Greatest Hits (Neil Young album)

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Neil Young's Greatest Hits is only the third compilation after Decade and Lucky Thirteen to appear from this veteran artist. Eleven of the first twelve tracks also appear on Decade, and the disc in total spans his solo career from 1969 through 1992. It was released on November 16, 2004 on Reprise Records, part of the WEA conglomerate.

All tracks on this album were remastered using the HDCD process, which Young has been utilizing for his studio work since 1995. The album was also released as a high-resolution DVD Audio disc, and in a two-disc format including the audio album plus a bonus DVD with videos for "Rockin' in the Free World" and the song "Harvest Moon". Extensive notes on the remastering process can be found on Young's website. [link]

From the press release, Young said:

"One of the most important jobs of any musician is to provide quality sound to the people. Quality has taken a hit in recent years, but it's starting to come back thanks to DVD-stereo. There is just no comparison between DVD-stereo and a regular compact disc or even 5.1 sound. It's the difference between a true reflection of the music and a mere replica. I've always been a strong believer in analogue and this is about as close to the rewarding listening experience of vinyl as the real thing."[link]

Given Young's well-known attitudes regarding remastering and repackaging, that the back cover of the disc states that the tracks chosen for inclusion on this package were "based on original record sales, airplay and known download history" thus the most overtly familiar material from Young's long career, some suggest that Greatest Hits has all the earmarks of being assembled by the label in order to have a Young compilation on the market with the commercial attractiveness of other single-disc blockbusters such as The Beatles' 1 or Elvis Presley's package. Featuring improved sound for most of the tracks, however, it could also be a precursor to Reprise finally convincing Young to remaster his back catalogue through 1979 in HDCD, something that has yet to occur as of June 2006.

Track listing

All songs written by Neil Young

"Down by the River" - 9:16 (17 January 1969) Neil Young & Crazy Horse
"Cowgirl in the Sand" - 10:05 (18 January 1969) Neil Young & Crazy Horse
"Cinnamon Girl" - 2:59 (20 March 1969) Neil Young & Crazy Horse
"Helpless" - 3:37 (7 November 1969) Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
"After the Gold Rush" - 3:46 (12 March 1970) Neil Young
"Only Love Can Break Your Heart" - 3:08 (15 March 1970) Neil Young
"Southern Man" - 5:31 (19 March 1970) Neil Young
"Ohio" - 2:59 (21 May 1970) Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
"The Needle and the Damage Done" - 2:10 (30 January 1971) Neil Young
"Old Man" - 3:22 (6 February 1971) Neil Young & Stray Gators
"Heart of Gold" - 3:07 (8 February 1971) Neil Young & Stray Gators
"Like A Hurricane" - 8:20 (29 November 1975) Neil Young & Crazy Horse
"Comes a Time" - 3:04 (2 November 1977) Neil Young
"Hey Hey, My My (Into The Black)" - 4:59 (22 October 1978) Neil Young & Crazy Horse
"Rockin' in the Free World" - 4:41 (10 March 1989) Neil Young
"Harvest Moon" - 5:03 (22 September 1991) Neil Young

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