What happened in the last year that made all of my favorite musicians get really good again? What caused this explosion in creativity? I'm so glad these wonderful old-timers got it right again finally. Woo Hoo. Let's Review....

Neil Young: Prairie Wind **** out of ****
~I just bought this album today and listened to the entire thing the whole way through. This album was so amazing. Neil's best album in possibly over a decade. He had some good cds over the last decade including Silver & Gold, but nothing like this. The songs are a return to "one" of his signiture sounds along the lines of Harvest and Harvest Moon. A wonderful blend of country and rock, the scorching lyrics mixed with a Neil who is on the top of the acoustic guitar world, this is not to be missed. I can't say enough about this album. It sounds so positive and great. The music just flows. Amazing. Go buy now.
BEST TRACKS: The Painter, No Wonder, It's A Dream, This Old Guitar

Bob Dylan: No Direction Home Soundtrack(Bootleg Series Vol. 7)
***1/2 out of ****
~I also Bought this the day it came out and though there are no new recordings on it, the different takes of his classics starting from a recording made at home, leading up through the extremely Famous Version of Like a Rolling Stone (Judas Version). The music in this collection goes along the roots of the film. There are some real gems in this collection that give you a real feel for the live Dylan.
BEST TRACKS: Blowin' in the Wind (Live), Master's of War (Live), Mr. Tambourine Man (Alternate Take), Desolation Row (Alternate Take), Ballad of a Thin Man(Live), Like A Rolling Stone(Live-"Judas" Version)

Paul McCartney: Chaos and Creation in the Backyard
**** out of ****
McCartney has been slowing down when it comes to releasing records over the past decade or so, and if you don't consider Flaming Pie, he's been releasing some real chumpy stuff. In 1997, he released Flaming Pie after finishing work on The Beatles Anthology. He claimed he got some of that "creative Beatles juice" back for that album. I regard that album as one of my favorite Paul albums. This new album is better. This album has all the great melody that Paul is known for, but finally in a darker format. Paul does not often show his dark side, but on this album, he did. He showed he can go into his subconscious and create some great songs using that part of his mind. A lot of these songs could easily be mistaken for Beatles songs, they are that good. The wonderful finger-picking "Jenny Wren" takes us back to "Blackbird". It should also be noted that on this album, like his first two solo albums McCartney and Ram, he plays all the instruments. Seeing as those two other albums, and Flaming Pie, are my favorite Paul Albums, I think it can be easily said that he knows the key's to push when creating his own music.
BEST TRACKS: Fine Line, Jenny Wren, At The Mercy, English Tea, Too Much Rain, Riding to Vanity Fair


Rolling Stones: A Bigger Bang
NO RATING
~I have not listened to this album yet, but Rolling Stone magazine is stating it might be better than Paul's new album. So, as a big Stone's fan I had to include them on the list of great performers from the "Golden Age" with some great new music. I'll be sure to check them out soon and let you know.


Go Listen To MUSIC!

Enjoy,
The Doc

DF,

I like all those artists as well. I can't say I've bought or kept up with a whole lot of music in recent years, but these all sound good.

Believe it or not, I have mostly singles (45's) by Dylan (all in Michigan ) and I've always liked his music. I really have no explanation as to why I never bought more of it.

Neil Young I remember way back in the early seventies loving his Harvest album (Heart of Gold, Old Man, among my favorites. Btw, wasn't he associated with and/or a part of Buffalo Springfield (although, I know he wasn't the lead singer)?????? Don't know why this sounds familiar.

Paul McCartney, yet another artist who's music I own is the older stuff like Red Rose Speedway, Venus & Mars, but still appreciate his talent. Saw him at Superbowl halftime and he still sounds great.

And of course, The Stones are one of my very favorites still sounding great after 40 yrs. Who would have thought? Let me know what "Bigger Bang" sounds like. I've not heard one single cut from it, but of all those you mention I'm sure this would be what I'd buy first.

The thing that makes all these artists so great is that they not only are still creative but all of them still sound good.

