Neil Young considering performing lost ‘Cortez The Killer’ verses on Crazy Horse tour
Neil Young has revealed that he has uncovered the “lost verses” from the 1975 song ‘Cortez The Killer’, and that he’s considering playing them during his upcoming tour with Crazy Horse.
According to a Rolling Stone report, Neil Young recently hosted a Zoom session with a handful of fans who are subscribed to his official website. During this call, Young revealed that he had recently found “the other verses” from ‘Cortez The Killer’ that were either cut from the song, or lost due to technical difficulties while recording the track.
He also teased performing them, though nothing is set in stone just yet: “Just a couple of days ago, I found the other verses. Just the lyrics… we may have those lost lyrics in the show, which will be fun for me.”
Young also reflected on the lost verses, recalling that he and his band were recording “a good take” when the power went off and they lost a verse that had been recorded. When producer David Briggs told them of what had happened, Young recalled saying that he “never liked” the verse anyway.
“It was a good take,” Young recalled. “So what we did was take the master tape and find ways to cut it together so that it would work, but we lost a couple of verses. They were gone. Now that I’ve found they lyrics, I’m trying to find exactly where they come in the song. I need to look at the tape and see where the cut is, where we lost some. I’ll insert them there.”
In February, Crazy Horse revealed their upcoming album ‘FU##IN’ UP’, which will contain songs from the band’s 50 year career, freshly recorded for 2024. The album will have its initial release on Record Store Day (April 20); it will arrive in all formats on April 26.
Young said of the new album: “In the spirit it’s offered…made this for the Horse lovers. I can’t stop it. The horse is runnin’. What a ride we have. I don’t want to mess with the vibe. I am so happy to have this to share.”
They will tour North America between April 24 and May 23. Tickets are on sale here.
Neil Young and Crazy Horse last reunited in 2014, where they played London’s Hyde Park BST joined by The National, Tom Odell, Caitlin Rose, Phosphorescent and Flyte. Read everything that went down here.
The band also last released music in 2021 with ‘Barn’, which NME gave four stars: “As Young wrote in his 2012 memoir Waging Heavy Peace: “There is a big wind blowing today and I’m part of it. I want to make a difference.” This record lives up to those words. Of all the messages we should listen to on this album, the overriding one is that Neil Young remains as vital as he always has been.”
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Surej Singh
NME
