The Latest From the Horse’s Mouth Brings More Classic Neil Young

It’s hard to keep up with Neil Young. The Canadian-American singer-songwriter truly is on a mission to publish his music, both old and new, and he’s not slowing down. Since December 2021, Young who recently turned 77, has put out three live and three studio albums. The latter includes his new studio project with Crazy Horse, World Record, released on November 18.

I think there are two ways to look at World Record. One is to conclude the album presents nothing new we haven’t heard from Neil Young before, which is a fair statement. The other way to look at it is he is giving us more of classic Neil, the kind of music his fans love. If you’ve been a frequent visitor of my blog or know my music taste otherwise, you will not be much surprised I wholeheartedly embrace the second view.

World Record is the 42nd studio album by Young and his 15th with Crazy Horse, according to Wikipedia. They had to count them all! It comes less than a year after its predecessor Barn, which appeared in December 2021 and which I reviewed here. Like Barn, World Record features Young’s longtime backing band Crazy Horse, including Nils Lofgren (guitar, upright piano, dobro, slide guitar, lap steel, pedal steel, accordion, sweep percussion, vocals), Billy Talbot (bass, vocals) and Ralph Molina (drums, vocals). In addition to vocals and guitar, Young provides upright piano, vibes, harp, harmonica, Marxophone, pump organ, Wurlitzer and kick tub.

From left: Rick Rubin, Neil Young and New Zealand radio DJ, record producer and TV presenter Zane Lowe during an interview conducted for Apple Music at Rubin’s Shangri-La studio in Malibu, Calif.

Unlike its predecessor, the new album was co-produced by Rick Rubin. While he has worked with countless other artists over the past 40 years, including the likes of Johnny Cash, AC/DC, Sheryl Crow, Santana and ZZ Top, if I see this correctly, World Record marks his debut with Neil Young. Well, there’s always a first time! The album has a spontaneous and laid-back feel to it. According to Apple Music, Most of the songs started as melodies Young whistled to himself while walking in the woods, and were written from start to finish in just two days. I’d say it’s time to check out some music!

Let’s kick things off with the opener Love Earth. Unless noted otherwise, all tracks were written by Young. “The reason I wrote Love Earth is because I see it as a simple message,” he explained in a post on his website Neil Young Archives. “If you do good things to Earth and try to keep the planet clean and taken care of, she will take care of you and your grandchildren in return.” Young has been singing about environmental concerns since 1970 and the days of After the Gold Rush.

When I first heard the beginning of I Walk With You (Earth Ringtone), the heavily distorted guitar sounded immediately reminded me of Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black). Young doesn’t fool around when it comes to distortion! The lyrics leave no doubt about the message:…I look out at the change and I wonder how the earth could be going to somewhere I’ve never seen/Walk with me now to the ends of the earth and you’ll see what the damage can be/Fight with me now to the end of the wars and believe what they’ve done for you, if you now are free…

The World (Is In Trouble Now) dials back the distortion in favor of Young’s pump organ and harmonica. In this tune, Young goes beyond describing troubling signs of change to calling for activism:…On this street we walk together now/To send this message here/Let me wait beyond the things I know/And try to be a light…

Walkin’ On the Road (To the Future) is another acoustically focused song. As he oftentimes does, in this tune, Young offers some hope amid the doom and gloom of the planet’s decline:..Walkin’ on the road to the future is scary/We want to make the best of the past and not tarry/These are the things we’ve done and they have a cost/But we will take it on and try to make the best of us…

A standout tune on the album is the 15-minute-plus Chevrolet, seemingly a bit of a contradiction lyrically speaking on an album that is focused on environmental decay. Since I already covered the song in my latest Best of What’s New installment, I’m skipping it here. Instead, the final track I’d like to call out is The Wonder Won’t Wait.

World Record, which appears on Reprise Records, was recorded live and mixed to analog tape at Rick Rubin’s Shangri-La studio in Malibu, Calif. BTW, in case you’re wondering about the cover, it’s a shot of Neil Young’s father, Scott Alexander Young, who was a Canadian journalist, sportswriter and novelist.

The final word shall belong to Neil: “We’ve got a lot of work to do,” he told Apple Music. “It’s probably the only time in the world that you could ever see where all the people of all the countries all around the world could have the same idea: ‘Wait a minute, we got to do something because this is no good.’ We’re all feeling it.”

