“Good To See You” is a nice way to start things off, a lovely hello to his wife who only occasionally toured with him. The title track had been around since the “country” days; after several tries this version was worth the wait. “Daddy Went Walkin’” is a near-bluegrass nursery rhyme, a wild-eyed child’s view of home and hearth with the cat and dog. “Buffalo Springfield Again” is exactly what it sounds like. The music doesn’t sound like them, but the lyrics are factual, as he states outright that he’d like to play with them again just for the fun they had, and isn’t that the point? “The Great Divide” has a pleasant melody holding together some ambiguously dangerous words.
“Horseshoe Man” takes him back to the piano to sing about love. (He could probably do a full-fledged kids album and folks of all ages would enjoy it.) Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt add their voices to “Red Sun” to make the whole piece sound like Tucson. “Distant Camera” is another spooky love song, followed by the long but fascinating “Razor Love”. About as old as the title track and held back till it was ready, it has two chords all the way through, except for the “greedy hand” section. “Without Rings” seems to be another stream-of-consciousness tune in common with “Music Arcade” from Broken Arrow. Performed completely solo, it ends the album—ten songs in 40 minutes—with a sigh.
In a time when “artists” took twice the time he took (whether he’d wait nine months or 39 months), Neil consistently managed to turn up with quality. Dylan learned that lesson at the end of the century too—just wait till you have something to say, and don’t speak up sooner. There’s nary a clunker on Silver & Gold, and his tracks from Looking Forward are the missing pieces.
Neil Young Silver & Gold (2000)—3½
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