Neil Young
After the Gold Rush

Side one is Super Hot, with most of the Rock Weight that this copy needs to make Southern Man work its magic. All that lovely tape hiss means the top is extended, creating the space up top to keep the sound open and spacious. We've heard better side ones, but better in this case means White Hot; you may have noticed those copies sell for big bucks nowadays.

Side two is a step down, so if this is your favorite side I'm sure we have a copy that will give you better sound on those side two tracks, classics each and every one. Not as much top end, not quite the energy of side one, but still transparent and tonally correct. We called it A+. Which is WAY better than most copies out there in the bins.

Demo Quality, Tubey Magical Sound

This copy has incredible Tubey Magic on side one that's actually quite rare for this album. It's rich, sweet, smooth, transparent -- it's hard to believe that this is a "modern" transistor rock recording, because it sure doesn't sound like one on this pressing! The vocal harmonies have those silky textures you expect to find on gold label Warner Brothers Peter Paul and Mary records, not orange label Neil Young records!

Needless to say, we consider this DEMO QUALITY SOUND.

Better Neil Young Sound Than You Ever Imagined

Is this one of those records in your collection that you wished had better sound, because you love the music so much? Well it does have better sound -- just not on the copy you own.

The reason a record like this needs to sell for this kind of serious bread is because there just aren't that many clean copies that have survived; there aren't that many copies with these stampers; and there aren't that many copies that were pressed just right, the way this one was. I've been picking up originals of this record for 20 years. Nowadays we pick up every clean original copy that we see. People loved this album and played it to death. Who can blame them; it's Young's masterpiece. It's actually a better album than Harvest, and Harvest is an awfully good album.

Anyone Can Do It! (But Who Really Wants To?)

Most original copies of this album leave a lot to be desired. Some are clean but lack Tubey Magic and warmth. Others are thick, dull, and compressed sounding. And almost all of them are pressed on dubious vinyl or have been treated poorly.

Subtracting all the problematical copies you're left with only a handful of real contenders, copies that have the goods. If you would like to spend a couple of years finding, cleaning, and playing original pressings of After The Gold Rush, the chances are very good that you would eventually come across one like this. Anyone can do it. But do you want to? Would you rather spend your free time searching for the ultimate copy of Neil Young's masterpiece or enjoying it?

Track Commentary

The Track Listing tab above will take you to an extensive song by song breakdown for each side, with plenty of What to Listen for advice.

"I just played your hot stamper pressing of Neil Young After the Gold Rush, and WOW! I don't always agree with everyone else on which record pressings sound best, but this record knocked my socks off. No doubt about this one. I compared it to a recent German/Dutch reissue, which I remember sounding better than the crappy US pressing I previously had, and the difference was amazing. The soundstage was huge, I heard instruments playing right in front of me, dynamics were great, the bass drum on Only Love Can Break Your Heart was deep and extended, guitars were full, and so on. I hadn't played this record in a while mainly because it was, well, a lousy recording, which is a shame because it is one of my favorite records. I am sure I will be playing this version a lot more. Too bad for those who haven't heard this pressing." - RL

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"I have really been enjoying the Neil Young "After The Gold Rush" and CSN&Y "So Far" . They are like the "Workingman's Dead" LP. Just a thrill to hear. The instruments on "After The Gold Rush" fill my room like they would in a live performance. Addictive." - AJ