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; YouYube

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The Horse Has Left the Barn

Neil Young’s new album with Crazy Horse is out today (December 10). While Barn doesn’t break new ground, its classic Neil Young feel makes for a great listening experience fans of the Canadian-turned-American singer-songwriter will love. His 41st studio release appears 52 years after 1969’s Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere and follows Colorado from October 2019, the first and most recent albums, respectively, which Young recorded with his longtime backing band.

The title of the new album couldn’t be more fitting: It was recorded in June this year in a converted barn high in the Rocky Mountains, using Le Mobile Recording Studio. “Made it just like in the old drawings and photographs,” Young told Apple Music about the barn. “It used to be a stage stop, so you’d see these pictures with the carriages and the horses and the ladies with their big dresses with the metal ring and everything.”

From left: Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina, Nils Lofgren and Neil Young

Young also explained the album’s unusual recording process to Apple. The sessions were scheduled at night, so he and his Crazy Horse members Nils Lofgren (piano, backing vocals), Billy Talbot (bass, backing vocals) and Ralph Molina (drums) could work in the moonlight. Getting to the barn involved walking for a couple of miles “across the meadows, through the valley.” Further describing the scene Young added, “The Rockies are everywhere. And it’s just beautiful. I like that.” 

Three of the 10 tracks, Song of the Seasons, Heading West and Welcome Back, had been released upfront. I previously covered these tunes here, here and here. As such, I’m skipping them in this post. Let’s take a look at some of the other songs. All tunes were written by Young.

Change Ain’t Never Gonna has a bluesy vibe. Young, a strong supporter of biofuels, criticizes the opponents of alternative fuels: Ten men workin’ had to get a new job/Try to save the planet from a fuel-burnin’ mob/Who turned on everyone for bein’ so controllin’/Takin’ away all the freedom they’ve been knowin’…

On crunchy rocker Canerican, Young who became an American citizen in 2020 reflects on his new status: …I am American, American is what I am/I was born in Canada, came south to join a band/got caught up in the big time, traveling through the land/Up on the stage I see the changes coming to this country/I am Canerican/ Canerican is what I am…

They Might Be Lost is one of the acoustic tunes on the album. It’s not clear to me what the song is about. This review in Riff Magazine notes it may or may not be about a marijuana grower waiting for couriers to come pick up the latest shipment. While I guess it’s possible, I’m not sure how they came up with this explanation.

On Human Race, the speed picks up and the sound gets crunchy again. There’s also less ambiguity about the lyrics…Who’s gonna save the human race/Where are all the children gonna run and hide (children of the fires and floods/From the fires and floods today’s people have left behind…

The last track I’d like to highlight is Tumblin’ Thru the Years. The piano-driven ballad appears to be a thank you to Young’s wife Daryl Hannah for sticking with him. They started a relationship in 2014 and got married three years ago. Well, I was walking down the road/one step at a time heading home/I was thinkin’ about the love we share, you and me/It’s a complicated thing, this life/If I wasn’t here with you/Tumblin’ thru the years without our love…

Barn was co-produced by Young and Niko Bolas, who also worked in this capacity on Young’s previous albums Living with War (2006), Freedom (1989) and This Note’s for You (1988). On Barn, nothing seems to be overthought, a common characteristic of other Crazy Horse albums. In fact, the recordings sound pretty spontaneous, occasionally somewhat imperfect and relaxed. Perhaps those moonlight recording sessions and walks to the barn contributed to this feel!

Barn’s release is accompanied by a documentary about the making of the album, BARN/A Band – A Brotherhood – A Barn, directed by Hannah. The film was screened on December 9 for one night only at select theaters in Chicago; Santa Monica, Calif. and New York City. Another screening is scheduled in Toronto for tomorrow evening. The documentary will also stream on Young’s website NeilYoungArchives.com and streaming services in January.

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; Riff Magazine; YouTube

Clips & Pix: Neil Young & Crazy Horse/Welcome Back

Neil Young has shared a video of Welcome Back, the third upfront track from his upcoming new album. Recorded with his longtime backing band Crazy Horse, Barn is scheduled for this Friday, December 10. The eight-and-a-half-minute track is a slow-burning, crunchy jam rocker. Its feel reminds me a bit of Cortez the Killer, the epic tune from Young’s 1975 Zuma album, which he also made with Crazy Horse. This sounds like classic Neil – check it out!

A note published on Young’s website NeilYoungArchives.com on December 3 reads as follows: Welcome Back! The Horse is in the Barn playing a song like only the Horse can. Enjoy! We had a great time making this record for you and of course for us!

