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Neil is the sort of artist that elicits strong reactions. He's angsty, his instrumentation is brash and noisy, his vocals are crackly and raw. But for the melancholic souls that find something familiar and true in Neil's music, On the Beach itches a most specific scratch.
For years I listened to Decade and sporadic albums (Greendale is a later album that I highly recommend) without delving into his less "poppy" early catalog. Last year I was going through a tough breakup with a person I really loved and I needed something new to listen to. I was biking down the street on a beautiful day when I heard Like a Hurricane again and it actually made me cry. After re-exhausting Decade, I needed more and decided to finally explore his more obscure stuff. Luckily for me I checked out On the Beach first and it changed my life.
Neil's always had a talent for conveying the existential pain of loss and regret, but this album turns that up to 11. That's not to say this album is nothing but a depressing slog. It kicks off with it's most upbeat and defiant track "Walk on." For those of you that discovered Neil Young through Decade will be familiar with this one. It's a fun song to sing along to and it's the sort of thing I could see myself listening to with friends on a nice summer drive.
See the Sky About to Rain, the second track, is more somber and reflective. More of a sundown than a sunrise song. It's a nice taste of what you'll hear in the penultimate b side of the album.
Revolution Blues is an unsettling, meandering sort of song about Charles Manson. It's personally my least favorite track but I'm open to the idea that it could click with me one day in the future.
For the Turnstiles is a rootsy banjo driven track that could be a companion track to another Decade original, Love is a Rose. It could easily fit on Tonight's the Night, an album Neil developed basically alongside this one, though this album is far less harsh overall.
Vampire Blues is one of my favorites. It's a straightforward blues track that examines our sick relationship with our ecology, specifically in the context of capitalism. Politics aside, it has interesting imagery, howling vocals, dive bar atmosphere. Something I think Neil would've liked to explore even more than he already did on Tonight's the Night.
The B side is where things really get interesting in my opinion. It starts with one of the greatest songs I've ever heard, period. The title track, On the Beach, is the doped out cannabinized version of Cortez the Killer that centers the album. It's beautiful, haunting, painful, evocative, well paced, and beautifully performed. If you've ever had heartbreak, or if you've ever failed, or even if you've ever just felt alone or like an outsider, this song will speak to you like very few songs can. It just so happens that when i moved out of my cohabitation with my ex, I moved to a beach town. When I heard the title track, I couldn't believe my ears. It was like Neil knew I would be in this situation, all these years later, and wanted to let me know I wasn't alone.
"Now I'm livin'
out here on the beach,
but those seagulls are
still out of reach."
Gave me chills. I never saw the beach the same. It will forevermore have a solemnity that he tinged it with.
Next is Motion Pictures, an even sludgier more melancholic song. He wrote it about a relationship that was just beginning to really fail at the time of the album. A song about the emptiness of fame in the face of love and the things we all too often learn too late are the ones that matter most.
"An ambulance can only go so fast
It's easy to get buried in the past
When you try to make a good thing last"
Ambulance blues is long, it's a bummer and it's the perfect bookend for this album. It's a rambling whispery personal folk song that's better experienced after listening to the rest of the album leading up to it.
Overall, this album is a hidden gem and a must have album for any Neil Young collector. 9/10 for an album that had no interest in pleasing anyone but Neil himself. Which in and of itself is pretty damn impressive.
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I love this album but unfortunately the record cover appeared bent and damaged upon arrival. More than the corner just being bent which I understand happens from time to time during shipping, there was some light red blotches on the lower right corner which is truly disappointing as I have no idea what that could be. The actual record plays fine but part of the enjoyment with vinyl for me is the album cover and adding to my collection.
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