and was about the same in length as the Four Way Street version. However, it was chaos. C.H.A.O.S. Loud, noisy, sloppy, vocals exceptionally "off". As if a California jam band was trying to invent punk on the fly. Also amusing: Nash, who was not playing an instrument, left the stage for the first part of the jam. About halfway through, he returned with a cowbell. But he was bombed out of his mind (presumably from celebrating being on his home turf in London) and could only muster an occasional tap that had nothing to do with anything. After a while he gave up. 

So obviously they couldn't use that version on CSNY 1974 either.

 
Are some of you going to be shocked? We'll see. 

50. Heart of Gold (Harvest, 1972)
We're halfway through the countdown and it's time for THAT song. Heart of Gold is probably Neil's most famous song, and it was his only No. 1 single.
So why is it ranked all the way down here? I love it and it's an excellent example of the strengths of the country rock style that was dominating the charts at the time. But as good as it is, Neil has songs that are more compelling, including one from the same album done in a similar style that ranks MUCH higher on this list. That's a testament to his amazing skill. Also keep in mind that Neil has written more than 600 songs, so this is still in my top 8% or so. 

In Simpsons parlance, this song is perfectly cromulent, but the ones ahead of it embiggen my spirit more. 

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3IA6pIVank

Live version from the Heart of Gold concert film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_0oVOS3LC4

Live version from the Tuscaloosa archival release: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RwB3tLQams

Live at Massey Hall version (combined in a suite with another song): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYANlIfQtP8

Live version from a BBC show in 1971: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh44QPT1mPE

Live version with the International Harvesters from 1984: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acHXbxxckO0

Johnny Cash cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drsMyeXzLSo

James Taylor cover (he sang on the studio version): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64SXDrHzgOk

The Polyphonic Spree cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuEAwLt39iY

Charles Bradley cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M48n14qBAgU

Bettye LaVette cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-pyAjpCqVw 

 
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Update on my rankings vs. Rolling Stone's. Needless to say I diverge quite a bit from them on Heart of Gold.

100. Lookout Joe (RS unranked)
99. Ramada Inn (RS #47)
98. Look Out for My Love (RS #55)
97. Get Back to the Country (RS unranked)
96. Homefires (RS unranked)
95. This Old Guitar (RS unranked)
94. Slip Away (RS #86)
93. This Note's for You (RS #42)
92. Mansion on the Hill (RS unranked)
91. Grey Riders (RS unranked)
90. Motion Pictures (for Carrie) (RS unranked)
89. Downtown (RS unranked)
88. White Line (RS unranked)
87. Ride My Llama (RS unranked)
86. Windward Passage (RS unranked)
85. Albuquerque (RS #39)
84. Everybody's Alone (RS unranked)
83. I've Been Waiting for You (RS unranked)
82. Winterlong (RS #45)
81. Sail Away (RS unranked)
80. When You Dance I Can Really Love (RS #83)
79. Lotta Love (RS unranked)
78. I Believe in You (RS unranked)
77. Through My Sails (RS unranked)
76. LA (RS #74)
75. Goin' Back (RS unranked)
74. Crime in the City (Sixty to Zero) (RS #82)
73. From Hank to Hendrix (RS #20)
72. Drive Back (RS #76)
71. World on a String (RS #65)
70. Sea of Madness (RS unranked)
69. Razor Love (RS #60)
68. On the Way Home (RS #46)
67. Long May You Run (RS #32)
66. Like an Inca (RS unranked)
65. Interstate (RS unranked)
64. Days That Used to Be (RS unranked)
63. New Mama (RS unranked)
62. Wrecking Ball (RS unranked)
61. Shots (RS unranked)
60. Scenery (RS unranked)
59. Live to Ride (RS unranked)
58. Prisoners of Rock 'N' Roll (RS #87)
57. Come on Baby Let's Go Downtown (RS unranked)
56. Too Far Gone (RS #48)
55. Natural Beauty (RS unranked)
54. Unknown Legend (RS unranked)
53. Comes a Time (RS #51)
52. Broken Arrow (RS #23)
51. No Hidden Path (RS unranked)
50. Heart of Gold (RS #2)

 
I’d probably have Heart of Gold a bit higher but not crazy upset about this placement. It’s a really nice and pretty song - which I remember being on the radio all the time despite being a toddler in 1973 - but his catalogue is so deep and there’s a bunch a love more.

 
Dr. Octopus said:
I’d probably have Heart of Gold a bit higher but not crazy upset about this placement. It’s a really nice and pretty song - which I remember being on the radio all the time despite being a toddler in 1973 - but his catalogue is so deep and there’s a bunch a love more.
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That’s pretty much how I feel too, minus the placement comment obviously. But as I said, I’ve got some things in the 40s that others probably wouldn’t have there.

 
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Pip's Invitation said:
Are some of you going to be shocked? We'll see. 