Apart from Young (guitar, vocals), the clip features Crazy Horse members Nils Lofgren (guitar), Billy Talbot (bass) and Ralph Molina (drums). Like the previously released Heading West, Welcome Back was recorded on June 21 this year at Le Mobile Remote Recording Studio in the Rocky Mountains. According to Wikipedia, Barn is Young’s 41st studio album and his 14th with Crazy Horse.

In addition to the album, there will be a companion documentary titled BARN/A Band – A Brotherhood – A Barn, directed by Young’s wife Daryl Hannah. The film will be screened at select theaters for one night only. Current locations listed on NeilYoungArchives.com include venues in Chicago; Santa Monica, Calif.; New York City and Toronto. Here’s a trailer.

Sources: Wikipedia; NeilYoungArchives.com; YouTube

Clips & Pix: Neil Young & Crazy Horse/Heading West

On October 28, Neil Young announced Heading West on his Neil Young Archives website, the second upfront tune from his upcoming new album with Crazy Horse, Barn. The below official video appeared on November 4.

The crunchy electric rocker follows the acoustic folk tune Song of the Seasons from October 15, which I previously featured here. Both of these tracks sound like classic Neil, and I’m looking forward to the album that’s scheduled to drop on December 10.

My mom and I travelled across the country together, heading west, Young wrote on his website. She was on her way back home to start over. I was on my way there with her. Here’s a song about me and my mom and those ‘growing up’ times. It’s so great to remember her this way!

Heading West features Young (guitar, lead vocals) and his Crazy Horse band mates Nils Lofgren (piano, backing vocals), Billy Talbot (bass, backing vocals) and Ralph Molina (drums). The tune was recorded in the Rocky Mountains on June 21 this year at Le Mobile Remote Recording Studio. Housed in a remote recording truck, Le Mobile is a rolling recording studio that over its nearly 50-year history has been used by countless music artists from AC/DC to ZZ Top.

I think this comment by Young perfectly sums the ragged melodic tune: What a great ride with the Horse on this one! Larry Cragg [Young’s longtime guitar tech – CMM] had my guitar sounding so alive.

Neil Young with his mother Edna Blow Ragland “Rassy” Young (1918–1990) – undated photo from Neil Young Archives

In a separate statement on his website, Young also had this to say about the forthcoming album: All of BARN is real. It came from the heart. We may have cried after some takes…in happiness…in elation…A band of brothers, we have all known one another since our beginnings. We made ‘Only love can break your Heart’ and ‘Southern Man’ on the same album. We made ‘Round and Round’ and ‘Down by the River’ on the same album. We made ‘Don’t forget about Love’ and ‘Human Race’ on the same album. Welcome back. It’s not the same. Barn may be our best album ever.

That conclusion certainly doesn’t suggest a lack of confidence. One of the things I find intriguing about Neil Young is his spontaneity. He doesn’t seem to overthink his recording projects. Overall, I feel this approach has served him well, though it’s also fair to say the outcomes have varied.

Young is also known for having made impulsive decisions and having scrapped entire albums at the last minute. It doesn’t look like that’s going to be the case for Barn. If anything, for the past few years, Young seems to have been on a mission to release more of his music, as evidenced by his Archives Performance Series, not withhold it. Keeping fingers crossed!

Sources: Wikipedia; NeilYoungArchives.com; Le Mobile website; YouTube

Best of What’s New

Hard to believe it’s Saturday again, and another week just flew by since my last revue of newly released music. Most of the times, Best of What’s New features artists I’m not familiar with or only have heard of in passing. This week is different. Two of my picks include artists who have been around for more than five decades, and I’ve listened to each for some 40 years. I had not been aware of the other two, though they’re not new artists. All tunes except for the last one are on releases that came out yesterday (October 15).

Santana/Joy (feat. Chris Stapleton)

I’d like to start with Carlos Santana who I trust needs no introduction. He first entered my radar screen when I was 8 or 10 years old. That’s when I listened to his band’s first compilation Santana’s Greatest Hits from 1974, which my older sister had on vinyl. I loved the combination of Latin rhythms and rock right away, which was front and center on that record, since it covers Santana’s first three studio albums. Of course, Santana’s music has since evolved. Which brings me to the band’s new and 26th studio album Blessings and Miracles. After the Latin rock-focused Africa Speaks and Santana IV, released in 2019 and 2016, respectively, Blessings and Miracles is reminiscent of previous records like Supernatural and All That I Am, marking return to a more pop-oriented sound and a collaborative approach. Here’s Joy, a tune co-written by Carlos Santana and Chris Stapleton, one of the many guests on the new album, who also include Rob Thomas (remember Smooth?), Steve Winwood and Chick Corea, among others. I didn’t expect Stapleton to sing a reggae-like tune, but it works and has a cool groove!

