Ragged Glory
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
1990
Album Summary
Ragged Glory is the 18th studio album by Canadian / American singer-songwriter Neil Young, and his sixth album with the band Crazy Horse. It was released by Reprise Records on September 9, 1990.
WikipediaYoung was not generally known as an artist who evoked the past this much, but if he could extend his creative rebirth with music this exhilarating, no one was likely to complain.
I like this sound, even though Neil Young's voice sounds somewhat out of place to me. The tone of the guitar made me wish I could pick it up and play along.
The title of this album describes it perfectly; it's rough around the edges but also glorious. One of Neil Young's best. Mostly raucous rockers, with a beautiful, majestic ballad to close the album. 4 stars.
Fun album. I'm familiar with Neil Young but haven't spent a ton of time listening to Neil Young. Definitely something I'd listen to again. There are a lot of bands that I do listen to - Band of Horses, Kings of Leons, Airborne Toxic Event - that suddenly I'm like "...oh, they probably grew up listening to Neil Young"
I always forget that Neil Young had a weird garage rock phase in the 90s… honestly, it always felt like the worst of both worlds for me.
I don't know what it is about Neil's voice but it just turns me off. Every song he opens his mouth in gets ruined.
I'm so sick of Neil Young's bullshit. "You know what we do too much of? Thinking about making good music. Let's just play some stuff in a barn. People will buy that." Screw you, Neil Young. This albums sounds exactly like what it is: a half-assed attempt to milk the wallets of his misguided fans. Every track falls flat. There's no energy in any of these songs. They're flaccid. At the same time, they feel bloated. Every song laboriously plods on for at least a minute longer than it should. "Ragged Glory" is a waste of everyone's time. Doubly so since I had to go hunt the album down on Youtube because Young threw a boomer-tantrum and pulled his shitty music off of Spotify.
Neil is the absolute best at making songs that are beautiful heart-rending pop songs, and then playing them with a punk rock spirit. It sounds like they are having great fun.
"Mother Earth" is very similar to "La balade Nord Irlandaise" from Renaud. You should check it out. I really like the album!
I didn't expect to like this album because of Neil Young's vocals, but I liked how he sounds on this album much more than a project like "Harvest". The songs are very catchy and it's a super fun alubm.
Nomás por country home se gana las cinco estrellas. Ya lo que venga después está de más.
It was good. I like the name Crazy Horse. Neil Young is growing on me. Maybe because I think he's supposed to grow on me.
I know I have this CD somewhere or somebody has my CD of this somewhere. I am a big fan of this album and his previous one, "Freedom", sort of his comeback from somewhat less-than-critically-acclaimed 80's albums. By the way, I've never dug into his 80's albums to refute or back those reviews. Not a big fan of "This Note's for You" though. His 6th album with Crazy Horse. Recorded over a two week period with sets of songs being played twice a day (sets never repeated) with the best takes put on the album. Critics called this album "garage" and that recording approach is pretty "garage". Well, it sounds raw and like Neil basically said "Let' Er Rip, Boys." And they did. All songs are pretty much straight-forwarded rockers. "Mansion on the Hill" was the only song I remember being played on rock radio. The first two songs, "Country Home" and "White Line" were written back in the 70's. "F*!#in' Up" or " Fuckin' Up" is my favorite rocker on the album with those sloppy Crazy Horse backing vocals and a song covered by a lot of other bands. Don't know why he just didn't spell out fuckin on the album. Maybe, Tipper Gore fear at the time? Neil goes "Cowgirl in the Sand" on two 10-minute epic jams, "Love to Burn" and "Love and Only Love." This album was a welcome relief on this Friday!
Awesome album from start to finish. Classic sound for a 1990 album. Missing a big hit but it doesn't really need it
It's easy to forget just how insanely good NY's guitar is, but this album really showcases it.
I’m thankful for my country home, gives me peace of mind, somewhere I can walk along and leave myself behind..crunchy guitars..the 2nd best NY & Crazy Horse album after Everybody Knows This is Nowhere. love it!
This is pretty good, better than other Neil Young I've heard. Just good country rock. I think I gotta give it a 4 hey. I'll listen to this again for sure.
I liked old Neil Young, but this in particular feels so unique! Love the garage-rock passion and vibe. Doesn't quite hit a 5, but a strong 4.5 in my eyes.
Fucking smacks like the hits are super toit and did you know that this album actually invented grunge
Well there’s no doubt this band knows how to jam. Crazy Horse is a band that’s just not made for the studio so they somehow figured out how to make a studio album with a sound that is very raw and sounds live. This includes many songs ending with guitar feedback. No gentle fade outs here. There’s not a lot of variety in the songs although I guess if you want some ballads, Neil has many other LPs that will scratch this itch.
