After the Gold Rush
Encyclopedia
After the Gold Rush is the third studio album
by Canadian musician Neil Young
. Released in August 1970 on Reprise Records
, it was one of the four high-profile albums released by each member of folk rock
collective Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in the wake of their chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu. Gold Rush consisted mainly of country folk
music, along with the rocking "Southern Man
". Songs were inspired by the Dean Stockwell
-Herb Berman screenplay After the Gold Rush."
After the Gold Rush peaked at number eight on the Billboard
Top Pop Albums chart; the two singles taken from the album, "Only Love Can Break Your Heart
" and "When You Dance I Can Really Love
", made it to number 33 and number 93 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100
. Critics were not initially impressed with the album, though it has since been considered a masterpiece, and appears on a number of greatest albums lists.
and Miles Davis
at the Fillmore East. Despite the deteriorating health of rhythm guitarist Danny Whitten
, the sessions yielded the released tracks, "I Believe In You," "Oh, Lonesome Me", "Birds" issued as a b-side, and "When You Dance I Can Really Love". Most of the album was recorded at a make-shift basement studio in Young's Topanga Canyon home during the spring of 1970 with Greg Reeves
, Ralph Molina
of Crazy Horse, and burgeoning eighteen-year-old musical prodigy Nils Lofgren
of the Washington, DC-based band Grin on piano. This was a typical idiosyncratic decision by Young; Lofgren had not played keyboards on a regular basis prior to the sessions. Along with fellow Young stalwart Jack Nitzsche
, he would join an augmented Crazy Horse sans Young before enjoying his own group and solo cult success alternating with a 25 year membership in Bruce Springsteen
's E Street Band
. The Young biography Shakey claims Young was intentionally trying to combine Crazy Horse
and CSN on this release, with Crazy Horse appearing alongside Stephen Stills
and CSNY bass player Greg Reeves
.
Songs on the album were inspired by the Dean Stockwell
-Herb Berman screenplay for the unmade film After the Gold Rush. Young had read the screenplay and asked Stockwell if he could produce the soundtrack. Tracks that Young recalls as being written specifically for the film are "After the Gold Rush" and "Cripple Creek Ferry". The script has since been lost, though has been described as "sort of an end-of-the-world movie". Stockwell said of it "I was gonna write a movie that was personal, a Jungian self-discovery of the gnosis...it involved the Kabala (sic), it involved a lot of arcane stuff."
and Gold Rush is now considered a classic album in Young's recording career.
readers voted After the Gold Rush the 89th greatest album of all time. It was ranked 92nd in a 2005 survey held by British television's Channel 4
to determine the 100 greatest albums of all time. In 2003, Rolling Stone
named the album the 71st greatest album of all time, his highest ranking on this list. Pitchfork Media
listed it 99th on their 2004 list of the "Top 100 Albums of the 1970s". In 2006, Time Magazine listed it as one of the 'All-TIME 100 Albums'. It was ranked third in Bob Mersereau
's 2007 book The Top 100 Canadian Albums
. Its followup album, Harvest, was named the greatest Canadian album of all time in that book. In 2005, Chart Magazine readers placed it fifth on a poll of the best Canadian Albums. In 2002, Blender Magazine named it the 86th greatest "American" album. New Musical Express named it the 80th greatest album of all time in 2003.
Side one
Side two
Single
is also planned although a release date for this format has not yet been announced.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by Canadian musician Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
. Released in August 1970 on Reprise Records
Reprise Records
Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:...
, it was one of the four high-profile albums released by each member of folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
collective Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in the wake of their chart-topping 1970 album Déjà Vu. Gold Rush consisted mainly of country folk
Country folk
Country folk is a hybrid sub-genre of country and folk music closely associated with the singer-songwriter and folk rock sub-genres. It is generally characterized as a component of the progressive country style and has its roots in the recordings of folk artist Bob Dylan.-Style:Country folk has...
music, along with the rocking "Southern Man
Southern Man
"Southern Man" is a song by Neil Young from his album After the Gold Rush. The album was released in 1970.The lyrics of "Southern Man" are vivid, describing the racism towards blacks in the American South. In the song, Young tells the story of a Southern white man and how he mistreated his slaves...