50. Heart of Gold (Harvest, 1972)
We're halfway through the countdown and it's time for THAT song. Heart of Gold is probably Neil's most famous song, and it was his only No. 1 single.
So why is it ranked all the way down here? I love it and it's an excellent example of the strengths of the country rock style that was dominating the charts at the time. But as good as it is, Neil has songs that are more compelling, including one from the same album done in a similar style that ranks MUCH higher on this list. That's a testament to his amazing skill. Also keep in mind that Neil has written more than 600 songs, so this is still in my top 8% or so. 
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Nah, no problem with this ranking at all. If you're a big fan of Neil, you know he has a ton of great songs that just don't break through the mainstream like this one did. Like you say, I love HoG (and I love that he's got that monster hit that everyone knows), but I'm sure I can think of 49 other Neil songs I'd rather play right now. 

 
Also no problem with Heart of Gold where it is. It’s a really good song, but there are so many that are just a bit better.

 
Comments of note on Heart of Gold from the other places I've posted the countdown:

"Ah, we find agreement on Heart of Gold. Nice, tight, commercial single, but never understood the appeal as one of Neil's greatest songs given his catalog. It's well-crafted and tight. It's a very good song. It's like it was designed to be a great radio-play single and drive sales, and that it did. I just don't think it's excellent or extraordinary, and Neil has a lot of music that falls into that category. I think you have Heart of Gold rated very fairly."

From the guy who took it with his first pick in the Neil song draft: "I disagree."

"This is the first one I recognize by name!"

The last comment of interest will make more sense after I post #48, whose writeup is very much tied to this one, so I'll reveal it then. 

 
Pip's Invitation said:
51. No Hidden Path (Chrome Dreams II, 2007)
This is Neil's best guitar blowout of this millenium and his second-best since the Ragged Glory sessions. It's not just the fireworks from Old Black, there is groove and purpose throughout. It's an absolutely thrilling ride live, and the version I caught in December 2007 was jaw-dropping. And it was filmed by Jonathan Demme -- and I still haven't seen it (Neil Young Trunk Show). 

Studio version: https://youtu.be/_-MfMhruMTo

Live version from 2008 (27 minutes!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fZ1yigpTRA

Tomorrow morning: The ranking that is my equivalent of @krista4's for Come Together and Penny Lane. I am fully expecting to hear objections. 
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This is the 1st that I've heard this.

No objections!

Show me the way and I'll follow you today.

 
49. Roll Another Number (for the Road) (Tonight's the Night, 1975; written and first performed in 1973)
This is great drinking music. And not just for the listener. The Tonight's the Night sessions were notoriously conducted with everyone blasted on tequila. And the song itself is about being in an altered state -- with Neil throwing in some sentiments about wanting to ditch the hippie scene ("I'm not goin' back to Woodstock for a while"). It's basically the closest Neil ever got to composing an Irish shanty.
As you might imagine, this is a lot of fun live, and sometimes serves as a closer after everyone is spent (this occurred at my second Neil show in 1996).

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DjAT41QtAo&feature=youtu.be

Alternate studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6aXlqPMEXk

Live version from Roxy: Tonight's the Night Live (1973, very country): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIlWXqsguws

Live version from Weld (1991, very not country): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8p04GHC8sY

Live acoustic version from Songs for Judy (1976 tour): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrW-KlpnVvQ

Live version with CSNY from 1973 (the crowd thinks it's funny and digs the drug references a bit): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrW-KlpnVvQ

Live version with Promise of the Real from Farm Aid 2019: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKBI5x8kewg

 
48. Last Dance (Time Fades Away, 1973)
After Harvest and Heart of Gold topped the charts, Neil found himself in an existential crisis. He did not want to be Paul Simon or James Taylor -- or any of Crosby, Stills or Nash. As he said of Heart of Gold in his liner notes on Decade: "This song put me in the middle of the road. Traveling there soon became a bore so I headed for the ditch. A rougher ride but I saw more interesting people there."
He soon slammed into the ditch with his chaotic early 1973 tour and the live album of previously unreleased songs that resulted from it, Time Fades Away. It is the diametric opposite of Harvest. There is nothing pretty about it in the slightest. It is ALL rough edges, and many of Neil's fans and colleagues thought he had gone mad.
Last Dance, which closes the album, is the prime example of Neil hitting the ditch. Loud, noisy, with strained vocals and weird tangents (why is Neil babbling about coffee and orange juice toward the end?), it is a proud declaration of liberation from the mainstream. And has a kickass bassline from Tim Drummond. This is not going to be an easy listen for some of you, but without it and the other electric songs on this record, we don't get Tonight's the Night, Zuma, side 2 of Rust Never Sleeps, or Ragged Glory. 
These days Neil sees the TFA tour as a bad period in his life that he'd rather not revisit. The song has not reappeared since the end of that tour. 
Back to the orange juice and coffee tangent -- I have heard other versions of Last Dance from this tour on bootlegs, and none of them have that part. Neil's inclusion of this specific version may be the first example of him trolling his record company and audience, which we would see a lot of in the '80s.

TFA version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FciEHJvecQ&feature=youtu.be

This version is just as messy as the officially released one, but it ends as intended -- with a constant refrain of "come on, turn on the light" that's at least more tuneful than the orange juice/coffee stuff. All versions I've heard have this EXCEPT the officially released one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgcZ7La_3Xo 

Widespread Panic cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qKu4lMSHP4

 
Here's what an old hippie dude on the other geek board had to say about my rankings of Last Dance and Heart of Gold. He noted that my rationale makes more sense for him after seeing my writeup of #47, which will be posted tonight.

