It has been some time since Neil Young last activated the Horse, that gloriously shambolic backing band that has stood behind almost all of his greatest work from 1969’s Everybody knows this is nowhere right through to 2012’s underrated psychedelic pill. With Frank “Poncho” Sampedro retired (at least for the time being), the two stalwarts of the Horse, Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina, are joined by Nils Lofgren, who is plenty adept at channelling the raw energy that has been Crazy Horse’s signature since their first outing, and the result is Neil’s most ferociously direct album in some time. A dark and gritty work, Colorado draws inspiration from a traumatic year. Not only is it undeniably haunted by loss; Neil’s manager, Elliot Roberts (to whom the album is dedicated), passed away in summer, and former wife Pegi, tragically died from cancer earlier in the year; but it is also galvanised by socio-political issues, most notably the increasingly fractious clashes between environmentalists and climate change deniers. As such, Colorado offers up ten ragged tracks that will have long-time NY&CH fans in raptures.
The album kicks off in bluesy mode, Neil’s harmonica cutting shrilly though a mix dominated by acoustic instruments. It’s a short, sweet piece entitled Think Of Me and it sets the tone for the album nicely, harking back to one of Neil’s many career highlights, Broken Arrow. Neil and Crazy Horse sound relaxed in each other’s company, seeking refuge in the joy of making music, much as they did on Tonight’s The Night (which, despite being credited to Neil alone, features Billy, Ralph and Nils) and it’s surely no accident that finds these musicians once more pouring their souls into such beautifully ragged rock. Things take a grittier turn on the extended jam, She Showed Me Love, the guitars permanently perched on the edge of feeding back as Billy and Ralph nail the beat firmly to the floor. At thirteen minutes, it’s one of those sonic flights of fancy on which Neil loves to lead his band and, with its environmentally conscious lyrics, it shows that Neil has lost none of his power to turn a grueling riff into a piece of art. A perfect example of Neil and Crazy Horse pushing each other to greater feats of sonic splendor, She Showed Me Love has that patented Neil Young tone – the sound of a speaker slowly decaying – that no one else has ever quite managed to replicate, and it sounds as thrilling today as it did when Neil used it to bludgeon audiences into submission on Ragged Glory. A short, nostalgic piece, olden days, taps into the same vein of gentle melancholy found on the still stunning Sleeps With Angels album, Nils’ keys adding bluesy texture to Neil’s grungy guitars. In contrast, Neil and his band channel huge wedges of sound on Help Me Lose My Mind, a heavy, heavy piece of music that summarizes all of the brilliance of the Pearl Jam backed Mirror Ball into four stunning minutes. The first half of the album concludes with a moment of comparative calm in Green Is Blue, a shimmering ballad that laments the damage done to the earth over a simple, broken-hearted melody, even finding time to add some honeyed harmonies in the vein of CSN&Y on the chorus.
If Green Is Blue represents a loss-fuelled lament, shut it down sees Neil and his band raging at the systems of mechanised destruction that mankind employs, Ralph pummelling his drums for all he’s worth as Neil’s guitar rages and burns. A longer piece, Milkyway has a loose-limbed, bluesy feel to it and, at six minutes, the band allow the tune plenty of space to expand and grow. Led by Neil on piano, eternity is one of those simple ditties with which Neil used to pepper his solo slots back in the early 70s. It flies past thanks to Ralph’s shuffling rhythm and it leads into the slow-moving anthem A Rainbow Of Colors. A stern riposte to those who would close America’s door to migrants, A Rainbow Of Colors is perfectly forthright in its message, Neil clearly leaving no room for misinterpretation and, if the lyrics are a touch simplistic, the message is both potent and pertinent in today’s febrile times. The album concludes with the six-minute I Do, which sees the record spinning to a halt on a high. A gentle lament reminiscent of Sonic Youth’s skewed sense of balladry, I Do sees Neil, the lights turned down low, sounding as naked and vulnerable as he ever has and the band underplay wonderfully, allowing the beauty of the moment to shine through unadorned.
As with every album Neil puts out, Colorado is a snapshot of the times in which he finds himself living. Unflinchingly honest, Neil puts his heart and soul into his music and, when Crazy Horse ride into town, it’s like he becomes supercharged, laying into his guitar with an abandon that, with no disrespect intended towards his other bands, he never comes close to matching in their absence. Fueled by loss and a terrible rage at mankind’s assault upon the planet, Colorado takes the eco-concern of Neil’s work with Promise of the Real and amps it up to eleven. It’s not subtle, but it sure as hell is exciting when Neil straps on his guitar and the amps begin to hum. With a less indulgent structure than psychedelic pill, Colorado harks back to Sleeps With Angels and Broken Arrow, with the result that it stands as one of 2019’s finest albums. 9.5
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