Neil Young + Promise of the Real: Earth

Bill Murphy on July 11, 2016

From Harvest to Farm Aid to the anthemic “Who’s Stand Up?” (the standout on 2014’s Storytone), Neil Young has kept a closeness to the land and to the hard-working life that somehow still remains separate from his more politicized view of environmental issues; very rarely do the two come together. In its entirety, Earth is a forum for just that union, featuring live renditions of songs from Young’s vast catalog, but focusing primarily on Ragged Glory and last year’s scathing indictment, The Monsanto Years. Mixed with field-recorded sounds from nature (howling coyotes, buzzing insects, cackling crows) and the bustling city, the music comes across as an amped-up collage with a palpable, searingly electric sense of adventure. Most of that begins with the youthful exuberance of Micah and Lukas Nelson (sons of Willie), whose band Promise of the Real breathes fire into classics like “Vampire Blues” and the previously unreleased gem “Seed Justice”—but Young still brings the power, as his wrenching take on “After the Gold Rush” proves almost from the start, eliciting ecstatic cheers from a devoted crowd that’s with him every step of the way. For a guy who’s supposed to be in the twilight of his career, Young actually seems to be getting younger.

Artist: Neil Young + Promise of the Real
Album: Earth
Label: Reprise