Blogcritics: Comments on The Soul of Mr. Soul

Comment by Rodney Welch

Mon, 25 Aug 2003 10:55:04 EDT

Thanks. I bought On the Beach this weekend -- hope to post some comments in the next day or so. A most interesting disc.

Comment by Thrasher

Sun, 24 Aug 2003 23:54:53 EDT

Rodney, Interesting review of Shakey. Really liked your points about Neil playing with Crazy Horse since it demonstrates that Neil often is in this for more than just the music. It's often about a band that allows him to be himself and go to places he hasn't been before. Take Greendale for instance. Anyway, enjoyed the review and put a link to it on Thrasher's Wheat at: http://home.earthlink.net/~thrasher1/wheatfield.html There's also a link to other reviews of the Shakey bio. Keep on Rockin! Thrasher

Comment by Rodney Welch

Wed, 20 Aug 2003 14:13:32 EDT

I never thought the thinking was sloppy. Was the writing pretentious? Well, it wasn't unpretentious, I'll grant you that, but here was a case where I thought the personal approach worked, much the way it does in the work of people like Lester Bangs or Nick Tosches.

Comment by Mary

Wed, 20 Aug 2003 14:04:11 EDT

Though I learned a lot from this book (e. g. never knew Rick James and Neil Young were in a band together), I found the author too fond of grand pronouncements to take seriously. He loves to make generalizations about whole decades, writing off the whole 80s for example, when the truth is there is good music and bad being produced at any moment in time. Such sloppy thinking and pretentious writing to boot!

Comment by Eric Olsen

Wed, 13 Aug 2003 17:05:25 EDT

Super reivew Rodney: very fine representation of the book and of Neil himself, as subject as big as the great outdoors.