A popular song by Neil Young that ultimately “became a bore” to him once led to a complaint from another legendary musician. Five years after its release, the rock star reflected on his only US number one single, a track that “positively derailed” the Buffalo Springfield icon.
Set to headline this year’s Glastonbury Festival, Neil has expressed mixed feelings about the song, claiming it placed him squarely in the “middle of the road.” Adding to the intrigue, Heart of Gold elicited negative remarks from fellow musician Bob Dylan, who “used to hate it when it came on the radio,” as reported by Far Out Magazine.
Speaking previously about what the magazine described as his “various imitations,” the Blowin’ In the Wind singer said the “only time it bothered” him that “someone sounded like” him was when he was living in Phoenix, Arizona, in the 70s and the “big song” was Heart of Gold.
Bob remarked: “I used to hate it when it came on the radio. I always liked Neil Young, but it bothered me every time I listened to Heart of Gold. I think it was up at number one for a long time, and I’d say: ‘Shit, that’s me. If it sounds like me, it should as well be me’.”
Reflecting on the impact of the song, Neil commented: “This song put me in the middle of the road. Travelling there soon became a bore, so I headed for the ditch. A rougher ride, but I saw more interesting people there.”
Reports have emerged that Neil Young and the BBC are in talks regarding the broadcast of his Glastonbury set, with uncertainty looming over how much of his Saturday performance will be televised.
SomersetLive reports that it’s also been rumoured that only a few songs will appear in the broadcast, either live or among a compilation of highlights.
Furthermore, Neil Young’s name was notably absent from the BBC’s iPlayer schedule. Earlier this year, he withdrew from the festival, criticising what he termed the BBC’s “corporate control”.
In January, Neil expressed his discontent, stating: “We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in.”
In response to the commentary about his performance, a BBC spokeswoman said they aim to bring audiences “as many performances as possible” from the Pyramid Stage and that plans continue to be finalised “right up to and during the festival”.
You can catch Glastonbury 2025 on BBC Two today (Saturday, June 28), from 10.10pm to 12am.