". Songs were inspired by the Dean Stockwell
Dean Stockwell
Dean Stockwell is an American actor of film and television, with a career spanning over 65 years. As a child actor under contract to MGM he first came to the public's attention in films such as Anchors Aweigh and The Green Years; as a young adult he played a lead role in the 1957 Broadway and...
-Herb Berman screenplay After the Gold Rush."
After the Gold Rush peaked at number eight on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Top Pop Albums chart; the two singles taken from the album, "Only Love Can Break Your Heart
Only Love Can Break Your Heart
"Only Love Can Break Your Heart" is a song written by Neil Young.-Genesis and recording:The song is the third track on Neil Young's album After the Gold Rush. The song was supposedly written for Graham Nash after Nash's split from Joni Mitchell, though Young in interviews has been somewhat...
" and "When You Dance I Can Really Love
When You Dance I Can Really Love
"When You Dance I Can Really Love" is the ninth track on Neil Young's 1970 album After the Gold Rush. It was written by Young.It was released as a single in the U.S...
", made it to number 33 and number 93 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. Critics were not initially impressed with the album, though it has since been considered a masterpiece, and appears on a number of greatest albums lists.
Production
Initial sessions were conducted with Crazy Horse at Sunset Sound Studios in Los Angeles amid a winter tour that included a well-received engagement with Steve MillerSteve Miller (musician)
Steven H. "Steve" Miller is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter who began his career in blues and blues rock and evolved to a more popular-oriented sound which, from the mid 1970s through the early 1980s, resulted in a series of successful singles and albums.-Early years:Born in Milwaukee,...
and Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
at the Fillmore East. Despite the deteriorating health of rhythm guitarist Danny Whitten
Danny Whitten
Daniel Ray Whitten was an American musician and songwriter best known for his work with Neil Young and Crazy Horse, and for the song "I Don't Want To Talk About It", a hit for Rita Coolidge, Rod Stewart and Everything but the Girl.- Biography :Whitten was born on May 8, 1943, in Columbus, Georgia....
, the sessions yielded the released tracks, "I Believe In You," "Oh, Lonesome Me", "Birds" issued as a b-side, and "When You Dance I Can Really Love". Most of the album was recorded at a make-shift basement studio in Young's Topanga Canyon home during the spring of 1970 with Greg Reeves
Greg Reeves
Greg Reeves is an American musician. He is best known for playing bass on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's Déjà Vu album in 1969.-Biography and career:...
, Ralph Molina
Ralph Molina
Ralph Molina is an American musician, best known as the drummer for Neil Young's backing band Crazy Horse.Born in Puerto Rico, Molina has been a member of Crazy Horse since they were formed in 1962 as Danny & the Memories. He has remained throughout the band's many personnel changes, and has...
of Crazy Horse, and burgeoning eighteen-year-old musical prodigy Nils Lofgren
Nils Lofgren
Nils Hilmer Lofgren is an American rock music recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist...
of the Washington, DC-based band Grin on piano. This was a typical idiosyncratic decision by Young; Lofgren had not played keyboards on a regular basis prior to the sessions. Along with fellow Young stalwart Jack Nitzsche
Jack Nitzsche
Bernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
, he would join an augmented Crazy Horse sans Young before enjoying his own group and solo cult success alternating with a 25 year membership in Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
's E Street Band
E Street Band
The E Street Band has been rock musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972.The band has also recorded with a wide range of other artists including Bob Dylan, Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, Air Supply, Dire Straits, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Nicks, Tom Morello, Sting, Ian...