Worse 4, the songs later in the album seemed to me a bit on the same note. Anyway, good rock album from late "80s".
Not my favorite Neil Young album (my favorite is After The Gold Rush) but this is still pretty solid and worth a listen.
Driven more by electric guitar than the admittedly little Neil Young I have listened to. I really enjoyed most of the songs.
I rather like Neil Young and I quite like some of his hits. But this album is really just exactly what you'd expect if you imagine Neil Young's filler material recorded garage rock style. No more, no less. There's nothing bad on here and it's better background music than a large part of the albums on this list, but not worth re-listening to either. And there's definitely no gold such as After The Gold Rush or Heart Of Gold on this one.
I feel like Neil Young's voice should annoy me, but it's oddly endearing. He's whiny and a little off-key, but somehow that makes the songs better. There's a real folksy, subway-busker kinda vibe that I appreciate. I also liked how the album built. The first few songs feature an acoustic guitar with real "treble-y" effects, then in the middle there were songs with nice, clean acoustic songs. Towards the end, he moved to a clean electric and then a dirty, punk-like electric on Sedan Delivery and the reprise of Hey Hey, My My. I'm not sure if this was on purpose or not, but I dug it.
The second album of Neil Young's "comeback" period is a garage rock classic, how could it not be when he's playing with Crazy Horse? I hadn't listened to this in a few years and my takeaway this time is that it's fun!
Yes! I know Neil Young can be polarizing, but I'm firmly in the camp that he's a musical pioneer and crazy genius. He's one of the few rockers left who always did and still continues to sing about something. The music with a message can be preachy, but not Young. He's brilliant at being inspired and translating that inspiration to us in a song. This record has a much lighter, sweeter, comfortable vibe than some of Young's other work, especially that with CSN, but I loved it.
Les plus courtes sont les meilleures, littérallement. Prefs: Country Home, Fuckin' Up, Farmer John, Mansion on the Hill, Love and Only Love, Mother Earth (Natural Anthem) Moins pref: Over and Over
Not that familiar with Neil Young (Crazy Horse or not) but I've always enjoyed him. This sounds exactly like I'd imagine without many surprises.
Love the guitar tone. Which is fortunate since It's there for the entire hour. :) Favorite tracks: Love to Burn, Country Home, Mansion on the Hill
Big Neil Young fan, bought this when it came out. The songs are decent but the that garage crunchy sound is great on it. Coming out in the end of the 80s is what I think makes it unique at the time.
This was some great classic rock which is saying a lot for it being 1990. Songs were a little long but couple the music with the album cover and this felt like a huge long jam sesh between Diamond and Crazy Horse. And I'm down for that.
Excellent album, up there with Everybody Knows This is Nowhere. A lot of the fuzz grunge and a bit of the guitar odyssey.
I have a lot of time for Neil Young, and it's always nice to hear someone put out music this good a couple of decades into their career. Damn good album.
A fine, fine album. Go in the garage with your band mates, record some tracks, pick the best take, make a record. Can there be anything finer? Did the neighbours bang on the walls and complain? I doubt it, when the tracks are so compelling and absorbing.
Well, Neil Young's got guts for sticking it to Joe Rogan with the Spotify debacle. Especially because it mainly hurts him a lot more than it will upset streaming on Spotify. And I appreciate that all it took to find this album was a quick Google search and a full YouTube playlist is available. It's a great album, too; as you'd expect from a Neil Young album the vocals are strong but the real star is the searing melody lines and the FANTASTIC guitar on every song. This isn't quite at the level of "Rust Never Sleeps" for me but it's still quite good. Absolutely worth a listen and worthy of being on this list. One of my favorite discoveries from these albums. Fave track: "F***in up"
Musically, this is really well done, just about as good as anything Neil Young and Crazy Horse ever did together. It has a fun, rough edged, garage-y vibe and Young's guitar is blistering as ever. As good as it sounds, the lyrics are fairly toothless and mostly forgettable. I know I'm officially turning into your most annoying teacher when I say this, but I know Neil Young can write better songs than this. I guess he has other albums for that. Fave Songs: White Line, Love and Only Love, Country Home, Love to Burn, Over and Over This album was not available on Spotify, but can be found in full on YouTube. 4 4 3 3 4 3 3 3 5 3
Very, very good, a clear influence on loads of bands I love. Full of energy and attitude, and fills the gap between garage rock and grunge perfectly. Some songs are a little bit "older gent trying to sound like his younger self", but that's no bad thing. Not on Spotify, but that meant I saw the videos for the songs that have them. Joe Rogan still sucks!!
