PRE-ORDER FROM NEIL YOUNG'S ONLINE STORE
UPDATE 10/23/2020: It's been a long time since Neil Young released his last Archives box set. In the intervening 11 years since Neil released Archives, Volume 1: 1963-1972, fans have endlessly speculated what might be on Volume 2 - or if it might happen at all.
Well, it's happening. The 10-CD Neil Young Archives, Volume 2: 1972-1976 box set will be released on November 20. The links to pre-order are live for the limited, deluxe edition set of 3,000 units which is available exclusively through Neil Young's Greedy Hand Online Store. A digital edition will also be available on Neil Young Archives and all major digital services.
On October 23, Neil announced that slimmer editions will follow in the year to come. This will be welcome news to those who may have missed out on the high-demand box set. His full statement is as follows:
Reprise Records, my record company for about 50 years, underestimated the demand for Archives VOLUME II. We were all surprised. It is a beautiful package that I am proud to have made for you. I do feel badly that we did not deliver it to many who were waiting so long for it.
We don't feel that offering more of a product sold as a limited edition is a good thing to do. Thank you to all who purchased this set.
In 2021 we will be offering more Archives VOLUME II products as Reprise had originally planned, available in all outlets. These, while not the boxed set, will offer all of the of the music and discs with a smaller book. The original large book will be available for separate sale.
Thanks! NYA
In its limited edition box set format, Archives, Volume 2 will be sequenced chronologically to spotlight the astonishingly prolific period lovingly referred to as the Ditch Years. The box contains a staggering 131 tracks from Neil's personal archive. Of those, 12 songs have never been released by Neil in any form before, a further 49 songs are presented in previously unheard versions. And though recent releases Homegrown, Tuscaloosa, and Roxy: Tonight's The Night Live are all repeated here, there's plenty of completely unheard material to satisfy any fan of this era.
The discs are packaged in a deluxe box similar in size to the Archives Vol. 1 Blu-ray box set (though do note there will only be CDs in this volume!). The discs are housed in individual card sleeves and are presented alongside a 252-page book full of rare photos, memorabilia, and archival material. You'll also get a timeline and tape database reference and a Neil Young Archives "file cabinet poster." This deluxe box set will be limited to only 3,000 copies. worldwide. That's right, Neil has launched new web stores for Canada and the UK. This should help alleviate those long shipping times, fees, and other grievances that come with ordering abroad, plus each webstore will have its own dedicated customer service team.
If that weren't enough, you'll also get access to high-resolution 24-bit/192kHz digital files of all 131 tracks, and a free one-year membership to Neil Young Archives.
Let's take a look at what's inside!
The box begins with Everybody's Alone, a disc of tracks recorded in the wake of Harvest and into 1973. A sort of alternate version of Time Fades Away, the disc includes unreleased versions of that song, "L.A.," "The Loner," "Monday Morning" (otherwise known as "Last Dance"), "The Bridge," and "Human Highway." The long-awaited unreleased tracks "Letter From 'Nam," "Come and Say You Will," "Goodbye Christmas on the Shore," and "Sweet Joni" round out the disc.
CD 2 contains Tuscaloosa, the 2019 release that features 11 songs from Neil Young and The Stray Gators' set at the University of Alabama in February 1973. It's followed by an expanded Tonight's The Night featuring an unheard jam on "Speaking Out," an alternate version of "Everybody's Alone," and - very surprising given her stance on outtakes - the long-rumored jam between Neil Young and Joni Mitchell on "Raised On Robbery." The song from her Court and Spark album is said to be treated completely differently here. "It kicks ass..." Neil says in his book, Waging Heavy Peace. "It was funkier than anything she has ever cut. A total gem!" Next up, CD 4 includes an expanded Roxy: Tonight's The Night Live. Originally released in 2018, these raw live versions are supplemented with a live cut of "The Losing End."
An alternate On The Beach follows on the fifth CD, called Walk On. In addition to the studio cuts that we've known for decades, it includes the unreleased song "Greensleeves," an alternate version of "Traces," and a Beach-era outtake of what must be Neil's favorite, "Bad Fog of Loneliness."
