‘Interviews’ Articles

Ralph Molina Interview

Thrasher has an exclusive interview with Crazy Horse Drummer Ralph Molina:

neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2013/05/exclusive-crazy-horse-drummer-ralph

Ralph: Lordy, we’ve been playing songs like that forever. We love to jam, extend the songs.
I love when Neil has the chance to play his long, soulful solos, that’s what makes us get off!
We just stay in shape, we exercise, eat good, stopped the messing around (if you know what I mean).
I’ve been asked by younger bands, “How are we still playing? Where do we get our energy?”.
I tell them, “If you want the longevity, lose your egos and realise what you have to do, to last as long, you have to make changes”.

Tags: crazy horse, Ralph Molina
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Billy Talbot plays bass

Bassplayer has a nice interview with Billy Talbot:

Horse Sense: Billy Talbot on Energy, Emotion, and Free Expression with Neil Young

By JIMMY LESLIE
Wed, 17 Apr 2013

NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE’S BILLY TALBOT POSSESSES A PROFOUND UNDERSTANDING of how to pick up on a tune and make it flow.

From the explosion of 1969’s “Cinnamon Girl” on through “Hey Hey, My My” and into the present, Talbot has been Young’s rhythmic compass and eternal energy source. NY&CH convened to record at Young’s house during full moons last spring and summer.

…

What is at the heart of your bass style, and how do you apply it to Crazy Horse?

My bass style is simply to keep the feel flowing. I don’t like to make up things, per se. I like to let elements beyond playing the changes and the groove come to me within the feel as the song progresses. We don’t play R&B songs built on dominant bass lines; our songs are all about the lyrics or the sincere expressiveness of Neil’s lead guitar, so mostly my job is to play a lot of root notes with the main feel, and stay that way for however long is required with energy. Capturing that magic is really important to Crazy Horse, so we like to record a new song the first time we perform it.

read more:
http://www.bassplayer.com/article/horse-sense-billy-talbot-on-energy-emotion-and-free-expression-with-neil-young/151371

Tags: Billy Talbot, crazy horse
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Poncho says it could be the end of the trail

In a new Rolling Stone interview Frank ‘Poncho” Sampedro  says his gut is telling him this may be the last Crazy Horse/Neil Young tour.

After all, he is 64-year old and the “baby” of the band.

Those words are heartbreaking, leaving a lump in the throats of devoted fans who have followed the Horse and Neil for decades.

In a Q & A format Andy Greene at RS interviews Poncho, and when Green asks about playing “Hurricane” during a  torrential downpour in Australia, Poncho replies:

“Oh, that was so crazy. It was raining off and on, kind of sprinkling all day there. Then we we started playing “Hurricane” and a torrential downpour came. I mean, literally the organ stopped working it go so wet. I had to play guitar on that song for the first time in history.

Tags: crazy horse, Europe, FRank Sampedro, Poncho, tour
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Neil shows off Lincvolt at Sioux Falls

Neil Young takes a tour of the Poet laboratory with company founder, Jeff Broin Friday afternoon on a stop of his cross country road trip to promote ethanol and sustainable fuels in a converted 1959 Lincoln Continental, April 12, 2013. / Elisha Page / Argus Leader

While traveling through South Dakota in his cream-colored Lincoln Continental, the famous Lincvolt, Neil Young stops by the Poet biorefining laboratory to talk fuel with founder and executive chairman of the board Jeff Broin.

A  press conference was held in the frigid Poet parking lot and Neil toured the Poet laboratory with Broin for a  pair of video production crews.

Broin shared how he was contacted by Young.

“One day my secretary said ‘while you were out, Neil Young called.’

“The Neil Young? What’s he want?

“‘He asked you to call back.’

“Neil Young cold called me.”

How many people can say that?

Read more: http://www.argusleader.com/article/20130412/UPDATES/130412026/Neil-Young-shows-off-self-made-LincVolt-Poet-laboratory-

And a Gannett photo gallery:

http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=DF&Dato=20130412&Kategori=NEWS&Lopenr=304120803&Ref=PH

Here’s a video: http://www.keloland.com/newsdetail.cfm/neil-young-stops-in-south-dakota/?id=146580

Tags: Argus Leader, Lincvolt, Poet Laboratory
Posted in Interviews, LincVolt, News / Article | 1 Comment »

Interview: Elliot Mazer – e.g. Harvest Producer

Thrasher has a nice article and discussion on thrasherswheat.org/2013/02/interview-with-elliot-mazer-neil-youngs.html about Elliot Mazer. Audio perception discussion.

” Elliot Mazer’s resume reads like a small army of overachievers. Grammy-award-winning Record Producer, Studio Owner, Recording Engineer, Inventor, Professor, and more, Elliot has worked with some of our best-known recording artists including Janis Joplin, Santana, Sinatra, The Who, and most famously Neil Young.

Original Interview is here: audiostream.com/content/qa-elliot-mazer — has nice photos of soundboards, e.g. “The Green Board [Neil Young’s famous Universal Audio 610 console used to record among other’s the Elliot Mazer-produced Harvest]” audiostream.com/images/11513mazer7.jpg

Also PONO discussion and again about sampling theorems, why it does matter to sample at high rates.

Tags: pono, soundboard
Posted in Interviews, News / Article | 1 Comment »