L.A, 2022-01-28 14:06:07. Some of Neil Young’s songs are still available on Spotify Canada
Neil Young cut ties with Spotify this week, but for Canadian listeners, many of his classic songs are still streaming on the platform.
“Heart of Gold,” “Harvest Moon,” and “Rockin’ in the Free World” are just a few of Young’s featured tracks that are still available on Spotify Canada nearly two days after the massive removal of his music.
Their presence casts an allure on Spotify’s enthusiastic Young District.
Earlier this week, Young gave the broadcast giant an ultimatum, saying they should remove his music from the service if they continue to allow broadcast presenter Joe Rogan to spread misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine on his show “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
Spotify, which has a multi-year distribution agreement with Rogan, granted Young’s request on Wednesday and within hours began removing his albums.
In the US, this left Young’s Spotify profile looking particularly exposed. Only a selection of the collaborations he had recorded with other artists were still available, including several live recordings of the 1992 Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary Concert.
In Canada, some of Young’s previous works, “Cinnamon Girl”, “Old Man” and his entire new album “Barn” have all but disappeared, but many of the other songs included on the film’s soundtrack have not gone away.
A Spotify representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Music rights in the digital age are often complicated by past deals and other licensing agreements that limit who can upload and remove songs.
Young’s company Warner Music Canada was unable to provide an explanation about the differences in Spotify Canada while the music director did not respond to requests for comment.
The 76-year-old musician has been vocal about various COVID-19 concerns over the past two years. Howard Stern told in a recent interview that he refused to tour anytime soon due to concerns he might be “playing with a group of people who don’t wear masks.”
In a statement on his website, he expressed concern that many Spotify listeners are hearing misinformation about COVID. They are “easily influenced and easy to swing to the wrong side of the truth,” he wrote.
“These young people believe that Spotify will never provide information that is grossly unrealistic,” he said. “They are unfortunately wrong. I knew I should have tried to point it out.”
He said he appreciates his record label for standing behind him, because Spotify is responsible for 60 percent of his music being streamed worldwide. He said it was “a huge loss for my record company”.
– With files from The Associated Press
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on January 28, 2022.
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