CD 6 is called This Old Homestead and seems to mirror Young's vision for what he called Homefires. A companion to the recently released Homegrown (which itself appears as CD 7), Homestead features tracks that were prepared for that album alongside songs intended for CSNY's brief and tumultuous reunion. It's a disc that's full of sought-after material, including "L.A. Boys and Ocean Girls" (which became part of Zuma's "Danger Bird"), an unreleased version of "Pushed It Over the End," "Changing Highways." The clutch of Homegrown outtakes includes unheard versions of "Love/Art Blues," "Give Me Strength," "Bad News Comes to Town," plus the never-before-heard songs "Homefires," "Frozen Man," and "Daughters." The unreleased music continues on CD 8, Dume, which collects classics from Zuma and eight session outtakes, including the unreleased "Born To Run" (an original song, not the Bruce Springsteen classic). CD 9, Look Out For My Love, brings together songs from the aborted CSNY album that became The Stills-Young Band's Long May You Run, plus tracks that were eventually released on American Stars 'n' Bars and Comes A Time.
The set closes out with a collection that Neil has been teasing for years, Odeon Budokan. The 10-track disc presumably mirrors an original track listing for a proposed live album featuring a resurrected Crazy Horse. It features a blend of acoustic and electric material, recent songs and fan favorites from across his career. Among them are "After The Gold Rush," "Cowgirl in the Sand," "Old Man" as well as "Lotta Love," "Stringman," "Too Far Gone," and more.
You can make your purchase of Neil Young Archives, Volume 2: 1972-1976 at the Greedy Hand Online Store at Neil Young Archives - and get a taste of what you'll get with these unboxing videos and trailers.
Unboxing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE_CxA02fd0
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oExYA4qLJwk
Neil Young, Archives, Volume 2: 1972-1976 (Reprise, 2020) (Greedy Hand US / Greedy Hand UK / Greedy Hand Canada)
* = previously unreleased song
# = new unreleased version
Disc 1 (1972-1973) - Everybody's Alone
- Letter From 'Nam *
- Monday Morning #
- The Bridge #
- Time Fades Away #
- Come Along and Say You Will *
- Goodbye Christmas on the Shore *
- Last Trip to Tulsa
- The Loner #
- Sweet Joni *
- Yonder Stands the Sinner
- L.A. (Story)
- L.A. #
- Human Highway #
Track 7 released as B-side to "Time Fades Away," Reprise Records single REP-1184, 1973.
Track 10 released on Time Fades Away, Reprise Records LP MS-2151, 1973.
Disc 2 (1973) - Tuscaloosa
- Here We Go in the Years
- After the Gold Rush
- Out on the Weekend
- Harvest
- Old Man
- Heart of Gold
- Time Fades Away
- Lookout Joe
- New Mama
- Alabama
- Don't Be Denied
All tracks released on Tuscaloosa, Reprise Records LP 587621-1, 2019.
Disc 3 (1973) - Tonight's the Night
- Speakin' Out Jam #
- Everybody's Alone #
- Tired Eyes
- Tonight's the Night
- Mellow My Mind
- World on a String
- Speakin' Out
- Raised on Robbery [with Joni Mitchell] *
- Roll Another Number (For The Road)
- New Mama
- Albuquerque
- Tonight's the Night Part II
Tracks 3-7, 9-12 released on Tonight's The Night, Reprise Records LP MS-2221, 1975.
Disc 4 (1973) - Roxy: Tonight's the Night Live
- Tonight's the Night
- Mellow My Mind
- World on a String
- Speakin' Out
- Albuquerque
- New Mama
- Roll Another Number
- Tired Eyes
- Tonight's the Night Part II
- Walk On
- The Losing End #
Tracks 1-10 released on Reprise Records LP 566051-1, 2018.
Disc 5 (1974) - Walk On
- Winterlong
- Walk On
- Bad Fog of Loneliness #
- Borrowed Tune
- Traces #
- For the Turnstiles
- Ambulance Blues
- Motion Pictures
- On the Beach
- Revolution Blues
- Vampire Blues
- Greensleeves *
Track 1 released on Decade, Reprise Records LP 3RS-2257, 1977.
Track 2, 6-11 released on On The Beach, Reprise Records LP R-2180, 1974.
Track 4 released on Tonight's The Night, Reprise Records LP MS-2221, 1975.
Disc 6 (1974) - The Old Homestead
- Love/Art Blues #
- Through My Sails #
- Homefires *
- Pardon My Heart #
- Hawaiian Sunrise #
- LA Girls and Ocean Boys *
- Pushed It Over the End #
- On the Beach #
- Vacancy #
- One More Sign #
- Frozen Man *
- Give Me Strength #
- Bad News Comes to Town #
- Changing Highways #
- Love/Art Blues #
- The Old Homestead
- Daughters *
- Deep Forbidden Lake
- Love/Art Blues #
Track 16 releases on Hawks & Doves, Reprise Records LP HS-2297, 1980.
