Recent Additions : Neil Young : Bluenote Cafe

In late 1987 and early 1988 Neil Young was touring his then new album This Note's For You.
While many hardcore fans now dismiss the album I certainly find it an interesting and challenging album.  It marked the return to the Reprise label after being sued by David Geffen for not making "Typical Neil Young Albums" while he was recording for the Geffen Label.

I think (theory according to me) that Neil may have been thumbing his nose at David Geffen and deliberately recorded a more commercial but still non typical album recorded a horns driven album for his for his return to Reprise.   Anyway it was a start to Young's renaissance both in terms of quality and successful.

I probably have about 6 or 7 Neil Young live albums and for all of his reputation for being contrarian most of the live albums have at least 50% classic songs (sometimes radically changed).  Sure some are loud rocking crazy horse albums while others are softer more acoustic ones, but generally they are held together by a selection of classic songs.

Thankfully Bluenight Cafe is very different to that.  If it had been just another live concert album with the old stuff a a few selections off the new album, I probably would not have bought it.  I have checked the set lists from the tour and the show generally consisted of 12 or 13 songs Only an extended jam of Tonight's The Night is really a nod to his more famous back catalogue.

Bluenight Cafe therefore seems to be a great documentation of that tour.  It collects all the songs that were played each night and then cherry picks the additional songs that may have only been played once on tour or ever.

So we get a solid version of Crime in The City  which would not be released until the next album Freedom, an early version with some different lyrics of Ordinary People (which would eventually see the light of day almost 20 years later but with 6 more minutes,  a beautiful version of Twilight with some subtle for Neil guitarwork,

Only played it once so far but this is a great addition to Neil Young's archive series.