Neil Young and Rick James
From the Toronto Star:

Self-styled funkmeister Rick James...once led a band in Yorkville with Neil Young on lead guitar....

The story begins in early 1965.

James arrived in Toronto from his native Buffalo at the age of 17 and formed a band called the Sailor Boys. The name was a nervy reference to his enlistment in the U.S. Naval Reserve, from which he went absent without leave....

In January, 1966...Young joined the Mynah Birds. He and James took an apartment together on Charles St. E. near Jarvis St., at about the time Young says James introduced him to speed....

With new gear and a higher profile, the Mynah Birds attracted interest from Motown Records. In March, 1966, the band went to Detroit for "five or six nights," Young recalled. They recorded 16 songs and signed a seven-year contract, a Motown first for a mostly white act.

Then James was busted for being AWOL and not answering the Vietnam draft. He served time, which at least allowed him to rise afterward in the United States to "punk-funk" fame.

Young and Palmer...drove to California and helped form Buffalo Springfield. Three and half months later, they were playing the Hollywood Bowl — opening for the band James so loved, the Rolling Stones.