. The Young biography Shakey claims Young was intentionally trying to combine Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse (band)
Crazy Horse is an American rock band best known for its association with Neil Young. It has been co-credited on a number of albums throughout Young's career and has released five albums of its own.-Early years:...
and CSN on this release, with Crazy Horse appearing alongside Stephen Stills
Stephen Stills
Stephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
and CSNY bass player Greg Reeves
Greg Reeves
Greg Reeves is an American musician. He is best known for playing bass on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's Déjà Vu album in 1969.-Biography and career:...
.
Songs on the album were inspired by the Dean Stockwell
Dean Stockwell
Dean Stockwell is an American actor of film and television, with a career spanning over 65 years. As a child actor under contract to MGM he first came to the public's attention in films such as Anchors Aweigh and The Green Years; as a young adult he played a lead role in the 1957 Broadway and...
-Herb Berman screenplay for the unmade film After the Gold Rush. Young had read the screenplay and asked Stockwell if he could produce the soundtrack. Tracks that Young recalls as being written specifically for the film are "After the Gold Rush" and "Cripple Creek Ferry". The script has since been lost, though has been described as "sort of an end-of-the-world movie". Stockwell said of it "I was gonna write a movie that was personal, a Jungian self-discovery of the gnosis...it involved the Kabala (sic), it involved a lot of arcane stuff."
Reception
Critics were not immediately impressed; the 1970 review in Rolling Stone Magazine by Langdon Winner was negative, with Winner feeling that, "none of the songs here rise above the uniformly dull surface." Critical reaction has improved with time; by 1975, Rolling Stone was referring to the album as a "masterpiece",and Gold Rush is now considered a classic album in Young's recording career.
Legacy
After the Gold Rush has appeared on a number of greatest albums lists. In 1998 Q magazineQ (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
readers voted After the Gold Rush the 89th greatest album of all time. It was ranked 92nd in a 2005 survey held by British television's Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
to determine the 100 greatest albums of all time. In 2003, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
named the album the 71st greatest album of all time, his highest ranking on this list. Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
listed it 99th on their 2004 list of the "Top 100 Albums of the 1970s". In 2006, Time Magazine listed it as one of the 'All-TIME 100 Albums'. It was ranked third in Bob Mersereau
Bob Mersereau
Bob Mersereau is a Canadian arts journalist.Mersereau is a music columnist and longtime arts reporter for CBC Television in New Brunswick. Since 1982, he has been a reporter on the East Coast music scene for CBC Radio, CBC Television, and the Telegraph-Journal...
's 2007 book The Top 100 Canadian Albums
The Top 100 Canadian Albums
The Top 100 Canadian Albums is a book by Bob Mersereau, published in 2007 by Goose Lane Editions.Mersereau acknowledged that the list will cause heated debate among music fans across the country. "The important part is to talk about Canadian music and enjoy it", he said...
. Its followup album, Harvest, was named the greatest Canadian album of all time in that book. In 2005, Chart Magazine readers placed it fifth on a poll of the best Canadian Albums. In 2002, Blender Magazine named it the 86th greatest "American" album. New Musical Express named it the 80th greatest album of all time in 2003.
Track listing
All songs written by Neil Young except when notedSide one
- "Tell Me Why" — 2:54
- "After the Gold RushAfter the Gold Rush (song)"After the Gold Rush" is a song written by Neil Young from the 1970 album of the same name. In addition to After the Gold Rush, it also appears on Decade, Greatest Hits and Live Rust....
" — 3:45 - "Only Love Can Break Your HeartOnly Love Can Break Your Heart"Only Love Can Break Your Heart" is a song written by Neil Young.-Genesis and recording:The song is the third track on Neil Young's album After the Gold Rush. The song was supposedly written for Graham Nash after Nash's split from Joni Mitchell, though Young in interviews has been somewhat...
" — 3:05 - "Southern ManSouthern Man"Southern Man" is a song by Neil Young from his album After the Gold Rush. The album was released in 1970.The lyrics of "Southern Man" are vivid, describing the racism towards blacks in the American South. In the song, Young tells the story of a Southern white man and how he mistreated his slaves...
