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On Friday, Neil Young and Promise of the Real announced a new live album that will takes its place as No. 21 in the artist's Neil Young Archives Performance Series of releases. Noise and Flowers is due on August 5 from Reprise Records in a variety of formats including CD, LP, and digitally; concurrently, a concert film of the same material will be issued on standalone Blu-ray and as part of a 2LP/1CD/1BD Deluxe Edition box set.
Young has been playing with Promise of the Real since 2015, and the band (featuring Willie Nelson's sons Lukas and Micah on guitars, Corey McCormick on bass, Tato Melgar on percussion, and Anthony LoGerfo on drums) has previously released two studio albums and one live set with the troubadour. Noise and Flowers was recorded during Young and Promise of the Real's brief 2019 tour which kicked off just two weeks following the passing of Young's longtime manager Elliot Roberts at the age of 76. During the concerts, Young performed with a photograph of Roberts taped on his road case, and he considered the retrospective shows to be celebratory tributes to his fallen friend.
The setlist encompassed much of the artist's considerable history, with songs from the Buffalo Springfield days ("Mr. Soul") and CSNY ("Helpless"); familiar cuts ("Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere," "Are You Ready for the Country") and deep tracks from Young's indelible seventies oeuvre ("On the Beach," "Comes a Time," "Field of Opportunity"); and a clutch of '90s throwbacks ("F***in' Up," "Throw Your Hatred Down," and the anthemic "Rockin' in the Free World"). Young and Promise's rendition of "From Hank to Hendrix," a song which originally appeared on 1992's Harvest Moon, is currently streaming to preview the new album.
Young comments in the album's liner notes of Roberts, "Playing in his memory [made it] one of the most special tours ever. We hit the road and took his great spirit with us into every song. This music belongs to no one. It's in the air. Every note was played for music's great friend, Elliot." The Noise and Flowers concert film has been directed by the ever-mysterious Bernard Shakey and dhlovelife. Look for the album August 5 on CD and double vinyl everywhere. The digital release will be available at the Neil Young Archives Xstream store and most digital providers including Dolby Atmos/Spatial. Those who purchase the vinyl or CD from Young's Greedy Hand Store will receive a high-resolution download, too. The Deluxe box set is available everywhere, with the standalone Blu-ray exclusive to the Greedy Hand. Got that? You'll find the Noise and Flowers tracklisting and pre-order links below.
Neil Young + Promise of the Real, Noise and Flowers (Reprise, 2022)
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP/CD/BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
BD and all formats: Greedy Hand Store
- Soul
- Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
- Helpless
- Field Of Opportunity
- Alabama
- Throw Your Hatred Down
- Rockin' In The Free World
- Comes A Time
- From Hank to Hendrix
- On The Beach
- Are You Ready For The Country
- I've Been Waiting For You
- Winterlong
- F***in' Up
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How many copies of these endless live albums sell? Neil puts one out very month it seems. So does Bruce, KISS and others. Are there people out there that wan't to purchase the same songs 50 times? Just curious.
But you haven't heard "Mr. Soul" or "Rockin' In The Free World" performed with this band!
I get what you mean, though, but I'm a willing victim/sucker for Neil's stuff. If he never recorded a proper version of "Sugar Mountain" in the studio, he sure found a way to sell it a half-dozen or more times on all the old solo concert releases from the last 15 years or so.
Me, I like them all, but I know I'm at a point where the amount of music I own means any given disc might get played just a few more times in my life if I want to be sure to hear all the others I have, so... time to start making better priorities and maybe fewer redundant listening choices.
Another disappointing NY release. When will Neil get that people much prefer complete shows. These POTR shows were marathon evenings. A single CD sampler is a disservice. Another one I won't be buying.