"I lived through the whole metamorphosis of old Neil. I was there when he was unknown. I was there when Young was actually young. I can lay claim to being one of the ones that helped him become famous so others may enjoy the rest of the story. If my hippie brothers and sisters ignored him it would have ended with his first solo attempt. But we did not.

Old Neil had an idea of how to push our buttons. With each song each album he kept trying. There was no known music that was going to promise that Neil would not burn out or fade away. In that moment Harvest was potentially one of the last things he would ever write that would merit getting pressed into vinyl.

Buffalo Springfield, CSNY, and Young on his own were part of my life's sound track much like Last Dance is part of yours. The difference is Last Dance did not exist to compare it to Heart of Gold. I am glad for both of us that Neil survived and didn't quit."

 
47. Welfare Mothers (Rust Never Sleeps, 1979)
I have a very long and intense history with side 2 of Rust Never Sleeps. Since this is its first appearance on the list, here is where I tell (at least some of) the story.
In 1979 my father received a cassette of RNS for his birthday. We listened to the whole thing once. After that, my parents would only play the acoustic side 1, rewinding it every time. Clearly side 2 was a bit much for them.
A few months later, my parents went out for a night and my sister and I got a babysitter -- a boy of about 16. Not long after my parents left, he perused their record collection and spotted this. And got REALLY excited.
"Yes! I'm gonna crank up side 2!" he exclaimed.
"But we're not allowed to listen to side 2!" I reacted, as 8-year-olds do.
"Oh, you don't know what you're missing!" he responded.
And indeed I didn't. He put it on, turned it up, and started pumping his fist. After initial trepidation about whether the neighbors would complain (they didn't), I had a realization that would shape my musical outlook forever: "This is dangerous -- and I LIKE it!"
My history with loud, noisy, chaotic rock and roll -- culminating in more than 1,000 concerts if you count my friends' bands playing in bars -- started here. So thank you, Caleb Milne, wherever you are.
As for Welfare Mothers, the lyrics are dumb. D.U.M.B. Probably among the worst of Neil's career. But WHO CARES when the rock is this momentous and badass. The riffage makes me want to convulse in ecstasy, even all these years later. And I got to witness a killer version on the Weld tour as the first encore of my first Neil show.
Also, until I was in college, I thought they were singing "people see" instead of "divorcee."

RNS version (basic tracks recorded on 1978 tour, audience noise stripped out, electronic handclap things added later): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRgPL7WAdLs&fbclid=IwAR39-MLLm8mTOSa2k38uRiz3O6bPyYcMUOv2Q9NPR4Y0aYFkjubu5cIqerQ

Weld version (gets weird at the end, not nearly as good as the version from my show on that tour): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_L8f6yXVRPg&fbclid=IwAR14nGFFUiTGGkvNTxnpMQ8WM0JbneoFfNgK9EuJJp_PW-HNsSC68FA8y8k

Live version from 2011 with Crazy Horse, even more stretched out at the end: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QctgzkK96pY&fbclid=IwAR2_V9ahQh9-WGq4QCs6kLaiHmt5bcFU3KkRNAIH6FqsLt5Y5s_1PXzBjuw

Live version from 2016 with Promise of the Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLN602B2Wns

Youtube is also a pain with this one because there's a band (not a Neil tribute band) by this name. 

Tomorrow: Two other songs I get emotional about, for very different reasons. 

 
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Pip's Invitation said:
48. Last Dance (Time Fades Away, 1973)
After Harvest and Heart of Gold topped the charts, Neil found himself in an existential crisis. He did not want to be Paul Simon or James Taylor -- or any of Crosby, Stills or Nash. As he said of Heart of Gold in his liner notes on Decade: "This song put me in the middle of the road. Traveling there soon became a bore so I headed for the ditch. A rougher ride but I saw more interesting people there."
He soon slammed into the ditch with his chaotic early 1973 tour and the live album of previously unreleased songs that resulted from it, Time Fades Away. It is the diametric opposite of Harvest. There is nothing pretty about it in the slightest. It is ALL rough edges, and many of Neil's fans and colleagues thought he had gone mad.
Last Dance, which closes the album, is the prime example of Neil hitting the ditch. Loud, noisy, with strained vocals and weird tangents (why is Neil babbling about coffee and orange juice toward the end?), it is a proud declaration of liberation from the mainstream. And has a kickass bassline from Tim Drummond. This is not going to be an easy listen for some of you, but without it and the other electric songs on this record, we don't get Tonight's the Night, Zuma, side 2 of Rust Never Sleeps, or Ragged Glory. 
These days Neil sees the TFA tour as a bad period in his life that he'd rather not revisit. The song has not reappeared since the end of that tour. 
Back to the orange juice and coffee tangent -- I have heard other versions of Last Dance from this tour on bootlegs, and none of them have that part. Neil's inclusion of this specific version may be the first example of him trolling his record company and audience, which we would see a lot of in the '80s.

