Neil Young: On the Beach

Neil Young | Format: DVD Audio

Product Details

• DVD Audio (April 13, 2004)
• Please Note: This is a DVD-Audio disc which is playable on most DVD players as well as all DVD-Audio players. Click here for additional information regarding compatibility.
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rhino
• ASIN: B0000C172X
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #320,386 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

DVD-Audio release for the On The Beach album from Neil Young. 5.1 surround sound.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fine album here in great sound, August 27, 2010

By 

let it lead (USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Neil Young: On the Beach (DVD Audio)

Though it's not in the first rank of Neil Young albums, "On The Beach" contains several songs that are unquestionably of the first rank, namely "Revolution Blues" and the title track. The pervading themes of loss and alienation are articulated with brilliant, vivid imagery.

The recorded sound quality is also of a very high order at 176.400khz/24 bit. Yes, this is apt to cause dropouts and other problems with many DVD(-A) players, but if the hardware is fully compatible, it sounds breathtakingly real. It is a pity that this disc appears to be out of print. One may hope that it will soon sound even better on Blu-Ray in the "Neil Young: Archives Part II."

4.0 out of 5 stars Four out of five, January 26, 2012

By 

Shelly Gill (Savannah, Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Neil Young: On the Beach (DVD Audio)

My husband went through a phase when he had to play this album every day. But Neil Young grows on you at many levels. A lot of heart and intensity behind that gentle voice, and melodies that stay in your head. The title track to this album, based on a simple three-chord blues progression, always releases with a pretty jazz chord that elevates the entire song and makes you wait with anticipation for each time it comes around.

5.0 out of 5 stars An early NY masterpiece, November 16, 2011

By 

maelje - See all my reviews

This review is from: Neil Young: On the Beach (DVD Audio)

It's hard to believe some of the releases from this part of Neil Young's career got such mixed reviews. Alas, there's been lots of critical reappraisal (read: 20/20 hindsight) since those days, and "On the Beach" now is accepted as being right up there with some of the best discs of Young's career, including "Zuma" and "Tonight's the Night."

Look out, though: For fans of prettified Neil, this ain't "Harvest" or "Silver and Gold." Yet it isn't nearly as noisy as "Zuma" or as raw as "Tonight's the Night," either. The first half of the album is witty, bizarre and very entertaining; the songs include "See the Sky About to Rain" and the hoarse but heartfelt "For the Turnstiles."

The second half (side 2, back in vinyl days) is simply one of the great turns in Young's career. "On the Beach," "Motion Pictures" and "Ambulance Blues" constitute a trilogy of slow-tempo, reflective songs that nevertheless have tremendous emotional power and considerable darkness. In its way, each of these pieces also asserts Young's amazing independence as an artist. He will do things his own way, even if, at times, that stubborn insistence ends up irritating his collaborators and even his fans. The title track's lyrics perfectly encapsulate Young's love/hate relationship with stardom: "I need a crowd of people," Young sings," but I can't face them day to day." Hell's bells, Neil ... who can? :) "Motion Pictures" is the gentlest of these three songs, and was dedicated to actress Carrie Snodgrass, with whom Young had a son, Zeke, but this isn't a simple romance ballad. A sample from the lyrics: "Motion pictures on my TV screen, / A home away from home, livin' in between." The song, while clearly expressing love, also delves into self-doubt, the nature of stardom, and more.

Finally, the album concludes with "Ambulance Blues," one of the finest pieces of rock music I've ever heard. In it, Young addresses critics directly, calling them out for being no better than him or anyone else despite their haughty pronouncements. And there's a verse, repeated, that many feel directly referenced Richard Nixon, the disgraced politician who in 1974 became the only U.S. president ever to resign from office:

"I never knew a man
could tell so many lies
He had a different story
for every set of eyes.
How can he remember
who he's talkin' to?
'Cause I know it ain't me,
and I hope it isn't you."

"Ambulance Blues" doesn't end so much as it just stops, kind of falling apart musically with a sigh of harmonica and soft percussion. But it's a brilliant ending -- Young, despite all the issues he's addressed on this album, knows better to proclaim that he's resolved any great mysteries.

Final note: Some reviewers here have complained that the DVD-Audio version of this album is presented in two-track (stereo) only. This was deliberate on Young's part, as he wanted the highest resolution possible for the two-channel mix. Thus, no surround here, which has irked some folks. Upon buying the disc and getting it home, I was perplexed and rather annoyed. Over time, though, I've come to appreciate it just the way it is. This is a stark, revealing mix of one of Young's most harrowing and yet winning albums. Highly recommended.