MOLINA, TALBOT, LOFGREN & YOUNG : ALL ROADS LEAD HOME

MOLINA, TALBOT, LOFGREN & YOUNG : ALL ROADS LEAD HOME

Rain
You Will Never Know
It's Magical
Song Of The Seasons
Cherish
Fill My Cup
Look Through The Eyes Of Your Heart
The Hunter
Go With Me
Just For You

Label : NYA Records

Length : 42:55

Release Date : March 31, 2023

Review (AllMusic) : Crazy Horse by another name is Talbot, Molina, Lofgren & Young, the group who released their debut All Roads Lead Home in 2023. The genesis of the album lies in the COVID-19 pandemic: isolated at home, Ralph Molina, Billy Talbot, and Nils Lofgren all wrote new material, eventually getting a chance to bring these sessions to life around the same time they supported Neil Young on his 2021 album Barn. Young is a presence on All Roads Lead Home -- he contributes a live solo version of "Song of the Seasons," which debuted on Barn -- but the focus is squarely on the other three members of Crazy Horse, who all contribute three songs apiece. Where other, earlier Crazy Horse albums tend to lumber as the group shoulders the burden of heavy volume, All Roads Lead Home is relatively light on its feet, relying on interplay over amplification. There's a sweet, nostalgic air blowing through these ten songs, present both in the light melodies and openhearted lyrics. The record is clearly the work of old hippies: love and peace are placed at the forefront, buttressed by shaggy harmonies and ragged harmonies. Talbot's songs tend to ramble a bit and Molina lingers on matters of the heart, while Lofgren's songs are tight and affecting, lacking the loose ends of his colleagues. Mess is part of the appeal of Crazy Horse, whether they're heard with Young or on their own, so it feels right that All Roads Lead Home occasionally feels as if the sum is less than the individual parts; these are old friends not so much joining forces as they are grooving on the same wavelength.

Review (Ultimate Classic Rock) : The recording of Molina, Talbot, Lofgren and Young's All Roads Lead Home came about in a typically inspired and roundabout manner for the longtime Crazy Horse bandmates. As pandemic lockdowns put on hold get-togethers for Ralph Molina, Billy Talbot and Nils Lofgren and their on-and-off collaborator/leader Neil Young, everyone kept making music. It's just that they weren't making it under their usual circumstances or with their usual collaborators. As spirits and restrictions lifted, they all surfaced with individual new songs made during the downtime and with outside musicians. Drummer Molina has a trio of songs with various performers, bassist Talbot leads the Billy Talbot Band through three, Lofgren's three entries are mostly one-man-band offerings and Young contributes a live solo version of his "Song of the Seasons" from 2021's co-credited Crazy Horse album Barn. The result is a hodgepodge sampling of a Neil Young and Crazy Horse album made by four guys at different places and times. Since none of the album's 10 tracks include pairings of any two of the artists, All Roads Lead Home essentially plays like four solo records collected in a single home. That makes for a scattered and occasionally unfocused listen, already a characteristic of recent Young and Crazy Horse albums. And without leader Young at the helm, the LP often comes off like something thrown together by a local bar band in their spare time. There is some ragged appeal to the setup: Guitars crackle and pop, and split duties mean everyone is free to explore new musical avenues. Not that anyone here strays too far from their folk, rock and country comfort zones. That solo intimacy rarely translates to the one-take, mistakes-and-all spontaneity heard on recent Young and Crazy Horse albums, however. So, All Roads Lead Home is a cleaner, more concise listen than 2019's Colorado, Barn and 2022's World Record. Still, the best songs arrive as individual moments (Talbot's weather-beaten voice on "Rain," the slide guitar assisting Lofgren throughout "You Will Never Know"), rather than as a satisfying whole, though Molina's "Look Through the Eyes of Your Heart" comes closest to classic Crazy Horse, complete with a savage guitar solo. It's enough to tide over fans until Young's next album with the band – which, if recent history is an indication, will be here before long.

Review (Platomania) : Bij de namen Talbot, Molina, Lofgren en Young kun je maar aan één ding denken: Neil Young & Crazy Horse. Billy Talbot en Ralph Molina maakten samen met de in 1972 overleden gitarist Danny Whitten deel uit van de eerste bezetting van Crazy Horse, terwijl Nils Lofgren in de latere jaren vaak de gitarist van de band was. Dat All Roads Lead Home geen album van Neil Young & Crazy Horse is heeft alles te maken met de coronapandemie. De vier muzikanten maakten tijdens de diverse lockdowns allemaal hun eigen muziek, die uiteindelijk werd gebundeld tot dit album dat feitelijk solowerk van Talbot, Molina, Lofgren & Young bevat. Talbot, Molina en Lofgren droegen allen drie songs aan voor het album, terwijl de bijdrage van Neil Young beperkt bleef tot één track. Het levert een wat vreemde mengelmoes aan muziek op en geen moment een album van Neil Young & Crazy Horse, maar spelen kunnen deze vier gelouterde muzikanten natuurlijk wel. All Reads Lead Home is daarom op zijn minst een aardig tussendoortje.