Some of the songs had been around for a while, and while he toured with Crazy Horse to support it, for the album he went for a sound akin to three guys in a garage studio with a bunch of synthesizers. It’s still unknown what co-conspirators Danny Kortchmar and Steve Jordan think of the album, but it’s not encouraging when Trans can be said to be a success in comparison to this clunker.
As a lead track, “Weight Of The World” sets up the carnage to follow, and the video is hideous. “Violent Side” sports a contemporary riff, but it’s doesn’t sound enough like Neil Young to please David Geffen, and to add an occasional boys’ choir into the mix is simply cruel and unusual punishment. “Hippie Dream” might have come off better had it germinated until the ‘60s revival a year later; now we can hear it as a reaction to David Crosby’s recent slide. “Bad News Beat” sounds like an outtake from the last Don Henley album (thanks, Kootch) and did you ever think you’d hear Neil sing “she’s so on fire, she’s my desire”, much less write it? “Touch The Night” is a less successful rewrite of “Like A Hurricane” with impenetrable lyrics, and there’s that boys’ choir again. At least the video was clever.
In case you hadn’t heard, “People On The Street” “need a place to go”, and he’ll keep telling you that. (The video completely deflates whatever compassion he was trying to convey.) “Hard Luck Stories” mixes it up between the dull hook and the verses, but irritation with other people’s issues is badly balanced with “I Got A Problem”. “Pressure” is upbeat and snappy, but not exactly a new sentiment; it too had a wacky video, and some good screams. Finally, “Drifter” features an annoying guitar line that Sting would steal for his next hit single, and some good sludge in his solo, but that’s about it.
Landing On Water is an ugly, ugly-sounding album that leaves a bad taste. Occasionally there’s a riff or a moment that gives you hope, but these are never followed up. It was his worst to date, a feat he hopefully won’t try to repeat, and not a good sign for the future.
Neil Young Landing On Water (1986)—2
Yes, this one is horrid. The only song I can sit through is "Touch the Night."
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, it took me years to understand the album. But one day, my ears opened for 'Landing on Water'.
ReplyDeleteYes, it sounds ugly, but the same thing can be said about the electric songs on 'Time Fades Away'.
Like 'Tonight's The Night', it's an album about despair and stress.
It's a great piece of art and avant garde. But I understand if not every one can relate to this.
Howerver, Neil Young himself considers this to this day as one of his best albums! And he's right.
The second time I saw Neil was on this tour. An interesting set -- a garage, with Crazy Horse as a garage band, and complete with a "phone call" mid-show from a "neighbor" telling them to turn it down. He did four songs from the album, and they came off well.
ReplyDeleteThe difference, of course, was Crazy Horse. I don't think that the actual songs are bad. There are some decent lyrics and good hooks. It's the horrible, inexplicable production -- thin synths, guitars (and sometimes vocals) turned down, and the drums turned WAY up. It's unfortunate. I can't help feel that if he had recorded the songs with Crazy Horse and used the synths more sparsely, the album would at least be as listenable as "Reactor", if more serious.
I find "People on the Street" interesting, because it sounds like something David Crosby might have written. Speaking of whom, "Hippie Dream", which is the song on the album that sounds closest to more traditional Neil, seems to be addressed to Croz himself. It was a little unfair for Neil to kick him when he was down -- way down, as in prison at that time. In the concert, Neil drove the point home by preceding it with "The Needle and the Damage Done". "Touch the Night" is another favorite. I think the lyrics are pretty straightforward. It's about a guy who gets in a car accident after a breakup and walks away from the crash in a daze. Interesting song.
The show was an interesting setlist, as usual. A couple from "Trans", a couple more from "Rust Never Sleeps" (yay), and a bunch of "Decade" classics , including "Mr. Soul" (!!). He also did 5 songs that would end on "Life", more than from the album he was supposedly promoting. All great, but "Long Walk Home" got the biggest response. There was another new song, "Road of Plenty", but I don't think it ever resurfaced after the tour.
The tour begat the Life album, so I'm hoping in time this album will make more sense to me. As for "Road Of Plenty", it would evolve into "Eldorado".
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