Neil Young

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Neil Young Online Store
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Neil Young Online Store

Jim Jarmusch's 1995 film Dead Man was dubbed by the director as a "psychedelic western." With a cast including Johnny Depp, Billy Bob Thornton, Crispin Glover, and Iggy Pop, the surreal period piece is set in the bleak 19th-century Old West and follows an accountant named William Blake who's on the run after a murder. Blake encounters Nobody, a guide who believes Blake to be the famous poet.

Underscoring the proceedings is a Neil Young soundtrack that's as vast as the film. Consisting of seven improvised instrumentals on electric and acoustic guitars, as well as organ. The improvisations evoke the desolation of the film. As Jarmusch said, "What he brought to the film lifts it to another level, intertwining the soul of the story with Neil's musically emotional reaction to it -- the guy reached down into some deep place inside him to create such strong music for our film." In between music pieces, there's also readings of Blake's poetry, recited by Johnny Depp, along with dialog from the film.

Fourteen years ago, the soundtrack was originally released on CD and LP. These days, an original vinyl copy commands three-digit prices. Thankfully, fans won't have to shell out that kind of money for a vinyl copy much longer. The soundtrack to Dead Man has been reissued on Vapor Records on CD or as a 2-LP set, boasting newly remastered audio, along with liner notes by director Jim Jarmusch.