Five decades ago, Neil Young's "Southern Man" challenged racism in the South head-on. Today, the song sees new light as Young has released a live version from 2019 accompanied by a strong message in support of social change across the country.
“Here’s me as an old guy singin’ his 50-year-old song that was written after countless years of racism in the USA," he wrote. "And look at us today! This has been going on for way too long. It’s not just ‘Southern Man’ now. It’s everywhere across the USA. It’s time for real change, new laws, new rules for policing.”
Young's timely revisiting of the song's meaning comes in the wake of the recent killing of George Floyd and the subsequent nationwide protests against police brutality. "Southern Man" was originally released in 1970 on his classic album After The Gold Rush.
Perhaps Young's most famous protest song is "Ohio," which spoke out against the Kent State Massacre where the Ohio National Guard shot at Vietnam War protestors, killing four on May 4, 1970. "Ohio" was originally released by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on 1971's 4 Way Street.
On June 19, Young will drop his highly anticipated, long-lost album written and recorded in 1974-75, Homegrown.
Today, a relisten to to "Southern Man" shows both the enduring and timeless power of the original song and the bleak reality of how much change is still needed to put racism behind us. You can watch his 2019 performance of "Southern Man" on his website archives here.
