Track Listing

1. You're My Girl
2. Mr Disappointment
3. Differently
4. Quit (Don't Say You Love Me)
5. Let's Roll
6. Are You Passionate
7. Goin' Home
8. When I Hold You In My Arms
9. Be With You
10. Two Old Friends
11. She's A Healer

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20541 in Music
• Released on: 2002-03-25
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .12 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Though Are You Passionate? is Neil Young's studio-recorded follow-up to 2000's Silver & Gold, it might well have emerged on the heels of Harvest Moon. While both Crazy Horse and Booker T & the MGs swing by to add ballast to several of these 11 brand-new tracks, gentle weepers such as "Don't Say You Love Me", "When I Hold You in My Arms" and the softly lilting title track recall Young's aforementioned 1992 work while suggesting that the once-outspoken social critic and on-again, off-again CSN&Y member is mellowing. Further proof of that can be found in the tender opening song, "You're My Girl"--a postcard from a father to a daughter on the cusp of adulthood and presumably inspired by Young's daughter Amber--as well as in the lazy, languid "Two Old Friends". Are You Passionate?'s one serious clunker, "Let's Roll", was inspired by the 9/11 cell-phone call Todd Beamer placed moments before he and other passengers on Flight 93 went down in a Pennsylvania field. You can't fault the guy for commemorating a heroic act and making a personal donation to the Beamer family, but all his talk of "going after Satan on the wings of a dove" and "facing down evil" sounds like a guy who's spent more time watching CNN than honing his lyrics. --Kim Hughes

CD Description
Following 2000's 'Silver & Gold' - a return to his early 70's folk sound of 'After The Goldrush' - 'Are You Passionate'has a fuller, band sound. Young recruited members of BookerT & The MG's for the majority of the album. However, the track 'Goin' Home' features the full line-up of his long time collaborators, Crazy Horse.

Customer Reviews

Neil's bares his soul on his finest in years.........
Got the CD through the mail this morning and have listened to it a few times now, so I feel able to give it a fair review.

Let me start by saying I hated Let's Roll, and was not possitive about this collaboration with Booker T at all. How wrong I was! This is a very good Neil Young album -- and more importantly, a very DIFFERENT album. I am sure that this will split fans down the middle.

I would describe it as Neil's "Soul" album. Here are a few preliminary comments about the songs...

You're My Girl -- A weak start, I think. It's a nice enough song, borrowing music from This Note's For You's Sunny Inside. Unfortunately it's spoiled for me by Neil's out of tune, fragile singing.

Mr.Disappointment -- Wow, where did this come from? Very odd, very good. Is Neil almost rapping? Love the guitar.

Differently -- Again a strong track. Funky melody, nice backing singing. Weird feedback ending.

Don't Say You Love Me - We all know this song from last year's Euro Tour with the Horse. Nicely done here with Booker T.

Let's Roll -- Well, I just don't like this song. BUT... this longer version (5:45) is stronger, and there is some nice guitar work towards the end.

Are You Passionate? -- Lovely song, nice piano, beautiful lyrics, can't fault this at all.

Going Home -- Not the tour de force that it was live in Europe. Here it's less of a battle cry, more like a homecoming. It features a really odd ending -- the band is in full flow, Neil's ripping notes out of the guitar... then crunch, screech, it stops (and the next song starts). No idea what that is all about...

When I Hold You In My Arms -- Again a song we all know from last summer. Again a nice version.

Be With You -- Very obvious R&B feel to this one. Probably the most up-tempo song on the album. But to me, one of the weaker tracks. Not that I don't like it, it's just that it doesn't seem as well constructed as the rest.

Two Old Friends -- I wasn't sure about the live CSNY version of this one, but this studio version is is much, much better.

She's A Healer -- I just love this track. The really superb groove, the lovely muted horn -- a great ending to the album. Pretty sure this one will fly when played live. Ace guitar work throughout.

Hard to decide how highly I would rate this against Neil's other work, simply because it is so different. But I will be bold and say it's his best work in ten years! My friends Bry and Mark and I have been playing this album in rotation for the last week, and we all agree that it is Neil's strongest and bravest material in many, many years. An absolute pleasure to listen too.

Andrew Byrom

Don't believe the critics
Very surprised at tales of poor reviews - why? This is a great album with a really distinctive sound compared to other albums - very 'soul' in the best possible way. It seems to me a pretty distinctive departure in Young's canon, at times similar to the feel of some of the slower cuts on 'This Note's for You' - but more subtle/less stylised.

Aside from a weak vocal performance in the first song, I'm finding 'Are You Passionate?' more and more engaging with each listen. Like with 'Silver and Gold', things which initially seemed too simplistic or naive become legitimate musical statements, like the extended play out at the end of 'Differently'.

There are some really great songs here, 'Mr Disappointment', 'Don't Say You Love Me', and the title track. 'When I hold you in my arms' is personally my favourite at this point. Like much of the sentiment of 'Silver and Gold' it's a song about growing old from the perspective of an older man.

Overall the album has a wonderful feel - with great musicianship most notable in the final track, 'She's a Healer', with its stunning instrumental sections.

Overall a fine record.

No disappointment
I suspect this album was a bit to subtle for some of the critics - not to mention some of the fans at Brixton the other night. I hated it at first listen, but its charms become apparent with repeated spins and the title track in particular is very insistent. Some of the vocal performances are a touch weak and strained, but the musicianship is outstanding, and Young's guitar playing much more lyrical than on any album since This Note's For You. The classic Going Home might have been better saved for the next Horse album, which would have made this one trimmer and perhaps more unified, but I'm not going to complain. I seem to be one of the few people who quite like Let's Roll - I certainly don't share the political sentiments expressed in that totally stupid and absurd last bridge, but otherwise the song works quite well and has a suitably menacing quality which worked brilliantly live. Top tracks - Are You Passionate, Mr Disappointment, She's A Healer, Two Old Friends. And if you buy it, give it time.