TFA version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FciEHJvecQ&feature=youtu.be

This version is just as messy as the officially released one, but it ends as intended -- with a constant refrain of "come on, turn on the light" that's at least more tuneful than the orange juice/coffee stuff. All versions I've heard have this EXCEPT the officially released one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgcZ7La_3Xo 

Widespread Panic cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qKu4lMSHP4
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I didn't love or hate the song, but I did love your write-up.  :thumbup:  

ETA:  And the next one, too!

 
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Since side 2 of Rust Never Sleeps is IMO the peak of Neil's collaboration with the 1975-2018 lineup of Crazy Horse, here would be as good a place as any to say some things about them.

This lineup lasted as long as it did (and only ended because someone retired) not only due to their musical chemistry with Neil and each other, but because of fierce loyalty. They gave their input to Neil, but in the end he could always count on them to do what he wanted. And, contrary to the popular narrative, it wasn't always the loud 4/4 rockers we got on Zuma, RNS, Ragged Glory, Broken Arrow, Greendale, Living with War and Psychedelic Pill. They played acoustic country rock on Comes a Time, more hushed and intricate arrangements on Sleeps with Angels and Americana on ... Americana. Plus whatever the hell Life was. 

Bassist Billy Talbot is the most volatile member personality-wise -- several key scenes of Muddy Track and Year of the Horse show him getting frustrated and challenging Neil -- but always plays in the pocket the way Neil wants. "He may only play one note, but it's a big note," Neil once said of him.

Drummer Ralph Molina is not flashy in the slightest but never fails to drive the songs where they need to go. Neil trusts him to the point where he has had him play in other combos, including the Trans Band in 1982 and the Chrome Dreams band in 2007*. 

Frank "Poncho" Sampedro is an excellent rhythm guitarist who has a great sense how to contribute to a jam but stay out of Neil's way. He also plays piano and a bunch of other instruments. CH sessions and tours in the '90s and '00s depended on his schedule as much as Neil's because he worked on The Tonight Show crew during that time. Neil has also deployed him in other bands, including the Bluenotes (piano) and the Restless/Lost Dogs. He was also the only member of CH to appear with Neil on his insane and mindblowing 1989 SNL performance (more on that later). 

* - These bands are intriguing to me because they bring together people from different bands with different styles Neil had worked with. The touring Trans band was Molina (Crazy Horse) on drums, Bruce Palmer (Buffalo Springfield) on bass (replaced by Bob Mosley from the Ducks for the last 2 shows due to a personal issue), Nils Lofgren (temporary Crazy Horse member for After the Gold Rush and Tonight's the Night) on guitar, Joe Lala (CSNY 1974 tour, Stills-Young Band) on percussion and Ben Keith (Stray Gators, International Harvesters, Bluenotes, Friends and Relatives, 2007 touring band, Electric Band) on various instruments. The Chrome Dreams band was Molina (Crazy Horse) on drums, Rick Rosas (Bluenotes, most of the Freedom sessions, CSNY 2006 tour, Buffalo Springfield 2011 tour) on bass, Anthony Crawford (Shocking Pinks, International Harvesters) and Keith on various instruments and Neil's wife Pegi (most non-solo, non-CH tours between 2000 and 2013) on vocals. 

 
I have not only written up 102-204, I have also written up (often much less gracefully) the songs on the Rolling Stone top 100 list that didn't make my top 204. There are quite a few of them. This is what I do for you (and my OCD). 

 
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46. Pushed It Over the End (CSNY 1974, 2014; written and first performed in 1974)
Neil reached some amazing heights on tour with CSNY. In the early years, toward the end of their sets, they would churn out an epic version of Down by the River (in 1969) or Southern Man (in 1970). It was often the high point of a show with a lot of them.
For the 1974 reunion tour, Neil had a new song to occupy that slot: Pushed It Over the End. It was going to be the centerpiece of the reunion album, Human Highway, which never happened due to confrontation during the sessions. And it delivered every bit as much as its predecessors had. David Crosby's chunky rhythm guitar provides a foundation for Neil's lead guitar to take flight, while Stephen Stills and Graham Nash on keys provide subtle touches not generally heard on Neil's previous epics.
I first heard the song, which is loosely inspired by the Patty Hearst saga in the headlines at the time, on a bootleg of random performances that a high school friend acquired in the late '80s. I was stunned that Neil would leave a masterpiece like this unreleased. Little did I know there were many more of them! I felt like this was my little secret until I joined the Rust List and found a bunch of other people who were in on it.
Perhaps because of bitterness over how CSNY ended things in 1974, Neil never returned to this song after that tour, though slight touches of it can be heard in Fountainebleu, a vastly inferior song that ended up on the Stills-Young Band album in 1976.
It remained unreleased everywhere except Italy until 2014, when it was included on the CSNY 1974 box set, both on CD and DVD (that's how I know who played what!)
The CSNY 1974 version is not on Youtube, so below is that first version I heard, which it turns out was included on an Italian box set in the early '80s. That's why it sounds "cleaner" than many live recordings.

