Casey Neill

Casey Neill was born in New Haven, Connecticut in 1971 in a hospital room with "a nurse singing Irish folk songs".{{cite web |last1=Wright |first1=Craig |title=Subterrene Homesick Blues: Casey Neill And The Norway Rats Push Through Changing Times |url=https://www.splittoothmedia.com/subterrene-homesick-blues-casey-neill/ |website=Split Tooth Media |date=2019-04-11| accessdate=2019-07-22}} His father is Peter Neill. He moved to Olympia, Washington in 1989 and graduated from the Evergreen State College with an ethnomusicology education. Neill then developed as an artist in the underground music community of the Pacific Northwest, releasing two early cassette releases and then his first CD, Rifraff, in 1995. Two songs from that album, Rifraff and Dancing on The Ruins of Multinational Corporations, became the de facto soundtracks for many Earth First! and other logging protests during the 1990s, a time of growing tension between environmentalists and the logging communities of the Pacific Northwest.{{cite web|url=http://www.monitor.net/monitor/bari/jb-party2.html |title=Rousing Sendoff for Bari at Memorial Party |date=1997-03-17 |accessdate=2009-03-25 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511184410/http://www.monitor.net/monitor/bari/jb-party2.html |archivedate=May 11, 2008 }} Dancing on the Ruins of Multinational Corporations is still sung by protest communities around the world.{{cite web|url=http://www.earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21479|title=Big Wedding vs. Big Oil - Shell Petrol Station Blockaded in Activist Wedding|date=2008-09-19|accessdate=2009-03-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080926042619/http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21479|archive-date=2008-09-26|url-status=dead}}

Highly regarded Scottish musician and producer Johnny Cunningham, one of Neill's early supporters, produced his albums Skree and Brooklyn Bridge. Cunningham plays fiddle on these albums plus Live on 11th Street, the last live recording of him before his untimely passing in 2003. Besides including some of his current bandmates and Johnny Cunningham, Brooklyn Bridge features cameos from Chris Funk of The Decemberists, John Wesley Harding, Erin McKeown and Phil Cunningham, Johnny's brother.{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1069728|pure_url=yes}}|title = Brooklyn Bridge Review|year=2007|accessdate=2009-04-14}}

Neill has been included on numerous compilations. One tribute release, Where Have All the Flowers Gone: the Songs of Pete Seeger (Appleseed Recordings), won Top Independent Release of 1998 from the American Association of Independent Music. The compilation includes Neill alongside tracks from Bruce Springsteen and Billy Bragg, two artists to whom Neill has been compared.{{cite web|url= {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p293586|pure_url=yes}}|title = Casey Neill on All Music Guide|year=2007|accessdate=2009-04-14}}

Since 2012, Casey Neill has been a member of The Minus 5 playing electric guitar and backup vocals.{{cite web |title=Split Tooth Media |url=https://www.splittoothmedia.com/not-ready-to-die-scott-mccaugheys-therapy-sessions/ |publisher=Split Tooth Media}} He sings on The Minus 5 box set 'Scott the Hoople in the Dungeon of Horror' on Yep Roc records along with Ian McLagan, Jeff Tweedy, Mike Mills, Laura Gibson, and other guests.{{cite web |title=Seattle Weekly |url=https://www.seattleweekly.com/news/the-minus-5-scott-the-hoople-in-the-dungeon-of-horrorwhen-hes/ |publisher=Seattle Weekly}}

Casey Neill is also in a Pogues tribute band called K.M.R.I.A. The full band is: Casey Neill, Scott McCaughey, Hanz Araki, Jesse Emerson, Jenny Conlee, Chris Funk, Derek Brown, and Ezra Holbrook.{{cite web |title=The Oregonian |url=https://www.oregonlive.com/popmusic/2008/03/live_music_preview_kmria_at_cr.html |publisher=The Oregonian}} They perform around St Patrick's Day and Christmas in Seattle and Portland and are "heartily endorsed" by James Fearnley of The Pogues.{{cite web |title=The Stranger |url=https://www.thestranger.com/seattle/border-radio/Content?oid=31127 |publisher=The Stranger}}

In 2017, Casey Neill performed a set at the Newport Folk Festival. He was also a part of Speak Out! - a performance of protest songs with the Berklee Gospel and Roots Choir, Billy Bragg, Jim James, Kevin Clark, Kyle Craft, Lucius, Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff, Nick Offerman, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Rayland Baxter, Shakey Graves, Sharon Van Etten, Stephanie Hunt, Zach Williams and a house band made of Carl Broemel and Partick Hallahan of My Morning Jacket, Chris Funk, Jenny Conlee, John Moen, and Nate Query of The Decemberists and Casey Neill.{{cite web |title=What's Up Newp |url=https://whatsupnewp.com/2018/05/album-review-newport-folk-festivals-triumphant-speak-out/ |publisher=What's Up Newp}} Speak Out! was released on LP for Record Store Day 2018.{{cite web |title=recordstoreday.com |url=https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/10110 |publisher=Record Store Day}}

In 2018, they released their third official record as Casey Neill & The Norway Rats 'Subterrene'.{{cite web |title=No Depression |url=https://www.nodepression.com/album-reviews/casey-neills-new-album-is-driven-by-determination/ |publisher=No Depression}}{{cite web |title=OPB |url=https://opbmusic.org/opbmusic/article/song-premiere-casey-neill-and-the-norway-rats-my-beloved-accomplice/ |publisher=OPB Music}} All the songs were produced and co-written by their guitarist Jeff "Chet" Lyster and guests on the album include Scott McCaughey, Peter Buck of R.E.M., Dave Depper of Death Cab for Cutie, and Thayer Sarrano.{{cite web |title=Split Tooth Media |url=https://www.splittoothmedia.com/subterrene-homesick-blues-casey-neill/ |publisher=Split Tooth Media}} [https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country-lists/10-best-country-and-americana-songs-of-the-week-luke-combs-kacey-musgraves-and-more-667056/casey-neill-and-the-norway-rats-in-the-swim-667084/ Rolling Stone] debuted the stop motion animation video for 'In the Swim'.{{cite web |title=Rolling Stone |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country-lists/10-best-country-and-americana-songs-of-the-week-luke-combs-kacey-musgraves-and-more-667056/casey-neill-and-the-norway-rats-in-the-swim-667084/ |publisher=Rolling Stone}}

• Subterrene - Incident Recordings - January 2018
• All You Pretty Vandals - Incident Recordings - November 2013
• Good Bye to the Rank and File - In Music We Trust Records - 2010
• Brooklyn Bridge - In Music We Trust Records - 2007
• Memory Against Forgetting - Daemon Records - 2005
• Live on 11th Street - self-release - 2004
• Raleigh & Spencer 7" - Broadside Records - 2003
• Portland West - Appleseed Recordings - 2001
• Skree - Appleseed Recordings - 1999
• Casey Neill Appleseed Recordings - 1998
• Riff Raff - Mock Turtle Music - 1996 - out of print
• Pawprints (cassette-only) - 1994 - out of print
• Wooden Shoes (cassette-only) - 1993 - out of print

Compilations (Exclusive Tracks):

• KBOO Pickathon 2003 Live - on "Lucy Campbell and the Jolly Tinker" (reels) with Kevin Burke and "Chinquapin" by Casey Neill with Little Sue and Lewi Longmire.
• Hold Me Up To The Light: A Tribute to Peter Wilde (2003) - on "Carnival" by Peter Wilde with Little Sue
• KBOO Pickathon 2001 Live - on "Kitty" by Casey Neill Trio
• Where Have All the Flowers Gone: the Songs of Pete Seeger (1999) - on "Old Father Hudson/My Dirty Stream" by Casey Neill

{{reflist}}

{{commons category|Casey Neill}}

• [http://www.caseyneill.org/ Official website]
• [http://www.appleseedmusic.com/peteseeger/wherehavealltheflowersgone.html/ Where Have All The Flowers Gone on Appleseed Records]
• [http://www.myspace.com/kmriaband/ KMRIA on MySpace]
• {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080820161007/http://www.inmusicwetrustrecords.com/ In Music We Trust]}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20110718083004/http://wordbirdbinder.com/2010/10/25/band-interview-casey-neill/ Interview on The Wordbird Says]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20110718083425/http://wordbirdbinder.com/2010/09/27/album-review-casey-neill-and-the-norway-rats-goodbye-to-the-rank-and-file/ Album Review for Goodbye to the Rank and File]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neill, Casey}}

Category:Musicians from Portland, Oregon

Category:Evergreen State College alumni

Category:Folk punk musicians

Category:Living people

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)