Dear Friends,
It is October the 12th. Doug’s birthday. It’s also the day we celebrate his life and say farewell in a ritualistic way.
It feels so odd. I’ve written a lot in the last month about how Doug’s death has impacted me, made me feel, and just my thoughts. Today I just want to be with the family who are here and send out my love to those who are not.
The record I wrote about today made me think about Doug a lot, so I leave you with it. Peace to you all and happy birthday to those out there who also celebrate today.
*****
I’m certainly glad Neil Young decided to make up with Spotify. Hopefully they gave him a briefcase full of cash. I wish they would give a little more to the rest of us, but that is a different story. Harvest is the record today because, well, it is the kind of day where you need Harvest.
I wanted to pick a record today that I love that I also thought my late, great father-in-law, Doug, would have really liked, too. He was a tricky music fan. I am certain that he liked music, but it wasn’t a big enough deal for him to give it much brain power. I’m guessing he had a few thoughts about this one back in the time when it was first out. Doug would have been 24 at the time and ready to rule the world.
There is a part of me that loves wondering about Doug driving around in Colorado in those days, listening to the radio absentmindedly, thinking more about the house or building he was working on or the next time he could get on a mountain to go skiing. Maybe he was thinking about his wife or some other gal he knew. I don’t know if he had met Rhondi’s mom yet. Maybe he had and he wished he was with her while listening to Neil Young.
The first two songs on Harvest, “Out on the Weekend” and the title track, “Harvest” are so beautiful. As I sit here and listen, it eases the pain I feel today. I prefer thinking about people as being alive and taking life by the reigns. This record, even though it is called Harvest, which is typically the end of something, feels like it’s very alive.
“A Man needs a Maid” is also quite beautiful with its big, sweeping sound and lush instrumentation. It’s about yearning and not, in any way, is about a man needing to be taken care of. It’s about a man needing someone to love. I wish, for Doug’s sake, he could have had more of that in his life from a romantic standpoint. From where I stood, it seemed like that was something he really wanted in the time I knew him.
“Heart of Gold” speaks to what I saw when I saw Doug, too. He loved Rhondi and the kids deeply. I know he loved me, too, but he was the type of guy that liked to show how he felt more than say it, although he did say it to Rhondi and the kids quite a bit. I got one or two, as well, over the years. There is that line where Young sings, “I’ve been a miner for a heart of gold” that really makes me think of that yearning for someone to love.
“Are You Ready for the Country” is one where Young shows off his bluesy side and the slide guitar work on the song is stellar. I am also pretty fond of the piano work here, too. I bet Doug would have liked this one a lot.
Now, “Old Man” is a song that I can say is purely for me. I have loved this song for what seems like my whole life. It was one that came on the radio a lot when I was old enough to start appreciating music. I can remember thinking that being 24 was so old. That’s how old Doug was when this record came out. But again, I never really thought about Doug when listening to “Old Man.”
I remember being 24 and hearing it in a different way. Now that I’m almost 55, it sounds different, too. I don’t want to prove a whole lot to the people older than me, at this point. I do need “someone to love me the whole day through” but I have her and it’s pretty rad. There are certain older men that I would like to be a lot more like.
“There’s a World” has always made me think of some big Hollywood production when I have listened to it closely. It really is the totally lush instrumentation, of course, and the work by the London Symphony Orchestra is pretty epic. I love how the percussionists put a nice little exclamation point on the early part of the song. They are always kind of looming there, too.
Did Neil Young give birth to grunge guitar on “Alabama?” Maybe so, maybe so. The opening guitar riff has such a killer tone. It’s there in the mix, too, lurking and waiting to come out when it can be tastefully done. David Crosby and Stephen Stills lend their voices to this one, as well, and help make it super powerful. More great piano on this one, too, but it’s Young’s guitar that seals the deal for me on “Alabama.”
“The Needle and the Damage Done” is another song I feel like I have loved my whole life. I was way too young to understand the emotional heaviness when I was first listening to it, for sure, but it is such a great song. I could seriously listen to this one for a long, long time. It makes me want to be a better acoustic guitar player, too.
How do you close out an epic record like this one? As I type this, I can’t help but wonder what type of discussion were had about how these tracks should be ordered. The tone of Harvest could have been so different, for example, if side one and side two had been switched.
“Words (Between the Lines of Age)” really is a fitting end, though. There is so much beauty on this record. I am taken back to the thoughts I was thinking when I started writing about this today. We celebrated Doug’s life today. We will always celebrate him.
“When I look through the window and out on the roadThey're bringing me presents and saying helloSinging words, words between the lines of ageWords, words between the lines of age”
Thank you, Neil, and thank you, Doug. I hope this is a fitting record on this day. Happy birthday, too, wherever you are.
*****
See you tomorrow.

I love this. Thank you AI for listening to me.
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