TIS

I agree 100% TIS. These artists still have amazing voices. Neil and Paul sound exactly the same, which is really good. Some say Mick Jagger sounds better on this new album. Bob Dylan's voice has been extremely impaired by his smoking. He's been at 2 packs a day for many, many years now. His last album, Love and Theft, did win many awards though. I have it and love it, but his voice is getting worse. But he never did have a sweet, liquid voice, which I think has always been part of his appeal, so no big deal.

Neil Young was the lead guitarist in Buffalo Springfield. He also wrote a good majority of the songs. You'll remember him from Crosby, Stills, nash and Young too I'm sure. Ever like Deja Vu?

I'm going to see Paul McCartney live in 2 weeks and I'm losing my damn mind!

I'll check out "A Bigger Bang" too. It seems like a no-brainer for being good.

The Doc

Nobody else has any of these titles I mentioned? Come on.

There is some great stuff here, how about some input on it?

The Doc

Young's new album interests me the most. My two favorite Young albums would probably be Harvest and Rust Never Sleeps

I also need to check out his Unplugged album. Ferro, what did you think of Sleeps With Angels?

I saw McCartney on his last tour and it was absolutely fantastic. No doubt you will enjoy. He gives you everthing you want and more.

I have heard mixed reviews on his latest release, but sounds like you give it a thumbs up

I'd say my favorite Young albums are Rust Never Sleeps, Tonight's The Night, Harvest, and On The Beach.

His unplugged album is amazing. It has the best versions of Helpless and Mr. Soul ever recorded, including the originals. His Pump Organ version of Like A Hurricaine is amazing too.

Sleeps With Angels definitely has a lot of Cobain undertone. The best tracks being Western Hero, Change Your Mind, Train of Love and Trans Am.


The Doc

Really? Where did you hear his new album was bad. I've scoured the music world and only been able to find good reviews. YOu mean from friends? Because if so, then they are rediculously crazy. :p

The Doc

Really? Where did you hear his new album was bad. I've scoured the music world and only been able to find good reviews. YOu mean from friends? Because if so, then they are rediculously crazy. :p

The Doc [/b][/quote]I post on a Springsteen Board, and there was a similar thread regarding the new stones and the new McCartney releases. Mostly mixed reviews, but they can be a tough crowd there.

I'd say my favorite Young albums are Rust Never Sleeps, Tonight's The Night, Harvest, and On The Beach.

His unplugged album is amazing. It has the best versions of Helpless and Mr. Soul ever recorded, including the originals. His Pump Organ version of Like A Hurricaine is amazing too.

Sleeps With Angels definitely has a lot of Cobain undertone. The best tracks being Western Hero, Change Your Mind, Train of Love and Trans Am.


The Doc [/b][/quote]Yeah, Young credits Cobain for giving him inspiration to return to music. Apparently he had been trying to contact Cobain in his last days but couldn't and felt like he was responsible for causing his "suicide." (Cobain quoted his lyric It's better to burn out then to fade away)

I really feel sorry for him if Young still feels guilty about it, considering that quote was really referring to retirement from Nirvana, not life.

My two favorites from the album are Sleeps With Angels and Blue Eden. I'd love to hear an acoustic version of the former.

Blue Eden uses the same distortion from Dead Man. On that subject as well, I think that's a film you should see Ferro. Neil Young provides the score and it's excellent. The film's directed by Jim Jarmusch. (Broken Flowers, Down By Law)

I'm a fan of Depp, so I'd consider seeing Dead Man. It's expensive though. I've seen a lot of Jim Jarmucsh work he did with Neil. (Directing his concert tours and such.)

I also saw Broken Flowers but I hated it. So it might be risky.

Regardless, back to the theme at hand. I really suggest you get this new album by Neil. It's in the same format as Harvest and Harvest Moon. Some rockers, some country sounds. But it's all amazing. A little too religious twoards the end for my taste, but it does not affect the quality.

The Doc

Dead Man is a hypnotic off-beat western although some think it's boring. However it has a large cult following and IMO it's a great film. Ebert gave it a bad review, and referred to the latter part of Young's score as "sounding like he was dropping his guitar over and over."

Then again, that was one of Ebert's weak reviews.