Neil Young, Silver and Gold

"It's better to burn out than to fade away," Neil Young once sang, and followed that up by providing living proof that it isn't an either/or proposition. Hardly a burnout--still going strong after thirty five years in the music biz--Young has furiously resisted fading away, switching musical styles at will to keep things fresh for himself. After spending most of the '90s rocking out with Crazy Horse and Pearl Jam, Silver and Gold finds him going back to a spare folk style last heard on 1992's Harvest Moon.

Neil may not be breaking new ground on this album, but so what? Feel has always been more important to him than technical virtuosity, so if he feels like pulling out the acoustic instead of the Les Paul, more power to him. Of course, that's great for Neil, you might say--but is this album worth fifteen bucks, especially if I've heard this kind of stuff from him before?

It is a comfortable, familiar album that feels like a chair on a porch on a hot summer day, inviting us in from the first song, a pleasant little ditty called "Good to See You." The album is co-produced by longtime compadre Ben Keith, and there is an air of nostalgia to some of the songs, in particular "Buffalo Springfield Again," which finds Neil reminiscing about his old band and expressing a desire to get back together with them again, not for some quick cash as a cynic might suggest, but for the pleasure of playing together. Two of the songs, the title track and "Razor Love" are quite old themselves, having been written in 1982 and 1987 respectively. "Razor Love" was performed live during Neil's 1996 tour with Crazy Horse and I'd reckon it sounded quite different than this sweet, delicate version. This song is a gem, the centerpiece of the album, with a nice vocal, a simple, but pretty arrangement, and lyrics that describe a rich, deep level of love that one would expect of a longtime couple.

Young's continuing quest for the answers to the questions of love also make up a major part of the lyrical subject matter. In fact, "Horseshoe Man" ends with the sentiment "Love's the answer, love's the question." Some of Young's answers seem to come from valuing love and companionship over "silver and gold," as it's described in the title track. It's not a particularly earth-shattering philosophy, but fits in with the homespun feel of the album. And in this age of petulant, pampered, obscenely rich sports figures and musicians, it is nice to hear Young acknowledge that money isn't his sole motivation.

"The Great Divide," another pretty song, describes a relationship that was on the rocks, "the great divide" serving as a metaphor for the space a couple can feel between them when things are not going well. Though it sounds a bit cliched, the metaphor works well in the context of the song, with Young's high tenor floating over a pretty arrangement and melody. While the couple stays together in "The Great Divide," the closer "Without Rings" finds Young describing a relationship that has split apart, though in keeping with the tone of the album he doesn't sound bitter or angry, just confused and resigned.

This isn't a flawless album. "Daddy Went Walkin'" seems too contrived and hokey. And it does seem incongruous for someone who once sang "It's easy to get buried in the past, when you try to make a good thing last" to be looking back so much. Another minor quibble is that too many of the songs sound alike, with the acoustic guitar, bass and drum arrangements. Nary an electric guitar can be heard, and while it does make for a cohesive record, it would be nice if Neil had thrown in a rocker or at least a differently-arranged song to shake up the ears a bit.

So those of you yearning to hear Neil rock out can spend your fifteen bucks elsewhere. As for the rest of us, Neil is able to get enough new twists on some old themes to make it worthwhile. This is not a landmark album like Rust Never Sleeps or Tonight's the Night, but it is a better album than the similar sounding Harvest Moon, which doesn't have nearly as many good songs. If this is fading away, maybe that's not such a bad thing after all.