Before and After | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 8, 2023 | |||
Length | 47:58 | |||
Label | Reprise | |||
Producer |
| |||
Neil Young chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Before and After | ||||
|
Before and After is a live album by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Neil Young. It was released on December 8, 2023, through Reprise. Consisting of 13 tracks, the album features solo acoustic re-recordings of some of his past songs. The album tracks were recorded during Young's 2023 Coastal Tour. [1]
Before and After was conceived by Young and Lou Adler, while mixing was handled by the former and Niko Bolas. [2] It sees the singer-songwriter revisiting some of his back catalog, "a trip into his music history", [3] with re-recordings that have them appear in a new guise. [4] The album contains "eclectic" fresh takes on some of Young's lesser known tracks pulled from his vault. [5] Previews of three songs, "I'm the Ocean", "Homefires", and "Burned", were released as an EP upon announcement of the album on October 20. [6] Young spoke of the release as a unique experience where a "feeling is captured" and has to be listened to "as a whole piece". [7] As a matter of fact, the project comprises one "uninterrupted 48-minute piece", [8] referred to by Young as "a music montage with no beginnings or endings". [9]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 78/100 [10] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [11] |
American Songwriter | [12] |
Classic Rock | [13] |
DIY | [14] |
The Guardian | [15] |
Mojo | [16] |
The Observer | [17] |
Slant Magazine | [18] |
Uncut | 8/10 [19] |
Before and After received a score of 78 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on 10 critics' reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reception. [10] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that the album "isn't agitated or electric" as "the starkness of the arrangements helps draw attention to the distance between the origin of a song and Young's present", and Young's voice "doesn't sound fragile, yet his vocals display some age-related raggedness". [11] Lee Zimmerman of American Songwriter opined that "the intimacy is obvious and revealing, as if the listener is eavesdropping on the artist at a particularly vulnerable moment" as they are "delivered in stripped-down settings that dramatically change the tone and tempo". [12]
Uncut stated that "this is about consistency of themes and mood over time, reimagined by a man reckoning with his past and drawing new light to the deepest of cuts". [19] Mojo felt that "here the stage show had the intimacy of Young's between-song chats, the intimacy here comes from the sensation that you're listening in on his thoughts as one song drifts, like memories do, from one tome to another". [16] Writing for Classic Rock , Everett True felt that "the overall effect is hypnotic, mesmeric – a musical montage that has no start or end point". [13]
Slant Magazine 's Lewie Parkinson-Jones wrote that "the intimacy of the recordings emphasizes what Young was trying to achieve rather than obscures it" and its "idiosyncratic nature only makes it that much more appealing". [18] Phil Mongredien of The Observer found that "'On the Way Home' loses some of the 1968 original's joyous momentum, but gains much in the way of emotional power. A more fragile and intimate-sounding 'Comes a Time' similarly benefits from its reinvention". [17] The Guardian 's Dave Simpson complimented the "gentle melodies" and commented that "while his voice has lost some of the old youthful power, it has gained in tenderness, nuance, humanity and warmth". [15] James Hickey of DIY judged that the "songs are rarely improved upon, with the fidelity to ruggedness giving the songs the feel of half-finished demos, but the songwriting itself is, of course, stellar". [14]
All tracks are written by Neil Young
No. | Title | Originally appeared on | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "I'm the Ocean" | Mirror Ball | 6:44 |
2. | "Homefires" | Neil Young Archives Volume II: 1972–1976 | 2:04 |
3. | "Burned" | Buffalo Springfield | 2:06 |
4. | "On the Way Home" | Last Time Around | 3:14 |
5. | "If You Got Love" | previously unreleased; originally recorded for Trans | 3:32 |
6. | "A Dream That Can Last" | Sleeps with Angels | 4:32 |
7. | "Birds" | After the Gold Rush | 2:47 |
8. | "My Heart" | Sleeps with Angels | 3:01 |
9. | "When I Hold You in My Arms" | Are You Passionate? | 5:23 |
10. | "Mother Earth" | Ragged Glory | 3:43 |
11. | "Mr. Soul" | Buffalo Springfield Again | 3:42 |
12. | "Comes a Time" | Comes a Time | 3:20 |
13. | "Don't Forget Love" | Barn | 3:41 |
Total length: | 47:58 |
Chart (2023–2024) | Peak position |
---|---|
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [20] | 43 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [21] | 76 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [22] | 113 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [23] | 50 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [24] | 29 |
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [25] | 39 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [26] | 30 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [27] | 22 |
UK Album Downloads (OCC) [28] | 25 |
Say You Will is the seventeenth studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 15 April 2003. It followed 1995's Time and was their first album since 1970 without vocalist/keyboardist Christine McVie as a full member following her departure in 1998, although she participated in some songs as a guest musician; it would be her last time being involved with the band in a studio capacity before her death in 2022. Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks shared keyboard duties throughout the album.
Unplugged is a live album by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young, released on June 15, 1993, on Reprise. Recorded on February 7, 1993, the album is an installment of the MTV series, Unplugged. The performance was also released on VHS.
