Neil Young Biography

One of the few Woodstock-generation rockers whose late career didn’t rely on reunions and re-issues, Neil Young in the 1990s earned the title “Godfather of Grunge” — along with a new generation of followers.

From his early days with Buffalo Springfield and then Crosby, Stills and Nash & Young, and on to his 1970s heyday with his band Crazy Horse, Neil Young’s plaintive voice and raw guitar earned him rock legend status with pop tunes, protest songs and even country ballads.

He emerged as a solo artist in the early ’70s, with the hit albums After the Gold Rush (1970) and Harvest (1972).

He followed with personal projects that were less commercially successful, but by the end of the decade he and Crazy Horse proved their vitality with the hit Rust Never Sleeps (1979).

After a series of minor hits and big misses in the ’80s, Young returned to raw-edged rock and roll with 1990’s Ragged Glory, making him a hero to fans of newer bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

Famously anti-war, Young spent much of the 2000s in protest mode, railing against President George W. Bush and the occupation of Iraq, and making it part of his music, as in 2006’s Living With War (nominated for three Grammys, including for best rock album).

His other albums include Decade (1978, a compilation of hits), Freedom (1989, with the hit “Rockin’ in the Free World”), Harvest Moon (1992) and Fork in the Road (2009).