"Italian box set" version, from the Chicago show of the 1974 tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NsXrcoZzt0&feature=youtu.be

Acoustic version that opened Neil's surprise May 1974 set opening for Leon Redbone. Aside from Helpless and a cover, the set was entirely new, first-time-performed originals that would later be earmarked for On the Beach, Homegrown or other places (or not): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7wZKj7ps2A

Another version from the CSNY tour, not "cleaned up," this one from Buffalo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6CQ_OJauQM

 
45. Harvest Moon (Harvest Moon, 1992)
Neil doesn't usually write straightforward love songs, but when he does, they are usually gorgeous like this. I suspect that of all the songs Neil has released after 1979, this is one of the two that the average person is most likely to have heard of.
This is also a special song for me because it was my father and stepmother's favorite Neil song. There are elements of their story in it. 

On the original writeup I stopped there and everyone knew why. You guys don't so I'll explain. My father passed away in March. I relate to everything through music, so even writing that was REALLY difficult for me. I was a blubbering mess the day I posted it. All I had to say to my wife was "it's Harvest Moon day" and she knew what was up.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2MtEsrcTTs&feature=youtu.be

Live version from Unplugged: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMjDc8MJotU

Live version from Dreamin' Man Live 1992: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPRHW_mScP0

Live version from Heart of Gold concert film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnRz-ARAlT0

Live version from Silver and Gold DVD (filmed in 1999 in Austin): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF0AVn813g8

Live version with Promise of the Real from Farm Aid 2019: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF0AVn813g8

Live version with Eddie Vedder sitting in from Bridge School Benefit 2004: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usrl18pdVSg

Live version with My Morning Jacket from Bridge School Benefit 2013: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ucy_9c1ePTg

Live version with Norah Jones sitting in: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-5EM4aqhsY

Pearl Jam cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1DFifr7iYg

Josh Groban cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPDHPxL-rek

Elliott Smith cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI8nc62CgPg

Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJs4LcyyuSU

Andrew Bird cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqgOBZ7wGPg

Of Montreal cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXjuMFc2BTs

Seth Avett (Avett Brothers) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAJPKklmKOk

Rufus Wainwright cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjwrDNVUssE

God, there's almost as many versions of this as Yesterday. Including one by a "Ukulele Orchestra": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5vanzPKHbs

 
44. Don't Be Denied (Time Fades Away, 1973)
This is just as raw as the other TFA material, but even more anguished, as the lyrics are basically his autobiography up to that point, and are a testament to overcoming obstacles, even the ones you build yourself. Probably because it's kind of a theme song for him, it's the one song from TFA that Neil has regularly allowed into his setlists since then. I love the interplay between Neil's guitar and Ben Keith's pedal steel.

TFA version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdEX8oBRJAY&feature=youtu.be

Tuscaloosa version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjMZrMEY4dQ

Live version from 1974 with CSNY: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWUZm5_MsQI

Live version from 1997 with Crazy Horse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqVsBR3khFY

Live solo acoustic from 2003: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nb4e4qRGSxs

Live version from 2016 with Promise of the Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuk_EMFqFoA

Norah Jones cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3wVH09UeFc

Widespread Panic cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_d1H7eDtO0

The Minus 5 cover (performed in Philly!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXLnNae3X1U

Nils Lofgren cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7NoI5hMvY0

 
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43. Pardon My Heart (Zuma, 1975)
Of the batch of songs Neil wrote in 1974 about his breakup with the mother of his first child, this one is the most gorgeous and gripping. The lyrics are just killer, especially this passage: "Pardon my heart/If I showed that I cared/But I love you more than moments/We have or have not shared."
This song was so strong that's it's no wonder that, soon after the Homegrown album for which he'd recorded it was shelved, he released it. It appears on Zuma and, helped by harmonies from Crazy Horse's Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina, is the perfect contrast to the bone-rattling material around it.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8EvfNeSpJU&feature=youtu.be

Live version on the 1974 CSNY tour, combined with The Old Homestead, one of only two known live performances: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-UgQbpJZ4

The other one is at 54:40 of this video -- his much-bootlegged surprise May 1974 set at the Bottom Line in NYC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLOBzPQaSQA

Rich Robinson (Black Crowes) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcZwyFnAlfE

 
42. Time Fades Away (Time Fades Away, 1973)
I wrote this when I picked this song the Neil draft I did in 2011 and I can't think of a better way to put it: "Remember in Don't Look Back, how Bob Dylan chastises the media for not printing "the truth," then when they ask what "truth" they should print, Dylan says "a tramp vomiting in an alley." "Time Fades Away" to me has always seemed like Neil's version of that "truth." Verses describing some of the most desolate, desperate and greedy people imaginable alternating with choruses cautioning you against ending up like that. Love how there's an extra junkie at the beginning of each verse (first thirteen, then fourteen, then fifteen, borrowing a device from the Allman Brothers' "Black Hearted Woman.") The Dylan connection is also played up in the music, with a driving, ragtag track that sounds straight out of Highway 61 Revisited."
What has happened since then is the Tuscaloosa archival release, which is from much earlier in the TFA tour than the version released in 1973. The Tuscaloosa version is MUCH cleaner and tighter. Things really did deteriorate along the way on that tour.

