Tonight’s the Night


I listened to Neil Young’s Tonight’s the Night again last night. Amazing.

A comment on Amazon likens the album to Robert Johnson’s rawness and the Wikipedia article hints at the personal nature of the artistry behind the songs:

Tonight’s the Night (album) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: “Included with the vinyl release of Tonight’s the Night was a seemingly strange insert that added to Neil Young’s claim that Tonight’s the Night was the closest he ever came to art. Emphasising the personal nature of the album, the self-penned liner notes contained an apology: ‘I’m sorry. You don’t know these people. This means nothing to you.’ The original inserts/liner notes included in the vinyl release were quite cryptic in their conveyance.

On the front of the insert is a letter to the mysterious ‘Waterface’ character, no explanation is given to their identity, although in Shakey: Neil Young’s Biography by Jimmy McDonough, Young says that ‘Waterface is the person writing the letter. When I read the letter, I’m Waterface. It’s just a stupid thing – a suicide note without the suicide.'”

The album has actually crept into my “Top 5” list which goes something like (in no particular order):

Tonight’s the Night: Neil Young

Heartbreaker: Ryan Adams (even if it is named after a Mariah Carey song.)

The Beatles (The White Album): The Beatles (sure, Abbey Road is a/the masterpiece, but I’ve always loved the chaotic underbelly of the Beatles…for me, this is pure music perfection.)

Highway 61 Revisited: Bob Dylan (if you haven’t listened to this album all the way through with headphones on, you haven’t lived.)

Nevermind: Nirvana (the album that made me like music and changed my life and my generation.)

It’s difficult to nail down a “Top 5” but it’s really difficult to nail down a Top 10 or a Top 25. We’ll do that another day.

That’s because today, It’s Neil Young’s birthday. So do him and yourself a favor and give “Tonight’s the Night” a listen today (or tonight).

7 Replies to “Tonight’s the Night”

  1. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life's story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

    Reply

  2. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life’s story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

    Reply

  3. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life’s story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

    Reply

    1. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life’s story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

      Reply

  4. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life’s story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

    Reply

  5. “Tonight’s the Night” is one of my absolute favorite albums of all time . It has endured for decades in my personal rotation and where as most music is woven with memories of time and place, this piece of work is actually embedded into my life's story. Not sure I can select one, all time favorite… But if I tried, this masterpiece would among the top. Great call Sam!

    Reply

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