Wilderado/The Worst of It

Wilderado are an indie rock band that originally hails from Tulsa, Okla. and is currently based in Los Angeles. According to their Apple Music profile, their expansive indie rock fuses soaring vocals and rumbling guitars with an open-road, Americana-inspired feel…Co-songwriters Max Rainer (vocals, guitar) and Tyler Wimpee (vocals, guitar) began working together in college, initially using the name Bird Dog. By 2016, the band also included bassist Colton Dearing and drummer Justin Kila and the quartet, now called Wilderado, released their debut EP, Misty Shrub. The Worst of It, written by all four members of the band, together with co-producers Chad Copelin and James McAlister, is a track from Wilderado’s new eponymous album, their first full-length release. I like this!

Erin Enderlin/Somebody’s Shot of Whiskey

Erin Enderlin is a Nashville-based county singer-songwriter who originally is from Conway, Ark. She has written songs for a number of other country artists, such as Alan Jackson, Lee Ann Womack, Randy Travis and Reba McEntire. Some became hits on the Billboard Country Chart, such as Jackson’s Monday Morning Church from 2004 and Womack’s Last Call from 2008, which reached no. 5 and no. 14, respectively. In August 2013, Enderlin released her debut album I Let Her Talk. Two additional records have since appeared, as well as Enderlin’s new EP Ballroom Mirrors. Here’s the opener Somebody’s Shot of Whiskey. The tune was co-written by Enderlin and Ben Chapman. Looks like it was first released back in July. I suppose three months still count as newish. Plus, the EP is definitely new.

Neil Young & Crazy Horse/Song of the Seasons

I’d like to finish this Best of What’s New post with the latest from Neil Young and Crazy Horse. Song of the Seasons is the first track from their forthcoming album Barn scheduled to drop on December 10. This is Young’s 40th studio album and his 14th with Crazy Horse, and follows Colorado from October 2019, which he also recorded with the band. According to a short statement on Young’s website, Song of the Seasons was written about a year ago (by him) and is the oldest tune on the record. Released on October 14, the song features Young (guitar, harmonica, vocals), together with band members Nils Lofgren (accordion, backing vocals), Billy Talbot (bass, backing vocals) and Ralph Molina (drums). This acoustic folk tune sounds like classic Neil Young – love it!

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; Neil Young website; YouTube

Neil Young Releases New Album With Crazy Horse

I almost would have missed the new album by Neil Young & Crazy Horse, even though I previously wrote about Milky Way, the lead single that came out in late August. Colorado was released on October 25 while I was in Germany for a short trip. Young’s first new album with Crazy Horse since Psychedelic Pill from October 2012 in many ways sounds like a typical Neil album with the band: rugged and spontaneous. While it appeals to me and I suspect others digging Neil Young, I’m not sure it will gain him new fans. There is no obvious hit. But with Young being strong-willed and fiercely independent, I also suspect he doesn’t care.

One significant difference compared to previous Crazy Horse albums is the absence of Frank “Poncho” Sampedro. The band’s guitarist since 1975, who gave Crazy Horse a rawer, more edgy sound and became a frequent collaborator of Young, confirmed his retirement to Uncut earlier this year, as reported by Rolling Stone. Sampedro has been replaced by Nils Lofgren. Lofgren isn’t exactly a stranger. He played together with Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina, Crazy Horse’ bassist and drummer, respectively, on Young’s 1975 studio album Tonight’s The Night. He was also part of Crazy Horse’s eponymous debut album from February 1971, which the band recorded without Young.

From left: Billy Talbot, Neil Young, Nils Lofgren & Ralph Molina

Lofgren doesn’t appear to take things for granted. “It’s been a beautiful opportunity to play with dear friends that are still alive and well,” he told Rolling Stone. “Look, I hope there’s more, but I’ll take it a gig at a time right now.” Of course, Lofgren is also a member of the E Street Band, and Bruce Springsteen has confirmed plans for a new album with the band and a 2020 tour, as reported by NME. Let’s get to some music from Colorado, which by the way was recorded over an 11-day span this April at a studio in the Rocky Mountains at close to 9,000 feet – I suspect another difference to previous Crazy Horse albums!

