#90 Neil Young, 'After the Gold Rush' (1970)

Previously #74

‘After The Gold Rush,’ Neil Young’s third album, is one of the most poignant in his catalogue. Its sound is Crazy Horse meets Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. No surprise, really, as Young was in the midst of touring with CSNY (they would play Woodstock on this tour) and had been recording their second release, ‘Déjà Vu.’ This period was also marked by the deteriorating health of Crazy Horse guitarist, Danny Whitten, who would pass away due to his heroin use a couple of years later. The sound was also heavily influenced an an 18-year-old prodigy, Nils Lofgren, who would go on to be a member of Springsteen’s E Steet Band.

The first three songs really could be from a CSY record. ‘Only Love Can Break Your Heart’ was reportedly written for Graham Nash following his breakup with Joni Mitchell. It was also the first single, peaking at #33 on the charts. Neil Young is not about the charts, though. He’s about the songs. The fourth song, ‘Southern Man,’ is typically Crazy Horse. The song is about how Americans in the South mistreated the slaves, with Young pleading with them to pay reparations; “I saw cotton and I saw black/tall white mansions and little shacks/Southern Man, when will you pay them back?” Another favourite of mine comes at the end of the record, ‘Cripple Creek Ferry.’ This song, as well as the title track were both specifically written for an abandoned Dean Stockwell film called ‘After The Gold Rush.’ After reading the script, Young requested to produce the soundtrack. The film was never made, but the album was and we’re lucky for that, because it’s truly one of the best.

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