Times are a-changing

Press, 26 November 1981, Page 14

Times are a-changing

NEIL YOUNG AND CRAZY HORSE “Re.ac.tor” (Warner Bros HS 2304). “Who’s driving my car now?” asks Neil Young on “Motor City,” one of the tracks on “Re.ac.tor.” The song is about the invasion of Japanese cars into the United States, perhaps an incongruous theme for a song, yet this is a reactionary album. “Re.ac.tor” follows up side two of “Hawks and Doves,” particularly the lines which open the title track — “Ain’t getting old, ain’t getting younger though/Just getting used to the lay of the land.” Young is one of the few American rock artists trying to come to terms with the changing American culture, hence the song about the invasion of . Japanese cars. However, I believe that Young’s viewpoint is ambivalent. He is uncertain about whether he genuinely is reacting against these changes or whether he is recording what he sees happening. • Any Young fan will tell you that he is a difficult artist to pin down. Perhaps that accounts for the masochistic joy of trying to interpret his songs. “Rapid Transit,” for example. seems to take in about three things at once. There is ;;-a reference to “meltdown,” which is the initial reaction to the title “Re.ac.tor,” from the environmental controversy

about nuclear energy, there is also a reference to newwave music (“Every wave is new until it breaks,”) and Neil Young maintains he is standing in his own line. Perhaps in the end “Rapid Transit” is about choices of direction or fashion. But to concentrate on the lyrics is to ignore the powerhouse music that Young and Crazy Horse release on this album. “T-bone” only has two lines — “Got mashed potatotes/ain’t got no Tbone,” — it is a really starchy track, a heavy rhythm section, over which is laid solid" lead guitar lines, 9min. 14sec worth. It is Neil Young at his rocky best, although it lacks the lyrical grace of “Hurricane” and “Cortez the Killer,” Another heavy song \ is “Shots,” on a musical background which has the beat of galloping horses and a game of space invaders. There is a siege mentality here. Surrounded on all sides, “children” are trying to join their fathers’ castles together again, trying to rebuild the foundations of the past. Perhaps, Young expects a revolution in the United States and “Hawks and Doves” implied the choice America faced in the 1980 Presidential elections. “Get Back On It” is another country track, less strident, in which Young sings about getting back on the

highway — another directional song. The more “Re.ac.tor” is played the better it becomes. The sound is strong and uncompromising, but whether Young fully supports the ideas he is putting forward is uncertain.

GENESIS “Abacab” (Vertigo 6302 162). This is the first Genesis album released' by the remaining three members since the success of “Face Value,” the solo album by the drummer, Phil Collins. The innovation adopted by Genesis was one adopted by Collins on his solo album — the use of a reverberating drum sound, which incidentally, came from a former Genesis member, Peter Gabriel.

The title track, “Abacab,” which is also the single, adopts the drum technique to some extent, although a fourminute stretch added on the album track is boring. Refreshingly different is “Keep It Dark,” which has a single guitar strand around which is woven the rest of the song. Another interesting track is “Who Dunnit?” which uses a synthesised voice effect.

“No Reply At All” sounds like something from “Face Value,” and includes the Earth Wind and Fire horn section. It sounds bouncy and alive.

Any long-term Genesis fan will find comfort in “Dodo.”

a rerun of “Squonk,” but any Genesis lover will probably turn to the early originals for comfort.

ROD STEWART “Tonight I’m Yours” (Warner Bros BSK 3602).

The traumas of life are definitely behind now, and complacency has set in. There is no need to head for the limit, just croon away the same old songs. Although Rod Stewart does not have friends in Las Vegas or Lake Tahoe, he now tends to be a reminder of Frank Sinatra, and to be sure, he will be pulling the crowds in years to come.

“Tonight I’m Yours” is predictable fare. The title track is another “Tonight's The Night,” without the class, and three rockers in a row — “Tora Tora Tora (Out With The Boys),” “Tear It Up,” and “How Long,” the latter an old chestnut, fail to raise the spirits. The latter track contains not so much anger as weariness. Stewart’s version of “Just Like A Woman,” (Dylan) adds nothing new, and the album ends up on “Never Give Up On A Dream,” a song about the Canadian runner. Terry Fox, who died of cancer while trying to run across Canada from coast to coast. The song lacks impact because Stewart was not close to Fox, unlike the unknown “Georgie.”

—Nevin Topp.