Neil Young – Somewhere Under the Rainbow 1973 (Live) (2023) [FLAC 24bit/192kHz]

Neil Young – Somewhere Under the Rainbow 1973 (Live) (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:28:08 minutes | 2,96 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reprise

In a night of high-wire performances and semi-unhinged sonics, the concert has taken on a mythic legend in the past 50 years. All the musicians were in a free-form state of mind and swung for the fences on every track. The double-disc album captures a sound and soul that still resonates loudly for its daring, and among Neil Young fans is an achievement that is as unconventional as it is unforgettable. Recording engineer Pete Long’s liner notes dive right into the thick of the controversial concert, and help listeners relive a place and time that won’t be repeated.Recorded at London’s Rainbow Theater in November of 1973, Somewhere Under the Rainbow captures Neil Young at the height of the Tonight’s the Night era, having finished that tumultuous album just months earlier and already taking the material to the stage. The Santa Monica Flyers, Neil’s backing band on this tour, consisted of pedal steel player Ben Keith, bassist Billy Talbot, drummer Ralph Molina, and Nils Lofgren jumping between piano, guitar, and even occasional accordion. As with so many of the entries in Neil Young’s Official Bootleg Series, Somewhere Under the Rainbow circulated as a rough audience recorded bootleg for decades before this official release, and professional mastering can only polish the raw sound quality to a certain point. For this kind of live document, the imperfections are part of the charm. Though boomy renditions of “Albuquerque” and “Mellow My Mind” sound like they’re transmitting from the other side of a football field, there’s a warm gelling of the vocals and instruments that doesn’t happen with more defined multi-track recordings. Anyone deep enough into the Neil bootleg rabbit hole is probably already aware of Roxy Tonight’s the Night Live, a far clearer recording of a club date that happened a few months after the Rainbow gig. Roxy has the same backing band and a similar set list, but the two nights carry significantly different energies. While Neil seems to be in loose, jokey form on both, Somewhere Under the Rainbow tones things down for a string of acoustic numbers that weren’t a part of the more rocking Roxy date. This begins with a long, ghostly take on “Tonight’s the Night” (the second time in the set the band plays the tune), the Buffalo Springfield-era song “Flying on the Ground Is Wrong,” the always moving “Helpless,” and several others. The night ends with a burning rendition of “Cowgirl in the Sand.” Neil’s voice cracks a little, and there’s an especially wobbly quality to the way the band moves through the 12-plus-minute jam on the song, but it works with the rest of the set. Somewhere Under the Rainbow manages to feel intimate and hushed even when it’s rocking hard and spilling out messily. All of the Official Bootleg Series releases are valuable documents of various phases of Neil’s career, but this one has a personality that sets it apart. – Fred Thomas

Tracklist:

1-01. Neil Young – Tonight’s the Night (Live) (06:05)
1-02. Neil Young – Mellow My Mind (Live) (03:23)
1-03. Neil Young – World on a String (Live) (03:26)
1-04. Neil Young – Speakin’ Out (Live) (05:48)
1-05. Neil Young – Albuquerque (Live) (04:25)
1-06. Neil Young – New Mama (Live) (03:15)
1-07. Neil Young – Roll Another Number (For the Road) (Live) (05:02)
1-08. Neil Young – Tired Eyes (Live) (05:57)
1-09. Neil Young – Tonight’s the Night – Part II (Live) (12:28)
1-10. Neil Young – Flying on the Ground Is Wrong (Live) (05:24)
1-11. Neil Young – Human Highway (Live) (04:04)
1-12. Neil Young – Helpless (Live) (09:28)
1-13. Neil Young – Don’t Be Denied (Live) (06:18)
1-14. Neil Young – Cowgirl in the Sand (Live) (12:58)

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