Back catalogue: Folk/Americana

Review: Neil Young fans rejoice, for his fabled 'lost' album of the late 70s is finally seeing the official release that has been denied for so long. Chrome Dreams was originally compiled as an acetate to be considered for release in 1977, but it never made it to press and only existed as a widespread bootleg. A fair wedge of the songs made their way onto other Neil Young and Crazy Horse releases in other versions, but there's something special about hearing the likes of 'Hold Back The Tears' in this context, recorded as a solo acoustic affair with a rawness which lets Young's craft shine through in all its glory.

Review: Storytelling country rock titan Neil Young might have lived out his heyday penning songs that persist in cultural memory almost as stickily and earwormingly as pure folk tranmissions like "Happy Birthday", but that doesn't mean he's rested on his laurels; not one bit, in fact. True to this, Before And After comes as Young's whopping 45th studio album, sure to set new and old fans alight with glee at word of its special status as a "trip into (Young's) musical history", in the words of co-producer Lou Adler. Of course, this communicates nothing else except the fact that Young has braved both his nearly unending back-catalogue and his unheard vaults, lending choice selections from both each a fresh re-recording. The likes of 'I'm The Ocean', 'Homefires' and 'Burned' are each set aright, to the extent that Young insists that the listener experience the release in one big go, having been conceived as a single 48-minute piece, despite its divvying-up into track-length revisitations.

Review: Neil Young returns with his latest album Before And After. Consisting of 13 tracks, the album is made up of solo and acoustic re-recordings of his most well-known songs, including 'I'm The Ocean', 'Burned', 'Homefires' and 'My Heart', establishing a nice, nostalgic throughline between the early 2020s and the late 1960s. A fresh retake, but with a nonetheless rugged, rustic feel, sure to capture the minds and hearts of old and new fans alike.

Review: On Before And After, Young chooses favourites from his playbook like a trip into his music history and performs them mostly alone on a solo acoustic journey. Each of the songs blend into each other and morph with mesmerizing clarity into a continuous flow of music creating a 48-minute pure and intimate listening experience. The 13-track album spans Neil's career, from Neil's early Buffalo Springfield contribution, "Burned" (1966) to the recent "Don't Forget Love"(2021) and includes the previously unreleased song "If You Got Love".

As Neil put it on his NYA site:
Songs from my life, recently recorded, create a music montage with no beginnings or endings. The feeling is captured, not in pieces, but as a whole piece. Only for listening.

Review: With Neil Young's late 60s and early to mid-70s music being so well beloved, fans are ecstatic about this release. Dume is a 16-song album (2 LPs) by Neil Young with Crazy Horse from 1975, recorded during the Zuma recording sessions. It includes tracks and outtakes from Zuma. Thus, think of it like the most complete package or extended version on Zuma. This period (just three years after Harvest) of Neil's music is some of his most productive and beloved writing in his 50+ year career. These extra tracks add not only just more music to enjoy but a unique look into the sessions as they were. The two albums are housed a beautifully packaged gatefold as well.