43. Neil Young & Crazy Horse, ‘Arc-Weld’ (1991)
43
Neil Young & Crazy Horse, ‘Arc-Weld’ (1991)
Neil Young was in the middle of a career renaissance when he hit the road with Crazy Horse in early 1991. Their new album Ragged Glory was hailed as their finest in a decade and the group was playing songs old and new with a stunning level of energy and passion. The live album Weld captured the best moments on a two-CD set. The 14-minute rendition of "Like A Hurricane" remains one of the best version of the tune, while concert staples "Cortez The Killer," "Powderfinger" and "Hey Hey, My My (In The Black)" have never sounded so vital. It's hard to pinpoint a live peak for Crazy Horse, but this very well might be it. The album originally came packed with Arc, which was a single 35-minute track of various feedback-soaked beginnings and endings of songs. "Now here I am, 45 years old, and this is the essence of what's happening to my mind," said Young of the extended noise suite. "I really made Arc for people who ride around in the Jeeps with the big speakers. If you pull up beside somebody on the street and you're playing that, that makes a fucking statement." Andy Greene