2010 Bridge School Concert - 10/23/10
Photo gallery by Nan Philpot | Facebook
The news last week that the Buffalo Springfield 2012 Reunion Tour was off again brought about the expected fan outcry of disappointment, bewilderment and false hopes.
So who's putting sponge in the bells we once rang?
First of all, it would seem that Stephen Stills radio interview needs to be listened to very carefully. Some sense that Stephen was just deflecting the question about the reunion tour being off because Neil Young is "writing a book" as only his opinion for the reason.
Stills direct quote, is "Neil [Young] started a book and said, 'Don't mess with the muse, man.'"
Later Rolling Stone Music quoted Richie Furay's manager David Spero saying:
"This delay happened for a multitude of reasons.The plan is still to tour next year. There's not a timeline at this point. Buffalo Springfield is at the top of Neil's list of priorities. It's just a matter of finding a time that works for everybody."
So what's really going on here?
As an aside, it should not go unnoticed that ever since the Buffalo Springfield announced their reunion for the 2010 Bridge School Concert it has almost always exclusively been Richie Furay who has been quoted in the press about the reunion. Richie's enthusiasm for the reunion is sincerely genuine and heartfelt which has been characterized as "The Unfinished Business of Buffalo Springfield".
On the other hand, Neil's statements on the reunion have been conspicuously absent which has led some to feel that while it was Richie's chance to finally be back in the spotlight, maybe Neil was less than 100% totally enthusiastic about taking the reunion on an extended tour.
As we tried to come to grips with the latest in the seemingly never ending on again/off again drama, we heard some humor tinged bitterness, most frequently taking the form of "Eat a peach" in reference to Neil's infamous telegram to Stephen during the 1976 Long May You Run tour.
Again, much chatter on the subject, which leads us to the Comment of the Moment on Buffalo Springfield 2012 Tour: Not Going Down by Dan1:
Just saw this news and can't help but feel initially disappointed ...we've been blessed for a number of years now to have Neil almost constantly touring and putting out new (and old material) it has truly been a worldwind for Neil fans for the past number of years ... it seems of late that things have slowed down a bit ...
can't help but wonder if the loss of Ben Keith plays into this somewhat ...
it seems that he was really lovin' that band for the past number of years and it just opened up his whole canon and brought a vibrancy to the shows and to what was possible for Neil to play. That along with Archives I with all its warts marked at least a multi year peak of being a Neil fan IMHO ... with Ben's passing he moved on the Le Noise, which in my mind was an epic master piece easily the best studio album in 10 years ...
Le Noise exposed how alone Neil was/is in terms of the options out there for pushing forward .. basically he was saying he'll just keep pushing forward alone because there isn't a great band option to inspire him ...
The Horse always had its limitations in terms of testing Neil's impatience and one can only think it gets harder not easier as everyone gets older and perhaps rustier (no pun intended) ...
Seems Neil always wanted the Springfield reunion and it happened but my guess is his enthusiasm, after a pause, waned as he realized it happened, now what, not sure Neil could stay that enthused for a whole tour and he's not a faker as we all know ...
I wonder if the book was as much the muse saying no to Springfield as it was saying yes to a book (just a theory) ... seems like maybe Neil will stay on the sidelines until the music starts pounding (or strumming) in his head and then he'll be back with vigor and passion which is what we all expect and love about him ...
the lack of band options at this stage is a big question mark and in retrospect, even though we all knew it, we were blessed with his previous band which without Ben is clearly no longer ...
the good news is that we all know Neil can't stay on the sidelines for too long and the break, as hard as it is to accept, will be the bridge to renewal and the next chapter in his live performances which is bound to be fabulous. In the interim, we fortunately have a vast canon of live and studio music to rediscover until Neil comes around again.
Dan
Thanks, as always, Dan1!
Lastly, this sort of situation was a long running
joke with the incessantly on again/off again drama of the Neil Young Archives release date always being pushed off to "next June". ;)
So we leave you with a little YouTube clip below...