I enjoy a lot of Neil Young's music and always appreciate his range of musical styles and genres. I am not sure I listened to this album when it was released. As I listened through it, I was not familiar with these songs so I think I had not heard these tracks. I really, really like this album. To state the obvious, the style of this album -- kind of hard rock/garage rock -- has been countless times before and after this album but there is still the unmistakable signature voice to it that is uniquely Neil Young's, and I don't just mean the vocals. This album enjoys the imprimatur of Neil, and I am pleased. I like that it's just Neil and the three members of Crazy Horse. I don't hear overdubs, multi-tracks, etc., and the Wikipedia entry on the album explains why it sounds exactly like it is, which is a four-member rock band recording "live in studio". From the Wikipedia entry: The Ragged Glory sessions took place in April 1990 at Young's Broken Arrow Ranch. The band played a set of songs twice a day for a couple of weeks (never repeating the same songs in a set), then went back, listened and chose the best takes. According to Young, this approach "took 'analysis' out of the game during the sessions, allowing the Horse to not think". I love that.
A strong Neil Young album. I especially dig some of the longer feedback-heavy jams. I enjoy Neil Young in country-folk mode but I like him even more in hard rock mode. His voice can be pretty but he doesn’t have a conventionally good singing voice. That unconventional voice works well though with the loose and unpolished guitar work on these songs. Crazy Horse is a great backing band and they sound awesome here. Highlights: “Country Home,” “F*!#in’ Up,” “Over and Over,” “Love and Only Love”
This is a live album without all the obnoxious fan noise and the need to play the radio hits. It is distortion in its natural form, enjoying the moment. You don't have to say "I wish I had been there" because you are there if you turn it up and give in to the buzzing in your ear.
OMG The Godfather of grunge!! I still don’t really get that title. I know the man has recorded 237 albums, but I’ve listened to a lot of them and… never once did I find myself going, “Oh yeah, Alice In Chains.” Nope. Sorry, 1990s media. And thank goodness, because Mr. Young is so much more than that. There aren’t a ton of musicians who would make me pause if I had to pick between one of their acoustic or one of their electric albums, but Neil’s on that list. Goddamn those guitar tones. At times it just sounds like a pretty good bar band, but then they hit you with some of those fuzzed out leads where they just hold a single note or two and it makes me want to buy a new guitar. And then sometimes they do the opposite with an acoustic and it *still* makes me want to buy a guitar. So this album. It’s a weird one. I thought for sure “Rocking in the Free World” was on here, but instead we get a bunch of songs that are kind of in that ballpark but not quite. I liked a lot of them (“Fuckin’ Up”, “Love and Only Love”) and didn’t quite care for others (“Farmer John”). I’d say most of the songs here could be shorter, but doing so would mean losing some of those guitar moments I love. One of the best guitar bits is in the very last tune, which sounds like some sort of beautifully distorted take on “Amazing Grace.” But then the band starts singing those awfully-on-the-nose lyrics about mama earth and I kinda cringe. Still, even in the seas of cheese, I never once don’t believe Young and co. aren’t being earnest. He always is! Every single song. I don’t know how he hasn’t got tired of his own shit after all these years, but god bless him.
Ragged Glory is a great title for this album. I love the story behind how it was recorded - it sounds a bit like a live record, like it has that energy. There are a couple of stand out songs here, like Fuckin' Up, Over and Over, and Mansion on the Hill. But I can get behind pretty much all of this. Still, when it falters, it falls all the way into the background. But I think I'll put this one on again, so I'll give it the big four.
It seems as though about once a decade, Neil Young brings Crazy Horse back around to do some excellent full-band stuff. Well, the year is 1990 and the boys haven't done anything since Re·ac·tor in 1981, so let's get the band back together! Young and the Horse make deceptively simple hard rock here. They're all playing together in the studio, tight as can be, jamming away. They would practice and record their sets, go through the playback and choose the best take for each song to go on the album. It's the perfect "dudes rock" album, in that it rocks and doesn't do more than it needs to. Although I preferred the live energy and pacing of Rust Never Sleeps, this album, I feel, is on par in terms of sonic quality. Neil Young can really rock with the rest of them.
Really good listen, a lot livelier and upbeat up to other NY releases I’ve listened to previously
5/18 3.5/5. First half is very country, dad-rock-ish, with a couple tracks that go on for far too long, second half moves to softer melodies and sweet psychedelia. Standout Tracks: White Line, Mansion On the Hill, Love and Only Love, Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)
Very dad rock, still pretty good. Sometimes I'm just listening to an album and have a thought like that and realize what I'm hearing is good but feel unable to connect to it. (Except for F*!#in' Up because it reminds me of Common Sense.) It's unfair I suppose, but in the end this feels like a long (but rockin') album of medium tempo jams. Young's voice is still compelling but I still don't like it all that much. And yet... At the end I feel like I could listen to this again.