" — 5:31 - "Till the Morning Comes" — 1:17
Side two
- "Oh Lonesome MeOh Lonesome Me"Oh Lonesome Me" is a popular song written and recorded by Don Gibson with Chet Atkins producing for RCA Victor in Nashville in 1958. The song topped the country chart for eight non consecutive weeks, in addition to reaching #7 on the Billboard Hot 100...
" (Don GibsonDon GibsonDonald Eugene "Don" Gibson was an American songwriter and country musician. A Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, Gibson penned such country standards as "Sweet Dreams" and "I Can't Stop Loving You", and enjoyed a string of country hits from 1957 into the early 1970s.-Biography:Don Gibson was...
) — 3:47 - "Don't Let It Bring You DownDon't Let It Bring You Down"Don't Let It Bring You Down" is the seventh track on Neil Young's album After the Gold Rush. It was written by Young. It also appears on the 1971 Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young live album Four Way Street as well as Young's 2007 album Live at Massey Hall 1971, which was recorded in 1971...
" — 2:56 - "Birds" — 2:34
- "When You Dance I Can Really LoveWhen You Dance I Can Really Love"When You Dance I Can Really Love" is the ninth track on Neil Young's 1970 album After the Gold Rush. It was written by Young.It was released as a single in the U.S...
" — 4:05 - "I Believe in You" — 3:24
- "Cripple Creek Ferry" — 1:34
Personnel
- Neil YoungNeil YoungNeil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
— guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, vibesVibraphoneThe vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
, lead vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Danny WhittenDanny WhittenDaniel Ray Whitten was an American musician and songwriter best known for his work with Neil Young and Crazy Horse, and for the song "I Don't Want To Talk About It", a hit for Rita Coolidge, Rod Stewart and Everything but the Girl.- Biography :Whitten was born on May 8, 1943, in Columbus, Georgia....
— guitar, vocals - Nils LofgrenNils LofgrenNils Hilmer Lofgren is an American rock music recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist...
— guitar, piano, vocals - Jack NitzscheJack NitzscheBernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
— piano - Billy TalbotBilly TalbotBilly Talbot is an American singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the bassist of Crazy Horse.-Music career:Born in New York City, Talbot started his musical career singing on street corners at the age of 14. He moved to New Jersey with his family the next year, and by 17 he had moved to...
— bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Greg ReevesGreg ReevesGreg Reeves is an American musician. He is best known for playing bass on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's Déjà Vu album in 1969.-Biography and career:...
— bass - Ralph MolinaRalph MolinaRalph Molina is an American musician, best known as the drummer for Neil Young's backing band Crazy Horse.Born in Puerto Rico, Molina has been a member of Crazy Horse since they were formed in 1962 as Danny & the Memories. He has remained throughout the band's many personnel changes, and has...
— drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, vocals - Stephen StillsStephen StillsStephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
— vocals - Bill Peterson — flugelhornFlugelhornThe flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
Charts
Album| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... Pop Albums |
8 |
Single
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" | Billboard Pop Singles | 33 |
| 1971 | "When You Dance I Can Really Love" | Billboard Pop Singles | 93 |
Certifications
| Organization | Level | Date |
|---|---|---|
| RIAA – US | Gold | November 2, 1970 |
| RIAA – US | Platinum | October 13, 1986 |
| RIAA – US | 2× Platinum | October 13, 1986 |
| BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... – U.K. |
2× Platinum | November 12, 2004 |
Releases
After the Gold Rush was remastered and released on HDCD-encoded CD and digital download on July 14, 2009 as part of the Neil Young Archives Original Release Series. The remaster has been released on audiophile vinyl and a high resolution digital version on Blu-ray discBlu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
is also planned although a release date for this format has not yet been announced.
External links
- Album online on Radio3Net a radio channel of Romanian Radio Broadcasting CompanyRomanian Radio Broadcasting CompanyThe Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company , informally referred to as Radio Romania , is the public radio broadcaster in Romania. It operates four national radio channels, and, under the Radio România Regional umbrella, eleven regional radio stations. The four national radio channels are: Radio...