Homegrown is the 42nd studio album by Canadian-American Neil Young. It was released on June 19, 2020, by Reprise Records. The album consists of material recorded between June 1974 and January 1975. The album was recorded after the release of On the Beach and before the sessions for Zuma. Like those two albums, much of the material was inspired by Young's relationship with actress Carrie Snodgress, which was deteriorating in 1974. The album was compiled and prepared for release in 1975. Instead, Tonight's the Night was released in its place, and Homegrown remained unreleased for 45 years. It was finally set for release as part of Record Store Day 2020, amid Neil Young's ongoing Archives campaign. Its release was again delayed by Record Store Day's postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before finally seeing release on June 19.
Chrome Dreams is the 46th studio album by Neil Young. It was first compiled as an acetate for consideration as an album for release in 1977. A copy of the acetate widely circulated as a bootleg in the decades prior to its release. The album was officially released on August 11, 2023 to universal acclaim from critics.
Live at Massey Hall 1971 is a live album by Canadian musician Neil Young. Released in 2007, the album features a solo acoustic performance by Young at Massey Hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on 19 January 1971 during his Journey Through the Past Solo Tour. It is the second release in Young's Archives Performance Series.
Fork in the Road is the 31st studio album by Canadian / American musician Neil Young, released April 7, 2009, on Reprise Records. The album was released on vinyl on July 26, 2009.
Le Noise is the 32nd studio album by Canadian / American musician Neil Young, released on September 28, 2010. The album was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Daniel Lanois, hence the titular pun. The album consists of Young performing solo, mostly on electric guitar with echo effects, distortion and feedback. The sessions coincided with the death of two of Young's longtime collaborators, filmmaker L.A. Johnson and steel guitarist Ben Keith, influencing some of the lyrics. Lanois also experienced a near-fatal motorcycle accident during recording. The album is the first collaboration between the two Canadians.
The Union is a collaboration studio album by singer-songwriters Elton John and Leon Russell, released on 19 October 2010 in the US and on 25 October in the UK. This is John's second collaboration album, after 1993's Duets. This is the first studio release by John since 1979's Victim of Love without any of his regular band members. It is also his highest charting studio album on the Billboard 200 since 1976's Blue Moves, debuting at No. 3, as well as Russell's highest charting studio album since 1972's Carney. The Union was No. 3 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 30 Best Albums of 2010.
Love Is a Four Letter Word is the fourth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Jason Mraz, released on April 13, 2012, by Atlantic Records. "I Won't Give Up" was released as the album's first single on January 3, 2012.
Psychedelic Pill is the 34th studio album by Canadian / American musician Neil Young, released on October 30, 2012. It is the second collaboration between Young and Crazy Horse released in 2012 and their first original work together since the Greendale album and tour in 2003 and 2004. The album was streamed on Young's website on October 24, 2012, and leaked onto the Internet the same day.
Acoustic Classics is the fifteenth solo studio album by British singer-songwriter Richard Thompson. It was released by Beeswing Records via Proper Records on 21 July 2014 in the UK and 22 July 2014 in the US.
Peace Trail is the 38th studio album by Canadian / American singer-songwriter Neil Young, released on December 9, 2016, on Reprise Records. Co-produced by Young and John Hanlon, the album was recorded at record producer Rick Rubin's Shangri-La Studios.
Hitchhiker is the 39th studio album by Canadian / American singer-songwriter Neil Young, issued September 8, 2017 on Reprise Records. It is the ninth release in Young's ongoing archival release series and the first of the Special Release series.
True Meanings is the fourteenth studio album by English singer-songwriter Paul Weller, released on 14 September 2018.
The Prophet Speaks is the 40th studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, and the second to feature jazz organist and trumpeter Joey DeFrancesco. Released on 7 December 2018 by Exile Productions and Caroline Records, it was his fourth album "of new material in just fifteen months".
Leaving Meaning is the fifteenth studio album by American experimental band Swans. It was released October 25, 2019 on Young God and Mute. A double album, Leaving Meaning's songs have been mixed separately for vinyl and CD releases, with the CD version of the album containing the original mixes of the songs, as well as an additional track, "Some New Things". As with all Swans' releases of the 2010s, Leaving Meaning was financed by a fundraiser album – in this case, What Is This? in March 2019.
Colorado is the 41st studio album by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Neil Young, released on October 25, 2019, by Reprise Records. The album was preceded by the singles "Milky Way" and "Rainbow of Colors" and is dedicated to Elliot Roberts, Young's manager since 1967, who died aged 76 on June 21, 2019. It was also the first album to feature Nils Lofgren as a member of Crazy Horse since 1971.
When You See Yourself is the eighth studio album by American rock band Kings of Leon. It was released on March 5, 2021, by RCA Records. The album was again produced by Markus Dravs. It was preceded by the singles "The Bandit" and "100,000 People", both released on January 7, 2021. It is the band's first album in nearly four and a half years, following 2016's Walls, marking their longest gap between studio album releases.
World Record is the 45th studio album by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Neil Young and his 15th with Crazy Horse, released on November 18, 2022, through Reprise Records. The album was produced by Young and Rick Rubin, and preceded by the lead single "Love Earth".
Javelin is the tenth studio album by American musician Sufjan Stevens. It was released on October 6, 2023, through Asthmatic Kitty. It received widespread critical acclaim on release.