Neil Young

Silver & Gold (Reprise)

Throughout his career, Neil Young's musical style has swung from periods of intense electric to pensive acoustic. Young's latest album is a return to the latter. Silver & Gold picks up where Harvest Moon left off eight years ago. All of the album's ten songs are love songs, in some form, and set to a folk or country sound. For most rockers, this combination may sound silly, but for Young the effect is sweet and touching. His lyrics are direct, which sometimes works well, as on the ballad "Good to See You"-"Good to see you/Good to see you again/Good to see your face again/It's good to see you"-but when Young gets unfocused it sounds sappy ("Love don't care if you're wrong or right/Love don't know if you're black or white," from "Horseshoe Man"). Young is at his most poignant when he composes musical portraits, such as the railroad town of "Red Sun" and the old dad in "Daddy Went Walkin."

Musically, Silver & Gold is subdued-not as bright as Harvest Moon, but rich in texture and a pleasure to listen to. The album is a confident attempt for Young to reach a higher personal level in his music. Although the experiment sometimes falls short, when it does succeed the results are delightful. B

-William K. Lee

St. Etienne

The Sound of Water (Mantra)