Neil Young Sings "Impeach the President"

Neil Young is releasing a secretly-recorded album entirely against Bush! I can't wait.

Comments

timcoe said…
Neil Young is probably one of my favorite musicians of all time.

I am feeling all tingly now.
Douglas said…
More hate speech. Just what we all need.
True, but the music industry has lacked the ability to make good protest music since the Vietnam War, and the world is a better place when the arts community addresses political matters rather than fleeing from it.
Douglas said…
David,

I don't think the music industry lacks the *ability* at all. There is all sorts of talent out there. What is lacking is something different.

There is a place for protest music, but is should be more than character assasination and glorified hate speech. Perhaps Neil Young's music will live up to that. I think I'll let others pass along the good pieces. I'm skeptical to the point of disinterest.

Doug
timcoe said…
1) Neil Young is a good enough writer to be capable of criticizing intelligently (see: 'Southern Man,' 'Alabama,' 'Welfare Mothers,' 'Powderfinger,' 'Pocahontas,' etc. etc.)

2) It's hard to imagine an entire album on the subject if it's nothing but 'hate speech.' Who would listen to sixty minutes of 'Bush sucks'?
Douglas said…
"' Who would listen to sixty minutes of 'Bush sucks'?"

People who watch Michael Moore films,perhaps? That guy can't keep his facts straight to save his life. On a non-Bush related issue, he actually said that the folks at Lockheed Martin near Columbine, CO are involved in nuclear weapons production. They do design and manufacture space launch vehicles, but that's a far cry from a missile. Even if it were true, which it wasn't, it would have been quite a stretch to connect it with Columbine. That's just one example of fact twisting that Michael Moore is famous for. He regularly twists things to make his point, glossing over or ignoring the truth on a regular basis. As successful as his anti-Bush film was, it wouldn't be a bit surprising to me if a music artist came up with 60 minutes of "Bush sucks" which sold quite well in certain political circles.

Certain groups actually like to hear that kind of talk, if for no other reason than that it reinforces their preconceived ideas and helps them justify their own hatred. My aunt is a perfect example of an intelligent, yet blind Bush hater.

Doug
timcoe said…
I think we should define what we're talking about. While Moore's films are certainly polemic, and filled with distortions and outright lies, and are certainly targeted at particular persons (George Bush being one of them), I personally wouldn't call them 'hate speech.' The reason he lies and twists the truth is because he's attempting to make an argument, which is a far cry from repeating 'Bush sucks' over and over again. Even people who agree with the sentiment have limited attention spans, and only liked Moore's anti-Bush film because they thought, at the time, that it was presenting sound arguments.

More to the point, Neil Young is not Michael Moore. He's a talented musician and storyteller, and his album has about as much chance at becoming hate speech as the most recent Sufjan Stevens album had at becoming propaganda for the Illinois Bureau of Tourism.
Douglas said…
Timcoe,

I will have to defer to you regarding Neil Young, since I am not terribly familiar with him. I formed my initial impressions based on the phrase "secretly-recorded album entirely against Bush!" That strikes me as very Michael Mooreish, but it entirely possible (even likely) that I am wrong.

Post sometime on how it turns out, please. If it is intelligent and decently done (not merely character assasination), it would probably be worth listening to.

Doug
Kevin said…
The best Neil Young album was Harvest, I would put "after the gold rush" at a close second. Would everyone agree?
Thanks for the comment, Jon. And I share your hopes for the album.
timcoe said…
I'd put Rust Never Sleeps above After the Goldrush. But Harvest is definitely #1.