Neil Young
1970-??-??
Someone’s Back Porch
La Honda, CA

Download FLAC:  Google Drive

Source: ? (probably an early 3M cassette deck or reel, see notes below)

Transfer: Tascam 112mkII > Gold Plated Monster Cables > SB Audigy 2 > Sound Forge 8 > 16 bit @ 44.1 kHz > CD Wave > Flac (6); This recording was transferred from the original cassette master on 6/16/2006 – Dub Irie

Total Time: 23:20

01 – Everybody Knows This is Nowhere
02 – Everybody’s Alone
03 – Dance Dance Dance
04 – On The Way Home
05 – Wonderin’
06 – Instrumental
07 – Talking
08 – Sugar Mountain

I found this little gem digging through some old cassettes. I’d be shocked if this has been seeded before, but I’d also want a fresh copy! It was labeled “Neil Young Back Porch Jam 1970 – La Honda”. That’s all I know about the source. It is basically Neil hanging out with a few friends at someone’s house playing acoustic tunes. At one point he says goodbye to a few people who were leaving, but it is such a small group of people there there is no applause, just talking between tunes. I can add that it was recorded outside for sure as you can hear a dog bark and a few planes fly over. It is generationally faded some – like 4th gen or more judging by the hiss factor, but it is remarkable in its content, and serious Neil collectors will really like this.

Normally I don’t seed material that is dubious quality but this is one of those exceptions where the content outweighs all other considerations. I am seeding the direct unprocessed transfer I just made. The recording is rife with variable speed problems too, but I consider them fairly minor – it is easy to forgive when you hear something like this – just over 23 minutes. La Honda is a tiny little town in the Santa Cruz mountains south of San Francisco, not far from where Neil lives today. – Dub Irie