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Neil Young — Days That Used To Be
Album: Ragged Glory
Avg rating:
6.2

Your rating:
Total ratings: 250









Released: 1990
Length: 3:36
Plays (last 30 days): 0
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People say don't rock the boat, let things go their own way
Ideas that once seem so right, now have gotten hard to say
I wish that I could talk to you and you could talk to me
'Cause there very few of us left my friend
From the days that used to be.

Seemed like such a simple thing to follow one's own dream
But possessions and concession are not often what they seem
They drag you down and load you down in disguise of security.
But we never had to make those deals
In the days that used to be.

Talk to me, my long lost friend, tell me how you are
Are you happy with your circumstance, are you driving a new car
Does it get you where you want to go, with a seven year warranty
Or just another hundred thousand miles away
From the days that used to be.
Comments (66)add comment
 Headhunter wrote:
I think this is one of Neil's best records with Crazy Horse and probably the most underrated. There is some excellent guitar work on this.
 
Exactly -- fine, fine album.  Some of the best 4/4 rock'n'roll ever put on one slab.  uh-huh...!
Posted 10 years ago by Biscobret    [ Reply ]
PSD'd Tori Amos to this -- YES!
                                          {#Dancingbanana_2}
I fucking LOVE Ragged Glory -- this song helps close it out beautifully - although it isn't quite as majestic out of context.
Posted 10 years ago by Biscobret    [ Reply ]
The last few songs we have sung link Sheryl Crow, Smashing Pumpkins, and The Cure. Very few sing it like Neil. I guess because there would not be much point unless you could write like Neil, and very few can. Does this say much for his singing
Posted 17 years ago by MTlady    [ Reply ]
Jacksonstat wrote:
Either you love Neil or you hate him - there's very few people in between. It took me awhile, but I now truly appreciate his music.
There are certainly lame-o people who pick on his voice. Given the amazing diversity in his work it's amazing to me that there are people who hate him outright. I don't think even a REAL FAN could love everything he does but EVERYONE should find something he's done that's worthy of praise. Personally, I can find something worth mentioning just about anywhere. I don't love all of it but I can appreciate Crazy Horse (Ragged Glory IS great) alongside the quiet stuff.
Posted 17 years ago by TJOpootertoot    [ Reply ]
Neil ROCKS!
Posted 17 years ago by joshfm    [ Reply ]
Headhunter wrote:
I think this is one of Neil's best records with Crazy Horse and probably the most underrated. There is some excellent guitar work on this.
Damn Strait !!
Posted 17 years ago by GreenOnion    [ Reply ]
I think this is one of Neil's best records with Crazy Horse and probably the most underrated. There is some excellent guitar work on this.
Posted 19 years ago by Headhunter    [ Reply ]
Jacksonstat wrote:
Either you love Neil or you hate him - there's very few people in between. It took me awhile, but I now truly appreciate his music.
so true...I have to admit I wasn't a Neil Young fan at all. then I stumbled across Radio Paradise and after hearing so many of his different songs over the months, now I get it. he's pretty damn good.
Posted 19 years ago by flandersdog    [ Reply ]
I like Neil, but that was the worst guitar solo ever.
Posted 19 years ago by BooKitty    [ Reply ]
Either you love Neil or you hate him - there's very few people in between. It took me awhile, but I now truly appreciate his music.
Posted 19 years ago by Jacksonstat    [ Reply ]
It was a 3 before, now it's a 2...
Posted 19 years ago by coding_to_music    [ Reply ]
MrGreg wrote:
Agreed... this is perhaps the most musically mundane song I've heard on RP. This sounds like a garage band. Seriously though, this sounds like the group of people who get together and play classic rock covers at the Company BBQ. Is that Mustang Sally I hear next?
Neil has always been proud of being a garage band.
Posted 19 years ago by ralphcanoe    [ Reply ]
ugh. Tastes like.... Neil.
Posted 19 years ago by amcallis    [ Reply ]
I THINK RAGGED GLORY IS ONE OF THE BEST ALBUMS FROM THE 90'S
Posted 19 years ago by NICKNAME    [ Reply ]
ntlc23 wrote:
I love Neil Young but this song is more than indebted to "My Back Pages" by Dylan. Both melodically and thematically.
It was deliberate. In the Neil Young biography "Shakey" by Jimmy McDonough, he says this song was originally titled "Letter to Bob". I think this is a great song and a great nod to Dylan.
Posted 19 years ago by pauleywalnuts    [ Reply ]
mojoman wrote:
I though you were supposed to outgrow garage bands when you were, oh, 15 or so.
If that's the case, I guess I've been 15 now for, oh, 30 years or so...and LOVING it!
