neil young

I think at this point he hadn't turned into Mr. "digital is the dark ages of sound

but he's not talking about synths, he's talking about recording. kraftwerk, pretty much all of the original synth pop stuff would have been recorded analog.

you sound like the man himself, if you swapped out "iPod" for "Pono"

Hah, I'll never get rid of my iPod, more for practical reasons than anything else. It's got too much music on it, i.e. there's no way I'm going to load all of that into my phone, plus I recharge my phone a lot less when I don't use it for music. And I hate AirPods - headphone/ear monitor cables never bothered me.

I wish I splurged and flown to one of the Crazy Horse shows in 2019 with Nils Lofgren. Ah well...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIrlAwZaHK0

Part 2 of 2 of that 2019 show:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnU0wXYUcDU

but he's not talking about synths, he's talking about recording.

Everything from Freedom through Harvest Moon was recorded digitally. Took him four albums (or five if you count Arc separately) to realize he didn’t like digital recording.

consistency is not the man's strong suit

yeah the middle 8 of “around the world” is spectacular, life is underrated

it was a bit startling to hear the solo “long walk home demo” that opens disc 1 of archives 2

that one goes even further back — to the buffalo springfield days!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAN9WjegRcU

More dates than I'd seen:
http://view.e.warnerrecords.com/?qs=d1572806c6d918abf895d4c03a09dff4127b32999b3bfb57cecbc7e6b28ba78ead002973ee97d97efb6952d4f3397701ce90e2f597e0efe21629f3f705d522133dce7f02d2448e72

I said I liked most of Toast, but spoke too soon, although remain sold, as I was immediately, on the opener, which he opens with a chirp, "Don't say you love me (don't say you love me)," then he throws up a fence of attractive sounds, going this way and that: one of those things only he is likely to do, although I guess it's kinda like something more enigmatic on Oar---Neil's oblique strokes can make their own sense, though, and this is a promising start to an album about or alluding to marital problems, mixed emotions and all.
But "Standing in The Light of Love," though ok, tends toward/points to several that are either personally or generically (FM Important Rock) predictable, rhetorical (although I do kinda like the well-intended or good-intentions gesture of "How Ya Doin'?")
---then there's "I don't wanna let/The good times roll," with a riff that seems to leave a note out, nudging, or just plain bending, slacking, like, "Uh-uh," yet letting the bad times roll into a recognizable boogie, "Boom Boom Boom," not John Lee Hooker's boogie of that title, or anybody else's, not too much: it's his, customized and blended, singing like himself, while also suggesting Canned Heat's Al "Blind Owl" Wilson, who based his vocal sound on Skip James, one of those bluesmen long disappeared, who was retrieved in the 60s, played some more, prob outlived young outidery Blind Owl, eerie historical associations adding to the overlapping eerie canals ov keening---also Neil's playing like himself, while sometimes taking turns that suggest young Carlos Santana and Peter "Black Magic Woman" Green, making his own way through all that---anyway I have to give it up for

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1RHI9XfOec

So this has quickly turned out to be a song that, when it plays itself in my head, I feel more like doing what I'm doing. Good thing it's so long.

Perhaps "boogie" is not quite the right term, category-wise, but in effect it boogies, it surely grooves, anyway, in thee Neilian.

I didn't know or forgot about this, but there's always been this story that Neil almost co-produced Love's Forever Changes or arranged one of the songs (something Neil himself denies even though Rhino claimed it in one of their reissue's liner notes).

Johnny Echols clears it up here:
https://www.caropop.com/caropopcast/episode/ed00736f/johnny-echols-love

Basically, Neil was on the verge of getting evicted and needed to make some money, and Bruce Botnick was a friend, so he invited Neil to come in and co-produce as a way of making some quick cash. Neil was also friends with the band, but as Echols put it, there's no way they'd ever listen to him as a producer. They didn't know Neil was the one coming in, and when he showed up, they just laughed. They hung out for a bit, but Neil left after like 30 minutes, i.e. had NO input whatsoever, but that was good enough because Elektra paid him like a couple thousand dollars for his "services."

Apparently some folks on the H0ffman F0rums (lol, I know) have seen signs that Chrome Dreams is soon to get an official release. Apparently "Sedan Delivery" popped up briefly on Apple Music before being taken down again.

