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On this day, June 21, 1951, Nils Lofgren was born.
Nils Lofgren: The Formative Years
As a teaser for our forthcoming Family Album feature on NILS LOFGREN’s classic 1975 self-titled debut album, we present some excerpts of Nils’s conversation with MARTIN RUDDOCK about his formative years, his long association with NEIL YOUNG, and his future plans
Nils Lofgren Archive
Nils Lofgren: I was a classical accordionist, I started playing aged five in Chicago. Bless my Mom and Dad, they paid for nine years of classical accordion lessons and I just took to it.
It was a great musical backdrop for me. At maybe ten or eleven, somebody played me a Jerry Lee Lewis or Chuck Berry record.
At the time I wasn’t emotionally mature enough to understand the guttural street soul of it. It’s three chords, it’s quite repetitive. I didn’t get it. But fast forward a couple of years and all of a sudden there’s The Beatles with minor chords and incredible melodies, really interesting harmonies with that street soul of rock ’n’ roll. It just floored me. Literally it possessed me. Literally overnight almost, between The Beatles and the Stones I fell in love with the entire British Invasion, of course the American counterpart – Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds, Moby Grape.
I got to open for The Hollies in a high school band called The Crystal Mesh when I was a teenager. They were extraordinary. All of a sudden through The Beatles I discovered Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Richard, Stax-Volt, Motown. Within a couple of months there were hundreds of these incredible pieces of music I was completely oblivious to. It was kind of like a possession. My brother Tom started teaching me some guitar. I started playing in teen club bands but it was always a hobby. Nobody thought you could do it for a living, it was just beautiful music that inspired us all
At Constitution Hall I went to see The Blues Magoos, Herman’s Hermits, and The Who.
It was extraordinary. The Jimi Hendrix Experience was playing the late show over at The Ambassador Theatre so we all rushed over there after being blown away by The Who. We went to see Jimi and Pete Townshend was in the audience, that was the big buzz, this murmur through the crowd. That night Jimi came out, he completely blew our minds. I’d never been so mesmerised by a musician in my life. It was really The Beatles and the Stones that got me off the classical accordion and into rock ’n’ roll, but it was that night I became almost uncomfortably possessed with this notion that “You need to be a professional rock musician.” It grew and it festered, and became an uncomfortable haunting, if you will… but sure enough in my senior year
I dropped out of high school and ran away to Greenwich Village and officially began my professional career at 17. I’d look up record companies in the Yellow Pages and I’d subway up to an address, walk in, not knowing what the hell I was doing and say “Hey! I need a job.”
{snip}
{snip}
As a teaser for our forthcoming Family Album feature on NILS LOFGREN’s classic 1975 self-titled debut album, we present some excerpts of Nils’s conversation with MARTIN RUDDOCK about his formative years, his long association with NEIL YOUNG, and his future plans
Nils Lofgren Archive
Nils Lofgren: I was a classical accordionist, I started playing aged five in Chicago. Bless my Mom and Dad, they paid for nine years of classical accordion lessons and I just took to it.
It was a great musical backdrop for me. At maybe ten or eleven, somebody played me a Jerry Lee Lewis or Chuck Berry record.
At the time I wasn’t emotionally mature enough to understand the guttural street soul of it. It’s three chords, it’s quite repetitive. I didn’t get it. But fast forward a couple of years and all of a sudden there’s The Beatles with minor chords and incredible melodies, really interesting harmonies with that street soul of rock ’n’ roll. It just floored me. Literally it possessed me. Literally overnight almost, between The Beatles and the Stones I fell in love with the entire British Invasion, of course the American counterpart – Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds, Moby Grape.
I got to open for The Hollies in a high school band called The Crystal Mesh when I was a teenager. They were extraordinary. All of a sudden through The Beatles I discovered Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Richard, Stax-Volt, Motown. Within a couple of months there were hundreds of these incredible pieces of music I was completely oblivious to. It was kind of like a possession. My brother Tom started teaching me some guitar. I started playing in teen club bands but it was always a hobby. Nobody thought you could do it for a living, it was just beautiful music that inspired us all
At Constitution Hall I went to see The Blues Magoos, Herman’s Hermits, and The Who.