Posted 19 years ago by MrMan    [ Reply ]
laozilover wrote:
Now we're all on the same page! ;) "My Back Pages"! :nodhead:
Yes, this is "My Back Pages" -- and was written to Bob Dylan, with whom Young toured one summer in California. (Dylan himself mentioned listening to Young on a record in the 90's, I can't remember which one.) They're pals...
Posted 19 years ago by softjeans    [ Reply ]
I love Neil Young but this song is more than indebted to "My Back Pages" by Dylan. Both melodically and thematically.
Posted 19 years ago by ntlc23    [ Reply ]
Neil's mom (and his backup singers' moms) should get their money back from the voice lessons they paid for. If you can't produce an on-key rendition of a song with an unlimited number of tries, you just plain can't sing.
Posted 19 years ago by physicsgenius    [ Reply ]
I keep hearing Little Pink Houses by John MellenCougerCamp.
Posted 19 years ago by drew    [ Reply ]
Neil Young. Hurmph.
Posted 19 years ago by upinya    [ Reply ]
Now we're all on the same page! ;) KAJMK wrote:
I took a quick look at some of the other comments to see if anyone else was hearing "My back pages" as well. Sometimes I tend to hear things in songs like perhaps a tempo switch that morphs one song in to another, but then perhaps its just my ears. Tell me, where does influence end and that other thing begin ;)
birdland wrote:
Sounds like "My Back Pages".
dolfan wrote:
Is anyone else hearing "My Back Pages" here??
artmarcia wrote:
Does this remind anyone else of Dylan's "I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now"?
"My Back Pages"! :nodhead:
Posted 19 years ago by laozilover    [ Reply ]
Okay, maybe I forgot to take my anti-grouch medicine today, but who told this oaf he had any talent? He wouldn't recognize a complex melody or chord sequence if he tripped over it. I though you were supposed to outgrow garage bands when you were, oh, 15 or so. And yes, I'm old enough to remember CSN&Y. (Their "Carry On" album is the first I ever bought.) Neil Young was just along to help carry the luggage.
Posted 19 years ago by mojoman    [ Reply ]
artmarcia wrote:
Does this remind anyone else of Dylan's "I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now"?
This reminds me of about 20 songs. 20 songs that blend into one numbness. A solid 5 for all of them.
Posted 19 years ago by mrselfdestruct    [ Reply ]
Great rockin' Neil tune from a super album.
Posted 19 years ago by Rickvee    [ Reply ]
Neil Young produces music that is so bad it is good. Awesome. Inspiring. Genius. But wow. This is just plain bad.
Posted 20 years ago by aurora1957    [ Reply ]
madtowner11 wrote:
I don't know why anyone ever let this guy "sing". It's an even bigger mystery why anyone thinks he's a good singer. Just another classic case of, "Everyone says he's great so he must be great." Sheep.
Close your eyes or at least turn off the TV when you're listening to music and really hear him. Pig.
Posted 20 years ago by zipper    [ Reply ]
Does this remind anyone else of Dylan's "I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now"?
Posted 20 years ago by artmarcia    [ Reply ]
Eul0gy wrote:
Kinda unfair to compare dylan to young... Like comparing fecal matter to caviar because they have similar color. I can't agree that hes a good songwriter, i mean, I might have liked his stuff when I was 14... but not now.
Neil Young does not eat caviar. How do I know? I'm a dog -- I know everything.
Posted 20 years ago by alldog    [ Reply ]
Solid.
Posted 20 years ago by Skeletor    [ Reply ]
Pyro wrote:
Like Dylan, Neil is NOT a singer, but a prolific and talented songwriter. I don't particularly like to hear either one of them sing, but I nod my head in acknowledgement that the author of the tune has a right (and perhaps a better "take" on it) to sing it. Get past the voice and HEAR the message. Listen with your heart.
Kinda unfair to compare dylan to young... Like comparing fecal matter to caviar because they have similar color. I can't agree that hes a good songwriter, i mean, I might have liked his stuff when I was 14... but not now.
Posted 20 years ago by Eul0gy    [ Reply ]
I was so much older then, I'm Neil Younger than that now...
Posted 20 years ago by Yashure    [ Reply ]
madtowner11 wrote:
I don't know why anyone ever let this guy "sing". It's an even bigger mystery why anyone thinks he's a good singer. Just another classic case of, "Everyone says he's great so he must be great." Sheep.
Like Dylan, Neil is NOT a singer, but a prolific and talented songwriter. I don't particularly like to hear either one of them sing, but I nod my head in acknowledgement that the author of the tune has a right (and perhaps a better "take" on it) to sing it. Get past the voice and HEAR the message. Listen with your heart.
Posted 20 years ago by Pyro    [ Reply ]
