Portrait of Neil Young

Birthday profile

Neil Young

Neil Young, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer

Born
November 12, 1945
Age in 2026
81
Zodiac sign
Scorpio
Birth year
1945

About Neil Young

Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter and musician. Son of journalist and author Scott Young, Young embarked on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s. He then moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. His solo career, often backed by the band Crazy Horse, includes critically acclaimed albums such as Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (1969), After the Gold Rush (1970), Harvest (1972), On the Beach (1974), and Rust Never Sleeps (1979). Young was also a part-time member of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, with whom he recorded the chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu. Young's deeply personal lyrics and signature high tenor singing voice define his long career. He also plays piano and harmonica on many albums, which frequently combine folk, rock, country and other musical genres. His often distorted electric guitar playing, especially with Crazy Horse, earned him the nickname "Godfather of Grunge" and led to his 1995 album Mirror Ball with Pearl Jam. More recently, he has been backed by Promise of the Real. Young directed (or co-directed) films using the pseudonym "Bernard Shakey", including Journey Through the Past (1973), Rust Never Sleeps (1979), Human Highway (1982), Greendale (2003), CSNY/Déjà Vu (2008), and Harvest Time (2022). He also contributed to the soundtracks of the films Philadelphia (1993) and Dead Man (1995). Young has received multiple Grammy and Juno Awards. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has inducted him twice: in 1995 as a solo artist and in 1997 as a member of Buffalo Springfield. In 2023, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Young No. 30 on its list of the "250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". Young is also on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 greatest musical artists, and 21 of his albums and singles have been certified gold or platinum in the U.S. Young was awarded the Order of Manitoba in 2006 and was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2010. He was also a part-time member of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, with whom he recorded the chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu. Young contracted polio in the late summer of 1951 during the last major outbreak of the disease in Ontario, and as a result, became partially paralyzed on his left side. Son of journalist, sportswriter, and novelist Scott Young, Neil embarked on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s. Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Neil Young timeline

  1. Young contracted polio in the late summer of 1951 during the last major outbreak of the disease in Ontario, and as a result, became partially paralyzed on his left side.
  2. He was also a part-time member of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, with whom he recorded the chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu.
  3. Young was awarded the Order of Manitoba in 2006 and was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2010.

The world when Neil Young was born

Neil Young was born in 1945. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1945

  • #1 song"Sentimental Journey" – Les Brown & Doris Day
  • Top movieThe Lost Weekend
  • Best-selling bookAnimal Farm – George Orwell

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentDetroit Tigers win the World Series
  • Top headlineWorld War II ends after atomic bombs dropped on Japan
  • Technology milestoneAtomic bomb developed and detonated (Manhattan Project)
  • Defining fadV-J Day celebrations
  • Notable inventionMicrowave oven (accidental discovery)
  • World population2.40 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt / Harry S. Truman
  • Sports championDetroit Tigers (World Series)
  • U.S. population139.9M

1945 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Neil Young's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19452026
Gas$0.21$3.45/gal
Average home$5,900$435,000
Average income$4,100$67,500
Minimum wage$0.40$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.30$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population139.9M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.