Neil Young and Philosophy (The Philosophy of Popular Culture)

Neil Young and Philosophy , edited by Douglas L. Berger, explores the meanings, importance, and philosophical dimensions of the music, career, and life of this prolific singer/songwriter over the past five decades. Neil Young’s music has touched on a broad range of cultural, political and personal issues, all of which have enormous ongoing relevance for our own times. In order to accommodate Young’s artistic breadth, contributions of scholars from a wide variety of fields-- American philosophy, ethics, American Indian philosophy, feminist philosophy, psychology, philosophy of mind and religious studies--are included in this collection. They examine everything from Young’s environmentalism, invocation of American Indian themes, images of women, and interpretations of human relationships to his confrontations with the music industry, his experiments with recording technologies, his approach to social change, and his methods of creativity. The book builds on the fundamental commitment of the Philosophy and Popular Culture series to see the artist as a philosopher. Cover 1 Image Courtesy of Jared Sizer 2 Neil Young and Philosophy 4 Series Page 5 Neil Young and Philosophy 6 Copyright 7 Contents 8 Acknowledgments 10 Introduction 12 Chapter 1 20 Primal and Spontaneous 20 Verse One: Authenticity as Spontaneity 21 Chorus: Authentically Technological 23 Solo: The Cult of Aura 23 Verse Two: Recording Spontaneity 25 Chorus: Authenticity beyond Individuality 28 Extended Solo: Authenticity as Audio Verité 28 Verse Two Reprise: Beatles or Stones? 30 Extended Solo: A Dyad of Dyads 30 Chorus: Against Perfection 33 Second Extended Solo: “Third Best Garage Band in the World” 34 Coda: Fade Out 35 Notes 35 Bibliography 37 Chapter 2 38 Neil Young and Creativity 38 Notes 52 Bibliography 54 Chapter 3 56 Lawsuits, Master Narratives, and Artistic Commodification 56 Distinguishing between “Important” and “Popular” Music 56 Focus on Failure 59 What are the “Geffen Years” in the “Usual” Versions of the Neil Young Story? 61 The Geffen Years: How the Story of the Lawsuit Is Told 61 The Lawsuit Data 63 The Upside 63 The Business of Music:—On “Selling Out:” Commodification, and Young as the Ethical artist 64 Selling Out in the Post-Commodification Era 66 The Geffen Years in Fuller Context: Young, His Story, and the Story of His Story 68 Notes 72 Bibliography 74 Chapter 4 78 Extended Mind and the Music of Trans 78 Extended Mind 81 Examples of Cognitive Extension 83 Normal, Natural 86 How Wide the Mind? 91 Classic or Alternative? 95 Notes 96 Bibliography 100 Chapter 5 104 Neil Young: Lover of Sun, Moon and Cars 104 Notes 113 Bibliography 114 Chapter 6 116 Neil Young and American Indians: Politics, Lyrics, and Authenticity 116 Notes 126 Bibliography 128 Chapter 7 130 Memory and Relationships in the Work and Music of Neil Young 130 Formative Experiences from Polio to the Buffalo Springfield 133 Relationships and Memory—the Legacy of Crazy Horse 140 Growing Older and the Dimming of the Past 144 Notes 147 Bibliography 149 Chapter 8 152 Images of Women in the Music and Life of Neil Young 152 Women in Song: An Analysis Using Hoagland 153 Women in Real Life 161 Notes 166 Bibliography 167 Chapter 9 170 Neil Young’s Search for the Simple Life 170 The Simple Life 171 Loneliness, Longevity, and Love 172 Knowledge, Simplicity, and Happiness 173 Reappraising the Criticism 174 Freudian Psychoanalysis and Attachment Theory 175 Inner Conflict, Avoidance, and Authenticity 175 The Good Life 177 Conclusion 178 Notes 179 Bibliography 180 Chapter 10 182 Listening with Neil’s Vulnerable Voice and the Ethics of Care 182 Care Ethics (Briefly) Explained 185 Neil and Listening 189 Neil’s Voice and Listening-With 191 Conclusion 194 Notes 194 Bibliography 195 Index 196 Contributors 204 Neil Young and Philosophy onderzoekt de muziek, carrière en het leven van Neil Young vanuit verschillende filosofische perspectieven op het gebied van ethiek, sociaal-politiek denken en esthetiek. Het kan van belang zijn voor zowel Neil Young-fans als voor geleerden en docenten van filosofie en cultuur. NL-ZmNBD. "Neil Young and Philosophy examines the music, career, and life of Neil Young from a variety of philosophical perspectives in ethics, socio-political thought, and aesthetics. It will be of great interest both to Neil Young fans and to scholars and teachers of philosophy and culture"-- Provided by publisher