It was extraordinary. The Jimi Hendrix Experience was playing the late show over at The Ambassador Theatre so we all rushed over there after being blown away by The Who. We went to see Jimi and Pete Townshend was in the audience, that was the big buzz, this murmur through the crowd. That night Jimi came out, he completely blew our minds. I’d never been so mesmerised by a musician in my life. It was really The Beatles and the Stones that got me off the classical accordion and into rock ’n’ roll, but it was that night I became almost uncomfortably possessed with this notion that “You need to be a professional rock musician.” It grew and it festered, and became an uncomfortable haunting, if you will… but sure enough in my senior year
I dropped out of high school and ran away to Greenwich Village and officially began my professional career at 17. I’d look up record companies in the Yellow Pages and I’d subway up to an address, walk in, not knowing what the hell I was doing and say “Hey! I need a job.”
{snip}
{snip}
Let's take a Monkees break. You'll see why.
The Monkees at the Circus
MeTV
63.7K subscribers
3,475 views Aug 18, 2019
This hilarious clip may be more than meets the eye!
Read about Mickey Dolenz singing the theme song to 'Circus Boy' on 'The Monkees.'
https://www.metv.com/stories/micky-dolenz-made-one-quick-cute-reference-to-his-tv-past-in-a-monkees-episode
Want more MeTV?
Download our app & go to metv.com for stories, quizzes and more!
Find a MeTV station near you: metv.com/wheretowatch
MeTV
63.7K subscribers
3,475 views Aug 18, 2019
This hilarious clip may be more than meets the eye!
Read about Mickey Dolenz singing the theme song to 'Circus Boy' on 'The Monkees.'
https://www.metv.com/stories/micky-dolenz-made-one-quick-cute-reference-to-his-tv-past-in-a-monkees-episode
Want more MeTV?
Download our app & go to metv.com for stories, quizzes and more!
Find a MeTV station near you: metv.com/wheretowatch
The Monkees at the Circus | Retro TV Episode Review
Enchanted Essays
1.58K subscribers
684 views Jul 28, 2023
Welcome to Monkee Madness, the series where I watch and review every episode of the Monkees in preparation for a full series ranking whenever I've finished.
Buy me a coffee on Ko Fi: https://ko-fi.com/enchantedessays
Follow me on Twitter: / enchantedessays https://x.com/EnchantedEssays
Follow me on Instagram: / enchantedessays https://www.instagram.com/enchantedessays
{snip}
Enchanted Essays
1.58K subscribers
684 views Jul 28, 2023
Welcome to Monkee Madness, the series where I watch and review every episode of the Monkees in preparation for a full series ranking whenever I've finished.
Buy me a coffee on Ko Fi: https://ko-fi.com/enchantedessays
Follow me on Twitter: / enchantedessays https://x.com/EnchantedEssays
Follow me on Instagram: / enchantedessays https://www.instagram.com/enchantedessays
{snip}
Nils Lofgren
Nils Lofgren playing in 2019
Background information
Birth name: Nils Hilmer Lofgren
Born: June 21, 1951 (age 73); Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres: Roots rock, heartland rock, blues rock, hard rock
Website: nilslofgren.com
Nils Hilmer Lofgren (born June 21, 1951) is an American rock musician, recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Along with his work as a solo artist, he has been a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984, a member of Crazy Horse, and founder/frontman of the band Grin. Lofgren was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band in 2014.
{snip}
Nils Lofgren playing in 2019
Background information
Birth name: Nils Hilmer Lofgren
Born: June 21, 1951 (age 73); Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres: Roots rock, heartland rock, blues rock, hard rock
Website: nilslofgren.com
Nils Hilmer Lofgren (born June 21, 1951) is an American rock musician, recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Along with his work as a solo artist, he has been a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984, a member of Crazy Horse, and founder/frontman of the band Grin. Lofgren was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band in 2014.
