Special Deluxe by Neil Young
Neil Young is a classic rock staple. The man has kept on rockin' in the free world for most of his life. Neil has a couple of other loves besides music. Mr. Young loves cars, dogs, and painting. So Special Deluxe is a book about those three things, for the most part.
We all know Young knows how to write. He wrote his biography, Waging Heavy Peace, without a co-writer, which was fine as an autobiography. So we all know that man can write. The question is do we want to read what he writes?
I love dogs. I currently have a pair of pugs, a black Pug male, and a fawn girl. I have had a Beagle in the past. That Beagle, named Mocha, was a wonderful dog. Oh, and she was brilliant.
Mocha had a bed that she would lie in during the day. Sometimes she would go there on her own while other times we had to coax her to go. We never had to coax Mocha into her bed at our dinnertime because every time she saw food being served up she would wander off to her bed and wait quietly until dinner was done. She was a wonderful dog.
Would you care for me to turn this into an article about Mocha or Ace or Abby (the pugs)? Likely not. But more than dogs . . .
The central theme here is the automobile in all its watercolored glory. Young uses cars to mark various milestones in his life. But you really should have a huge interest in cars because he spends so much time describing some vehicles in excruciating detail.
My own interest in cars ends at the point of transportation. I know nothing about old cars or new cars. Good cars or bad cars. They are mere modes of transport. Neil Young has a love affair with cars verging on lust. I’ve known other folks like that but have never understood the reasons for the love.
Each of the stories was illustrated with Neil’s own watercolors. Watercolors of . . . you guessed it - cars.
My love of cars is lacking so this book was a fail. If you have a love of cars, both old and new, then sure grab “Special Deluxe”. If your love of cars is lacking stay clear of this book. While he might tie the vehicles to different stories in his life Neil has written a book about cars and it lost me.
I really wanted to love this book. I tried but Neil’s lust for cars was just so dull. I love his music and enjoyed “Waging Heavy Peace” but even when he threw in stories of his musical life the book still didn’t grab me.
If you have read “Waging Heavy Peace” there is no reason to read this. Unless you happen to love cars as much as Neil but Neil really loves cars. Although his love of old cars seems to conflict with his environmental messages he still loves those old gas guzzlers. Neil spends time complaining about the environment and such.
At least Neil managed to write the book himself. That’s a good thing for Neil not so great for all the ghostwriters out there.
Sorry, Neil, this is just a perfectly passable passel of papers.
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