The Era of the Recluse...

Allen Ginsberg from "Howl" (1955) - "I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking for an angry fix..."

JimmyDumps (2020) - "I saw the best minds of MY generation become Howard Hughes-like. Alone. Paranoid, wearing surgical masks and rubber gloves, hiding at home, streaming Netflix, washing their hands frequently & furiously..."

Yes, we are all recluses now. No, we aren't all paranoid reactionaries, and no, we don't all store our urine in jars, and no we aren't all millionaires, and no we aren't living all alone at the Sahara Hotel in Vegas.

But we are spending lots of time at home, in our pajamas, letting our hair and finger and toe nails grow. Unkempt. Unsupervised. Goofing off. Sheltering. Waiting for the storm to blow over.

The a.m soundtrack - Neil Young - "Neil Young"  (1969). Yes. Neil Young, another major weirdo, hermit, recluse, total artist & geek. He has driven so many musicians, managers and fans over the edge with his crazy, zig-zagging ways. This is his debut solo record. A great collaboration with Jack Nitzche (the Dark Prince of r&r), and David Briggs ("Be great, or be gone"). It's a big production. Excellent, with two really great songs, "The Loner," which could be Neil's personal anthem, and the long, rambling, surreal, totally raw, live acoustic track "Last Trip to Tulsa." This was all before Neil hooked up with Crazy Horse, and just after he flaked out and escaped from Buffalo Springfield. Haunting. You just knew this guy was gonna be great for a long time. Yes, a major weirdo. But the finest kind of weirdo.