On the Beach is the fifth studio album by Neil Young, released in 1974. It was unavailable on compact disc until it was released as a HDCD-encoded remastered version on August 19 2003 as part of the Neil Young Archives Digital Masterpiece Series.
Album information
Recorded after (but released before) Tonight's the Night, On the Beach shares some of that album’s bleakness and crude production—which came as a shock to fans and critics alike, as this was the long-awaited studio follow-up to the commercially and critically successful Harvest—but also included hints pointing towards a more subtle outlook, particularly opener "Walk On".
While the original Rolling Stone review described it as "One of the most despairing albums of the decade", later critics such as Allmusic’s William Ruhlmann used the benefit of hindsight to conclude that Young "[w]as saying goodbye to despair, not being overwhelmed by it". The despair of Tonight's the Night, communicated through intentional underproduction and lyrical pessimism, gives way to a more polished album that is still pessimistic but not so much so.
Much like Tonight's the Night, On the Beach was not a commercial success at the time of its release but over time attained a high regard from fans and critics alike. The album was recorded in a haphazard manner, with Young utilizing a variety of session musicians, and often changing their instruments while offering only bare-bones arrangements for them to follow (in a similar style to Tonight's the Night). He also would opt for rough, monitor mixes of songs rather than a more polished sound, alienating his sound engineers in the process.
Throughout the recording of the album, Young and his fellow musicians consumed a homemade concoction dubbed "Honey Slides", a goop of sauteed marijuana and honey that was, in manager Elliot Roberts' words, "...much worse than heroin. Much heavier." (Shakey: Neil Young's Biography, Jimmy McDonough). This may account for the mellow mood of the album, particularly side two of the original LP. Young has said of it "Good album. One side of it particularly—the side with "Ambulance Blues", "Motion Pictures" and "On the Beach"—it's out there. It's a great take." (Shakey)
For nearly two decades, rarity made a cult out of On the Beach. The title was deleted from vinyl in the early 1980s and only briefly released on cassette—the old slip case style, as well as 8-track tape. On the Beach headed the list of most-desired albums not released on CD. Along with three other mid-period Young albums, it had been withheld from re-release until 2003; the reasons remain murky but there is some evidence that Young himself didn’t want the albums out on CD, variously citing “fidelity problems” and legal issues. Beginning in 2000, over 5000 fans signed an online petition calling for the release of the album on CD; this wish was finally granted in 2003.
It is the 22nd highest rated album of the 1970s on Rate Your Music; it is also ranked 77th on the all-time chart. Pitchfork Media listed it #65 on their list of the 'Top 100 Albums of the 1970s'. In 2007, On the Beach was named the 40th Canadian Album of All Time in Bob Mersereau's book The Top 100 Canadian Albums.
Mercury Rev have covered "Motion Pictures" in concert and "Vampire Blues" on a radio session. Grant Lee Buffalo covered "For The Turnstiles" in the early 90s, and Neil Young himself performed "Ambulance Blues" with the instrumentalists of R.E.M. at one of his Bridge School Concerts.
Songs
"Walk On", the album's opener, has Young combining his cynical outlook with a touch of closure and a wish to move on and keep living. The album also includes the high-strung "Revolution Blues," inspired by Charles Manson, whom Young had met in his Topanga Canyon days. "For the Turnstiles" is a country-folk hybrid featuring Young's banjo and a caterwauling harmony vocal from Ben Keith, while playing Dobro. Also of note is "Vampire Blues," an attack on the oil industry. Young also throws in a remake of his Harvest era "See the Sky About to Rain." This track had also been released a year earlier on The Byrds's eponymous album.
Side two of the LP version opens with "On the Beach", a bluesy meditation on the downside of fame, and is followed by "Motion Pictures", a barely audible elegy for Young's relationship with actress Carrie Snodgress.
Ambulance Blues
"Ambulance Blues" closes the album. The melody 'unintentionally' quotes Bert Jansch's "Do You Hear Me Now?". In a 1992 interview for the French "Guitare & Claviers" magazine, Young discussed Jansch' influence: "...as for acoustic guitar, Bert Jansch is on the same level as Jimi (Hendrix). That first record of his is epic. It came from England, and I was especially taken by "Needle of Death", such a beautiful and angry song. That guy was so good... And years later, on On the Beach, I wrote the melody of "Ambulance Blues" by styling the guitar part completely on "Do You Hear Me Now?". I wasn't even aware of it, and someone else drew my attention to it."
The song explores Young's feelings about his critics, Richard Nixon and the state of CSNY. The line "You're all just pissing in the wind" was a direct quote from Young's manager regarding the inactivity of the quartet.
Track listing
All songs written by Neil Young.
Side one
- "Walk On" – 2:42
- "See the Sky About to Rain" – 5:02
- "Revolution Blues" – 4:03
- "For the Turnstiles" – 3:15
- "Vampire Blues" – 4:14
Side two
- "On the Beach" – 6:59
- "Motion Pictures" – 4:23
- "Ambulance Blues" – 8:56
Personnel
- Neil Young – guitar on 1 3 5 6 7 8, vocal, Wurlitzer electric piano on 2, banjo on 4, harmonica on 7 8
- Ben Keith – slide guitar on 1, vocal on 1 4, steel guitar on 2, Dobro on 4, Wurlitzer electric piano on 3, organ on 5, hand drums on 6, bass on 7 8
- Tim Drummond – bass on 2 5 6, percussion on 5
- Ralph Molina – drums on 1 5 6, vocal on 1, hand drums on 7 8
Additional Personnel
External links
