Neil Young "Chrome Dreams" 1974-1978(rec), 1992(reissue)****

I jumped at the chance to get this one, as it's probably rock's most famous bootleg (at least since the official release of Bob Dylan's "Royal Albert Hall" tapes and The Beach Boys' "Smile"). It contains studio demos in various stages of completion, mostly featuring his long time associates Crazy Horse. They were intended for inclusion in an aborted album called "Chrome Dreams" for which Young already had a cover (not this one) and whose release was announced for 1976. In the end, the demos were shelved and Young released another album called "American Stars 'n Bars". Few of these songs were included in this album but, just like "Smile",  most of them resurfaced in different form in future LP's "Comes a Time", "Rust Never Sleeps", "Hawks and Doves" and "Freedom". Various bootleg versions of Chrome Dreams have been around since 1977, this particular one surfacing in Italy around 1992. It's not the original bootleg (if that's not a contradiction in terms) as it contains a different track order, adds a few live recordings and replaces "Homegrown" with a '92 live recording of "Homefires". This unreleased song has been part of Young's repertory since the mid-70's, but for some reason (sound quality?) they chose a version that's separated by the rest by at least 15 years. It's often said that, had "Chrome Dreams" been released at its intended time, it would have constituted one of Young's best. This may very well be the case, although many of the songs here are presented in acoustic demo form. Which does not subtract any of the magic from masterpieces like "Powderfinger" and "Pocahontas", eventually included in the Rust Never Sleeps album. There's also a hard rockin' version of "Sedan Delivery" featuring Crazy Horse, as well as a rough live recording of "Ride My Llama".  "Will To Love" is an emotive ballad and "Captain Kennedy" an old-timey folk/country tune. They both resemble the final versions in American Stars 'n Bars and Hawks and Doves, respectively. "River Of Pride" is a typical Neil Young and Crazy Horse tune, with its country heart and sprawling hard rock guitar. "Too Far Gone" is a nice tune featuring Crazy Horse's Frank "Poncho" Sampedro on a vintage mandolin. "Star Of Bethlehem" and "Hold Back the Tears" are country ballads, the former featuring nice harmonica and backing vocals by Emmylou Harris and the latter an unidentified female vocalist. They were eventually re-recorded for American Stars 'n Bars, along with the ultimate Neil Young and Crazy Horse powerhouse "Like A Hurricane", presented here in an extensive live version: 11-and-a-half minutes of electric guitar heaven. "Look Out For My Love" and "Piece Of Mind" are two mid-tempo songs also featuring the Crazy Horse. "Homefires", the odd track out, is a solo acoustic song recorded live in 1992 in front of a quietly respectful audience. "Stringman" is a beautiful piano ballad. Amazingly, it had to wait for an official release until 1993 when it was revived for Young's "Unplugged" album. There's a reason that bootlegged "rare and unreleased" albums are usually not as good as they're supposed to be: If they really were that good, the artists would want us to hear them. But Neil Young is a bit strange that way, so he kept a perfectly good (even great) album on the shelf. Knowing him, he's probably got plans for it at some point but he's taking his time until he feels he can present these songs in the best manner. When he does, it'll really be something!