TFA version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBE5BRZSfs0&feature=youtu.be

Tuscaloosa version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZicLKYDGBE

Live version from 2008 with The Electric Band (first performance since 1973, last until 2015): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eF89iJr8Fk0

Live version from 2015 with Promise of the Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdDaTQHgzlM

Widespread Panic cover (damn, they LOVE this album): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VzeAmz1gQQ

Yo La Tengo cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojxez9FedjY

 
41. Change Your Mind (Sleeps with Angels, 1994)
Coming off the Freedom/Ragged Glory/Harvest Moon run that revived his career, Neil's Sleeps with Angels was equally heralded upon its release in 1994. Unfortunately IMO it hasn't held up as well as the others. Many of the songs feel abstract, while Neil is at his best when he's concrete and direct. And frankly some of them come off as white-man-splaining.
The one track that still resonates today is the same one that made the biggest impact on first listen: The sprawling guitar epic Change Your Mind. Contrary to popular narrative, it was not written as a response to Kurt Cobain's suicide -- which affected Neil deeply, in part because Kurt's suicide note quoted My My Hey Hey (Out of the Blue) -- but it served as reassurance to my generation from its Godfather, reminding us to turn to the ones we love when we are troubled. The song actually first surfaced in concert a year earlier. 
For nearly 15 minutes, we are able to leave our troubles behind and follow Neil through the twists and turns of guitar bliss. More subtle than the blowouts on Ragged Glory, the guitar work is as lyrical as anything he'd done since Down by the River.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45qX1VYONds&feature=youtu.be

Bridge School benefit 1994 versions, in which Neil gets feedback out of his acoustic guitar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1FfeCvWwGY and  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuqML4BZ6P0

Live version with Promise of the Real from 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tus5-RhDWrg

The song debuted on the 1993 tour with Booker T. and the MGs. The only version with them that I can find on Youtube starts at 1:12:52 of this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PB5fuL-1VY

 
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Pip's Invitation said:
45. Harvest Moon (Harvest Moon, 1992)
Neil doesn't usually write straightforward love songs, but when he does, they are usually gorgeous like this. I suspect that of all the songs Neil has released after 1979, this is one of the two that the average person is most likely to have heard of.
This is also a special song for me because it was my father and stepmother's favorite Neil song. There are elements of their story in it. 

On the original writeup I stopped there and everyone knew why. You guys don't so I'll explain. My father passed away in March. I relate to everything through music, so even writing that was REALLY difficult for me. I was a blubbering mess the day I posted it. All I had to say to my wife was "it's Harvest Moon day" and she knew what was up.
Click to expand...
Sorry for your loss.  It will get easier.  It doesn't ever feel like it will, but then it does.

 
krista4 said:
Love this, too.
Click to expand...
I also love how, in the 2015 version, he starts with 14 because why would he remember the order from a song he’d played only one other time since 1973?

However, I can’t explain why he switched the first two verses of Southern Man on every version I heard of it from the 2000 CSNY tour. 

 
40. Love and Only Love (Ragged Glory, 1990)
One of two songs starting with "Love" on Ragged Glory that clocks in at around 10 minutes, this one has an insistent bassline and siren-like squalls from Neil's guitar. Despite the sonic mayhem, things are kept tuneful throughout. The message of its lyrics still resonates today and Neil has taken to using it as a set closer sometimes.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noo4R9bJLvA&feature=youtu.be

Live version from Weld: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgAosFBakGk

Live acoustic version from the Bridge School benefit (year not noted, but had to be 1990, 2001 or 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wRYF39GTGc

Live version from Earth (28 minutes, though after 16 minutes it's basically a noise jam): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyv-MjCcz_s

Partial live version from 2008 in Philly (woot!) with The Electric Band: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08uXMyO8NiM

There are a ton of versions on YouTube (almost all with Crazy Horse or Promise of the Real) because it has been performed live the most times of any song released since 1990 (second-most of any song released since 1980; you can probably guess what #1 is). 

 
Update on Rolling Stone's rankings vs. mine:

101. Lookout Joe (RS unranked)
100. Ramada Inn (RS #47)
99. Look Out for My Love (RS #55)
98. Get Back to the Country (RS unranked)
97. Homefires (RS unranked)
96. This Old Guitar (RS unranked)
95. Slip Away (RS #86)
94. This Note's for You (RS #42)
93. Mansion on the Hill (RS unranked)
92. Grey Riders (RS unranked)
91. Motion Pictures (for Carrie) (RS unranked)
90. Downtown (RS unranked)
89. White Line (RS unranked)
88. Ride My Llama (RS unranked)
87. Windward Passage (RS unranked)
86. Albuquerque (RS #39)
85. Everybody's Alone (RS unranked)
84. I've Been Waiting for You (RS unranked)
83. Winterlong (RS #45)
82. Sail Away (RS unranked)
81. Vacancy (RS unranked)
80. When You Dance I Can Really Love (RS #83)
79. Lotta Love (RS unranked)
78. I Believe in You (RS unranked)
77. Through My Sails (RS unranked)
76. LA (RS #74)
75. Goin' Back (RS unranked)
74. Crime in the City (Sixty to Zero) (RS #82)
73. From Hank to Hendrix (RS #20)
72. Drive Back (RS #76)
71. World on a String (RS #65)
70. Sea of Madness (RS unranked)
69. Razor Love (RS #60)
68. On the Way Home (RS #46)
67. Long May You Run (RS #32)
66. Like an Inca (RS unranked)
65. Interstate (RS unranked)
64. Days That Used to Be (RS unranked)
63. New Mama (RS unranked)
62. Wrecking Ball (RS unranked)
61. Shots (RS unranked)
60. Scenery (RS unranked)
59. Live to Ride (RS unranked)
58. Prisoners of Rock 'N' Roll (RS #87)
57. Come on Baby Let's Go Downtown (RS unranked)
56. Too Far Gone (RS #48)
55. Natural Beauty (RS unranked)
54. Unknown Legend (RS unranked)
53. Comes a Time (RS #51)
52. Broken Arrow (RS #23)
51. No Hidden Path (RS unranked)
50. Heart of Gold (RS #2)
49. Roll Another Number (for the Road) (RS #54)
48. Last Dance (RS unranked)
47. Welfare Mothers (RS unranked)
46. Pushed It Over the End (RS #61)
45. Harvest Moon (RS #37)
44. Don't Be Denied (RS #38)
43. Pardon My Heart (RS unranked)
42. Time Fades Away (RS unranked)
41. Change Your Mind (RS #40)
40. Love and Only Love (RS unranked)

