Reprise RecordsNeil Young visited a Colorado public radio station Thursday to share the story behind his upcoming archival album Hitchhiker, which will be released on September 8. The folk-rock legend live-streamed his appearance on his official Facebook page, and the 10-minute video can be viewed now on the website.
In his radio segment, Young recounts how he, producer David Briggs, and his friend, actor Dean Stockwell, traveled to Indigo Studio in Malibu, California, where he recorded the album in one night on August 11, 1976.
Hitchhiker features 10 songs that Neil recorded solo, accompanying himself on guitar, harmonica and piano. The tracks were never released, although versions of eight of the tunes eventually appeared on other albums by Young.
Explaining the concept of the record, Young says, “The idea I had at the time was to present these new songs in their purest and most simple form, just as they had been written,” while noting that he’d been inspired by folk and blues artists like Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson and Leadbelly.
Young goes on to talk about the individual songs he recorded. He reveals that “Pocohontas,” “Powderfinger” and “Ride My Llama” were tunes he’d first tried out with Crazy Horse while making his 1975 album Zuma.
He describes “Captain Kennedy” as “a complete cherry I had never played before,” and says “Hawaii” and “Give Me Strength” were written around his then-recent breakup with actress Carrie Snodgress.
Neil explains that when he brought the album to his label, he was advised to record the songs with a full band. However, he maintains, “I always knew the original album would find its place and surface. That time is now.”
He ends the segment by hinting that a new original project “will arrive soon.”
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