I don't know why anyone ever let this guy "sing". It's an even bigger mystery why anyone thinks he's a good singer. Just another classic case of, "Everyone says he's great so he must be great." Sheep.
Posted 20 years ago by madtowner11    [ Reply ]
dolfan wrote:
Is anyone else hearing "My Back Pages" here??
Yup - just backscroll - we got lotsa company!
Posted 20 years ago by laozilover    [ Reply ]
The Passion of The Neil
Posted 20 years ago by Freebish    [ Reply ]
Lyrics
Posted 20 years ago by R_P    [ Reply ]
Is anyone else hearing "My Back Pages" here??
Posted 20 years ago by dolfan    [ Reply ]
It sounds like he has a bad stomachache... And he almost gave me one!
Posted 21 years ago by mafe    [ Reply ]
Originally Posted by AlanCE: my friend says "neil's voice is an aquired taste" ... "you have to aquire a bottle of jack daniels and drink it to appreciate it" Now that sounds like a GREAT IDEA! "Everyone needs something to believe in: I believe I'll have a drink."
I'd rather have a bottle in front of me, than to have a frontal lobotomy.. This is stinkin' Back Pages, and if no one's going to do anything about it, I'm going to continue to let this little fart beat the crap out of me, so don't try to stop me!
Posted 21 years ago by Patrick    [ Reply ]
Sometimes his voice works well with the material--say, on Harvest or Harvest Moon or any CSNY material--but this is just too ear-splitting for me. Take a cue from Mick Jagger when he enlisted help for Gimme Shelter and find someone else who can sing in this range, Neil.
Posted 21 years ago by ludwig7    [ Reply ]
Quite likeable. :D
Posted 21 years ago by redezra    [ Reply ]
yeah... Cracker, Joe Henry, now Neil... Nice groove ya got me in, Bill! Thanks!
Posted 21 years ago by mksothrpeoplrich    [ Reply ]
great song/great album
Posted 21 years ago by vocaleer    [ Reply ]
Originally Posted by AlanCE: my friend says "neil's voice is an aquired taste" ... "you have to aquire a bottle of jack daniels and drink it to appreciate it"
Now that sounds like a GREAT IDEA! "Everyone needs something to believe in: I believe I'll have a drink."
Posted 21 years ago by philbertr    [ Reply ]
my friend says \"neil\'s voice is an aquired taste\" ... \"you have to aquire a bottle of jack daniels and drink it to appreciate it\"
Posted 21 years ago by AlanCE    [ Reply ]
simply one of the best
Posted 21 years ago by Trymse    [ Reply ]
I can\'t help but wonder if Neil\'s voice hurts him as much to use as it hurts me to listen to it. I agree with the comment that he sounds tired on this tune. Even though he\'s not one of my favorite artists, he\'s done much better songs.
Posted 21 years ago by tg3k    [ Reply ]
Sounds tired.
Posted 21 years ago by triviagal    [ Reply ]
Someone mentioned \"My Back Pages\" in an earler post. When I like Young most is when he is in the shade of Dylan. This is nice.
Posted 21 years ago by os4    [ Reply ]
I like Neil ok - but this just sucks.
Posted 21 years ago by lordcruloze    [ Reply ]
Ragged Glory is such a great loud album. I wish that I lived somewhere where I could play it at the volume that it deserves.
Posted 22 years ago by etwilson    [ Reply ]
Sounds like \"My Back Pages\".
Posted 22 years ago by birdland    [ Reply ]
I love Neil\'s songs & when he sings harmony. It sounds great. When he sings lead, tho\', it seems like he should be singing in another key - maybe a little lower or something.
Posted 22 years ago by triviagal    [ Reply ]
Remember when? The days that used to be....
Posted 22 years ago by stevo_b    [ Reply ]
Originally Posted by KAJMK: I took a quick look at some of the other comments to see if anyone else was hearing "My back pages" as well.
Neil Young doesn't seem to have problems with the fact that a song or two are quite similar to another (famous) song. Do you remember the lyrics to Borrowed Tune? I'm singing this borrowed tune I took from the Rolling Stones (Lady Jane) Alone in this empty room Too wasted to write my own
Posted 22 years ago by Johray63    [ Reply ]
Definitely not one of my favs. Personally I couldn\'t give it more than a \"ho hum\" rating.
Posted 22 years ago by loveslave    [ Reply ]
I took a quick look at some of the other comments to see if anyone else was hearing \"My back pages\" as well. Sometimes I tend to hear things in songs like perhaps a tempo switch that morphs one song in to another, but then perhaps its just my ears. Tell me, where does influence end and that other thing begin ;)
Posted 22 years ago by KAJMK    [ Reply ]
\"Seem like such a simple thing to follow one\'s own dream, But possessions and concession are not often what they seem. They drag you down and load you down in disguise of security... But we never had to make those deals in the days that used to be...\" Thanks for playing this, I think it\'s one of Neil\'s best. I agree with Dawn\'s earlier comment, this one brings a tear to my eye whenever I hear it.
Posted 22 years ago by Cy    [ Reply ]