You can't really go wrong with any album he put out between these years. Have a look on allmusic.com and just work up the years.

which is a pretty good album to start with ... you can't really go wrong with any of his 70s stuff but I'd also particularly recommend After The Goldrush, Tonight's The Night and On The Beach (all available from Amazon for less than a fiver) ... Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere and Zuma are great too

I love both the songs you mention but fave is probably either Albequerque or Love In Mind ... (and Ordinary People from his last album is fantastic)

I first got into him through me dads copy of "Decade" which is a 2 disk retrospective of the 68-78 stuff more or less, pretty much 100% solid gold hits, then you can work out where to go from there, cos he covers alot of ground really, from pretty delicate folk stuff to balls out guitar devastation. IMO "On the Beach" is his best album. The later stuff is actually alright too. The benefit of his retarded castrato barn-falling-down voice is that time has not wearied it

"Rust Never Sleeps" was the first Neil Young album I bought and its just as good a place to start as almost anywhere. Its loud and loose and before long you'll be singing it wherever you go. And it has 'Powderfinger' on it, which is just about the best song ever written.

my favorite song????

Walk On or Cowgirl in the Sand

try after the gold rush
or live rust

is so super amazing I creamed in my pants just from seeing his name as a thread.

If you're into the Old Man type stuff then get Harvest, which was his big breakthrough and is FLAWLESS. When I take over the world it will be punishable by death to say anything bad about that record. I love Don't Let It Bring You Down from After The Goldrush too, despite the fact that that is apparently Elton John's favourite ever album...

Saw him at Manchester Apollo a few months ago. He did an acoustic set and then came back for the full on wind-machines-and-godfather-of-grunge stuff. Bliss. Speaking of which, there's a live collaboration between him and Pearl Jam kicking around the net somewhere - they do Keep On Rockin In The Free World, although I always preferred the acoustic version of that tune from the Freedom album. Thoughts?

for albums my favorite is on the beach. last year's release of the 1971 massey hall concert is superb. just him acoustic and his voice is in top form. he debuts or plays for one of the first times a bunch of songs from harvest that he had just written like old man, heart of gold, etc.

Start with Landing on Water. Ignore what these jokers have said. Landing on Water is where it's at.

Is my favourite album. The perfect mix of his folk and rock personas, then maybe Rust Never Sleeps or On The Beach.

Favourite song is either Powderfinger, Walk On or Birds.

I nearly bought American Stars and Bars today, mainly because it's got Like a Hurricane on it (though I have that track already). Is it any good?

with much of what has been said in this thread, Miss v.

To summarise:

1. Young is a fucking hero;
2. Decade is probably the best place to start; and
3. if you love Decade then the other essential records are Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, After the Goldrush, Tonight's the Night, On the Beach and Rust Never Sleeps.

And she is praised.

Harvest and After The Goldrush.

Ambulance Blues is my favourite song of his. Perfect sunday song actually, I might give it a listen now...

along with REM sigur ros and radiohead.

:D:D:D:D

and is a god. Harvest for me is the best album, but pretty much everything he's done is worth a listen. Cant believe no-one has mentioned "Words between the lines of age" or "Cortez the Killer".....

But I love country music and country rock. So why do I find him such a nasally whiney dullard?

When I like Stephen Stills & David Crosby's albums without him?

WHY??? What am I missing? It upsets me.

get 'on the beach', seriously one of the best albums i own, makes me all warm and lethargic when i listen to it.
yeah fuck, i'm gonna put it on now