It was alright. I can understand why it's on the list, but I liked some of Neil Young's other work more. Still, it was a nice enough listen.
This record is from 1990? Wild. Rock/country but with Neil Young’s goofy voice crooning over it all. I liked it
Apparently, there are 17 Neil Young appearances on 1001, including CSNY & Buffalo Springfield - more than any other artist. So therefore, with a number of #4s & #5s on the horizon, I’m going to give this one a #3. Crazy Horse rocks as always. I like the way they seem to be playing for themselves - I can't see them doing multiple takes to get it just right. I love the two guitars no keyboards, but some of the compositions aren't Neil's strongest and his voice is strained at times.
3.5 - Simple, heartfelt songs that unfold unhurriedly. Lots of Young’s characteristic guitar work - notes sustained with tremolo and loads of gain. Great for an extended road trip. Comforting as a home cooked meal, fills your soul though it may be a little bland.
I like Neil Young but never heard this one before. Guitars sound great as they always do but not his strongest songs
Kolejny Neil Young, tym razem juz nie taki youngowy, na liscie 1001 albumikow, tym razem z wsparciem bandy crazy horse, to moje pierwsze podejscie do youngowego albumiku w koopie, po pierwszym odsluchu gdyby nie wokale youngowe, to nie mialbym pojecia, ze to jest jego gitara, gatunek dominujacy to grunge, wiec gitarki sa mocno przesterowane, co nigdy nie kojarzylo mi sie z youngiem, ale po rzuceniu okiem na jego dyskografie, gdzie znajduje sie 40 samych studyjnych albumow, z roznymi bandami jestem pod podziwem przystosowania sie do zmieniajacego sie roka, bo ciagle tworzenie przed ponad pol wieku to prawdziwy wyczyn, wracajac do samego ragged glory na ponad 60 materiale znalazlo sie 10 trakow, co daje spory czas zabawy z kawalkiem, bo najdluzsze, to jest love to burn i love and only love, maja az ponad 10 minut, z czego pewnie polowa to beda gitarowe wyczyny pana younga, firmowej harpy nie uraczy sie na tej plycie, ale chorkowe harmonie czlonkow crazy horse rekompensuja te strate, nie moze byc inaczej jesli chodzi o kompozycje, autorem tekstu dziewieciu kawalkow jest pan youngowy, ktoremu kunszt liryczny nie zwietrzal na przestrzeni lat, nadal czuc bluesowy klimat, przeplatany z psychodelicznym rokiem, tym razem w troche ostrzejszej oprawie, na plycie pojawia sie takze grungowa interpretacja farmera johna pana sugarkejna, zamykajacy trak mother earth jest zapisem wystepu live, tylko nie wiem skad, bo reszta plyty zostala nagrana na ranczu zlamanej szczaly nalezacym do younga i raczej dosc sprawnie to poszlo, bo uwineli sie w kilka tygodni, a potem wylowili co najlepsze i tak zamkneli krazek, co do materialu ktory pozostal w odpadkach, to jakos w tym roku ma zostac wydane ragged glory II czy jakos tak, bo w 2k20 juz bylo ogloszone, ale covidy niezbyt pomagaja w wydawaniu materialow, w przeciagu roku nawet nazwa sie zmienila i cos zwanego smell the horse ma sie ukazac na miesiacach, na plejaka wrzuce white line oraz jeden z dluzszych kawalkow czyli love to burn, fajna sprawa uslyszec artyste, ktorego sie zna z innej strony, ale jak mozna kogos znac nie znajac nawet czwartej czesci jego dyskografii, wiec nie zostaje nic innego jak tylko sluchac
Honestly I was too busy today to give a full breakdown of the album and my thoughts on it but fortunately I didn’t really have many strong thoughts. I didn’t hate any of it and I didn’t particularly love any of it either. Favorite songs: Over and Over Days That Used to Be Decent 6/10
Pretty ok, again I'm understanding more how people like Neil Young but seems like more the bridge to modern country here.
Sounds a lot like a garage band, happily experimenting and bringing a lot of energy to the table. Smells of old times included. I enjoyed listening, may end up listening again.
Love the rockin' guitars, the vocal harmonies, and the live feel, but I struggle with a lot of Neil Young and this is no exception. Some good songs, but his voice always seems quite weak and whiny in comparison to the music. This album also feels far too long, and drags in places. Rhythm section is mediocre at best. But the aforementioned rockin' guitars definitely bring it up a notch. (2.6)
American with a capital A garage rock, some good stuff, but overall a little underwhelming. Strong finishing songs though.
