Neil Young

Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and musician Website

Approval Rate: 82%

82%Approval ratio

Reviews 94

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  • by

    astromike

    Mon Dec 14 2009

    Greatest? Eh...no, but damn good!! Young is king of the acoustic quitar (and harmonica). Still from the album Rust Never Sleeps, the song-Hey, Hey, My, My (fade to black) he proved he can rock with the best of em, and is not that bad at electric guitar either. Props to Crazy Horse as well, they can jam too! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs2-BH9_DMA

  • by

    sideshowbobby

    Mon Jul 20 2009

    Now neil is good---but he aint all that

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    bobwall

    Tue Jul 07 2009

    Neil is the Greates!

  • by

    front476

    Fri Jan 23 2009

    Not one of my favorites but he has his place in music history.

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    zorde37e

    Sun Dec 07 2008

    This guy is my favorite musician of all time and definately up there with bob dylan imo... in songs like hey hey my my (or its brother my my hey hey) he says "its better to burn out than to fade away" how can you say it doesnt take some skill to come up with that... let alone the fact that all his songs are the best thing you will ever hear in ur life!!!

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    frankswildyear_s

    Mon Nov 10 2008

    Like his singing voice his guitar playing is no thing of beauty yet he has very good expressive abilities with his basic skills.UPDATE:  There was a very interesting story on the radio this morning. First off, let me tell you that Neil was through town a couple of weeks ago, town being Winnipeg, where Neil spent his teens and where he got his start as a musician. Anyway, the story goes like this; this morning the local CBC morning show interviewed a guy who currently owns the house that Neil lived in when he and his mom moved to Winnipeg.A week ago Sunday he and his wife were in their front yard raking up leaves and getting ready for winter when they noticed two scruffy guys standing outside of a cab, looking at the front of the house. They said its not uncommon for people to walk by and look at the house, its a local landmark. One of the guys had a hand full of papers that appeared to have been printed out from the internet. The couple walked over to say 'hi' and confirm for them that... Read more

  • by

    hardrockfanati_c

    Mon Oct 27 2008

    One of the greatest lyricist of all-time. I always like the uniqueness of his voice.

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    lorifreakinlor_i

    Sat Oct 25 2008

    You've got to be kidding! The man has a voice like a rusty can opener! Not a taste I ever hope I acquire!

  • by

    vanhalenisgod

    Sat Oct 11 2008

    he's good but not good enough to be on this list.  great song writer but the voice wears thin after awhile.

  • by

    caroline112

    Wed Oct 08 2008

    good guitar plyer...like him better all around,..

  • by

    chalky

    Wed Oct 08 2008

    'On the Beach' is probably my favorite Young album.  I would check it out if you haven't already.  Not my favorite artist (since he changed his name from Neil 'Old' to Neil  'Young.'  Neil does rock at times...in the 'free world' or the communist world if you so dare....muaaahahh

  • by

    frenchiefastwa_ves

    Sat Sep 20 2008

    This rusty canadian rocker might not have the most delicate voice out there and his "claw-hammer" probably isn't a really spotless style of guitar playing...Not everybody is into experimental rock...Still ends up showing more gut per note than most top ten artists anytime. One of the few heroes left out there.

  • by

    ilikepie

    Sun Aug 31 2008

    Not spectacular, but he wrote a few decent songs, and penned a couple of good solos.

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    paul375

    Mon Aug 04 2008

    Not as good a player as he is a songwriter.

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    myspace_373553756

    Tue Jul 29 2008

    I like him alot

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    beauman

    Thu Jul 24 2008

    great songwriter,.

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    rebuilding

    Mon Jul 14 2008

    BRILLIANT in every thing he does, always in the mood for Neil

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    lordinera

    Sun Jul 13 2008

    the hands of Modern apache

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    henrik

    Fri Jul 11 2008

    He brings us as closa as we can come to the core of the universe.

  • by

    mike955

    Sun Jul 06 2008

    known for one note leads picked 25 times in a row --not good on gutar but a great overall musician --also as note cant sing worth shit but its different so i still like him --he was first concert i ever went to at age 15

  • by

    katrinabena

    Sun Jul 06 2008

    I guess Young is an acquired taste but I think he is one of the alltime great lyricists.

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    theotherbruce

    Wed Jul 02 2008

    Just oulandishly creative with his sound and riffs

  • by

    rob670

    Wed Jul 02 2008

    Neil doesn't need to be polished or flashy. He transmits emotion directly through his guitar which is the ultimate goal for true musicians.

  • by

    lloyd985

    Thu Jun 26 2008

    One of the most underated ever!!

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    shakeykane

    Wed Apr 16 2008

    technically speaking, he was nothing special...he was an artist and he brings people into his work with his own style of playing...as John Lennon once said about his playing: "Technically, I'm not very good...I'm an artist. Give me a tuba, and I'll get you something out of it."

  • by

    angryjed

    Wed Dec 05 2007

    One of the best and the only one that could pull off what he does.

  • by

    randyman

    Wed Dec 05 2007

    Still one of my favorite rock artist. His music style has always set him apart from other rock artist of his time. his music holds up well considering I was listening to his music in high school.

  • by

    rover1963

    Wed Jul 04 2007

    Musical commendations - however; he isn't one of the 'great' guitarists!

