Neil Young Hits the Studio With Producer Daniel Lanois

Neil Young recently announced a solo acoustic tour, and his buddy David Crosby tells Rolling Stone his old bandmate is back in the studio, too. Crosby says Young is recording a new album with producer Daniel Lanois, best known for his work with U2 and Bob Dylan. "Neil told me last week that he was having a great time talking music with him and just relating to him," David Crosby says, adding that he volunteered his services for any upcoming sessions. "I said to him, 'If you want a harmony, I'm volunteering.' He said, 'You know, if I need one you'll be the first guy I call.' "

Young has rarely worked with big-name producers throughout his four-decade career. "I think that Neil's been a little lonely for someone to interact that way because his best buddy [L.A. Johnson] died and that just really left a hole there," says Crosby. "The guy's paid an awful lot of dues, man. I suspect this will be a very heartfelt record. I expect it will be a very special record." Fans will likely hear a preview of songs destined for the in-progress LP when Young hits the road May 18th for his three-week American theater tour.

"He does that [solo acoustic] thing probably better than anybody," adds Crosby. "One of my most favorite concerts of his was him at the Wiltern in Los Angeles. He had a circle of his guitars around him and a chair, and he walked out there and sang. It was mesmerizing. He's a fantastic musician, but also a great storyteller. I was standing there in the wings with Bob Dylan. He and I are huge Neil fans, and we didn't move. We stood there the entire concert and just watched. We were as mesmerized as much as the audience was."

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Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

More Song Stories entries »

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