This Note’s For You (Live 1988)

The Zoo Crew is spinning This Note’s For You (Live 1988) by Neil Young & The Bluenotes, and the Zoo Freaks are loving this raw, rebellious vibe! This track, captured during Young’s 1988 tour, comes from the album Bluenote Café, released years later in 2015 as part of his Archives Performance Series. The song itself is a bold middle finger to corporate sponsorship in music, with Young snarling lines like “Ain’t singin’ for Pepsi, ain’t singin’ for Coke.” The live version has an extra edge, with loose, gritty horns and Young’s stinging guitar riffs driving the point home. In a 1988 interview with BAM magazine, Young shared how the song’s concept came from his frustration with artists like Michael Jackson and Eric Clapton doing beer and soda ads, saying, “I laughed my ass off” when he landed on the title, a jab at Budweiser’s “This Bud’s for You” campaign. The music video stirred up even more trouble—MTV initially banned it for parodying ads with lookalikes of Jackson (whose hair catches fire) and a Spuds MacKenzie dog, but after backlash, they aired it and it won Video of the Year. Young later told writer Paul Zollo the song was about keeping music pure, not “blurring the line between videos and commercials.”

Another cool tidbit: the song’s live performances in 1988 were so wild that fans didn’t even yell for old hits like Southern Man, as Young noted in an interview, saying the crowds “were going fucking nuts.” The Bluenotes, a 10-piece band with a killer horn section, brought a soulful, bar-band swagger that made these shows unforgettable. Some fans on Facebook groups like Neil Young Fans still rave about catching those gigs, sharing stories of Young shredding solos at small venues under the Bluenotes name before legal issues forced a change to “Ten Men Workin’.” Posts found on X from 2025 marked the song’s anniversary, with fans calling it a “punky stand against selling out.” Oh, and Young wrote most of the album’s tracks, including this one, on his wife Pegi’s old Gibson guitar, which he said felt like it carried her teenage spirit—pretty sweet, right?

Now, let’s rewind to how Neil Young got his start. Born in Toronto, Canada, in 1945, he was a kid who moved around a lot, soaking up folk, blues, and early rock ‘n’ roll. By his teens, he was already messing around with guitars and forming bands like The Squires, playing local gigs in Winnipeg. His big break came in the mid-’60s when he co-founded Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, blending folk-rock with raw energy on tracks like For What It’s Worth. After the band split, Young went solo, dropping his self-titled debut in 1968, but it was 1969’s Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere with Crazy Horse that cemented his rep for gritty, heartfelt songwriting. From there, he bounced between solo acoustic vibes and full-on electric chaos, building a career that’s spanned decades and defied genres. Fans on sites like Thrasher’s Wheat dig into this era with obsessive detail, chronicling every session and tour.

You can keep up with Neil Young’s latest moves on his official site, Neil Young Archives, which is a treasure trove of music, videos, and unreleased gems. He’s also active on social media: check out his Facebook for updates, Instagram for cool throwbacks, and X for his unfiltered takes. If you’re a Zoo Freak wanting to connect with other fans, dive into Neil Young Fans on Facebook or browse Thrasher’s Wheat, a fan-run site packed with news and history. Wherever you look, Young’s legacy as a fearless artist shines through—just like this killer live track!