Track Listing

1. Tell Me Why
2. After The Goldrush
3. Only Love Can Break Your Heart
4. Southern Man
5. Till The Morning Comes
6. Oh Lonesome Me
7. Don't Let It Bring You Down
8. Birds
9. When You Dance I Can Really Love
10. I Believe In You
11. Cripple Creek Ferry

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1574 in Music
• Released on: 1987-07-31
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .26 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
After labouring in Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Neil Young finally hit perfect pitch--if his endearing off-centre whine can be called "perfect"--with his third album. He's equally passionate with trippy riddles (has anybody figured out what "We've got mother nature on the run" means in the title track?) and pointed protest (after 30 years of rock-radio overplay, "Southern Man" still rings with truth about redneck racism). His creaky ensemble, including pianist Jack Nitzsche and rotating members of Crazy Horse, transforms ramshackle country and folk songs into soulful hippie hymns. --Steve Knopper

CD Description
AFTER THE GOLDRUSH mixes up the hard rock of EVERYONE KNOWSTHIS IS NOWHERE and the folk and country leanings Young pursued with Crosby, Stills And Nash in one of his most eclectic and satisfying releases. The acoustic picking on the opener, "Tell Me Why", frames Young's vulnerable warble beautifully, signalling the softer aspect of the album. But the electric crunch of "Southern Man", a raging tour de force protestsong that captures the special chemistry between Young and backing group Crazy Horse, balances Young's sensitivity withaggression and amplification.
The album continues its collage of styles, from the wistfulness of "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" to song fragments like "Til the Morning Comes"to the transformation of Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me" fromcanter to ballad. But the crowning achievements are the album's magnificent title track, a vividly drawn portrait of post-'60s melancholy, and the gorgeous, aching "Birds", a swansong heralding emotional departure. Both songs are graced by Nils Lofgren's delicate piano, and stand as two of Young'sfinest compositions. In a catalogue filled with rock classics, AFTER THE GOLDRUSH still ranks among the best.

Customer Reviews

A great place to start with Neil Young
Thoroughly outstanding from start to finish, this is vintage Neil Young. Harder-edged than the follow-up (and more famous) "Harvest", "After The Gold Rush" contains some classic tracks, including the bitter 'Southern Man', Young's vicious swipe at racist attitudes in America's Deep South, which spawned an equally famous retort by Southern rock legends Lynyrd Skynyrd ('Sweet Home Alabama'). Obviously Neil Young didn't get the hint, since 'Alabama' (on Harvest) was equally scathing, albeit not as powerful as the brilliant 'Souhtern Man'. Young's legendarily off-beat, jagged solo guitar style was pretty much born on this track, and ensures that it will hold a special place in any Neil Young collection.

"Only Love Can Break Your Heart" is a Young country standard, practically unparalleled in the rest of his career. With a real country 3/4 beat, and beautiful harmony vocals (presumably by, amongst others, Danny Whitten), it's almost a mournful lament of a song. (Later covered by St. Etienne to great effect on 'Fox Base Alpha')

Other highlights include the brilliant opener, "Tell Me Why", which really sets the scene for what you can expect from the rest of the album. "Don't Let It Bring You Down" is another top track, although lyrically a bit confused. Also, "When You Dance You Can Really Love" is musically a great song, but what the hell he's on about is a matter of debate! But it only goes to show that even if one part of a song is lacking, it is compensated by the sheer quality of another part. The result is that there isn't a weak song on the album. Even Young's cover version of country standard "Oh Lonesome Me" is thoroughly appropriate and fits right in with the rest of the album. Like the title track on the follow-up "Harvest", "After The Gold Rush" is a simple piano ballad showcasing Young at his most reflective and laid-back, and contains a great lyric which includes "Look at Mother Nature on the run, in the 1970's"

This was my first Neil Young album (I bought it because I had 'Fox Base Alpha' by St. Etienne!), and what a place to start. I loved it then and more than a decade later, it remains one of my top ten favourite albums of all-time. More so than "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" or prior albums, "After The Gold Rush" marks the true beginning of Neil Young the "legend", and no CD collection can be complete without it.

Beautiful music
I think that Neil Young as an artist is slightly overrated, and some of his most praised albums like Zuma and especially Tonight's the Night I don't really care for...

But this record is a different matter. I still remember the day when I bought it; on the first listen it was sort of OK, but then on the same night I put it on again and listened to it (via headphones); only then it really started to make an impact on me, and I just couln't stop listening - I didn't get much sleep that night, let me tell you!

This is one of those rare albums where "every song is better than the next". Even the songs that could be called throwaways, like just-over-a-minute-long Till the Morning Comes and Cripple Creek Ferry, have great warmth and beauty in them (I especially love the backing choir of the former - pure magic!).

If you are into Young's rock side, this might not be the right record for you, but for the fans of simple, beautiful and heartfelt music it is a must-have.

Let it sink in and then get the rest of his back catalogue!!
First of all, i was disappointed by the fact that the album is not very long (about 35 mins). However, when i actually listened to the album, i was not disappointed at all. The songs are so timeless, it is posible to listen to them lots of times after one another and they do not get boring. It is such a strong album. It is a great mix of country and rock, a mix of Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (brilliant too) and Harvest (excellent). Tell Me Why is a melancholy opener followed up by one of the greatest tracks Neil has done. Actually, now i think about it, all of the tracks are excellent. There are rockers showing off Neil's skill on the guitar and there are quiet, reflective tracks. 'Oh Lonesome Me' has one of the best harmonies i have heard and 'Southern Man' is acidic and a great rock track.

This album is, along with Harvest, the best way to introduce yourself to the work of Neil Young. As i said, get this, and you will soon be getting all of his albums!!