Americana
by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
  • Record Label: Reprise
  • Release Date: Jun 5, 2012
Metascore
68

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
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  1. Q Magazine
    Oct 12, 2012
    60
    The fun doesn't always translate to the listener. [Jul 2012, p.113]
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  2. Drowned In Sound
    Jun 14, 2012
    60
    The rest is solid if rarely spectacular, with the Crazy Horse rumble making a welcome return to Young's modern day repertoire.
  3. Exclaim
    Jun 6, 2012
    60
    While the sound of this is pretty uniform the quality is all over the place and very dependent on the song being covered.
  5. Blurt Magazine
    Jun 6, 2012
    60
    Neil Young and Crazy Horse just never disappoint.
  6. The Independent (UK)
    Jun 4, 2012
    60
    Though drab and overlong, it has a certain rugged, whiskery charm, which doesn't extend to the concluding "God Save the Queen", a stodge too far.
  7. Filter
    Jun 4, 2012
    60
    It gives us songs more memorable for their grizzly narrations or the occasional doo-wop harmony than the steady performances of mostly standard-format jams.
  8. The Guardian
    Jun 1, 2012
    60
    Americana in a nutshell: beloved songs from America's past, be they folk, blues or pop songs, such as the Silhouette's 1958 No 1 Get a Job, put through the mangle of Young's overdriven guitar and stretched to unnecessary lengths.
  9. New Musical Express (NME)
    Jun 6, 2012
    50
    While it's briefly thrilling to hear Young's bolshy take on Woody Guthrie's 'This Land Is Your Land', it's nowhere near Johnny Cash/Rick Rubin standards, or even a Bob Dylan Christmas album.
  10. Mojo
    Jun 26, 2012
    40
    While the power-soak guitar solos ard gung-ho buck of Crazy Horse are present and correct, it's curious that Americana packs songs that don't fit its brief. [Jul 2012, p.88]
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  11. NOW Magazine
    Jun 7, 2012
    40
    Going for immediate and real, Young ends up with a disc that resembles a tentative early demo for what could have been a decent (albeit strange) Crazy Horse album.
  12. The Independent on Sunday (UK)
    Jun 5, 2012
    40
    It is cursory, lumpen and dull.
  13. AllMusic
    Jun 5, 2012
    40
    It all winds up as an ungodly mess: Crazy Horse do, as Young asserted they would, make these songs their own, but by doing so, they've made them so nobody else would ever want them.
  14. Slant Magazine
    Jun 4, 2012
    40
    In attempting to honor the sounds of the past, Young ends up turning them into toxic sludge.
  15. BBC Music
    Jun 1, 2012
    40
    It's the dampest campfire hoedown you ever did hear.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 10 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. kubajakubowski
    Jun 24, 2012
    8
    Neil and his Band in great shape. Truly American way of making music. I recommend it to everyone who's tired of crap streamed by mainstreamNeil and his Band in great shape. Truly American way of making music. I recommend it to everyone who's tired of crap streamed by mainstream radio stations.… Full Review »
  2. ShepRock
    Nov 5, 2012
    10
    The more I listen to Americana, the more I realize how vital these traditional songs sound when Neil and the Horse start to groove off of each other.
  3. pkindieboy
    Jul 12, 2012
    8
    Neil playing loose and groovy, the way he likes it. Some of these songs seem like first takes, which is fine because Neil probably couldn'tNeil playing loose and groovy, the way he likes it. Some of these songs seem like first takes, which is fine because Neil probably couldn't hit a wrong note if he wanted to. The production is open and clear too.… