He explains his anti-war album

Rock legend Neil Young has spoke out against US involvement in Iraq as he explained his reasons for releasing his anti-war album 'Living With War'.

The LP, released last month, contains songs which amount to a protest against the 2003 US involvement in the war in Iraq and subsequent military presence.

Young, 60, told The Observer he wanted to speak out in order to inform the US citizens of the situation.

He said: "A big part of what this record is about is just getting the information out there that Americans have a conscience about what's happening, too. There's a lot of people in America who didn't want this war to happen, who just want to be able to express themselves about this situation, but for various reasons they are not being heard. In a way this record is not for me, it's for them."

He added: "My voice, and what I think as an individual, is much less important on this project. It's the project itself that's the important thing. It's about making yourself heard."

Young admitted he was initially reluctant to commit to such a project - but such were his feelings he couldn't let it rest.

He commented: "For a while, you know, I didn't feel it was my place. Being 60 years old."

He added: "We need a leader who's more cautious, not so reckless with things they don't understand. Other cultures need to be respected. Culture itself needs to be respected. I mean, I feel Saddam was bad and had to be overthrown, but are we smart or are we stupid? At this point in our evolution, with all the technology that we have, there has to be a better way of doing this than bombing a country into oblivion."