Good news. The best circulating bootleg is excellent by bootleg standards, but it sounds to me like an acetate with something like NoNoise or CEDAR applied. (Some of the artifacts as a result of that processing become obvious when you put the previously released tracks side-by-side with official release masterings.)

It's one of Neil's masterpieces, IMHO, but it also has a few songs that were used on later albums that I think are great (in the case of Rust Never Sleeps, greater), so I'm reluctant to say he should've put it out back in the day.

Re: Neil and Love, the 500 Songs podcast says:

https://500songs.com/podcast/episode-161-alone-again-or-by-love/

Neil Young was brought in as the producer for the album, although he soon dropped out. Reports differ on quite what happened — according to Botnick, Young worked with Lee on the songs until shortly before the first session, and then said “Man, I can’t do it. I’m hearing too much in my own head for me to immerse myself in someone else’s music.”

According to Echols meanwhile “We were contemporaries and very good friends with the guys in Buffalo Springfield. If we were playing a club and Neil came in, he’d jump up on stage and play with us. Bruce said he had a friend who needed some money and would come in and maybe produce a few of the songs on Forever Changes. He didn’t tell us it was Neil. I guess Neil told Bruce not to tell us it was him. When he showed up, we all started laughing and said, ‘Come on, this won’t work. We’re not going to listen to Neil.’ We did maybe one song together and that was it. He got some money for that day because he desperately needed it.”

One more extended groove, from Promise Of The Neil's about-half-good Noise + Flowers---my fave: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXBWD0c2Xh8

definitely the highlight of that album — one of the few moments when the conga player from POTR makes sense. and that electric piano sounds great.

xxxpost Chrome Dreamsrelease being reported by Stereogum and several others, apparently Aug. 11.

Rolling Stone:

All 12 songs found on Chrome Dreams are likely familiar to Young fans, as the majority were later released on different albums. However, six of the 12 tracks are presented here in its original way: Opener “Pocahontas,” which later featured on Rust Never Sleeps, strips off that album’s overdubs, while tracks like “Sedan Delivery” and “Hold Back the Tears” feature different lyrics than the versions that would pop up on later Young albums.
Ahead of Chrome Dreams’ release, Young has shared that original take on “Sedan Delivery”:

Fairly sure that stripped take on "Pocahontas" they mention is the same one from Hitchhiker.

So is this album pretty much superfluous now, maybe a couple keepers? I haven't heard it.

https://www.stereogum.com/2228990/watch-neil-young-play-deep-cuts-at-west-coast-rarities-tour-kickoff/news/

xpost the "Too Far Gone" is way better than on Freedom (if the bootleg I had the mp3s for is correct)

Thanks. Worshipful yet appealingly detailed report:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevebaltin/2023/07/01/neil-young-reminds-us-of-our-humanity-in-dazzling-tour-opener-in-los-angeles/?sh=4fc42fd76a34

I especially like:

After "Ohio" he offered, "That's so strange? Four people. Look how many we do away with now. I wish I had something to say to change it."

Then he joked about AI and how his piano he got in 1968 had an AI soul. But there was a point. "I am so happy I was here before AI," he said.

Also from that show: setlist (17 songs) & two videos:
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/neil-young-2023-set-list/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xN1WYW29X4

Third night of four:

Watch Neil Young Perform 1st Solo ‘Vampire Blues’ In Concert Since 1974 At The Ford
See Neil deliver the On The Beach cut for the first time solo in public since it debuted in 1974.

hell yeah I saw the (only?) other "Vampire Blues" live w/POTR in Eugene circa 2015

Never done it before solo, supposedly, but sure with groups----I saw him do it, mainly with Stills and the backup section, during a CSNY concert in Memphis, Aug. '74 (he and Stills got into outrageous guitar wars/noizefests on several songs, all Young's, I think).

Have any of yall seen Journey Through The Past? How was it?

I saw it on the big screen a few years ago. The best bits (like the "Soldier" sequence) are evocative dream-like vignettes that could have been precursors to the earliest rock videos. The worst bits are static "experimental" sequences that had no reason to be made. Certainly if you're interested in his career it's worth seeing.

Thanks. I've seen good excerpts of Human Highway, mainly w Devo, I think---wonder how it compares overall w JTTP---

The Devo stuff is only material worth saving from Human Highway.

