Neil Young

The globally respected, prolific and mercurial Neil Young has forged a 50 year long storied career that has been revered by legions of fans, peers and critics around the world and earned him recognition as one of the greatest artists of all time.

After embarking on a music career in the 1960s Toronto folk scene, the Canadian native moved to Los Angeles where in 1966, he formed with Stephen Stills and others the groundbreaking super group Buffalo Springfield, who along with the Byrds, became the forerunners of the Americana folk-rock and country roots rock music movements of the Seventies and beyond. (photo above: Young's H.O.A.R.D. Tour model train)
While joining Stills in the iconic band Crosby, Stills and Nash in 1969, Young began his prolific solo career as a touring singer/songwriter with his self-titled debut album Neil Young. In the next three decades, Young produced over 35 albums that demonstrated his uncompromising and shape shifting musicology -from the jam rock inflected Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, his first album with his fabled long standing backup band Crazy Horse, featuring "Cinnamon Girl" to the folk acoustic flavored Harvest that produced the #1 hit "Heart of Gold" to the electric/punk rock insurgentRust Never Sleeps to the bluesy This Note's For You that was banned by MTV and whose title track ironically won him an MTV Best Video Award to his Freedom protest anthem "Rockin' in the Free World." Despite their unshackled musical genres and experimentation, Young's consciousness raising songs have always been marked by his distinct voice, raw and emotional guitar playing and his transcendent, poetic songwriting. (photo right: Young's 1948 Buick Roadmaster Hearse) Young's standing as a cult hero has influenced and ignited other works: from touring with grunge rock icons Pearl Jam to three documentaries on Young's concert tours produced by the late famed director Jonathan Demme to collaborations on the film soundtracks of Dead Man directed by Jim Jarmusch and Demme's Philadelphia which garnered Young an Academy award nomination.
Political, environmental and humanitarian awareness, advocacy and activism have been consistent threads in Young's life's mission and music. In 1985, Young co-founded, the still active Farm Aid with Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp. Neil Young and Pegi Young organized the Bridge School Benefit Concerts which for three decades had become an annual, all acoustic, non-profit charity event. The Bridge School ensures that children with severe speech and physical impairments achieve full participation in their communities through the use of assistive technology and the development, implementation and dissemination of innovative educational strategies. The weekend concerts have drawn an international array of musical artists from Bruce Springsteen to Elton John to Guns N' Roses and have raised significant resources for the school. A portion of proceeds from this auction will benefit The Bridge School.
In addition, Young is the author of several books including the best selling 2012 autobiography "Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream."