Neil Young in Harvest Time

A couple of weeks ago I saw that there was a new film being released on December 1^st at cinemas all around the world about the making of the classic 1972 album Harvest by Neil Young. One of those cinemas was the Tivoli in Bath, so I bought myself a ticket, and caught the 3.10 train yesterday afternoon. I arrived in Bath way too early as usual, so repaired to the Lion & Lamb pub and watched Belgium v Croatia in the World Cup. I felt sorry for Romalu Lukaku of Belgium who missed lots of chances to put Belgium into the last sixteen. Then I had a look around the Christmas Market. I didn’t buy anything, but Bath looked splendid with all the Christmas lights. The traders were all after the gold rush, but it wasn’t all that busy, which might be a sign of the times. It was nice to bump into my friend Jacquie who I hadn’t seen for ages. Then I bought a veggie burger from Schwartz Brothers and had another couple of drinks in The Salamander and The Cork.

Time fades away and finally, it was time to make my way to the cinema which is right opposite the bus station. I didn’t even know this cinema existed until recently. I must say it is the plushest picture house I have ever been in. The seats are huge and very comfortable, and they even have waitresses to bring you drinks. The film was advertised to start at 8.00, but they were still showing adverts and trailers at 8.30 which I found a bit annoying, and also worrying because my train was at 10.41. 

Neil Young (Bernard Shakey) introduces the film himself. The film begins at Neil’s Broken Arrow ranch in California where Neil and his new band The Stray Gators are rehearsing and recording Alabama. Neil had only just met the musicians in 1971 when he appeared on the Johnny Cash TV show. There is a great scene where Neil is listening to a playback of the music coming from the barn. When he talks to the camera it shows what a nice laid-back character he is. He can’t believe how lucky he is to live in such beautiful surroundings, but also reveals guilt about being a ‘rich hippy’. The action then moves to London where Neil is recording A Man Needs A Maid and There’s A World with the London Symphony Orchestra. It shows his frustration at getting the conductor and the orchestra to understand what he is trying to achieve. Neil tells the conductor that he can’t read or write music. They get there in the end though. 

Although Neil and his band are obviously stoned a lot of the time, you can see that he doesn’t let that get in the way of the work. He is a perfectionist. There are some hilarious scenes in a studio in New York where Crosby, Stills & Nash are adding backing vocals to Words (Down Though The Lines of Age). They spend a long time discussing how to do it, until Graham Nash finally says, “F**k it, let’s just sing it”. Also, things keep going wrong in the control room, and Graham starts telling Neil that the studio is haunted and proceeds to tell him about the ‘Girl on the red velvet swing’ murder case.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, there is another hilarious scene where a stoned grinning Neil is singing Out On The Weekend while playing the banjo. I won’t tell you much more because I don’t want to ruin the film for you if you see it. I was hoping that Linda Ronstadt would appear because I know she was on the album, but I didn’t spot her. There was a glimpse of a lady who might have been Carrie Snodgrass his muse of those days, but I might be wrong.

Comes a time. I looked on my phone and it said 10.30, so I had to leave after Heart of Gold. I don’t know how much was missed at the end. I was hoping to hear Old Man because I know that the old man in question worked on Neil’s ranch. Also, I didn’t hear The Needle & The Damage Done, but never mind, I’m sure to see it again sometime. I rushed to the station and just managed to catch the 10.41 train to Westbury after a very enjoyable few hours in Bath, and a journey through the past. If you are a Shakey fan, I urge you to see this film. You will love it.

 

Neil Young - Harvest Time (Official Film Clip)

R.I.P Christine McVie. I'd Rather Go Blind (1969)

I Did It Otway.

The night after I got home from London, I had a call from a neighbour Phil. “John Otway is playing in Trowbridge tomorrow night if you fancy going”. “Ok, that sounds like fun, I’ll see you in the pub at 6.30”. The next evening, we caught a taxi from The Crown to the railway station and hopped on the train for the short journey to Trowbridge. The Village Pump is a little folk club in the yard of The Lamb pub which has somehow managed to survive for about fifty years and has hosted some great musicians during that time. This isn’t the first time I have seen Otway perform. I think apart from Van Morrison I have seen him more times than any other act, often by chance, such as tonight. When we arrived, the pub was absolutely packed, not with Otway fans, but with football fans because tonight England were playing USA in the World Cup, and everyone wanted to watch it on the big screen. We managed to get a drink and went outside into the fresh air of the yard. After a few minutes who should also emerge from the pub but John Otway himself. 

We had a little chat and Otway kindly signed a ticket which I had brought along. It was from his 50^th birthday party concert at the London Palladium which me and Kim went to in 2002. We talked about that great concert which Otway remembered vividly. Dr Feelgood were also on the bill that night, and sadly their great guitar player Wilko Johnson died this week. He was great friends with Otway who paid a little tribute to Wilko during his show this evening. Then it was time to take our seats. We found a table at the back, but this club is so tiny everyone gets a great view.

I didn’t write down the set-list, but Otway played two sets of about 45 minutes each with an interval in the middle. As well as the songs, there is also lots of crazy hilarious banter where Otway tells stories about his long career. He began with the first of his two hit singles which was Really Free, and anyone who watched The Old Grey Whistle Test on the BBC in the 1970s will never forget his performance of this song, and Cheryl’s Going Home which he also performed in Trowbridge. He also sang his other hit Bunsen Burner which took me right back to that magical night at the Palladium when he sang it for the fans in the pub across the road. Another great song was Beware Of The Flowers which was the flipside of Really Free and I think should have been a huge hit in its own right. Louisa on a horse from his first album with Wild Willy Barrett was another highlight in Trowbridge, as was Josephine, and I Can’t Complain from the equally great Deep and Meaningless album. 

I also enjoyed The Middle of Winter. A personal favourite of mine is the poignant Poetry & Jazz which shows what a great lyric writer Otway can be. Of the more humorous songs, there were I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor sung in the style of Bob Dylan, Crazy Horses by The Osmonds which featured a manic solo on the theremin, Blockbuster by The Sweet, House of the Rising Sun which involved a lot of audience participation. Body Talk where he had microphones all over himself. He finished with the Wild Willy Barrett song Head Butts in which he repeatedly head butted the microphone, which must have hurt. During the interval I bought some Otway Christmas cards at the merchandise stall which were 5 for £2.00 and Otway’s biography called I Did It Otway, Regrets, I’ve Had a Few!. Otway signed it for me. I didn’t realise that the price for the book had been reduced, so when I got my change I said, “I wasn’t expecting that much change”. “You haven’t read the book yet”, Otway replied, which I thought was funny. I got Phil to take a picture of me and Otway. So, thanks to Phil for getting me a ticket, and thanks to the one and only John Otway for a great night in Trowbridge.

Me & Otway.