Track 18 released on Decade, Reprise Records LP 3RS-2257, 1977.
Disc 7 (1974) - Homegrown
- Separate Ways
- Try
- Mexico
- Love Is a Rose
- Homegrown
- Florida
- Kansas
- We Don't Smoke It No More
- White Line
- Vacancy
- Little Wing
- Star of Bethlehem
All tracks released on Homegrown, Reprise Records CD 2-628761, 2020.
Disc 8 (1975) - Dume
- Ride My Llama #
- Cortez the Killer
- Don't Cry No Tears
- Born to Run *
- Barstool Blues
- Danger Bird
- Stupid Girl
- Kansas #
- Powderfinger #
- Hawaii #
- Drive Back
- Lookin' for a Love
- Pardon My Heart
- Too Far Gone #
- Pocahontas #
- No One Seems to Know #
Track 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 11-13 released on Zuma, Reprise Records LP MS-2242, 1975.
Disc 9 (1976) - Look Out for My Love
- Like a Hurricane
- Lotta Love
- Look Out For My Love
- Separate Ways #
- Let It Shine #
- Long May You Run
- Fontainebleau
- Traces #
- Mellow My Mind #
- Midnight on the Bay #
- Stringman #
- Mediterranean *
- Ocean Girl #
- Midnight on the Bay #
- Human Highway #
Track 1 released on American Stars 'n Bars, Reprise Records LP MSK-2261, 1977.
Tracks 2 and 3 released on Comes A Time, Reprise Records LP MSK-2266, 1978.
Tracks 6 and 7 released on Long May You Run, Reprise Records LP MS-2253, 1976.
Disc 10 (1976) - Odeon Budokan
- The Old Laughing Lady #
- After the Gold Rush #
- Too Far Gone #
- Old Man #
- Stringman #
- Don't Cry No Tears #
- Cowgirl in the Sand #
- Lotta Love #
- Drive Back #
- Cortez the Killer #
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Preorder link is dead
At the link, "Archives Vol.2" is already gone. Probably sold wthin minutes.And just like Bob Dylan's limited "Copyright Extension" collections (200 to 1000 copies of each were pressed), most fans will obtain the recordings through illegal download sites. Thanks for nothing, Neil. I would have bought the CD set, but I'll never pay for files. Why bother to post YouTube promotional videos for something which is absolutely unobtainable?
I don't think the Dylan comparison makes sense at all. The two products serve very different purposes.
The "deluxe" description of NYA2 suggests there's an as-yet-unannounced "standard" edition, probably just the CDs in a smaller box, as with NYA1. I don't see any reason to panic or leap to "thanks for nothing, Neil" -- he's been working on this for years, and has no reason to limit his sales by ONLY offering a "limited, deluxe" edition of this box.
I'm no fan of the ridiculous packaging craze or the artificial scarcity craze or the three-different-media-formats-in-a-box craze or any number of other developments in the commercial music industry, and I am certainly not paying $250 for NYA2. But come on -- the idea that, after years and years of buildup and anticipation, this thing would essentially be available for sale for a couple hours on a Friday in the middle of October and then never again in any other physical form is really just not all that believable to me. I'm happy to be patient and wait for the inevitable "music only" edition.
I hope you’re right, but either way “WTF are Neil and his people thinking?”
If this is a one-time deal, it’s really disappointing to the fans who missed out and would have happily paid money for another physical set and if there is a later “non-deluxe” edition, it won’t make anyone who got one of the 3000 copies happy.
I have to agree with Tom. Makes no sense that it wouldn't be released in a CD only format.
Are we sure it’s sold out?
Apparently, not. Reportedly, the set appeared, then disappeared from Young's "Greedy Hand" online store a few times. The last time that I looked, it was again available, and I ordered it....at an appallingly high $267 bottom line price.
Hi everyone, thanks for reading and joining in the excitement! An update for you...
Team Neil has reported that the box set is NOT SOLD OUT. It turns out the link to the US site went live early and was taken down. That certainly explains the lack of promotion so far on Neil's own website and preferred socials, and the lack of promised merchandise and international storefronts.
We'll continue to monitor and update once things are a go.
AMAZING! Thank you, Sam! Did they give you any idea when the link will go live, so we don't all have to sit hitting refresh for hours?
Looking into this now.
Bummed beyond belief. I got up early this morning to look and there was no preorder link yet. Had to work for a few hours and now they're gone already, which means a fair amount went to resellers who are going to want astronomical prices on eBay. This recently unemployed fan is super depressed.
