Like many, I'd heard a Fred Neil song before I heard Fred Neil. ' The Dolphins' was covered by Tim Buckley on his album Sefronia. Tim was a big fan and even switched from tenor to baritone because of Fred. He gave Bob Dylan his first gig: playing harmonica for a dollar a day at the Café Wha. He helped Tim Hardin and David Crosby; wrote sleeve notes for Karen Dalton and most famously was an advocate for releasing dolphins from captivity. Demonstrating a generosity of spirit that extended further than his song writing.
It was his inclusion in an issue of Mojo about cult musicians that urged me to hear him and then I did...It didn't make sense: this svelte, freckled, ginger haired dude with a voice that seemed to emanate from deep within the earth: soothing, wise, worldly yet other worldly; demanding you to listen. So listen.
10 Sides of Fred Neil
The Dolphins
Other Side Of This Life
Merry Go Round
That's The Bag I'm In
Blues On The Ceiling
Handful Of Gimme
Dade County Jail
Everybody's Talkin'
Wild Child In A World Of Trouble
The Water Is Wide