In 2004 Rustie, Mike "Expecting 2 Fly" Cordova posted a series of articles on his experience listening to all of Neil Young's albums in chronological order. Here is one in the series. For a complete listing, see Albums in Order reviews.
Date: Mon, May 15, 2005 5:58 pm -0800 (PST) I remember back in the 70s, being shocked when the amazing
Zuma came out so soon after Tonight's The Night. Even
though TTN was comprised of songs that had been shelved
for two years or more, it was still amazing to get the gem
of Zuma so soon after the genius of TTN.
I can say Neil has done it again. In early April 2006 when
news started leaking on internet blogs that Neil Young had
already completed a new album of protest songs, I was
admittedly, a bit skeptical. After all, his previous work
Prairie Wind was a solid effort and had only been released
some seven months previously and its accompanying film
Heart Of Gold had not even been released on DVD. But as
the evidence mounted, the amazing blog entries were
revealed to be factual and that indeed Neil Young wanted
to release this as quickly as possible. Via his web site,
initially there came a first-person announcement by Neil
Young himself, followed by the lyrics to the songs and a
timeline, and then a stream of the album itself, which is
how I first heard this record.
Neil uses the urgency with which this album was created to
good effect; one can really feel the intensity of feeling
and the powerful messages he conveys. It has been an
incredible experience immersing myself in this music. The
political nature of the lyrics have produced a firestorm
of opinionated forums on the internet but in actuality the
music is a very personal thing between the listener and
the music as it swirls in one's head. I find the emotions
of sadness, anger, hopefulness; I find all of them to be
very strong. Shortly after immersing myself in the album,
my special lady friend and I happened to be in Washington
DC visiting Smithsonian museums and war memorials. At the
World War II memorial, as we contemplated the soldiers'
sacrifice, she told me that the refrain from the song
Living With War was in her head and that the impact of the
tune was striking and emotional.
Musically and lyrically, Neil Young revisits some of his
earlier work; for example, the song Living With War marks
the second occasion in which he has quoted the same
passage from the Star Spangled Banner (the first being
Western Hero from 1994's Sleep With Angels album.) But the
conception and execution of the creation of the album
Living With War is a milestone in the Neil Young catalog.
It is intense and listenable and powerful and it's
incredible to me that a 60 year old man has made this
inspired work.
I very much enjoyed listening to Living With War today.
Mike - Expecting To Fly
From: Mike Cordova
To: rust@rustlist.org
Subject: Albums in order: Living With War
Also see A "Living With War" Review Roundup
More reviews and links on "Living With War" April 2006 News and "Living With War" May 2006 News.
For more of Expecting To Fly's reviews, see the Albums in Order series.
Neil Young - Thrasher's Wheat Archives: A Fan's Un Official Pages
Neil Young Reviews of Albums