ANNOUNCING THE VINYL EDITION OF ODEON BUDOKAN
PRODUCED BY DAVID BRIGGS
RECORDED IN 1976 IN LONDON AND TOKYO
AVAILABLE ON SEPTEMBER 1ST VIA REPRISE RECORDS

Originally recorded in 1976 almost a world apart at two overseas venues: Hammersmith Odeon in London and Nippon Budokan Hall In Tokyo. The ten-track album includes an electrifying range of songs, from well-known classics to true surprises. Tracks on Side 1 were recorded in London March 31, 1976, and feature Neil Young’s solo set on guitar and piano from the first half of the concert. Side 2 tracks were recorded two weeks earlier on March 11, 1976, with Young and Crazy Horse at an early electric apex.
This is the first official vinyl release of the previously unissued ODEON BUDOKAN. It has only been available on Compact Disc as part of Neil Young’s ARCHIVES VOLUME II box set, released in 2020 in the highest-grade audio high fidelity. Young’s songs like "Cowgirl In the Sand," "Cortez the Killer," "Lotta Love," "Stringman" and others are heard at their absolute highest peak.
This album was produced by David Briggs shortly after the 1976 tour. It was put on hold because of other albums that were being made and released at the time.
Odeon Budokan Tracklist:

Side 1:
1. "The Old Laughing Lady"
2. "After The Gold Rush"
3. "Too Far Gone"
4. "Old Man"
5. "Stringman"

Side 2:
1. "Don’t Cry No Tears"
2. "Cowgirl In The Sand"
3. "Lotta Love"
4. "Drive Back"
5. "Cortez The Killer"
All Greedy Hand Store purchases come with free hi-res digital audio downloads from the Xstream Store © at NYA.

Freedom / Ragged Glory + 4 bonus tracks / Weld / Arc:

https://neilyoung.warnerrecords.com/en/official-release-series-5-vinyl-box-set/093624852605.html
https://neilyoung.warnerrecords.com/en/official-release-series-5-cd-box-set/093624852612.html

Neil Young’s OFFICIAL RELEASE SERIES VOLUME 5 is an essential collection of four classic albums that begins with the exciting renaissance that came with the release of FREEDOM in 1989, and continues on the unequaled exploration of collections RAGGED GLORY, WELD (1991) and ARC (1991). In many ways, it is a musical travelogue of how Young saw the future and opened up creative worlds for the use of sound and originality which had not been used before.
The OFFICIAL RELEASE SERIES VOLUME 5 is available as a vinyl box set of the original four albums on 9 vinyl LPs and as a 4-CD set. Like all the reissues in this series, the albums are remastered from the best source available — original analog tape in the case of Ragged Glory. For the four albums in the series, this is the first time they have been remastered for vinyl. The CD of Ragged Glory has also been remastered.

The vinyl and CD box sets are numbered, and the LPs are pressed on 180-gram vinyl. The vinyl box for the four albums is in a telescoping box, and the CDs are in a slipcase.
All Greedy Hand Store purchases come with free hi-res digital audio downloads from the Xstream Store © only at NYA.
At the top of the 90’s, Young had recently returned to his long-time home at Reprise Records. It definitely appeared to be a jubilant moment for the man who had recently celebrated the 21-year anniversary of a solo career that had never stopped progressing.

The first album in VOLUME 5 is aptly named FREEDOM, and includes the song “Rockin’ in the Free World.”

RAGGED GLORY (1990) is a non-stop celebration for the music Neil Young & Crazy Horse are still creating at full force and was recorded at Young’s Broken Arrow Ranch in Northern California. The 10-song original album is expanded for this re-issue with 4 rare tracks. “Interstate” and “Don’t Spook The Horse” were both B-sides to singles. “Box Car” and the 12 minute “Born To Run” are both previously unreleased versions. The 4 additional songs have resulted with the album expanded to 3 LPs and 2 CDs.

WELD (1991) is one of the most groundbreaking albums of Neil Young’s history. It’s a live album recorded with Crazy Horse after the release of RAGGED GLORY. It was from a wildly creative period of the band’s history, and as Neil Young has often done, gave notice that he was a rock & roll originator who could never be second-guessed.

ARC (1991) is the live companion collection to WELD, and at the time generated the kind of musical notoriety that has often marked Young’s creations. ARC is a 35-minute outburst of feedback, improvisation, guitar solos and vocal fragments. This marks the album’s first release on vinyl.