  • by

    limpin_trenchfoot

    Tue May 29 2007

    His voice is terrible, one of the worst in rock history, and one that makes his music unlistenable in my books. His guitar playing is mediocre and his harmonica work is almost as lazy and tuneless as Bob Dylan's. Like Dylan he's penned the odd decent tune - e.g. Rockin in the Free World - but they're generally  best done by others.

  • by

    genghisthehun

    Tue May 01 2007

    Here is another Canadian telling us what to do. Tiresome.

  • by

    slidemaster

    Fri Apr 13 2007

    He was sloppy and a hack. ARe you kidding me.

  • by

    chimpflop

    Sun Feb 25 2007

    One of the best ever.  Neil Young says more in a one note solo than most of the wankers highly rated by the guitar snobs can say in a career of solos.  If you don't get, I feel sorry for you.

  • by

    virilevagabond

    Sat Feb 17 2007

    I acknowledge the respect that Neil Young gets in the musical community, but he generally doesn't float my personal boat. The man is prolific enough to hit some spots for me, especially "Heart Of Gold", which is one of my favorite singles from any artist, but for the most part he falls flat. Moreover, his voice isn't strong enough even if his songwriting is usually well above par (as opposed to Bob Dylan, whose songs are better written). I had never considered Young's influence on grunge prior to reading some of the prior reviews, and I would have to agree with that conclusion. In the end, I'm going with an admittedly subjective three stars.

  • by

    loerke

    Sat Feb 10 2007

    Clearly a polarizing figure on this list. Maybe he's not a virtuoso, but I'm surprised that anyone would enjoy listening to examples of sheer technical mastery more than once. Young definitely has some terrible albums, but on the good ones his solos are subtle and timeless - check out the way his guitar chimes with the vocal melodies on a track like "Powderfinger." Very creative and beautiful if you ask me.

  • by

    toillbokk

    Thu Jan 25 2007

    What is a good guitarplayer? Is it one who play all the notes correctly very fast? Is it one who can copy all the tricks in the book? Is it one with a unique sound and style? Is it the one who moves and put you in another time and place with his playing??

  • by

    jeetkunedo

    Mon Jan 15 2007

    You are kidding me, right? Neil Young? Remember....we aren't talking about how much of a "legend" he is...or how much of a "songwriter" he is. This is about guitar playing.

  • by

    jackrf51

    Mon Jan 08 2007

    he really it terrible.

  • by

    hiyoumeway90yo_u

    Sun Jan 07 2007

    This guy is a Master, got to be insane if anyone rate him under 4 stars. Should be in top 7.

  • by

    justincatsoda2_3

    Fri Jan 05 2007

    This guy is a legend. Should easily be in the top 10. Please help me vote for Neil. Thank you.

  • by

    wigscott

    Fri Jan 05 2007

    OK granted technically speaking Neil Young's guitar ability pales greatly in comparison to many. What sets him apart is he happens to be one of the GREATEST SONGWRITERS this planet has seen. Yep right up there with Dylan in my estimation. He is all about ATMOSPHERE and FEEL. His most amazing lead is undoubtetly "Like a Hurricane" where do those sounds come from? You feel like your being blown around yourself! What classic songs "Cortez the Killer", "A man needs a Maid", "Old Man", "Ohio", "Expecting To Fly", "Powderfinger". Again yeah he has some "one note" leads going on but he transports us to very special place indeed in his extraordinary landscapes. Love you Neil.

  • by

    chrisrianna

    Mon Jan 01 2007

    This list is a joke if this guy is in the top 1,000,000,000!

  • by

    rockerrreds

    Mon Nov 13 2006

    Listen to his work on "Sad Memory"-his guitar sounds like a horn.

  • by

    bassman44113

    Fri Jun 09 2006

    This guy sucks.... as a player and a singer. However, he is a fairlygood songwriter. Some are can be considered classic, others just phsycobabble.

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    doobiesnhof

    Fri May 26 2006

    Great guitarist. A top 10 candidate who has been at times controversial (Vietman era anti-war songs and his latest venture "Living With War" which blasts the Bush warmongers). He is also very innovative. Played with Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Crazy Horse and more recently Pearl Jam. Great songwriter and unique guitarist, Young is a master of his own making.

  • by

    candylucy

    Thu May 25 2006

    Yeesh! His voice is like a precursor to James Blunt.

  • by

    georgie20

    Sat May 20 2006

    This guy is the most overrated singer and guitar player of all time. If you play guitar, you would realize that he is a distorted combination of three chords and gargled lyrics.

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    sammiew

    Tue May 16 2006

    Far better guitarist than vocalist.

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    reaverto

    Sat Apr 29 2006

    I think of Neil Young as more of a singer/songwriter rather than a guitar player. He definitely has chops and has made some haunting recordings with both acoustic and electric accompaniment. His leads are more feel than technique, Jimi Hendrix once said that Neil Young shouldn't play lead guitar and stick to Rhythym.

  • by

    portecrayon

    Mon Apr 24 2006

    Love Neil's music but best guitarist? Not even close!

  • by

    lightfinger200_0

    Sat Apr 01 2006

    come on,youve got to be kidding.neil has a genuine groove thats his own thing but is there anything he plays that a novice couldnt master