just finished Neil Young Nation, by Kevin Chong, and am completely underwhelmed. In 2004 Chong and three buddies retraced Young's 1966 journey from Toronto to Los Angeles. The subsequent book is subtitled "A quest, an obsession and a true story".Chong's accounts of being on the road are fabulously funny and often insightful. Unfortunately there is not enough road and entirely too much Neil Young. Don't get me wrong, I have loved the tuneless Mr. Young for years, but pages of analysis of his songs weigh down Chong's celebration of Young as an icon. Chong quotes Young's lyrics extensively, only to show that Young is just not that deep.
What could have been a rollicking road book ends up, despite glimmers of brilliance, as tedious as driving to Yellowstone with your parents - you may be going someplace interesting, but you've tuned out after the second hour.
1 comment:
Thanks for the visit ... but this is a different Neil Young than the one mentioned on my site. (uoweb.blogspot.com) :-)
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