Road Rock, Vol. 1 album review

by Joanna Lux

Road Rock blasts open with an 18 minute Cowgirl in the Sand - boom! A fantasy song Neil wrote in his early 20's while delirious with a high fever still sounds as exciting now as it did thirty years ago. The epic tune is the perfect vehicle to express his live capabilities. A Neil Young concert can transform you. An acoustic show can be so moving that it melts hearts of steel. Electric with Crazy Horse can be so raging, you look around and the audience is frozen, absolutely mesmerized, jaws dropped to the ground.

Neil tours in many incarnations. The 2000 outing featuring The Friends and Relatives Band consists of Neil (guitar, piano, vocals) Ben Keith (guitar, lap slide, pedal steel), Spooner Oldham (piano, organ), Donald "Duck" Dunn (bass) and Jim Keltner (drums, percussion). These "friends" are seasoned, world class players and possess some serious musical chops. Neil's wife Pegi and sister Astrid on vocals are the "relatives."

Hardcore Neil fans are extremely devout, and they worshipped the setlists for these shows. Many live rarities were performed and a few landed on this album. A rousing Walk On from On the Beach (1974), a brilliant Neil classic that never made it past vinyl; the stunning Words from Harvest (1972); Peace of Mind and Motorcycle Mama from slightly twangy Comes A Time (1978) and previously unreleased Fool for Your Love are definitely not the generic song combination.

The ten minute, piano-drenched, spooky-ass Tonight's the Night from the 1975 drugged and dark album of the same name is a sure crowd pleaser. The intense All Along the Watchtower closer is reminiscent of the electrifying "Bob Fest" version Neil did at the Dylan tribute at Madison Square Garden in 1992. Packed with wailing guitars and colossal jams, even Jimi Hendrix would be proud and awestruck.

Neil's influence is so far-reaching, his distinct flavor can be heard - and felt - in rock groups as diverse as Pearl Jam to Oasis to Phish. Road Rock chronicles yet another high point in his legendary career. Neil Young's music is still a revelation and will continue to inspire not only fans, but the best new bands for centuries to come.