Neil Young: ‘After the Gold Rush’ 50th Anniversary Edition Coming 12/11; Vinyl Box Set in March (Pre-Order)

1970’s After the Gold Rush was a significant release for Neil Young. His third proper studio album as a solo artist, the record celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2020, and right before year’s end the legendary singer/songwriter will revisit the album for a special reissue.

After the Gold Rush will be re-released in CD and digital formats on Dec. 11, ahead of a more lavish vinyl box set scheduled for a March 19, 2021 release.

Click here to pre-order the CD version from our Rock Cellar Store. 

After The Gold Rush

50th Anniversary Edition

Available as LP box set and CD

Pre-order Tomorrow 10/30 at 9 AM PT pic.twitter.com/dsxrfYuTT8

— Neil Young Archives (@NeilYoungNYA) October 29, 2020

A bit about the album’s legacy, per a news release:

The timelessness and influence of After the Gold Rush is difficult to overstate. From the iconic LP cover—a solarized image by photographer Joel Bernstein of Young walking in New York against a brick backdrop—to the long-running legacies of songs like the incendiary “Southern Man” and the melancholy “Only Love Can Break Your Heart,” the album has felt vital in each of the five decades since its release. In fact, its title track, with Young’s time-traveling and apocalyptic visions of California, places it firmly in the here and now. Young’s re-working of the song’s lyrics for live performances over the years casts that fact in a chilling clarity: “Look at Mother Nature on the run in the 21st century.” This 50th Anniversary Edition is both a celebration for longtime fans, and a chance for new ears to take in its continued relevance.

The album was released during a fruitful time for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, as each band member released a solo record of his own after the monumental success of the group’s collaborative Déjà Vu album.

While the CD and digital editions of the 50th anniversary reissue are due soon, the fancier vinyl box set will take a bit longer. And, after a look at what’s inside that box, the wait makes sense:

The 50th Anniversary Edition vinyl box set features a variant of the artwork, originally created by Neil’s long-time art director Gary Burden, made in collaboration with Grammy Award-winning artist Jenice Heo. The set also includes a 7” single in a picture sleeve with two versions of album outtake “Wonderin’.” Side A, originally included in The Archives Vol. 1: 1963-1972, was recorded in Topanga, California, in March 1970, and Side B is a previously unreleased version recorded at Sunset Sound in Hollywood in August 1969. A litho print of the album’s front cover is exclusively included in this vinyl box set.

Here’s the track listing for the 50th anniversary edition of After the Gold Rush:

1. Tell Me Why
2. After the Gold Rush
3. Only Love Can Break Your Heart
4. Southern Man
5. Till the Morning Comes
6. Oh, Lonesome me
7. Don’t Let It Bring You Down
8. Birds
9. When You Dance I Can Really Love
10. I Believe In You
11. Cripple Creek Ferry
12. [Break]
13. Wonderin’
14. Wonderin’ (previously unreleased version)

The upcoming Gold Rush festivities come just after Neil Young and Crazy Horse released Return to Greendale, a live album/film capturing their innovative 2003 tour:

Return To Greendale

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

New Film & Live Album from the historic 2003 tour supporting the release of the album Greendale 🌎

Now Streaming Exclusively on https://t.co/Lw3ovmPLRt or on the Neil Young Archives mobile app pic.twitter.com/3fg7t9z29P

— Neil Young Archives (@NeilYoungNYA) November 3, 2020