Fork In The Road (CD/DVD)

Neil Young

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 7, 2009)
• Original Release Date: April 7, 2009
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Reprise Records
• ASIN: B001TEKHC2
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,289 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #48 in

  Music > Folk > Singer-Songwriters

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. When Worlds Collide

2. Fuel Line

3. Just Singing A Song

4. Johnny Magic

5. Cough Up The Bucks

6. Behind The Wheel

7. Off The Road

8. Hit The Road

9. Light A Candle

10. Fork In The Road

Disc: 2

1. Fork In The Road (DVD)

2. Just Singing A Song (DVD)

3. Light A Candle (DVD)

4. A Day In The Life live concert video (DVD)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The DVD in this CD+DVD package
features three live, never-before-seen concert videos, and videos for four songs on the album.
Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Neil Young is stirring things up again. This time he is rolling on down the road not only with an auto-centric concept album but with his own electric ride. Fork In The Road, whose largely ecocar themed songs he debuted in concert during the past year, will get a promotional push from the 1959 Lincoln Continental Young has converted to hybrid technology and which he plans to drive to Washington, D.C. With Fork In The Road as current as today's headlines, the controversial and mad-as-hell Neil Young is still rockin' the free world and once more is taking the road less traveled.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 Stars - Recommended for Fans of the Man, April 22, 2009

By	Steve Feldman (New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Fork In The Road is 10 new songs with a dvd of the audio and 4 video clips - 3 new song videos and Neil performing "A Day In The e Life" in October 2008 (very much the same as we saw at Farm Aid a few weeks earlier). The new songs total just over 38 minutes, so no long jams or overly complex arrangements. All the songs have a similar theme - cars, driving, being green. The feel of the songs bring to mind some of Neil's sloppier works like Re-Ac-Tor (1981), Mirror Ball (1995), and Landing On Water (1986). The package is the typical mini-lp gatefold made out of cardboard that Neil has released with his last few discs. The production is really good - I was worried based on the content that was available on-line before the album was released - it sounded pretty raw.

The songs:
1 - When World's Collide - not a bad opener, one of the better tracks.
The theme of movement and travel is present - "drivin down old route 66"
so it fits with the rest of the song content. This could be a standalone song.
2 - Fuel Line - very much in the ilk of cars and driving and being
green. Neil sings about the praises of alternative fuel electric cars
and how the world is ready, but "some old-timers" aren't. The lyrics
remind me of something you would hear in a Schoolhouse Rock song on a
Saturday morning.
3 - Just Singing A Song - this is a real good song, IMO the best one.
It has a great sounding lead guitar riff and a nice harmony. "Just
singing a song won't change the world". There is also "you can drive my
car, see how it rolls". There is a video for this song on the dvd - it
has Neil rowing a kayak on a lake and lip synching the words - very low
budget. It might mean that he is just one voice in an ocean and he can
sing about change, but how can it really make a difference. One of my
favorite songs from the collection and it could be a stand-alone song as well.
4 - Johnny Magic - Another good song that reminds me a little of
re-ac-tor. This is Neil's ode to his electric car project - LincVolt -
where he is converting a 10 mpg Lincoln Continental into an electric car
that gets over 100 mpg. I like this one as well - "home of the heavy
metal continental" with some decent guitar playing from Neil in the
middle.
5 - Cough Up The Bucks - Other than the annoying repeated chant, "Cough
up the bucks, cough up the bucks" this song could have fit nicely on
re-ac-tor. It is a little sloppy, but it rocks a little more than the
other songs with a nice harmony vocal - "where did all the money go?,
where did all the cash flow? , "it's all about my car, it's all about my
car, and my girl".
6 - Get Behind The Wheel - starts with a nice blues run and would have
fit nicely on 1988's This Notes For You (in fact, Neil uses some of the
same folks on this album as with TNFY). A blatant message for the car
enthusiast to get behind the wheel and drive. The song has a nice feel
and movement to it and some nice guitar playing by Neil.
7 - Off The Road - the first slower tempo song and a nice song at that.
It moves slowly but builds up with some nice harmonies. Almost a
lullaby in parts. "You can never take your eyes off the road".
8 - Hit The Road - Another rocking number with a bit of a phased guitar
sound from Neil. "She looks so beautiful with the top down" - so back
to the driving metaphors. The message is very clear here as it was on
"Get Behind the Wheel". "Let's hit the road and go to town".
9 - Light A Candle - Another slow number that could have been right at
home on 2000's Silver and Gold or Prairie Road from 2006. There is a
video of this song on the dvd as well - a low budget clip of Neil and
Pegi and a stainless steel trailer (that isn't moving) and a candle lit
in the window of the trailer. Another standalone song and one of the
better songs and I like it.
10 - Fork In the Road - The title track and the lengthiest at almost 6
minutes. Also a video, but it is so low budget and pixelated, I
couldn't watch it. Neil tries to mix humor with a message and I am not
sure works on either level.

So, another album from an artist with 45 plus years of creating music.
At 63, Neil is still creating and building worlds in his music that are
new and fresh and at the same time familiar. With other artists, this
would be laughable material because they wouldn't be able to pull it
off. Neil has never left the scene and that gives him the ability to
write and sing about such subject matter in a believable way. On the
negative side, and to use car-related analogies, this CD never really
kicks into high gear. Just when you begin enjoying the trip, it is
over. So, not a classic album from the starting line. If Neil were to never put out another album of new material, I am not sure I like the idea of FITR being his last such new release. Oh well, who knows what Neil has planned next....

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not too bad, April 11, 2009

By	E. C. Brummer (Athens, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This isn't Neil's masterpiece, or even close. I had been following the development of this disc as videos of songs were released on the internet. (The lo-fi videos of Neil singing the songs are occasionally funny, but wear a bit thin.) I wasn't too enthralled by lyrics that are often quite clunky and by music that often seemed tossed off. However, when all the songs are put together, the disc falls into a very enjoyable groove. Sure, some of the songs are weak and would have benefited from a little wordsmithing, but overall, the record is a good time. Take it for what it is, roll down your windows, and take a ride. You will be pleasantly surprised. Just don't expect to get "After the Gold Rush II".

Charlie

22 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Another sub-par studio album from Neil Young, May 15, 2009

By	Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Let me state upfront that I am 48 yrs old, and a life-time fan of Neil Young going back to the 70s. That said, I have been perplexed by Neil's studio output in this decade, which has been mediocre, and I'm being mild. How many of you are still listening to "Are You Passionate" (from 2002), "Greendale" (from 2003) or "Living With War" (from 2006) in your CD player? Can you hum a single song from any of those albums right now?

"Fork In the Road" (10 tracks; 38 min.) is the latest in Neil's 40+ year musical journey, and themed as an ode to cars and the open road. The opener "When Worls Collide" gave me hope that this might be a better offering. "Just Singing a Song" is also somewhat likeable. But regretfully, the album contains too many dull moments, such as the insufferable "Cough Up the Bucks" and "Off The Road". The short and sweet acoustic "Light a Candle" brings some relief towards the end of the album, but frankly it is too little, too late.

Again, I must ask you: how many of these songs will you find yourself humming after (repeated) listening to this album? That said, at 38 min. the album is short and to the point, an improvement to previous recent studio albums. I still believe that Neil has a great album in him. But "Fork in the Road" is not it, as much as it pains me to tell you.