 
Pip's Invitation said:
40. Love and Only Love (Ragged Glory, 1990)
One of two songs starting with "Love" on Ragged Glory that clocks in at around 10 minutes, this one has an insistent bassline and siren-like squalls from Neil's guitar. Despite the sonic mayhem, things are kept tuneful throughout. The message of its lyrics still resonates today and Neil has taken to using it as a set closer sometimes.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noo4R9bJLvA&feature=youtu.be

Live version from Weld: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgAosFBakGk

Live acoustic version from the Bridge School benefit (year not noted, but had to be 1990, 2001 or 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wRYF39GTGc

Live version from Earth (28 minutes, though after 16 minutes it's basically a noise jam): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyv-MjCcz_s

Partial live version from 2008 in Philly (woot!) with The Electric Band: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08uXMyO8NiM

There are a ton of versions on YouTube (almost all with Crazy Horse or Promise of the Real) because it has been performed live the most times of any song released since 1990 (second-most of any song released since 1980; you can probably guess what #1 is). 
Click to expand...
Might be my #1. Surely in my top 5. Great song.

As soon as I typed that all sorts of other songs came to mind. I've never been the type to spend time ranking songs. Just too difficult for me. Makes this sort of endeavour all the more impressive to me.

 
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cap'n grunge said:
Might be my #1. Surely in my top 5. Great song.

As soon as I typed that all sorts of other songs came to mind. I've never been the type to spend time ranking songs. Just too difficult for me. Makes this sort of endeavour all the more impressive to me.
Click to expand...
We’re at the point where there’s not a whole lot of difference for me between the songs around here and the songs at the top. 
 

I’ve always been the type that spends time ranking everything. 😂

 
39. Don't Cry No Tears (Zuma, 1975; based on a song written in 1964)
As great as the "ditch trilogy" of Time Fades Away, On the Beach and Tonight's the Night are, Neil was not in the best state of mind while making them. They rocked in parts, but some of his fans wondered where the kind of rocking he did on Cinnamon Girl and Southern Man went. It resurfaced on Zuma, and was announced triumphantly in this, the opening track.
Straightforward and no nonsense, Don't Cry No Tears sounds like a throwback because it is. The melody and some of the lyrics were taken from "I Wonder," a song Neil wrote and performed with the Squires, his band before he left Canada for the US. Between the Squires and Buffalo Springfield, Neil tried to make it as a folkie, and refashioned "I Wonder" into an acoustic song called "The Ballad of Peggy Grover" (until Archives Vol. 1 came out, this was mislabeled on bootlegs as "Don't Pity Me Babe"). Then he sat on it until dusting it off with a new title and some new lyrics. It's a pure joy to listen to and one of his songs I have never seen live but most want to.

Studio version: https://youtu.be/h_uyq8oGDvU

I Wonder by the Squires (1964, appears on Archives Vol. 1): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug2LJR_h_zw

The Ballad of Peggy Grover (from a demo tape submitted to Elektra, 1965-ish, appears on Archives Vol, 1): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGWawSNh75o

Live version with Crazy Horse from 1976: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHl1uyndylo

Live acoustic version from Bridge School Benefit 2011 with Eddie Vedder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQooMUS9Kfc

Eddie Vedder cover without Neil: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FThBkArK0g4

Wallflowers cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7HeEe2nwqA

Jay Farrar (Son Volt, Uncle Tupelo) and Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PM7obstlvu4

Jeff Tweedy (Wilco, Uncle Tupelo) cover (during quarantine, with son Spencer on drums): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_s3YETdPCFU

Lemonheads cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeWPt0BqKpE

Feelies cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJixF-HBlis

Yo La Tengo cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNmP32Vzw_c

Teenage Fanclub cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDJJeDrm0AQ

Nils Lofgren cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Yx_bkTqpA8

Paul Westerberg (Replacements) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsn5boXXsTw

Allison Moorer cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xPB2Hwh6kM

Pete Yorn cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FYGVjPl5w8

The Wedding Present cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DqSixlN_SI

Del Amitri cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNwz7K5wKGE

Rhett Miller (Old '97s) and friends cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZJ6y9ExZRQ

The Long Ryders with Dan Stuart cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6F8KiSqIcE

I'm guessing this must be very easy/fun to play because a bajillion bar bands and pretty much all the Neil tribute bands have covered it too. 

