Since the letter Z was so easy, I'll tackle the Ys now: Neil Young, Yo La Tango and everything else in between.
Neil Young
Another album I'd consider a desert island 100. I'd skip Only Love Can Break Your Heart and I Believe in You if I were burning my own Neil Young compilation.
Comes a Time
Not Neil's best work. My friend M. Sharlot can play a lot of these tunes on acoustic guitar, I suppose that's worth something. In fact, I'd rather hear Sharlot play this album. Mr. Young does better with a Fender Strat. To be honest, the only song I really like is Motorcycle Mama, but only occasionally.
Nothing skippable on this two disc set. If you want to just dabble in Mr. Young's oeuvre, this is probably the disc for you. What a broad range of tunes, a musical chameleon indeed. If only there wasn't that brief flirtation with Ronald Reagan....
Everybody Knows this is Nowhere
Crazy Horse! Ergo, not glossy.
Harvest
The only songs worth repeating are in the spirit of Crazy Horse, including Needle and the Damage Done.
Don't play this album much, not because of anything specific, but because none of the songs have a great hook. Perhaps substituting Pearl Jam for Crazy Horse is the culprit, perhaps Pearl Jam has the basics down, but lack the intuitive response that Crazy Horse has to Young's leadership. Who knows.
Do like the cardboard cover.
One of my all time favorite albums, spanning my adolescent years through the present. Haven't gotten sick of it yet. Great fucked up artwork too. No song is a throw-away, and Cortez the Killer was banned in Spain. What more can you ask for?
Tags: music
