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“Time Fades Away” constitutes one of the best-hidden gems in the vast production of Neil Young. Released in 1973, in the wake of the incredible success of “Harvest,” it is generally considered a significant work not so much for its intrinsic value but for what it represents within the Canadian's career – the end of the west coast era and the entry into the abyss of drugs and despair of the 70s that would lead to his masterpieces “On The Beach” and “Tonight’s The Night.” Although it does not reach the artistic zenith of those albums, "Time Fades Away" is nonetheless a work that deserves to be rediscovered. For one, it is one of the very few cases in which an artist releases unreleased live material. The eight tracks presented here were almost all recorded on the tour following that of “Harvest.” But the sound is light years away from the celestial sound that made that album the pinnacle of the country-rock season. Although there are moments that connect to the recent past, such as the stunning piano ballads “Love In Mind” and “The Bridge” which recall the dreamlike atmospheres of “After The Gold Rush,” the sound that envelops "Time Fades Away" is a distorted and hallucinatory rock, a fundamental premise to that "Tonight’s The Night" which Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers recently described as “the greatest dirty rock record ever”.
The Canadian loner begins to exorcise his demons – an intoxicating success that overwhelms him, the drug problems of his friends, the failures of the Woodstock generation – and he does so on stage, in front of fans who came to see him hoping to hear the sweet melodies of "Heart Of Gold" or "Old Man." The resulting music reflects the mood of its author, who often went on stage at the time drunk. The initial title track is emblematic in this sense: on a corrosive and almost garage-like soundbed, punctuated by a bouncing piano that seems to parody country-rock clichés, Neil starts singing “Fourteen junkies too weak to work/One sells diamonds for what they're worth /Down on pain street, disappointment lurks”. "Yonder Stands The Sinner" and "L.A." unfold in the same register, the latter slightly softened by a crystalline melody in the refrain. "Don't Be Denied" is one of the most poignant pieces in Young's entire repertoire. Retracing the story of his life and the saving importance that music had in it, the piece is grounded on a curare riff that perfectly forges its urgency. Worthy closure comes with "Last Dance," the first of the famous youngian tirades against everything and everyone. A harsh and desperate ride, the soundtrack of Neil's entry into the tunnel of the 70s, as he seems to bid farewell to the fans urging "You can live your own life, making it happen, working on your own time".
Ultimately, "Time Fades Away" is perhaps the first punk record, in which an artist publicly bares himself, letting you hear the noise of breaking glass. I don't think a better compliment could be paid to an album.
Tracklist and Lyrics
02 Journey Through the Past (03:22)
When the winter rains
come pourin' down
On that new home of mine,
Will you think of me
and wonder if I'm fine?
Will your restless heart
come back to mine
On a journey thru the past.
Will I still be in your eyes
and on your mind?
Now I'm going back to Canada
On a journey thru the past
And I won't be back
till February comes
I will stay with you
if you'll stay with me,
Said the fiddler to the drum,
And we'll keep good time
on a journey thru the past.
When the winter rains
come pourin' down
On that new home of mine,
Will I still be in your eyes
and on your mind?
Will I still be in your eyes
and on your mind?
03 Yonder Stands the Sinner (03:11)
Well, you heard about the Great Pretender?
I went to see him and he's not the same
Down by the club on the parking lot cinders
I was to meet him and play his game.
Yonder stands the sinner
He calls my name without a sound.
I saw his face in the attic window
Yellin' down through the broken pane
Sinner man! What you got to run for?
Church bells rang when he said that name.
Yonder stands the sinner
He calls my name without a sound.
Well, I was about as scared as I could be.
I went and hid behind the nearest tree.
Peeked out from behind the branches.
Sinner!
Yonder stands the sinner
He calls my name without a sound
To get down.
I guess you heard about the Great Pretender?
I went to see him and he's not the same.
I guess you heard about the Great Pretender?
I went to see him and he's not the same.
04 L.A. (03:10)
In a matter of time,
There'll be a friend of mine
Gonna come to the coast,
You're gonna see him
Up close for a minute or two
While the ground cracks under you.
By the look in your eyes
You'd think that it was a surprise
But you seem to forget
Something somebody said
About the bubbles in the sea
And an ocean full of trees.
And you now, L.A.
Uptight, city in the smog, city in the smog.
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
Well, it's hard to believe
So you get up to leave
And you laugh at the door
That you heard it all before
Oh it's so good to know
That it's all just a show for you.
But when the suppers are planned
And the freeways are crammed
And the mountains erupt
And the valley is sucked
Into cracks in the earth
Will I finally be heard by you.
L.A.
Uptight, city in the smog, city in the smog.
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
Don't you wish that you could be here too?
06 Don't Be Denied (05:17)
When I was a young boy,
My mama said to me
Your daddy's leavin' home today,
I think he's gone to stay.
We packed up all our bags
And drove out to Winnipeg.
When we got to Winnipeg
I checked in to school.
I wore white bucks on my feet,
When I learned the golden rule.
The punches came fast and hard
Lying on my back in the school yard.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Well pretty soon I met a friend,
He played guitar.
We used to sit on the steps at school
And dream of being stars.
We started a band,
We played all night.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Oh Canada
We played all night
I really hate to leave you now
But to stay just wouldn't be right.
Down in Hollywood
We played so good
The businessmen crowded around
They came to hear the golden sound
There we were on the Sunset Strip,
Playing our songs for the highest bid.
We played all night
The price was right.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Well, all that glitters isn't gold
I know you've heard that story told.
And I'm a pauper in a naked disguise
A millionaire through a business man's eyes.
Oh friend of mine
Don't be denied.
07 The Bridge (03:04)
The bridge, we'll build it now
It may take a lot of time
And it maybe lonely but
Ooh baby, ooh baby.
The bridge was falling down
And that took a lot of lies
And it made me lonely
Ooh baby, ooh baby.
The bridge was falling.
The bridge was falling.
The bridge was falling.
One day, when you talked to me
I saw myself again
And it made me love you.
Ooh baby, ooh baby.
And love came running down
Like a river on your skin
And you let me in.
Ooh babe, ooh babe.
You let me in
You let me in
You let me in
The bridge, we'll build it now
It may take a lot of time.
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