 
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38. Mr. Soul (Buffalo Springfield Again, 1967)
Because those in charge thought his voice was too unconventional, Neil's best songs on Buffalo Springfield's debut album were sung by Richie Furay. But on their second album, Neil grabbed the spotlight and never relinquished it. He earned the most attention with this one, a thunderous rocker patterned after the Stones. Acoustic versions are just as revelatory, as he brings to them a gravitas you'd expect from early 20th-century country blues artists. Despite the band having only one hit under its belt at the time, the lyrics already show Neil to be skeptical of fame and what comes along with it. 
This is also technically the only vocoder song on the list, as for some reason Neil re-recorded it for Trans.

Buffalo Springfield album version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyc0JSd5q7U&feature=youtu.be

Buffalo Springfield single version, which has fewer guitar overdubs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REfPhwsXIJY

Trans version: https://youtu.be/JJ9clNuelQQ

Um, there was even a dance remix of the Trans version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJtzkKWvuBw

Live version from Live at Canterbury House 1968: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXGBNbFC8-k

Live version from Songs for Judy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbDiegR0vXQ

Live version from Unplugged: https://youtu.be/EMRqN0m5c-M

Live version from Year of the Horse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7W6pMe_l1g

Buffalo Springfield TV appearance on The Hollywood Palace (medley with For What It's Worth): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V8VvEzuQ6Y

Buffalo Springfield live version, long and psychedelic, probably during one of the periods Neil had quit (sounds like Stills on vocals): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmTk1IKHjn8

Buffalo Springfield live version, definitely with Neil: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JO5gMGhIar8

Live version from 1982 with Trans Band: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_ocu2bQiCE

Live version from 1986 with Crazy Horse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpH45svXiYI

Live version from 1993 with Booker T. and the MGs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNqyjwX_8M4

Live version from 1995 with Pearl Jam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HClA77E2HSA

Live version (nearly 7 minutes) from 2012 with Crazy Horse in Philly (woot!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Dw-a8hdaLM

Live version from 2014 on pump organ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9sP6BoGAcw

Bridge School Benefit version from 2016 with Metallica: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiRzGoplTLc

Live version from 2016 with Stephen Stills and Kenny Wayne Shepard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIM2c0376fI

Live version from 2019 with Promise of the Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDWT3X5wFMo

Rush cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWR-t6699tk

Everly Brothers cover (produced by Neil collaborator Jack Nitzsche, with Ry Cooder on slide guitar): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPU9JK5AnEc

Love Battery cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1aau6tVVMI

The Dream Syndicate cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9siPws090pQ

Widespread Panic cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avSQWni_cmI

Stephen Stills cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ff1pZV4GxRg

Kenny Wayne Shepard cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikKMh2mkSew

Cat Power cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQ_zNAK5Mp4

Nils Lofgren cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiGHIT-aQxU

Iain Matthews cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PtLT8a_io4

Killdozer cover (warning: Cookie Monster vocals): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_LIDgVZqUc

Bongwater cover (warning: this is flippin' weird): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWoyWh7xLu0

Wire Train cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri83Lzb1klo

The Icicle Works cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmY0jCLptG8

Lime Spiders cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V2eVzmt4wE

Diesel Park West cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME5qIajJ-pQ

And...

Cher (!) cover (1975, so it's yacht-rocked up): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaRmzGebjQM

 
jwb said:
Love all versions of this song. I think its inclusion gives Trans a little extra something. "Yea, the album is all weird and stuff, but it's still Neil"   
Click to expand...
That’s a good way to look at it.

I strongly recommend the Love Battery cover if you haven’t checked it out yet. They are one of my favorite ‘90s bands and their version just kills. 

 
37. Tell Me Why (After the Gold Rush, 1970)
This song greets you like an old friend every time and is the perfect way to open After the Gold Rush, Neil's best (mostly) acoustic album. It's also a frequent acoustic show/set opener for the same reason. The fantastic melody and harmonies belie lyrics that are difficult to decode even by Neil's standards.

Studio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSWxU-mirqg&feature=youtu.be

Live version with CSNY from the same 1970 shows that produced Four Way Street. Appears on Archives Vol. 1 and is amazing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNqiuo7duL4

Live at Massey Hall 1971 version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koV-ozjyQKE

Live at the Cellar Door version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5uBrOOOHsw 

Live solo version from the Time Fades Away tour in 1973: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igjk7eMVg_w

Live solo version from the 1999 tour at beginning of this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odgbvdT8hE8

Live solo version from 2018 in Philly (woot!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkGTsnrsdSA

Live version with Promise of the Real from 2018: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Bc2A4RqcjI

Radiohead cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SJct3qEnVk

Norah Jones cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqiw5a4wdkE

Robin Zander (Cheap Trick) cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik8V8riIw4s

Shawn Colvin cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IxO5g70v1s

Lukas Nelson (Promise of the Real) cover (he sounds a lot like father Willie here): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kguHN2T7ELc

 
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