Its hard for me to pick my favorite Neil Young album, its like picking a favorite son or daughter to some people. But On The Beach is up there with the best of them including Tonights The Night, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, After The Gold Rush, etc. The album was recorded after Tonights The Night but released before, in true Neil Young fashion no one really knows why he does the things he does.
Starting off the album is Walk On. The song is upbeat and uplifting. Its seems more of a way for Neil to deal with the problems and troubles in his life. Especially after the death of Danny (Crazy Horse guitarist and singer) and Bruce Berry (Neils roadie) both dear friends of Neil. In the song hes basically saying no matter what life throws at you just walk on through. Perfect opener to the album.
See the sky about to rain flows in next with a beautiful piano intro. The song has a twangy feel from it useing slide guitars played by Ben Keith. I like the song but its not one of my favorites.
Coming in next with a bullet is Revolution Blues. Written about Charles Manson its one of the darkest songs Neil has ever written, which is saying alot if you ever heard his Tonights The Night album. David Crosby once said that the song scared him so much that he would not play it at concerts. He could barely listen to it. Young wrote it about Manson after meeting the man himself while he was living in Topanga Canyon. "We live in a trailer at the edge of town, you never see us cause we dont come around" is the first line of the song that grabs ahold of you and you feel taken away back to the days of the Manson murders. The song is brilliantly written and is one of my favorites on the album.
By far my favorite song on this album is For The Turnstiles. Its has a bluegrass feel to it with Neil playing banjo on it and Ben Keith singing backup. I love this song its just what Neil is all about, diversity. He can write a hard rocking song, then a bluesy song, bluegrass, the man can do what he feels like doing and make it sound good and For the turnstiles is proof that he can do it all. If there was one song on On The Beach that i would suggest for someone to hear it would be For The Turnstiles.
Next is a Neils attempt to write a silly blues song. Vampire Blues comes out of nowhere. "Good times are coming, i hear it everywhere i go, good times are coming, but they sure are coming slow", the line suggest that Neil knows things will get better but not for a while. Young loves writing about his life and thats what makes him a great songwriter, it separates him from the crowd.
The title track On The Beach starts off side 2 of the album. It has a lethargic kind of feel to it. A slower beat and song structure but amazing lyrics. The song runs about 7 minutes long but worth every minute of it. An array of beautiful solos are thrown in there time and time again showcasing Neils guitar work. Its why he is considered by many as one of the greatest and underrated guitarists of all time.
Motion Pictures is Youngs tribute or elegy to actress Carrie Snodgress who Neil had a huge crush on from first sight. Its a beautiful song but is very hard to follow cause Neils voice is a little low and hard to understand at times.
Next is the beautiful and lengthy Ambulance Blues. Full of acoustic guitar and a sweet voice straight from Neils soul. The song was hugely influences unintentionally by Bert Jansch's song Needle Of Death. Its a beautiful yet angry song, it speaks strongly about his critics, Richard Nixon and his relationship with CSNY. The line "your just pissing in the wind" comes straight from CSNYs manager regarding their relationships. Its also the longest song on the album racking up 9 minutes of angry lyrics and harmonica solos.
On The Beach was wrote off as a flop at its first release by critics. But in later years it was considered one of Youngs best albums by fans and critics worldwide. The recording sessions of the album reflected on the album. Rusty Kershaw (slide guitar and fiddle) would make his famous honey slides which was a goop of sauteed marijuana and honey that you would eat. It would put you in a state of mind that matched that of heroin. You can tell how the mood changed on the album the later it went into it, more slow and laid back. Enjoy On The Beach.