Buena conjunción de banda con sonidos, acordes y voces muy conseguidos. No sufre el paso del tiempo
Pensaba que este disco era más antiguo. Leyendo en wikipedia como se grabó, casi como un directo, se entiende mejor su sonido y se puede apreciar su valor. Me han gustado: Fcuking`Up, Over and Over y Mansion on the Hill.
Good rock album. I liked the guitar sound. Songs are all a bit too long. One or two are dreadful (farmer song).3.5 out of 5
I'm not much of a Neil Young fan. I've only listened to Harvest and several of his hits. But apparently, he has a long career of doing whatever genre he wants. That being said, I can only hear him doing folk / country rock. But here we have a forerunner to grunge, an album that Cobain would cite as an influence for Nevermind (of course Young didn't invent grunge: Bleach came out a year before). But here we have a garage rock style of rawness and high level of distortion and feedback. That being said, all the songs are just decent. The first few are pretty good, but nothing spectacular. Certainly, no hits with the lengths of several of these tracks. The last three tracks were also good but somewhat forgettable. Regarding the lengths, I think it does more harm than good. "Country Home" and "Over and Over" worked out well. I felt like "Love to Burn" could have been cut a few minutes short in the middle, but I did enjoy the end solo. And I was not a fan of "Love and Only Love," so I felt its length was not welcomed. Best overall track: Country Home Classic Neil with a twist: White Line Best riffs: F*!#in' Up Grungiest: Farmer John Catchiest: Mansion on the Hill
While this album had its moments, it was not my favorite effort by Neil Young and Crazy Horse. Certain sounds were very dated and though I enjoyed the garage rock feel, there are much better examples out there
The verse melody of Country Home is very similar to Jingle Bells. Which is odd. It's very much the Neil Young that put me off Neil Young in the 90s before I discovered his earlier stuff. A bit sludgy and AM rock sounding. In hindsight, it still has some of that underlying melancholy which I love about Neil Young. But it really sounds like Jingle Bells. White Line is pretty average. But I think maybe this album is more about Neil Young discovering the joy of playing again. I think rough and ready is what he was aiming for. And I can see how he ended up a kind of elder statesman of grunge with this sort of heavy, maudlin, uptempo rock. Fuckin Up is better. His voice is finally going near the sort of registers it really has impact in. By Over and Over I'm getting a feeling there isn't going to be a ton of variation on this record. Think I'll just mention any notable tracks and let it wash over me otherwise. Noel Gallagher must crap himself every time a lawyer hears Love to Burn. Everything he didn't nick from John Lennon's grave can be found here! There follows three back to back great, or at least fun tracks. Farmer John bounces along with a cheeky grin, Mansion on the Hill feels like the blueprint for every b listed Britpop band, and Days That Used to Be is lovely, especially as it feels like he might just be being snide to his former bandmates... Back to rock chuggers after this, but that little window may have just bumped the review up a star! Quite fond of the last track too. It's a good album, I'm impressed at Young at, what, about 50 making a slightly sludgy, but mostly enjoyable new version of his sound - I didn't realise he did reinvention so well.
Dit heeft energie en het rockt. Was ik wel aan toe. Al blijft het toch ok wel een ding dat de instrumentale stukken in de nummers van Neil Young vaak het beste zijn. Dat tegen het valse aan zingen (of eigenlijk is het gewoon vals) zijn voor mij minpunten.
Gotta love and respect Neil Young and the gang’s fire and passion. An interesting, saucy batch of tunes. 5/10
I don't think I hated this as much as others in the group but I can completely see why. I guess I was able to just enjoy it as face value but it's nothing special, especially from Neil Young.
Ik vind de stem wat minder klankvast. Verder is het onvervalste Amerikaanse rock. Als je er van houdt dan is het wel leuk denk ik. Voor mij niet echt een leuk liedje dat er uit springt. ***
good grunge album, the second half was a little bit worse imo, nice heavy sound, 3- because it lasted too long for me
Splendid country-boiled rock, wry lyrics and commentary on life and growing older that doesn't get in the way of the chunky guitar sound. Would listen to again.
This album was alright. Had a few good songs, but I wasn't that much of a fan of the more grungy sounds.
Neil the rocker returns with this grungy set of tunes. Fuzz peddle is in overdrive - it's a shame that it's a real mixed bag of tunes. Probably top draw for most other artists but for Old Shakey here it's mediocre at best. Best Tracks: Country Home; F!#*in' Up; Mansion on the Hill
Finally got round to listening to this on Apple Music. Good album deserves to be on the list, but not sure Neil Youngs voice is well suited on this album. Glad I listened but would rate other NY and CH albums higher.
