ARCHIVE
juLY 2019 • uNCuT• 43
complaints may have been at the time, Buttrey,
one of country rock’s primary rhythmic architects,
is terrific here, his in-the-pocket groove giving
even the slowest songs an added buoyancy.
And he’s certainly capable of thunderous
stadium-ready playing; his powerful fills
on a fiery “Alabama” (an inevitable, but still bold,
choice to play in Tuscaloosa) leave the studio
version in the dust.
Ben Keith is also a vital part of Tuscaloosa’s
overall success, his liquid lines connecting the
Stray gators’ sound to a classic nashville heritage,
but also giving the band a spaced-out, wide-
open flavour at times. like Buttrey,
Young had first hooked up with the
multi-instrumentalist during the initial
Harvest sessions, and Keith would
become a constant companion
both live and in the studio until his
death in 2010. The chemistry between
Young and Keith is already readily
apparent at this early stage in the
relationship, whether the pair is trading
spicy riffs on a rollicking “lookout Joe”
or harmonising raggedly on an electric/
electrifying “new Mama” (which would
later show up in acoustic guise on
Tonight’s The Night).
Although technically they were only in
existence for two years – from 1971–1973- the Stray gators became a critical part
of Young’s story. Young’s first band since
the Whitten-era Crazy Horse collapsed,
they help Young bridge the gap between
the Horse’s early glories and the
reflective, expansive music he made on
On The Beach and Tonight’s The Night.
Complaints? Well, as is Young’s usual
Mo, Tuscaloosa is only a sampling
of the set neil and the Stray gators played on
this particular evening. unlike the grateful
Dead, Springsteen or Dylan, Young remains
resistant to releasing complete shows, making
it still necessary to seek out murky bootlegs.
nevertheless, Tuscaloosa is an incredibly valuable
document of neil Young in 1973, battling his
demons in front of thousands and delivering
some of his most deeply felt music.
The record comes hot on the heels of two other
mid-’70s archival efforts – Songs For Judy and
Roxy: Tonight’s The Night Live – and it’s a
blessing that neil is finally letting fans hear this
buried treasure from one of his peak periods,
rather than moving forward and resolutely
defying expectations in his usual way.
Can the man’s ultimate lost album, 1975’s
Homegrown, be far behind? Maybe – but likely
not before the just-announced new Crazy Horse
lP lands this autumn.
Producer Elliot Mazer
“Neil said, ‘It sounds great the way it is.’
I said, ‘No, it doesn’t!’”
How’d you get involved with
the Time Fades Away tour?
Neil wanted to go on the road and
he gave me some money to build
a truck. I said, “I want a truck with
real fidelity.” So I go and pick out
a new console and I say, “Ship it to
Nashville!” We put it in the truck
and went out on the road. We hear
some of the tapes and Neil is, like,
beyond belief.
What was the vibe like?
That was a rough tour because
[Neil] didn’t like the drummer. He
didn’t like this, he didn’t like that. He
was doing a lot of substance abuse.
It wasa troubled tour. But the sounds were great.
How did the Time Fades Away album
come about?
Neilsaid,“I’vegotthis
computerthing,can
wemaster[thealbum]
straighttodisc?”I said,
“Well,wecan,butI’drather
properlymixthisthing.”
Hesaid,“Itsoundsgreat
thewayit is.”I said,“No,it
doesn’t!”Atthemastering
house,themasteringguy’s
like,“What?”Wecouldn’t
usehispreviewsystem,we
couldn’tuseanything.So
whatyouhadonthetape
wasprettymuchwhat
yougetonthatalbum.
INTERVIEW:TYLERWILCOXQ&A
jACKBRuCE
LiveAtRockpalast
1980/1983/1990
WDR
6/10
A mixedandsprawlingbagof
Germanconcertperformances
Sincetakingtotheair
in1974,Rockpalasthas
becomeaninstitutionon
germanTV,broadcasting
liveperformancesfrom
differentvenuesaroundthe
country.Bruce’sthreeappearancesonthe
showbetween 1980 and 1993 arepresented
hereacrossfivediscs,startingwitha concert
witha stellarbandofjazz-rocktitansthat
includedBillyCobham,DavidSanciousand
ClemClempson.Thelineuphadjustrecorded
thealbumI’veAlwaysWantedToDo, and
thequartetshowofftheirchopsplaying
sevenofthealbum’s 10 songs,includingthe
complexjazz-rockpatternsofthe13-minute
“BirdAlone”.Thevirtuosityis impressive,but
inevitablyit’sBruce’soldCreamshowpieces
suchas“WhiteRoom”and“SunshineofYour
love”thatignitetheaudience.The 1983 show
includesmostofBruce’sAutomaticalbum,
beforeendingwithmoreCream-ery.Thethird
set,recordedinColognein1990,is perhaps
bestofall,featuringsplendidversionsof
“ThemeFromAnimaginaryWestern”and
“WeirdofHermiston”.
Extras:6/10.TwoDVDsofconcertfootage.
NIGELWILLIAMSONBuzzCoCKs
singlesGoingsteady/
A DifferentKindofTension
DoMINoRECoRDINGs
9/10,7/10
Peerlessgreatest-hitscollectionand
prog-punkswansong,releasedonthe
samedayin 1979
Countless obituaries
last Christmas mourned
Pete Shelley as punk’s
greatest pop songwriter.
And Singles Going Steady
is possibly the greatest
“greatest hits” album of all time: eight
singles on Side one, eight flipsides on Side
Two, each a masterclass in heart-wrenching
melody and lovelorn lyrics, with “orgasm
Addict” and “oh Shit” serving as endearingly
gauchepiecesofjuvenilia.Amazingly,this
compilationwasreleasedsimultaneously
withtheband’sthirdstudiolP,A Different
KindOfTension. SteveDigglewritesandsings
threesongs– includingtheproggy“Sitting
RoundAtHome”andthethrashy“MadMad
Judy”;Shelleyseemstohavedevelopeda
lydon-esquenasalwhine(particularlyon
“i Don’tKnowWhatToDoWithMylife”and
“i Believe”);andthereareseveralcyclical,
hypnoticsongs– like“Hollowinside”and
thetitletrack– thatgoonslightlytoolong.
Thereis alsoonemomentofpopperfection:
“YouSayYouDon’tloveMe”wouldworkas
a lovesickfolkballad,butworksevenbetter
asanuptempopunk-popclassic.
Extras:none.JOhNLEWISAtoZ
SLEEVENOTES
1 Here We Are
In The Years
2 After The
Gold Rush
3 Out On The
Weekend
4 Harvest
5 Old Man
6 Heart Of Gold
7 Time Fades
Away
8 Lookout Joe
9 New Mama
10 Alabama
11 Don’t
Be DeniedProduced by:
Neil Young,
Elliot Mazer
Mixed by:
John HanlonMIcHAEL
PuTLAND/GETTY
IMAGES
Elliot Mazer
in London,
october
1973