The song that catapulted Neil Young into the mainstream

When it comes to evaluating the elements that go into creating a great song, most artists will admit that luck can sometimes be a factor. This was precisely the case, at the beginning of February 1971, when a fortuitous meeting prompted Neil Young to record the song “Heart of Gold” in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Canadian musician was in Nashville to participate in the
“Johnny Cash Show”
along with other guests like
James Taylor
And
Linda Ronstadt
. This episode of the television program was taped on February 6 and 7, 1971 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. On the evening of February 5, Young, Taylor and Ronstadt were invited to an impromptu dinner hosted by the record producer
Elliot Mazer
in his new studio, the
Quadraphonic
housed in a renovated two-story home on Nashville’s Music Row. By the end of the evening, arrangements had been made for Young and a hastily assembled band of Nashville studio musicians to begin recording the day after the
Quadraphonic
.

These were the sessions that kicked off
“Harvest”
(
read the review here
), the fourth studio album by
Neil Young
which reached the top of the charts and became the best-selling album of 1972 in the United States. It was the first single

“Heart Of Gold”
to drive radio airplay and fuel the album’s rise. The decision to perform acoustically and seated was not dictated by creative factors, but by a serious back injury. “I was in and out of hospitals for the two years between “After The Gold Rush” and “Harvest,” he told Rolling Stone in an interview in 1975. “My intervertebral discs had dislocated. I couldn’t hold the guitar in my hand. That’s why I played sitting down for the whole solo tour. I couldn’t move very well, so I stayed on a ranch for a long time, without any physical contact. I wore a brace and recorded most of “Harvest” with the brace. That’s one of the main reasons why it’s such a quiet album. I physically couldn’t play an electric guitar.”

When
Neil Young
attended the dinner of
Elliot Mazer
was eager to record the new acoustic songs he had been playing live night after night on tour. It was the first time the two had met, but Young had been impressed by Mazer’s work with the group of Nashville studio musicians,

Area Code 615
. He was also attracted by the charm of Mazer’s studio, converted from a renovated late 19th century two-story house. Mazer recalled: “The control room was the old sunroom. The living room and dining room became the two recording rooms, and the kitchen became the drum area. We called it Quadrafonic as a joke, even though there were actually four speakers in the control room. I did a quadraphonic mix right there.”

The first sessions took place on Saturday 6 February 1971, after the end of the recordings for the
Johnny Cash Show
. Mazer had hired four musicians from the Nashville session scene:
Kenney Buttrey
on the battery,
Tim Drummond
on the bass,
Ben Keith
to the pedal steel guitar and
Teddy Irwin
to the second acoustic guitar.
Neil Young
he said: “Elliot Mazer chose the musicians for the session and organized everything. “Harvest” would never have existed without Elliot. He’s amazing. He was at the mixer, recording. That first day we recorded “Bad Fog Of Loneliness”, “Old Man” and “Heart Of Gold”. James and Linda sang with me, overdubbing the choruses, and James played banjo live with us on “Old Man”. They were all brand new songs that I had played during my solo tour. The sessions were amazing with Kenny Buttrey on drums and I couldn’t believe how good he was, I was in perfect harmony with my right hand. He had the drums positioned so I could see my hand on the guitar. Tim Drummond was playing bass and Ben Keith was playing steel guitar.”

These four musicians formed the band that Young nicknamed
The Stray Gators
a collective of Nashville session musicians who provided the rustic country-rock instrumentation of
“Harvest”
as reported
MusicRadar
. “They were amazing musicians and wonderful people. They were so in tune with what I was doing; it was all very relaxed and that was the start of friendships that would last a lifetime. Ben Keith played with me for over 40 years. Tim Drummond was with me for a very long time too. What a wonderful group of musicians they were. Elliot got a pure, clean sound.”

“Heart Of Gold”
it was the first song recorded on the evening of February 6th
Quadrafonic Studios
. It was recorded live with Young and the band getting the desired performance on the second try. “Two passes, and it was done,” he recalled
Elliot Mazer
to Mix magazine in 2023. “I think it took us less than two hours to record the whole of ‘Heart Of Gold’.” The following evening, Sunday 7 February 1971,

James Taylor
And
Linda Ronstadt
they came to the studio to record their backing vocals.

In an interview with Mojo magazine,
Linda Ronstadt
he remembered that session. “We were sitting on the sofa in the control room, but I had to get down on my knees to be at James’ height because he’s so tall. Then we sang all night, the highest notes I could reach. It was hard, but no one cared. It was dawn when we left the studio.”

In an interview with Tape Op magazine, Mazer recalled Young’s determination and the magical atmosphere of the sessions. “Neil was very specific about what he wanted. When Neil Young plays a song, his body language dictates the whole arrangement. Neil was sitting in the control room at Quadrafonic Studios and he played ‘Heart Of Gold’. Kenny and I looked at each other and we both knew it was going to be a number one hit. We heard the song and all we had to do was get Neil in the studio, get the band in, start the system and make it sound good. It was incredible.” For Young, the icing on the cake was that the studio was located on Nashville’s famous Music Row, where many historic recording studios stood at the time. “I was overwhelmed by luck and good fortune.”

Theories abound as to the precise meaning of
“Heart Of Gold”
but internally it seems to reflect the search for true love and inner peace.
Neil Young
he had recently divorced and had started a new relationship with the actress
Carrie Snodgress
. In 2022, Young stated that the song was inspired by his budding love for Snodgress.

“Heart Of Gold” was released as the first single of “Harvest” in January 1972, a month before the album’s release. For Young, the commercial success of the song was a real surprise. “Heart Of Gold” it catapulted him into the mainstream, an environment that didn’t suit him. In the liner notes of his 1977 compilation, “Decade”Young wrote that “Heart Of Gold” it had led him into a creative dimension that he soon abandoned. Despite the enormous success and public appreciation, Neil Young took an unexpected creative turn and ensured he never came close to the Top Ten again. “This song put me in the middle of the road. Traveling along it quickly became boring, so I headed for the ditch. A bumpier ride, but I met more interesting people there.”