We've had a few from Neil Young so far, and I'm not sure where I stand on his music. Definitely enjoyable, but not a whole lot that jumps out at me. There's a cool spaciousness to this album though, the tracks run long and let you sink into them. I definitely liked this, but wasn't super impressed. Still waiting for the Neil Young project to flip that switch. Favorite tracks: Over and Over, Mother Earth, Farmer John. Album art: Fisheye band photo? That's it? 3/5
Not the hottest of Neil Young's albums, but it definitely has that particular Neil Young sound that I like so much.
Me aburrió rápidamente, aunque debo reconocer que suenan como muchas bandas de los 90, pero varios años antes.
Raw, very cut loose but tight performances. Lovely harmonies throughout. Not my favorite of Neil Young's, but the spirit is there. Favorite tracks: "Love to Burn", "Mansion on the Hill"
I love hearing Neil Young with some electric guitars behind him. This album has a few songs that come across as kind of podunky dad rock though, which isn't always the case with Neil Young. "F!#*in Up" isn't one of them and I appreciate how Neil comes across as a bit cooler and less caring in that track. Production wise this was pretty great for 1990. It's got a ton of grunge tones in the fuzzy, scratchy guitars, and I think it was probably a breath of fresh air for rock and roll fans trying to get away from the 80s. I also like how loose some of the tracks feel. There's a lot of room to breathe and the foundational elements - the bass and drums - tend to be pretty tight throughout. I do think the drums can be a little boring at times, but I think that for this period of rock music there isn't much exploration going on for drummers/ drumset players, so I'm looking at it coming from a place of modernity in rock music where percussion elements tend to be a little more exploratory and a little more engaging. These drumbeats sound like the first ones you hear when you open up a programmed drumset application as a music producer- "Rock Beat 1" "Rock Beat Ballad 3" "Mid Tempo Rock 6" etc. Overall I like the album! Neil Young is great and I love hearing him in a rock setting with Crazy Horse.
I think I have a weird relationship with Neil Young. Sometimes I think he's brilliant and other times I think his lyrics are sophomoric. His writing is generally pretty good. This album encompasses all of that.
Totally average latter day Neil Young record. I appreciate the idea of keeping it loose but not sure if I like the results. I'll give it a 3 because it's palatable to me, but I certainly don't think it belongs on this list. He's just taking up room that could have been occupied by a more deserving, younger group from this same time period.
Not really a favourite of mine among Neil Young albums. Seems kind of a generic sounding rock and roll album with few memorable songs. Mansion on the Hill strikes me as one of the better tunes but besides that. 3 🌟
I actually enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would... Basically, it's better than the previous Neil Young albums because there's a lot more to hide his voice than usual (the songs suit it better, there's more backing vocals, and there's much more weight given to the instrumental parts). Still not exactly mind-blowing, but scrapes a 3 as I'm in a generous move and it is better than the two other Neil Young albums we've had.
Listened Before? N Hey this was alright. I remember the time period this came out, and it was largely praised. It does have a good sound, like the reviews say, it's "garage rock" sounding. Pretty jammy. Here's the thing for me, though.. I don't like NY enough to really love it. His style is pretty same-y on every song. Its good, but it gets old after a while. Added to Library? N Songs added to Playlist: Country Home
Compared to Young's other work, this was a little underwhelming on account of the lack of creativity in the vocal delivery, which was one of my favorite elements of his songs. It's still solid, though!
Solid effort by Neil Young. I would definitely continue to listen to this one. I think as I get to know it better I will enjoy it more.
While I tend to prefer the older folkier Neil Young, this album is pretty rad. I love how much room to breathe they give the songs. Very jammy.
3.5 I really liked this record more than I thought I would. The homemade, garage rock sound of this record does wonders for Neil Young, especially this deep into his career. It really captures the feeling that you're listening in on Young's private jam sessions rather than a polished set of studio recordings, and it makes the album that much better. While I don't think the songs spoke to me much on a personal level (hell maybe Fuckin Up), this was a really fun jam-out rock record. I could see myself returning to this one. Favorite songs: Fuckin Up, Over and Over, Love to Burn
I absolutely hate Neil Young's voice, but the songs and the rock is pretty good. Overall the vibe of the album is good, very jam-band esque.
Too many albums on this list from an artist who still stubbornly refuses to allow his music to be made available on the most popular streaming service in the world. Of course I love Ol' Neil, but according to my Amazon Music algorithm, I now love him more than any other artist and listen to him exclusively. It's a good thing the majority of his albums are great. This one is merely very good.
Dammit! Why are Neil Youngs albums not on spotify?! Gets boring quite quickly, and all Neil Young fans have this circle jerk that he is the best artist of all time, and he can do nothing wrong. I don't get that.. Good songs though.