Don't despair yet! Team Neil reported that it's not sold out, they just posted the link early so it was pulled.
Sam , Any idea when actual link to buy vol 2 will be active?
Thanks Dave
I'm going to ask an obvious question. Why is this a limited edition? Or, to be more specific, why is this limited to 3000 units? Why can't they simply post a pre-order link and then manufacture enough units to fill the pre-orders?
I have every Neil Young original album, all the reissues and lots of bootlegs: everything bar Archives Vol One.
I have no intention of buying Archives Vol Two. This is a ridiculous, indefensible package - with Neil reselling and repackaged piles of his previously releases Archive series.
I could not care less about an even blatant exploitation Limited Edition deluxe version which is just the icing on the cake of rip off corporate culture (and the sort of thing Neil Young has on occasion written songs railing against). Neil Young might musically have his heart in the right place but on this he is a rotten hypocrite. Am not sure I will ever buy a new Neil Young album which is hardly a loss given the last really good one was Psychedelic Pill nearly twenty years ago.
Damn Gerry, I must be really bad at math since in my world 2012 was only 8 years ago, which is nothing like "nearly twenty."
Good riposte. It just seems like twenty years with the amount of Neil Young product put onto the market. I would say Psychedelic Pill is the only really good NY album in the past 20 years.
In!
It's back now!
https://neilyoung.warnerrecords.com/neil-young-archives-ii-pre-order.html
Got one at 4, thanks for saying it didn't sell out earlier!
Thanks Sam ,
Have preordered copy of vol 2 , hope more are made available as 3000 copies will never meet demand
Cheers for info and updates!
Dave
250.00. No, thanks. Not for me. Probably 500 will end up on ebay for at least 500.00. Thank you for NOTHING, Neil.
For NYA1, the audio-only retail package was 8 discs and did not represent *all* the audio in the big box product, leaving out the audio from "Journey Through the Past". That remains the only album in Neil's catalog that has not been issued on CD, but Warners/Reprise created that product in order to have a soundtrack album with Neil's name attached to it, so it's no surprise we haven't seen it in Neil's reissue program. Given that the new box is entirely audio this time, I wonder if the tracklists will match between deluxe and retail versions?
But the two exclusive recordings on the "A Journey Through The Past" soundtrack ("Soldier" & the long version of "Words") have appeared on CD, both of them on "Archives Vol.1".
"Soldier" was also released on "Decade"
UK shop is up and running, too. Added to the post.
Link is live again. Just got my order in $249.99
$400 Canadian. This is an incredibly obscene price point.
As far as the “access to” the hi-Rez files, are they downloadable for my computer hard drive and Pono player use or does access to mean I can only listen from Neil Young’s site?
You will get the hi-res 24-bit/192kHz files as downloads. The set will no doubt also be available on the Neil Young Archives website to stream.
Expensive, but it does come with a complementary one year NYA subscription and a hi res digital download of the set.
Canadian store is also up, links updated!
Ridiculously overpriced but I was able to get my copy and see that there’s still sets available six later.
I didn’t know I was one of the top 3,000 Neil Young fans in the world with slightly too much disposable income and a sucker‘s, er, I mean, collector’s mentality.
Six hours later, I meant.
Hopefully there will be a CD release available later on.
Got an email at one minute past midnight in the Uk tried this morning first thing already sold out in Europe at an obscene £210 fir 7 new discs and three already released Neil has pissed off so many of his real fans with this ridiculous marketing
I hope there will be a smaller package eventfully similar to the 8-disc NYA1 standard edition box set (without the book and gigantic packaging). Anyone know if a standard edition is coming, or is the deluxe edition the only edition?
Young now says that he is "planning" another edition, and that it will be
"Unique".
Jeez - I'm really glad everyone is getting this. So happy for you.
I guess there are no fans in Australia worth worrying about.
This is weird.
I'm going to have to pass on this one. I've been a major NY fan since Buffalo Springfield, and I have to say, at this time, that Neil has frustrated me for the last time. The pricing is obscene. A limited edition of 3000? He's filled concert halls that have seated more than that. Sorry, Neil,
A question: are the high res downloads of the entire box only available for purchasers of the Deluxe Edition, which is currently showing for $339.99? Or does the Retail Edition, at $210.99 also include the high res downloads? I'm talking about the editions currently offered at The Greedy Hand Warners Canada store.l
Being very much a high res guy, I'd love to get this box in high res...but don't know if I want to pay an extra $119 for a bigger book and the downloads.
Thanks, in advance, for any clarity...
Cheers!
Dave