***** for Captain Kennedy, Pocahontas, Like A Hurricane, Look Out For My Love

**** for Powderfinger, Will To Love, Sedan Delivery, River Of Pride, Too Far Gone, Star Of Bethlehem, Stringman

*** for Hold Back The Tears, Homefires, Ride My Llama, Peace Of Mind

Neil Young with Crazy Horse "Psychedelic Pill" 2012***

Tonight I decided to present another album which I've had the pleasure to listen to live, Neil Young's "Psychedelic Pill". Wonder whatever happened to random selection? Me, too. It'll be back, I guess... Seeing Neil Young live (and with Crazy Horse, no less!) had been a dream of mine for quite some time. So when he played Amsterdam's huge Ziggo Dome, I rushed to buy a ticket for the cheap seats. I'll have to admit that, although the aural part of the concert was very rewarding, his stage act verged on the ridiculous: huuuuge speaker-towers and some kind of pantomime with the road crew and band members dressed as mad scientists, for chrisshakes! This is my advise to you, if you ever go to a Neil Young concert, take one of those sleeping masks with you, put it on and immerse yourself in the music! You don't believe me? Listen to his classic "Live Rust" album, isn't it one of the best live albums ever? Now watch an excerpt from the live dvd, have you ever seen anything sillier? Spinal Tap, you say? OK, maybe yes, but still a close match... Back to the album: I don't know what to make of the title. Does it suggest the album was made under the influence of hallucinogenics? Or that music is itself a hallucinogenic? I'm inclined to think the second. Well, if music is a trip then this album is a transatlantic one: New York-London with return. Am I exaggerating? Take the first song "Drifting Back" as an example. Its duration is over 27 minutes. Just like during a flight, you have time enough to take a nap and when you wake up you feel like you're passing through the same clouds as before. If you loved those long songs like "Cortez the Killer" and "Like A Hurricane", this is more (way, way more) of the same. Sonically, it's the best Neil Young and Crazy Horse album for 20 years and many songs could become future classics. Yes, they do sound like you've heard them before, but what do you expect from a dude that's been around for 50 years? I, for one, am content when he can echo his old self, which is what he does here - with the novelty of the absolutely epic duration of some songs. "Psychedelic Pill" is a short song that sounds like an effect-laden "Cinnamon Girl", while "Ramada Inn" is a 16-minute epic of dueling guitars. "Born in Ontario" and "Twisted Road" are rather short and nostalgic country. "She's Always Dancing" is another long song with sprawling guitars and "For the Love of Man" a ballad that provides a change of pace before the album's highlight, 16-minute "Walk Like a Giant", a song with a great melody, good backing vocals, whistling, lots and lots of guitars and romantic lyrics about the end of hippy dream: "I used to walk like a giant on the land/Now I feel like a leaf floating in a stream...Me and some of my friends/We were going to save the world/We were trying to make it better/We were ready to save the world/But then the weather changed/And the white got stained/And it fell apart/And it breaks my heart/To think about how close we came/I wanna walk/Like a giant on the land...". Great song, but it overstays its welcome by adding 4 minutes of pure noise. And, as further anti-climax the second cd (yes, it's a double album) closes with a useless "alternate mix" of "Psychedelic Pill". An extra torment is the lyrics booklet. Quite nice of them to include one, but did it have to be so small? (it's about the size of an old cassette tape). I'm near-, not far-sighted, but I still have to really strain my eyes to make out the words. I'd like to see Neil try to read it! Had this album been a single cd of about 50 minutes, it would definitively go to the top of my list. But whoever said that "you can't have too much of a good thing" obviously hasn't taken up that offer for unlimited spare ribs for €15,99. If you have, then you know what I'm talking about: sometimes less is more. So, despite all my praises, I'll give the guys just *** stars...

**** for Ramada Inn, She's Always Dancing, Walk Like a Giant

*** for Driftin' Back, Psychedelic Pill, Born in Ontario, Twisted Road, For the Love of Man

** for Psychedelic Pill" (Alternate Mix)

Neil Young & Crazy Horse in Amsterdam: The view from the cheap seats

Crazy Horse "Crazy Moon" 1978****

Crazy Horse are best known as Neil Young's backing band - for his harder rocking albums, a least. But they do have a history of their own. They started off as The Rockets in 1968 and in between albums and tours with Neil Young they released the highly acclaimed eponymous "Crazy Horse" album in 1971 containing, among others, the often covered (Rod Stewart, Everything But The Girl) hit "I don't want to talk about it". Then tragedy stroke in the form of band leader Danny Whitten's accidental overdose. This album, their 4th, is also the one where everything falls into place again. New recruit Frank "Poncho" Sampedro proved a worthy successor to Whitten and together with original members Billy Talbot, (bass) and Ralph Molina (drums) formed the definitive -and longest running- incarnation of the band. This album was recorded between Neil Young's "Zuma" and "Rust Never Sleeps" with more or less the same personnel (Neil Young also guests here on guitar and vocals). Not surprisingly, it's like a page from the same book and a great record that probably even beats the first Crazy Horse album, as it is more consistently good. The band is recognizably Crazy Horse as known from Neil Young albums, with scorching guitars and pleasant vocals. The 3 core members share songwriting and vocal duties, which allows for more variation, with forays into R&B and country and some tasty instrumentation including brass and fiddle. A couple of songs ("Too Late Now" and "Lost and Lonely Feelin'") even sound uncannily like The Band. Best tracks are the rockers "She's hot", "Downhill" and "Thunder and lighting" and ballads "Love don't come easy" and "End of the Line". I bought this album on a whim, never having heard of it and not knowing what to expect, and I felt vindicated at first listen. My only objection is that the songs are much too short. Neil Young and Crazy Horse have great chemistry and their long guitar jams are always exciting but here the songs fade out just when the band seems to be warming up...

**** for She's Hot, Love Don't Come Easy, Downhill, Thunder and Lightning

*** for Going Down Again, Lost And Lonely Feelin', End Of The Line, New Orleans, Too Late Now

** for Dancin' Lady, That Day