Fred Neil
Fred Neil (born March 16, 1936 in Cleveland , Ohio ; † July 7, 2001 on Summerland Key , Florida ) was an influential American folk and blues singer and songwriter of the 1960s and early 1970s.
life and work
Raised in Saint Petersburg , Florida , Neil was one of those songwriters who worked for a while in New York's famous Brill Building . He has often been referred to as a pioneer in songwriting; his most cited students were Tim Buckley , Harry Nilsson and Jefferson Airplane , the most prominent James Taylor , Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell . In the early 1960s he played regularly in Greenwich Village , among others with Bob Dylan and Karen Dalton .
Neil's early compositions were recorded by artists such as Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison ; he played as a studio guitarist on hits by Bobby Darin and Paul Anka . In 1968 Harry Nilsson recorded a cover version of Neil's song Everybody's Talkin ' , which became a global hit a year later when it was part of the score for the film Asphalt-Cowboy .
In the mid-1970s, Neil gave up his apartment in Woodstock , New York , and lived the rest of his life on the beaches of southern Florida . He made his last public appearance in 1986 in a coffee house in Coconut Grove .
Fred Neil died of cancer in 2001 in Summerland Key , Florida.
Songs by Fred Neil and recordings by other artists (selection)
- Candy Man - Roy Orbison (1961)
- Everybody's Talkin ' - Harry Nilsson (1969), Roger Miller (1970), Bill Withers (1971), Stephen Stills (1991), The Beautiful South (1994), Jimmy Buffett (2003), Madeleine Peyroux (2006) and Glen Campbell ( 1975, 2017)
- A Little Bit of Rain - Karen Dalton (1969)
- Tear Down the Walls - Vince Martin (1964)
- The Dolphins - Tim Buckley (1973)
- Green Rocky Road - Blue Orchids (2005)
- The Other Side of This Life - Jefferson Airplane
Web links
- Literature by and about Fred Neil in the catalog of the German National Library
personal data | |
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SURNAME | Neil, Fred |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American blues and folk singer and songwriter |
DATE OF BIRTH | March 16, 1936 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Cleveland , Ohio |
DATE OF DEATH | July 7, 2001 |
Place of death | Summerland Key , Florida |