Chrome Dreams II

Neil Young | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 23, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Reprise / Wea
• ASIN: B000VEA31Q
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (112 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,914 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Beautiful Bluebird 3:30

2. Boxcar 3:15

3. Ordinary People 18:13

4. Shining Light 4:33

5. The Believer 2:38

6. Spirit Road 5:01

7. Dirty Old Man 2:52

8. Ever After 3:32

9. No Hidden Path 11:31

10. The Way 5:15

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

What we have here is easily Mr. Young's finest work in years, one that erases the memory of his well-intentioned but anemic 2006 protest album, Living with War. Recorded using analog gear, with Crazy Horse drummer Ralph Molina, pedal steel guitarist Ben Keith, and Rick Rosas on bass, CD2 manages to sound both home-grown and experimental. It's the work of an artist still not afraid to take chances, who also knows what his strengths are and doesn't stray too far from them. Trainspotters will note that three of the ten songs were written but never released before, while we all might puzzle over the title. Chrome Dreams is the name of an unreleased album from 1977. So, why is this Chrome Dreams II? Is it a similar case to 1992's Harvest Moon, when Young went back to the virtual land of his 1972 hit Harvest to write more material in that vein? As the original was reportedly lost in a fire, we may never know. Chrome Dreams II offers up gorgeous, plaintive laments and country-tinged numbers sung in that achy breaky, heart-on-sleeve voice of Young's, as well as ragged barn-storming rockers delivered with a growl. There's even an 18-minute dirge that excitedly mixes R&B back-up horns with searing electric guitar leads! Wow. --Mike McGonigal

Product Description

''One of the most influential and idiosyncratic singer/songwriters of his generation.'' -All Music Guide. Enjoying one of the most prolific periods of his phenomenally prolific career, Neil Young (sans Crazy Horse) delivers Chrome Dreams II. Hard but shiny, acoustic but also electric, Chrome Dreams II continues the new millennium resurgence in popularity for one of the greatest singer/songwriters in rock history.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Bonus DVD explained October 29, 2007

By geoff

Format:Audio CD

The new neil is great, people, about the dvd, it is included because neil is an audiophile. Just because you hear it is a dvd, don't assume movies or videos are going to be on it. The dvd is for the dvd-audio mix! Yes, it sounds better than the flat one dimensional drink coaster (i mean CD!). To sum it up you are getting the best of both worlds, a cd for your ipod or car cd player and a DVD audio disc for your high quality stereo system at home! Insert the DVD and sit down and enjoy!!

36 of 41 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Three star album with a 20-minute five-star track November 8, 2007

By Robert P. Inverarity VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Chrome Dreams II ain't a bad album, by any means. But neither is it a great album - as far as albums go, Prairie Wind is the best in ages, and this doesn't touch it. (I say that as a fan of Old Black-wielding Neil first and foremost, too). It's lumpy - putting an adrenaline-pumping epic like Ordinary People in the #3 spot guarantees that the rest of the album feels slow and uncommitted. Neil isn't as focused as he has been on the last two albums. The album's too long. And, for all the strengths that these songs have, they can't live up to the material that was on Chrome Dreams I. What this album is, and what it should have been called, is Freedom II.

Beautiful Bluebird is a very close rewrite of "Sail Away" from Rust Never Sleeps, itself a rewrite (though not as obviously) of Comes a Time's "Human Highway." Sail Away is so far the superior song that Bluebird feels a little wrong, though it's a sweet, sad little lyric anyway. It dates back to the early 80s, from the original (still unreleased) Old Ways album.

Boxcar is a rerecording of a song from Times Square (an unreleased album from '89). This one improves on the original version - it works better coming from a grizzled old Shakey than the still-young man of 40. The band is great.

Let's get it out of the way: Ordinary People is a priceless contribution to the Neil Young discography. Sure, it uses cliches left and right, introduces very little musical complexity, and piles on anecdotes to the sky, but you know what? It works, and it's true, and it's glorious. The problem, though, is that if Neil had released it as a single, it wouldn't be any less essential than this album is.

(Aside: Ordinary People is a 1988 recording, and it sounds like it. It fits surprisingly well with the rest of these songs, but it's clearly not the same singer, or songwriter, or band. And those 80s synths are pretty distinctive.)

Shining Light is a great 50s-ish ballad, quite a surprising track for Neil. It's really quite moving, but it wilts in the shadow of Ordinary People.

The Believer could well be an Are You Passionate? outtake - it sounds just like an MGs track, but without the MGs - which is to say thin and unconvincing. The lyrics retread AYP to no effect. I really liked about half of AYP, but I skip this.

Spirit Road is a pretty rockin' rocker, but it's a little whiny for my tastes. Again the shadow of Ordinary People makes this seem less worth hearing.

Dirty Old Man is this album's Piece of Crap, but this doesn't have the joy or elan that that had. It seems a little pro-forma and forced. Still fun, though.

Ever After is a quirky little observation that makes me smile. One of the album's hidden treasures.

No Hidden Path doesn't work. Not where it is, anyway. Swap it with Ordinary People in the tracklist, though, and this is a very solid four-star album. Funny how that works. I've seen it compared to "Change Your Mind", but it ain't. It's an attempt, but it doesn't have any lyrical rigor - the words seem made up on the spot, and they don't seem particularly insightful. But it's a lot more likable as part of a slow buildup to Ordinary People.

The Way. I mean, a kids' choir? No way. Well, it works - what can I say? This might be the strongest closing track of any album since Sleeps With Angels - reassuring but not cloying, assured but still questioning.

I burned a resequenced copy of this album after listening through it twelve or so times. My tracklist is Boxcar, Spirit Road, Ever After, Shining Light, No Hidden Path, Dirty Old Man, Beautiful Bluebird, Ordinary People, The Way. Try it out if you're so inclined - it may seem strange, but it works pretty well to my ears. Nothing will make this a five-star album, but it can be a strong four star album. Still, new music from Shakey is always welcome to my ears.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Why doesn't anyone understand the purpose of Neil's DVDs? November 6, 2007

By G. Lundgren

Format:Audio CD

"I can think of something better to do"? The purpose of Neil's included DVDs is to provide a high-resolution recording of his album without forcing the consumer to buy a DVD-Audio player. By using the DVD-Video spec for the hi-rez audio version, he is affording owners of ordinary DVD players the opportunity to hear a high quality music recording. Any video/slideshow that happens to accompany the music is simply fluff. If the listener is content with music as background while doing other things, then purchasing the regular CD version of the albums is more than sufficient. The ipod/mp3 generation is really missing out by not listening to music for the music's sake alone. Oh, and I did listen to both the CD and DVD versions of this album, and the DVD is clearly superior in clarity, dynamic range, and overall depth of sound.