Neil Young has been a long-term advocate for high-fidelity audio. Back in 2014, he created a digital media player and music download service created called ‘Pono’, as a “high-resolution audio alternative to the MP3 format.” The project was discontinued in 2017, but since Young has continued to experiment with high-quality audio through the Neil Young Archives. Now, this journey has led to the creation of a new book, chronicling the musician's efforts to save music quality in modern times.
Written by Neil Young and Phil Baker (CEO of the Neil Young Archives), To Feel the Music: A Songwriter’s Mission to Save High-Quality Audio, documents Young’s attempts to revive enthusiasm for audio quality in the digital era. In a statement on his website, Young says the book “takes you through how the sound was and is comprised by the tech and record companies, and instead of improving over time like other technologies, it has become worse.”
“Our book also tells the business and development story behind Pono,” his statement continues. “And then, when people wanted the convenience of streaming, how we developed Xstream high resolution streaming, the highest quality streaming in the world, as you hear it at NYA. The issue of improving audio quality has been one of the most important things we’ve been doing for decades, and something I focus on every day.”
“The issue of improving audio quality has been one of the most important things we’ve been doing for decades, and something I focus on every day. We spent a year writing this and I think you’ll find it interesting and informative. The book will be released on September 9 and I hope you enjoy it.”
While Neil Young’s new book might read more like a technical journal than your usual muso biography, it comes at a fitting time in as more and more people embrace vinyl for it's seemingly richer sound quality; so much so that ARIA has reinstated a vinyl weekly chart. Neil’s new work will provide priceless insight into why sound matters for those who care about the quality of the music that they listen to.
Neil’s catalogue of psychedelic rock, folk, blues, and country is instantly recognisable for his distinctive tenor and soulful lyrics. We’ve picked twenty of the best for our I Like: Neil Young playlist on Spotify:
Listen to all the Neil Young Essentials on Apple Music:
