Poor Neil Young

Neil Young, on Facebook:

I was there.
AM radio kicked streaming’s ass.
Analog Cassettes and 8 tracks also kicked streaming’s ass,
and absolutely rocked compared to streaming.

Streaming sucks. Streaming is the worst audio in history.
If you want it, you got it. It’s here to stay.
Your choice.

Copy my songs if you want to. That’s free.
Your choice.

All my music, my life’s work, is what I am preserving the way I want it to be.
It’s already started. My music is being removed from all streaming services. It’s not good enough to sell or rent.

Make streaming sound good and I will be back.

Neil Young

Neil young crazy

Or, as Apple Music so justly points out:

Neil young new

I don’t agree with people who say that vinyl sounds better than digital, but cassettes? 8-track tapes? AM RADIO? Seriously, this man is teetering on the brink.

20 thoughts on “Poor Neil Young

  1. “It’s not good enough to sell or rent.” Mr. Young seems to have some difficulty communicating effectively unless he truly means that his music is not worthy.

  2. “It’s not good enough to sell or rent.” Mr. Young seems to have some difficulty communicating effectively unless he truly means that his music is not worthy.

  3. Does this mean removing his music from streaming Apple Music, or downloading too? Or you probably can’t have it on Apple Music as downloadable only. Is there a difference in streaming vs. download quality?

  4. Does this mean removing his music from streaming Apple Music, or downloading too? Or you probably can’t have it on Apple Music as downloadable only. Is there a difference in streaming vs. download quality?

  5. AM and Cassettes? If streaming sucks at 256 AAC, does that mean he is removing his music from iTunes and Amazon etc.. for purchase?

    Will it disappear from my iTunes Match ?

    I respect the man’s music but…..???

  6. AM and Cassettes? If streaming sucks at 256 AAC, does that mean he is removing his music from iTunes and Amazon etc.. for purchase?

    Will it disappear from my iTunes Match ?

    I respect the man’s music but…..???

  7. There’s a couple of study trials that may indicate Neil Young actually does know rather more about what he is hearing and what he is saying about it than he is being credited with both here and elsewhere:

    The first, from the results of a study published in New Scientist July 15,makes the point:
    “… musicians are protected from some effects of age-related hearing loss. In tests to pick out speech from background noise, musicians have the performance of somebody 20 years younger, probably because listening carefully to subtleties in music trains the same abilities.”
    The whole article is online at https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22730301-100-train-your-brain-for-better-hearing/

    The second highlights the lousy quality of many wireless speakers used for streaming by comparing them to the equally portable old boombox, a comparison most tech obsessives seem scared to address:
    http://www.cnet.com/news/old-school-boombox-vs-todays-wireless-speakers-which-sounds-best/
    Here we have an audiophile totally backing up Neil Young.

    • Neil Young has said, a long time ago, that he has hearing loss and tinnitus.

      As for the quality of cheap speakers, I don’t think anyone is suggesting that they’re good enough. I’ve written many times here about how the best way to listen to music on the desktop is with a real stereo, not speakers designed to plug into a computer.

      • Look at the article. The comparisons made there are not with the cheap speakers you are thinking of, but high-end Bluetooth speakers, some of which are in the $300-$350 price range. And they lose out badly. Isn’t half the point of streaming that you can also listen in a room away from your computer, i.e. wirelessly?

        The poor quality may not be the fault of the streaming service itself, but it is still the act of streaming to wireless speakers which has caused it. Neil Young makes a valid point.

        • I wouldn’t expect BT speakers to be very good, even at that price. I’m sure he wasn’t streaming at mobile bit rates; I’m sure he tested streaming from a computer, so it’s not a quality issue.

          And, frankly, the article in question is as slim as that person’s articles on Cnet usually are.

  8. There’s a couple of study trials that may indicate Neil Young actually does know rather more about what he is hearing and what he is saying about it than he is being credited with both here and elsewhere:

    The first, from the results of a study published in New Scientist July 15,makes the point:
    “… musicians are protected from some effects of age-related hearing loss. In tests to pick out speech from background noise, musicians have the performance of somebody 20 years younger, probably because listening carefully to subtleties in music trains the same abilities.”
    The whole article is online at https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22730301-100-train-your-brain-for-better-hearing/

    The second highlights the lousy quality of many wireless speakers used for streaming by comparing them to the equally portable old boombox, a comparison most tech obsessives seem scared to address:
    http://www.cnet.com/news/old-school-boombox-vs-todays-wireless-speakers-which-sounds-best/
    Here we have an audiophile totally backing up Neil Young.

    • Neil Young has said, a long time ago, that he has hearing loss and tinnitus.

      As for the quality of cheap speakers, I don’t think anyone is suggesting that they’re good enough. I’ve written many times here about how the best way to listen to music on the desktop is with a real stereo, not speakers designed to plug into a computer.

      • Look at the article. The comparisons made there are not with the cheap speakers you are thinking of, but high-end Bluetooth speakers, some of which are in the $300-$350 price range. And they lose out badly. Isn’t half the point of streaming that you can also listen in a room away from your computer, i.e. wirelessly?

        The poor quality may not be the fault of the streaming service itself, but it is still the act of streaming to wireless speakers which has caused it. Neil Young makes a valid point.

        • I wouldn’t expect BT speakers to be very good, even at that price. I’m sure he wasn’t streaming at mobile bit rates; I’m sure he tested streaming from a computer, so it’s not a quality issue.

          And, frankly, the article in question is as slim as that person’s articles on Cnet usually are.

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