FREEDOM Tracklisting:

1. “Rockin’ In The Free World” (Live Acoustic)
2. “Crime In The City (Sixty to Zero Part 1)”
3. “Don’t Cry”
4. “Hangin’ On A Limb”
5. “Eldorado”
6. “The Ways of Love”
7. “Someday”
8. “On Broadway”
9. “Wrecking Ball”
10. “No More”
11. “Too Far Gone”
12. “Rockin’ In The Free World” (Electric)

RAGGED GLORY – Smell The Horse Tracklisting:

1. “Country Home”
2. “White Line”
3. “Fuckin’ Up”
4. “Over and Over”
5. “Love to Burn”
6. “Farmer John”
7. “Mansion on the Hill”
8. “Days That Used To Be”
9. “Love and Only Love”
10. “Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)”
11. “Interstate”
12. “Don’t Spook The Horse”
13. “Box Car”
14. “Born To Run”

WELD Tracklisting:

1. “Hey Hey, My My (Into The Black)”
2. “Crime in the City”
3. “Blowin’ in the Wind”
4. “Welfare Mothers”
5. “Love to Burn”
6. “Cinnamon Girl”
7. “Mansion on the Hill”
8. “Fuckin’ Up”
9. “Cortez the Killer”
10. “Powderfinger”
11. “Love and Only Love”
12. “Rockin’ In The Free World”
13. “Like A Hurricane”
14. “Farmer John”
15. “Tonight’s the Night”
16. “Roll Another Number (For The Road)”

ARC Tracklisting:

1. "Arc (A Compilation Composition)"

Neil Young's OFFICIAL RELEASE SERIES VOLUME 5 takes its proper place now in the career-exploration march of a true adventurer, both in the music he makes and the care and consideration in how it is presented to the public. Even with all the achievements and advancement in sound, it still feels like things are just getting started.

The four bonus tracks on Ragged Glory are great. I'd heard "Don't Spook The Horse" before, but the other three were new to me.

I wonder if they've done anything different with the mix of Weld? I remember there was discussion about that at the time — that people preferred the video mix over the CD mix.

it's the same Weld mix on this latest box — I've heard both and I think people are slightly overstating the superiority of the "Briggs" mix over the CD. It's a little different, I don't know if I would say it's better.

and yeah, the Ragged glory bonuses are fantastic.

The Devo stuff is only material worth saving from Human Highway.

Late response, but the "Goin' Back" sequence in this film is several levels above the rest (and I do like Devo). It's hallucinatory, magical.

so the ragged glory outtakes are on a second cd? are any of them 10+ minutes long?

According to All Music, one is almost 8 minutes and another is a little over 12 minutes (but, oddly, All Music shows a blank where the song name is, lol).

xps lol yes I knew this sounded familiar

Can Weld be improved upon with a remastering? As in, was it not mixed to death by Neil and is unsalvageable? I'm clueless when it comes to this stuff.

― Duke, Tuesday, June 13, 2023 12:40 PM (one month ago) bookmarkflaglink

Jimmy McDonough wrote about this in Shakey, but David Briggs made a better mix that was released on the now out-of-print LaserDisc edition. Neil himself admits the album mix (used for all audio formats) wasn't good and that Briggs was right, but Neil has never bothered to correct things. Now would be a good time though!

― birdistheword, Tuesday, June 13, 2023 1:46 PM (one month ago) bookmarkflaglink

ty for new DN

― out-of-print LaserDisc edition (sleeve), Tuesday, June 13, 2023 1:49 PM (one month ago) bookmarkflaglink

My copy hasn't even shipped yet, but nears as I can tell:

“Interstate” (6:22)

“Don’t Spook The Horse” (7:51)

“Box Car” (3:16)

“Born To Run” (12:15)

"Born To Run" is great — it's basically three and a half minutes of "song" and eight and a half minutes of RAWK, and it's fast, not the typical Crazy Horse caveman dirge. Honestly, it sounds more like a Neil Young & the Restless outtake.

I wrote about the Ragged Glory reissue, and more, in this week's BA newsletter.

nice write-up, excited for my ORS box to get here to dig in.

Very appealing take, unperson, and I like "Interstate" and "Boxcar" floating in the dust of monster truck tracks (which are my main interest).

I was hoping he'd release the original Times Square version of "Boxcar," but I have to admit the Crazy Horse recording is probably better.