Dreamer of Pictures: Savannah musicians perform tribute to Neil Young at Victory North

Neil Young’s long eclectic, eccentric career, from Buffalo Springfield, to mellow country troubadour, to his time with Crosby, Stills & Nash, to the sonic distortion of Crazy Horse, to today, has taken so many aural twists and turns that to pay homage to his body of work would be a herculean task.

The man practically invented grunge, for God’s sake, and created his own digital music player (Pono) to compete with the iPod. Even if he isn’t always successful, Neil Young is always brilliant.

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Eric Britt of New American Hologram and Hazel Virtue has taken on the challenge of celebrating Neil Young by gathering an all-star line-up of Savannah artists for “Dreamer of Pictures,” a tribute concert at Victory North on Wednesday, Nov. 24.

“I was amazed by Matt Eckstine and the Accomplices' awesome John Prine tribute shows,” Britt said of the inspiration behind the event. “These shows have been a true take on the music by musicians that clearly appreciate the man. Watching, and even participating, in some of these shows over the years was a big inspiration to make this happen, Neil Young style. Getting a wide variety of local musicians together for a tribute night is also something folks in Savannah can really appreciate and enjoy.”

Britt began playing Neil Young songs as soon as he picked up the guitar. The first Neil Young song he ever learned was ‘Needle and the Damage Done,’ which he’ll be performing at the tribute concert.

“I still play it as sloppy as he does,” Britt said with a laugh. “As most of the artists playing, I've definitely had a rotating list of Neil songs in my solo sets for years.”

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“We wore out the vinyl of 'Harvest' when I was a kid, and I really connected with it as an adult. I made a ritual of listening to the whole album the day after each tour I ever went on. I'd often come back in pieces, and that that recording helped slowly put me back together. Music therapy.”

The evening will be split into two halves, with the first set focusing on Young’s acoustic side, while the second set will turn up the wattage for a gloriously noisy, electric set, followed by a monster jam befitting the rock legend.

“Mr. Soul” from Young’s divisive vocoder-heavy electro album, “Trans” almost made the list, but had to be cut for time.

The first set features Matt Eckstine and his band consisting of Evan Rose (mandolin) and Marc Chesanow (standup bass) doing a couple of songs from "Harvest" and also the more contemporary classic "Harvest Moon."

“The only other 90's song is 'Hank to Hendrix,' to be performed by Jason Bible,” said Britt. “The rest of the acoustic half will be spanning the glorious 70's era with songs like ‘Old Man,’ ‘Comes a Time’ and ‘Sugar Mountain.’ Featured artists also include Aaron Zimmer, Stewart and Jim Marshall, and myself. We're also excited to have Joe Nelson banjo on banjo/fiddle, Eric Daubert on mandolin, and Andrew Sovine on pedal steel.”

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The electric half will feature Ryan Kelly (bass), Stan Ray (drums), Andrew Sovine (pedal steel/guitars/piano), and Kevin Rose (guitar) in the roll of Young’s band Crazy Horse, performing songs spanning form 1969 to the mid-1970’s, like “Cinnamon Girl,” “Ohio,” “Powderfinger,” and "Cortez the Killer."

“I've been hosting the electric rehearsals and they sound amazing,” Britt said excitedly.

Other featured artists include Craig Johansen, Amy Ochoa, Ray Lundy, Rev. Bro Diddley, Sophie Brochu, and Becky Solis.

“By design and default, the electric half is gonna be raw and awesome like 70's NY shows,” Britt explained. “From the get go, I've been met with nothing but excitement about putting on this show from all the artists involved. I actually prefaced the invitation with vetting questions like, ‘Hey are you a Neil fan and what's your favorite album?’ Everyone playing has lots of respect for the music, and that's gonna be important to make it authentic.”

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Dreamer of Pictures will be hosted by Matt Nickley of Front Porch Improv, who will provide some laughs between sets.

“He's hilarious and loves music, and even Neil Young,” said Britt. “Our only request was for him not to ‘roast’ Neil. Let's see if he can resist. Maybe we'll try to get him out for the super-jam grand finale at the end of the night too.

“We're all super excited to put this thing on for our friends, family, and neighbors. This will be a fun night for visiting family, and kids are welcome with a guardian. Thanks to Victory North for giving local musicians the opportunity to put on events like this.”

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah GA musicians perform tribute to Neil Young at Victory North