Neil Young
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums:
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Neil Young
- Artist: Neil Young
- Rating:
- Release Date: November 12, 1968
- Total Time: 35:32
- Type: Lyrics are included with the album
- Genre: Rock
Review
On his songs for Buffalo Springfield, Neil Young had demonstrated an eclecticism that ranged from the rock of "Mr. Soul" to the complicated, multi-part arrangement of "Broken Arrow." On his debut solo album, he continued to work with composer/arranger Jack Nitzsche, with whom he had made "Expecting to Fly" on the Buffalo Springfield Again album, and together the two recorded a restrained effort on which the folk-rock instrumentation, most of which was by Young, overdubbing himself, was augmented by discreet string parts. The country & western elements that had tinged the Springfield's sound were also present, notably on the leadoff track, "The Emperor of Wyoming," an instrumental that recalled the Springfield song "A Child's Claim to Fame." Still unsure of his voice, Young sang in a becalmed high tenor that could be haunting as often as it was listless and whining. He was at his least appealing on the nine-and-a-half-minute closing track, "The Last Trip to Tulsa," on which he accompanied himself with acoustic guitar, singing an impressionistic set of lyrics seemingly derived from Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited. But double-tracking and the addition of a female backup chorus improved the singing elsewhere, and on "The Loner," the album's most memorable track, Young displayed some of the noisy electric guitar work that would characterize his recordings with Crazy Horse and reminded listeners of his ability to turn a phrase. Still, Neil Young made for an uneven, low-key introduction to Young's solo career, and when released it was a commercial flop, his only album not to make the charts. (Several months after the album's release, Young remixed it to bring out his vocals more and added some overdubs. This second version replaced the first in the U.S. from then on, though the original mix remained available overseas.) ~ William Ruhlmann, Rovi| Neil Simon's London Suite [DVD/CD] (2005 Album by Various Artists) | |
| Neil Young (2001 Album by Karaoke) |
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Neil Young (album)
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| Neil Young | ||||
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| Studio album by Neil Young | ||||
| Released | November 12, 1968 | |||
| Recorded | August – October 1968 at Wally Heider Recording, Sunset Sound Recording and TTG Recording, Hollywood, CA | |||
| Genre | Folk rock | |||
| Length | 35:32 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Neil Young, David Briggs (Tracks 5, 6 and 9 produced by Jack Nitzsche, Ry Cooder and Neil Young) |
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| Neil Young chronology | ||||
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Neil Young is the self-titled debut studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, which was his debut release as a solo artist following his departure from the band Buffalo Springfield. Released first in November 1968, it was then partially remixed and re-released in January 1969.
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Contents
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Release
Many sources cite that Neil Young was released in January 1969; however, the album was originally released on November 12, 1968 (Young's 23rd birthday). The first release of the album used the Haeco-CSG encoding system. This technology was intended to make stereo records compatible with mono record players, but had the unfortunate side effect of degrading the sound in both stereo and mono.
Young was unhappy with the sound quality of the first release, so the album was partially remixed in January 1969 and then re-released without Haeco-CSG processing. The "Neil Young" header was added to the album cover; previously the cover art had consisted of only the portrait. Copies of the original 1968 version are now rare and highly sought-after, because legions of Neil Young fans believe that the 1969 mix destroyed much of the beauty of the songs, especially "Here We Are in the Years."
Neil Young was remastered and released on HDCD-encoded CD and digital download on July 14, 2009 as part of the Neil Young Archives Original Release Series. It was released on audiophile vinyl in December 2009, both individually and as part of a box-set of Neil's first 4 LPs available via his official website (this box set was limited to 1000 copies – a CD version of 3000 copies also exists). A high resolution digital Blu-ray disc is planned, although no release date has been set.
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.8/10.0)[2] |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable)[3] |
Track listing
All songs written by Neil Young, except where noted. Arrangements on "The Old Laughing Lady", "String Quartet from Whiskey Boot Hill" and "I've Loved Her So Long" by Young, Nitzsche and Ry Cooder.
Side one
- "The Emperor of Wyoming" – 2:14
- "The Loner" – 3:55
- "If I Could Have Her Tonight" – 2:15
- "I've Been Waiting for You" – 2:30
- "The Old Laughing Lady" – 5:58 (5:05 on original mix)
Side two
- "String Quartet from Whiskey Boot Hill" – 1:04 (Jack Nitzsche)
- "Here We Are in the Years" – 3:27
- "What Did You Do to My Life?" – 2:28
- "I've Loved Her So Long" – 2:40 (2:00 on original mix)
- "The Last Trip to Tulsa" – 9:25
Personnel
- Neil Young – guitars, piano, synthesizer, harpsichord, pipe organ, vocals
- Ry Cooder – guitar
- Jack Nitzsche – electric piano
- Jim Messina – bass
- Carol Kaye – bass
- George Grantham – drums
- Earl Palmer – drums
- Merry Clayton, Brenda Holloway, Patrice Holloway, Gloria Richetta Jones, Sherlie Matthews, Gracia Nitzsche – backing vocals
Production
- Dale Batchelor – engineer
- David Briggs – producer
- Danny Kelly – photography
- Donn Landee – engineer
- Jack Nitzsche – producer
- Rik Pekkonen – arranger, engineer
- Mark Richardson – engineer
- Henry Saskowski – engineer
- Ed Thrasher – album art direction
- Roland Deihl – cover painting
- Neil Young – arranger, producer
References
External links
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