Here’s the opener Think Of Me, which to me sounds more like a Neil Young solo tune. Like all tracks on the record, the song was written by him. The tune also sets up the album’s overall theme: Climate change and man-made environmental degradation. In addition to Young on guitar, harmonica and lead vocals, Talbot on bass and Molina on drums, the track features Lofgren on piano. Perhaps you thought Lofgren “only” is a guitarist. Nope, he’s a multi-instrumentalist who apart from guitar and piano/keyboards also plays accordion, pedal steel guitar and banjo. Not to imply anything negative here, but he certainly is no Sampedro!

So where’s some of that rugged sound I mentioned above? Ask and you shall receive. Here’s Olden Days. During an interview with Rolling Stone, Lofgren noted the initial plan had been for him to play acoustic guitar and accordion on the tune, but right before the band was supposed to record the track, Young suggested a heavier electric sound. “Right away, the song took on a more muscular, Crazy Horse vibe and it wasn’t forced,” Lofgren said. “That set the tempo for the rest of what we did.”

Green Is Blue is another gentle sounding tune, though Young’s message is everything but gentle: …We heard the warning calls, ignored them/We saw the weather change, we saw the fires and floods/We saw the people rise, divided/We fought each other while we lost our coveted prize…The song also features Lofgren on yet another instrument: vibraphone.

On Shut It Down, the band resumes a more muscular electric sound and Young is back with more dire warnings about environmental deterioration driven by human ignorance: …Have to shut the whole system down/All around the planet/There’s a blindness that just can’t see/Have to shut the whole system down/They’re all wearing climate change/As cool as they can be…

The last tune I’d like to call out, I Do, is on the quieter side again. And there are more lyrics about environmental change. But two aspects regarding the instrumentation are new and intriguing: Lofgren on pump organ and Young on glass harmonica.

Asked by NPR about his philosophy that recording music isn’t about reaching perfection, Young pointed out, “We’re thinking about making it sound real, like you can feel that this means something to the people playing it. We’re not trying to impress anybody.” He also distinguished between rawness and imperfection and what he called a sound quality that’s as pure as possible. “They’re two totally different things. The raw thing that we create is the soul of music and the stories and the feelings of being human. The technical thing that happens is trying to capture that. If you try to capture that and you use tools that are less precise, then you get less of it. You know the feeling that you have when you hear something that’s really great and it touches your soul? The chances of it really touching your soul are much better if you hear all of it.”

Young has been pretty busy in recent years. Colorado is his fourth album since Peace Trail from December 2017. Apart from archiving all of his recordings on his website neilyoungarchives.com, he recently released Mountaintop, a film about the making of Colorado. It played in select theatres across the country on October 22. Here’s the trailer. Young is also working on 13 other films – gee! Moreover, on September 10, he published To Feel The Music, a book about his quest to bring high quality audio back to music lovers via his Pono music player.

Had it not been for the unexpected death of Elliot Roberts, who had been Young’s manager since 1967(!) and passed away on June 21 this year, Young probably would have announced a tour to support the new album. But as Lofgren told Rolling Stone, Young needs to adjust to a world without Elliot, so he has no present plans to hit the road with Crazy Horse. Colorado, which was produced by John Hanlon and Young, is dedicated to Roberts.

Sources: Wikipedia; Genius; Rolling Stone; YouTube

Clips & Pix: Neil Young with Crazy Horse/Milky Way

Today, Neil Young released Milky Way, the lead single from his upcoming album Colorado, the first with his long-time backing band Crazy Horse in seven years. The shaky voice, the ragged guitar sound and the overall style very much sound like classic Neil to me!

Based on Apple Music/iTunes, the album is slated for October 25 via Reprise Records and includes 10 tracks. In late April, a post on the Neil Young Archives website noted, “We believe we have a great Crazy Horse album, one to stand alongside ‘Everybody Know’s this is nowhere’, ‘Rust Never Sleeps’, Sleeps With Angels’, ‘Psychedelic Pill’ and all the others” (quote includes typos! 🙂 )

The current line-up of Crazy Horse features Neil Young (guitars, vocals, piano, vibes, harmonica), Nils Lofgren (guitars, vocals, pump organ), Ralph Molina (drums, vocals) and Billy Talbot (bass, vocals). Talbot and Molina are original members of the band. Lofgren replaced Frank “Poncho” Sampedro who joined Crazy Horse in 1975 and retired last year.

Sources: Neil Young Archives, Apple Music, Pitchfork, YouTube