{snip}
Crazy Horse (album)
Studio album by Crazy Horse
Released: February 1971
Recorded: 1970
Studio: Wally Heider (San Francisco), Sunset Sound (Los Angeles), A&M (Hollywood)
Genre: Country rock, roots rock, hard rock
Length: 38:59
Label: Reprise
Producer: Jack Nitzsche, Bruce Botnick
Crazy Horse is the debut album by Crazy Horse, released in 1971 by Reprise Records. It is the only album by the band to feature Danny Whitten recorded without Neil Young, and it peaked at No. 84 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
Background
Members of this band had already released an album in 1968 as The Rockets and had appeared on record twice with Neil Young as Crazy Horse. The core trio from the Rockets, Danny Whitten, Billy Talbot, and Ralph Molina, provided instrumental backing for Young's 1969 album Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, and performed on some songs from Young's 1970 album After the Gold Rush. Producer/keyboardist Jack Nitzsche, who had been a member of Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew and played on records by the Rolling Stones, had worked with Young on his debut solo album and on tracks for Buffalo Springfield. He was drafted into Crazy Horse to back up Young on their short tour in early 1970. During sessions for Gold Rush, they met teenage multi-instrumentalist Nils Lofgren, who joined the band in time for this album. The band got a contract with Reprise Records after the exposure garnered from their association with Young.
{snip}
Studio album by Crazy Horse
Released: February 1971
Recorded: 1970
Studio: Wally Heider (San Francisco), Sunset Sound (Los Angeles), A&M (Hollywood)
Genre: Country rock, roots rock, hard rock
Length: 38:59
Label: Reprise
Producer: Jack Nitzsche, Bruce Botnick
Crazy Horse is the debut album by Crazy Horse, released in 1971 by Reprise Records. It is the only album by the band to feature Danny Whitten recorded without Neil Young, and it peaked at No. 84 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
Background
Members of this band had already released an album in 1968 as The Rockets and had appeared on record twice with Neil Young as Crazy Horse. The core trio from the Rockets, Danny Whitten, Billy Talbot, and Ralph Molina, provided instrumental backing for Young's 1969 album Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, and performed on some songs from Young's 1970 album After the Gold Rush. Producer/keyboardist Jack Nitzsche, who had been a member of Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew and played on records by the Rolling Stones, had worked with Young on his debut solo album and on tracks for Buffalo Springfield. He was drafted into Crazy Horse to back up Young on their short tour in early 1970. During sessions for Gold Rush, they met teenage multi-instrumentalist Nils Lofgren, who joined the band in time for this album. The band got a contract with Reprise Records after the exposure garnered from their association with Young.
{snip}
Beggars Day
Crazy Horse - Topic
7.71K subscribers
50,697 views Nov 28, 2014
Provided to YouTube by Warner Records
Beggars Day · Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse
℗ 1971 Warner Records Inc.
Bass: Billy Talbot
Background Vocals: Billy Talbot
Engineer, Producer: Bruce Botnick
Guitar, Vocals: Danny Whitten
Engineer: David Briggs
Fiddle, Violin: Gib Guilbeau
Mixer: Henry Lewy
Keyboards, Piano, Producer, Vocals: Jack Nitzshe
Engineer: Jackson Schwartz
Producer: Kirby Johnson
Digital Masterer: Lee Herschberg
Engineer: Leslie Foster
Guitar, Vocals: Nils Lofgren
Drums: Ralph Molina
Engineer, Producer: Richard Heenan
Pedal Steel Guitar: Ry Cooder
Slide Guitar: Ry Cooder
Producer: Spellbound Kelly
Arranger: Crazy Horse
Writer: Nils Lofgren
Auto-generated by YouTube.
Crazy Horse - Topic
7.71K subscribers
50,697 views Nov 28, 2014
Provided to YouTube by Warner Records
Beggars Day · Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse
℗ 1971 Warner Records Inc.
Bass: Billy Talbot
Background Vocals: Billy Talbot
Engineer, Producer: Bruce Botnick
Guitar, Vocals: Danny Whitten
Engineer: David Briggs
Fiddle, Violin: Gib Guilbeau
Mixer: Henry Lewy
Keyboards, Piano, Producer, Vocals: Jack Nitzshe
Engineer: Jackson Schwartz
Producer: Kirby Johnson
Digital Masterer: Lee Herschberg
Engineer: Leslie Foster
Guitar, Vocals: Nils Lofgren
Drums: Ralph Molina
Engineer, Producer: Richard Heenan
Pedal Steel Guitar: Ry Cooder
Slide Guitar: Ry Cooder
Producer: Spellbound Kelly
Arranger: Crazy Horse
Writer: Nils Lofgren
Auto-generated by YouTube.