Neil Young Reworks Favorite Songs For New Solo Acoustic Album ‘Before And After’

Neil Young will release Before And After, a new album featuring fresh solo acoustic renditions of material from his 55-year career, on December 8 via Reprise Records. Young shared the run of “I’m The Ocean,” “Homefires” and “Burned” that opens the 13-track collection to preview the set.

All 13 songs selected by Neil Young were played by the legendary rocker during his solo acoustic Coastal Tour this past summer. “Picking from a vast array of his originals, Young chooses favorites from his playbook like a trip into his music history and performs them mostly alone taking a solo acoustic journey to a new place,” noted press materials heralding the upcoming release of Before And After.

“The feeling is captured, not in pieces, but as a whole piece — designed to be listened to that way,” Neil Young explained. “Enjoy this music! Only for listening. That says it all.” The first three Before And After tracks shared by Young bleed into each other with the third ending just before “On The Way Home” begins, hinting at a seamless collection of songs.

Opener “I’m The Ocean” was originally recorded with Pearl Jam for the collaborative 1995 album Mirror Ball. “Homefires,” the upcoming LP’s second song, was initially tracked by Young in 1974 with the original version finally released in 2020 as part of Neil’s massive Archives Volume 2 box set. Both “Burned” and “On The Way Home” date back to Neil Young’s time in Buffalo Springfield.

Neil Young also selected a previously unreleased song which dates back to the sessions that yielded 1982’s Trans (“If You Got Love”) as well as material from 1994’s Sleeps With Angels (“A Dream That Can Last” & “My Heart”), 1970’s After The Gold Rush (“Birds”), 2002’s Are You Passionate? (“When I Hold You In My Arms”) and 1990’s Ragged Glory (“Mother Earth”). The title track featured on Young’s 1978 LP Comes A Time, Buffalo Springfield classic “Mr. Soul” and “Don’t Forget Love” off 2021’s Barn round out Before And After.

The 48-minute Before And After was produced by Lou Adler and Neil Young. An effort described as “unlike any other album he has released to date” was mixed by Young and Niko Bolas, aka The Volume Dealers. Before And After will be available in multiple formats including CD, vinyl LP, clear vinyl LP and Blu-Ray disc featuring Atmos mix, Binaural mix and Hi-Res 96/24 stereo. Downloads of Hi-Res digital audio can be purchased through the Xstream download store with most DSPs also hosting the album.

Stream the first part of Neil Young’s Before And After featuring a seamless run connecting “I’m The Ocean,” “Homefires” and “Burned” below:

Before And After Tracklist

1. I’m The Ocean
2. Homefires
3. Burned
4. On The Way Home
5. If You Got Love
6. A Dream That Can Last
7. Birds
8. My Heart
9. When I Hold You In My Arms
10. Mother Earth
11. Mr Soul
12. Comes A Time
13. Don’t Forget Love