Neil Young -- Massey Hall 1971

Today saw the release of another show in the Archives series. This concert from January 19, 1971 at Massey Hall in Toronto has a DVD that I watched in its entirety. It's a thrill to see solo Neil, with plaid shirt and long hippie hair, at the zenith of his songwriting and performing skills.

The audience does not recognize classics like "Old Man" since Harvest had not been released. So we get unadorned versions like "There's a World" and a sneak preview of "See the Sky About to Rain" from 1974's On the Beach. Even "A Man Needs a Maid" is somewhat embryonic lyrically, with "a man is afraid" instead of "a man needs a maid" in the first chorus.

Maybe it's because I've been a Neil Young fan for decades that I can't even feign objectivity about material like this. I'm completely blown away and find it hard to see how any music fan could miss the genius at work here. It doesn't matter the footage is primitive and sporadic because every morsel is a gift and a wonderful journey through the past.

See what it brings,
Could be good things
In the air for you.