This is boring. Really dislike the long jams at the end of songs. Mansion on the Hill is a highlight.
Not my style. I suppose I can see why some people would like it, but it didn’t seem special to me.
This ain’t Harvest as Neil goes full grungy garage on this record. Definitely not dinner music. Not my fav Neil Young but he still shows his brilliance
I'm learning through this list that I don't really care for Neil Young. Also, Wikipedia lists the genre of this album as “grunge” which…no. Absolutely not.
I am not a Neil Young fan. This album did not help improve my feelings about him. Also, I don't need an album full of jam sessions.
Album was alright. I wasn't blown away by it. Instrumentals sounded like how it's supposed to sound for hard rock. Sounds dated even though it was released in the 90s.
From the first handful of tracks I could tell this really wasn't for me. I don't understand why you'd make an album with a "raw" sound when recording an album gives you the opportunity to give your listeners something that they couldn't experience live. Because of this production style, I find the tracks to be samey and patience testing.
Neil Young unremarkable eighteenth studio album? Yeah, that sure seems like essential listening along with everything else he ever recorded. Kudos to the creators of this list! 2*
Eh. Drawn out proto-grunge that seemed very dated. Not bad; just not memorable. No clue how this was Pazz and Jop’s #1 album for 1990.
“Ragged Glory” by Neil Young and Crazy Horse (1990) This is not Neil Young’s best. But it’s a prime example of what he likes to do when he’s in complete control: good garage rock, capturing the spontaneity, improvisation, and cohesion of four guys playing their hearts out, heedless of the deleterious effects on their (and our) ears. Lyrics on this record are typical for Neil Young—thoughtful, mature, and focused, laid down over unsurprising, plain melodies and chord progressions, but not likely to be remembered. There are no earworms here. Vocally, as usual, he has a sloppy approach to intonation, especially at the ends of phrases, where his downward slur cuts out before he reaches pitch. To this one could add a complaint about his idiosyncratic locution, which is a burden to those not familiar with Neil Young’s singing. (He has a tendency to ‘add a syllable’ in the middle of vowel-consonant blends, but I’m from Missouri so it doesn’t bother me. It drives New Yawkers crazy.) His lead guitar solos are soulful, but not very demonstrative of creativity or a high skill level. It seems like every song ends with extended distorted sustain with plenty of drawn out feedback—a nice device, but it’s overused on this album. Exploratory and experimental, it could have been replaced by a tasteful fade on several tracks (like he does on “Mansion on the Hill”). Crazy Horse provides steady and reliable instrumental and vocal backing, without much flourish. “Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)” is a pretentious, if not pompous, hymn that could have been appropriated by the Green New Deal lobby if it had been performed without the Jimi Hendrix-style solo distorted guitar. But it has nice choral sound. If you’re a Neil Young fan like me, you’ll find this album, well, comfortable. If you’re not, you could skip it and Rest In Peace. 2/5
I don't like this. All the Neil Young touchstones that I love are here: fizzy guitars, weird lead parts, his unique voice. But there is reverb on the snare. And the songs just aren't there. It all just sort of blended together when I listened. I'll stick to pre-1980 NY. I mean "It's only someone else's potato chip" should never be a lyric, right?
Ik kan veel hebben van ome Neil, maar valse zang én valse gitaren is een beetje teveel van het goede.
I like a lot of Neil’s songs, but this album is a bit of a gargled orgy of his vocals (that can get old fast) and drums & rhythm that are way too boring and repetitive. Both times I’ve seen him live, things dragged on a bit too much. Maybe I don’t like his music as much as I thought.
Albumet lyckades med en sak och det vägrade de släppa. Det de har producerat är inte en blunder utan snarare tillfredsställande. Problematiken ligger i att albumet inte vågar lämna dessa obeskrivligt närbelägna ramar. Allt från trumrytmen till strukturen av låtarna är identiska enligt mig. Detta får mig att ifrågasätta artisternas talang. Om de endast kan komma upp med en låt är det inte säkert att de ens kom på den och vägrar släppa taget av den tunna tråden av meningslöst skit som de lyckats greppa. Jag känner mig genuint kränkt att de publicera något så gjort och banalt. Trots den absurda bristen på originalitet är låtarna, eller rättare sagt låten njutsam musik. Den sista låten, Mother Earth (Natural Anthem), är nämnevärd för dess omväxling i stämning. Som avslutning tar albumet ett kliv mot rätt riktning, ett stillsamt avslut för att runda av upplevelsen.
