Eighty years ago today, on November 12, 1945, a kid from Toronto with a ukulele and a dream was born. That kid grew into one of the most influential singer-songwriters in rock history. From Buffalo Springfield to Crazy Horse to Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Neil Young has never stopped chasing new sounds, new causes, and new truths. He’s been a folk hero, a grunge godfather, an activist, a filmmaker, and a storyteller who always plays by his own rules. To celebrate his 80th, here are 80 fascinating facts about Neil Young — the man who taught us all that it’s better to burn out than to fade away.
Neil Percival Young was born on November 12, 1945, in Toronto, Canada.
His father, Scott Young, was a famous Canadian sportswriter and novelist.
His mother, Edna “Rassy” Young, had American and French ancestry.
Neil contracted polio at age six during Ontario’s last major outbreak in 1951.
While recovering, his family moved to Florida for the warm weather.
He attended Faulkner Elementary School in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.
His parents divorced when he was 12, and Neil moved to Winnipeg with his mother.
His first band was The Jades, formed while attending Earl Grey Junior High in Winnipeg.
He later formed The Squires, who scored a local hit with their song “The Sultan.”
Neil met Stephen Stills while performing in Winnipeg clubs in the early ’60s.
He befriended Joni Mitchell around the same time, performing in the same folk circuit.
“Sugar Mountain,” one of his earliest songs, was written about lost youth.
Joni Mitchell wrote “The Circle Game” in response to “Sugar Mountain.”
Buffalo Springfield was born after Neil drove to Los Angeles in a hearse with bassist Bruce Palmer.
He bought that hearse after pawning The Mynah Birds’ gear — a band that once featured Rick James.
Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth” featured Neil’s signature harmonic guitar sound.
Neil skipped being filmed during CSNY’s Woodstock performance, threatening to hit cameramen with his guitar.
His first solo album, Neil Young (1969), received mixed reviews but set the stage for greatness.
His follow-up, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, introduced Crazy Horse.
“Cinnamon Girl,” “Down by the River,” and “Cowgirl in the Sand” were all written in one day while he had a fever.
With Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, he co-wrote and sang on “Ohio” after the Kent State shootings.
After the Gold Rush (1970) became his breakout solo success.
“Southern Man” and “Alabama” inspired Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama.”
Neil called Harvest (1972) the album that “put me in the middle of the road.”
“Heart of Gold” is Neil’s only #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Old Man” was inspired by the caretaker of his California ranch.
That ranch, Broken Arrow, became his longtime home.
He named the ranch after his song “Broken Arrow” from Buffalo Springfield Again.
Danny Whitten of Crazy Horse died shortly after being dismissed from a Young tour rehearsal.
Neil said Whitten’s death haunted him and shaped Tonight’s the Night.
Time Fades Away, On the Beach, and Tonight’s the Night are known as his “Ditch Trilogy.”
He described that era as “a rougher ride, but more interesting people.”
Neil reunited with Crosby, Stills, and Nash for their 1974 stadium tour.
“Cortez the Killer” from Zuma (1975) became one of his most beloved songs.
He once quit a tour with Stephen Stills via telegram saying, “Eat a peach, Neil.”
At The Last Waltz, Scorsese had to edit out cocaine from Neil’s nose.
Like a Hurricane remains a live staple of his electric shows.
His 1977 compilation Decade is considered one of rock’s best retrospectives.
He briefly joined a local California band called The Ducks in 1977.
Comes a Time (1978) marked his return to folk and country roots.
The Rust Never Sleeps tour and album cemented his status as the “Godfather of Grunge.”
“My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)” and “Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)” became generational anthems.
In 1979, Rust Never Sleeps was voted Album of the Year by Rolling Stone readers.
His film Human Highway co-starred Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh and Dennis Hopper.
Neil’s 1982 album Trans used vocoders and was inspired by his son’s communication challenges.
Geffen Records once sued Neil for making music “unrepresentative” of himself.
Old Ways (1985) was his country album recorded with The International Harvesters.
He performed at Live Aid in 1985 alongside Crosby, Stills & Nash.
This Note’s for You (1988) mocked corporate sponsorship in music videos.
MTV banned the video, but later gave it Video of the Year.
“Rockin’ in the Free World” (1989) became a modern protest anthem.
Freedom marked his comeback after an experimental decade.
Ragged Glory (1990) reunited him with Crazy Horse and inspired grunge bands.
Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain quoted his lyrics in his suicide note.
Harvest Moon (1992) revisited the sound of Harvest and won a Juno Award.
Neil scored Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia and earned an Oscar nomination.
He toured with Booker T. & the M.G.’s in 1993.
In 1995, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Eddie Vedder.
The same year, he released Mirror Ball with Pearl Jam.
He later collaborated with director Jim Jarmusch on Dead Man.
He co-founded the record label Vapor Records in 1995.
Neil and his then-wife Pegi founded The Bridge School for children with disabilities.
He suffered a brain aneurysm in 2005 but returned to perform at Live 8 months later.
His 2006 album Living with War directly criticized President George W. Bush.
Greendale (2003) was both a concept album and a film he directed.
He’s directed multiple films under the name “Bernard Shakey.”
He co-founded Farm Aid with Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp in 1985.
Neil’s 2012 album Americana reimagined folk standards like “This Land Is Your Land.”
He published two memoirs: Waging Heavy Peace and Special Deluxe.
He launched PonoMusic to promote high-fidelity digital audio.
He sold 50% of his song catalog to Hipgnosis for an estimated $150 million in 2021.
He removed his music from Spotify in 2022 to protest COVID misinformation.
In 2024, he returned his songs after Spotify expanded to other platforms.
He has been married three times, most recently to actress Daryl Hannah.
In 2007, scientists named a newly discovered trapdoor spider Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi in his honor — proof that Neil Young’s influence reaches even the animal kingdom.
Neil became a U.S. citizen in 2020 but moved back to Canada soon after.
He owns over 400 vintage Fender Deluxe amplifiers.
His famous 1953 Gibson Les Paul, “Old Black,” is his main stage guitar.
Rolling Stone ranks him among the 30 greatest guitarists of all time.
At 80, Neil Young is still touring, recording, and fighting for the planet — living proof that rock and roll will never fade away.