I love Neil Young he has created some beautiful anthems and his music is brill. However, this album I did not get for some reason... the hymn to Mother Earth was strange and I'm not sure whether to laugh or how to feel. I was a bit bored and not particularly into this album. I'm reading the background info about this supposedly being garage-rock or something and I just don't get it. It just feels like dad rock to me. I'm confused and giving this a 2.
I bought this due to the hype when it was released. I quickly sold the CD back to a record store. All the songs have the same tempo. It's boring.
Some decent rock music. Didn't know Neil Young had this phase in his career. I'm not really sure what about this album makes it "one you have to hear before you die." By the end, however, I was kind of waiting for the album to be over. Not Young's best.
This was an ok album. Get like Neil young was better in the 70s. This is a decent album from the early 90s that matched the rock style. Between his voice and some of the songs don’t really do it for me. There are some songs that rock pretty hard. Overall it’s ok. 5.3/10
I liked the background music but hated his vocals. I would listen to the backing band again, but I think I will stay away from more Neil Young if I can help it. Favorite track: Mansion on the Hill
An album-length reprise of ‘Rocking in the Free World’. Not really worth the trouble, imho.
Throughout my listening of this album, the effect has always been the same: The song begins with an intro that promises a good, if not great rock song ... and then Neil Young starts to sing, and the song is ruined. Whoever thought it was a good idea to ever give Young singing duties didn't do him (or us) any favour. Young might be a good song writer and musician, but his voice is not suited for this kind of music. 1.5/5
Not a fan of his voice. Farmer John probably my favorite song. 2.5 out of 5. Enjoyed the music more than the singing
I like the music but not a fan of Neil Young's voice over this garage rock sound tbh. Not a bad listen in general though.
Would be a great album if it focused more on the bold lead guitar parts, but falls back into the tired and trite Young-isms of way too long runtimes, repetitive verses, and bargain-bin songwriting.
Über dieses Album kann ich einfach nur abkotzen. Ich habe beim hören versucht, herauszufinden, was ausgerechnet diese Platte so interessant macht, in diese Liste aufgenommen zu werden. Neil Youngs Gesang und die überflüssigen Dur-'Soli' über überflüssige Dur – Akkordfolgen (und er mag seine Dur-Akkordfolgen ganz offenbar) sind nicht einfach nur verzichtbar, sondern schlicht scheiße. Dieses Album klingt dort besser, wo Young nicht singt, und auch da klingt es nicht gut. Ich musste bei den „Kompositionen“ stellenweise an Kinderlieder zum Lernen des ABC oder der Zahlen von 1-10 denken. Neil Young ist krass überschätzt.
One of the few albums I've had to stop because I simply couldn't handle it. The uninspired, noisy, but dull country rock just makes for something I cannot stand. I like Neil Young's songs, such as "Old Man" and "Needle and the Damage Done", but this is literally unbearable. Sorry
Day 145: Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Ragged Glory (1990) It's with dread that I put on this album. I debated with myself whether to review it at all, given how little I appreciate Neil Young's aesthetic, apart from his brief country period. Two minutes into the opener, Country Home, I am already regretting my choice. Young's guitar is as maladroit as ever and his voice has coarsened appreciably with age, losing any charm it might have had for me. Okay. I can see this is a lost cause. Because I can't bear to sit through this album, it wouldn't be fair to rate it.
First 1 I’m handing out. Neill Youngs vocal inflections are not good and it seems like he’s always just a few Hz off his intended note. The instrumentals are fine but bland in my opinion. The combined package is just straight unappealing with mediocre songwriting, bad vocal performance and boring instrumentals.
glorified country album. white line is the only song i enjoyed, most songs are far too long.
I absolutely hated this album. I was having a bad time on a rail replacement but atm which perhaps as added to this but whatever what fucking irritating music. Each song was wayy too long as well. Eugg
Neil Young, you are the force that has ruined country music. I cannot stand this. I do not care. I will not listen to these again.
Neil has some great songs. Unfortunately none were on this album. “Old Man, ❤️ Of Gold, Harvest “come to mind and they would score way higher than this 💿. This album did not show his true talent.
I'm glad that I already liked Neil before I heard this. I like that he is willing to experiment with his sound, but that doesn't mean that I am willing to automatically buy into his b.s. like to wonks at RS are prone to do.
1 Is this a joke? This sounds like a joke. It sounds like he’s making fun of himself. Also I can’t tell what it wants to be. Is it country? Is it rock? Folk? Some songs even gave me hair/glam metal vibes. The whole thing overstated its welcome from the start and lasted through to the end. Seeing that it came out in 1990 it’s clear that Neil Young was begging to stay relevant but I have to imagine this is what the death rattle of the 80’s sounds like. Favorites include: Mansion on the Hill I guess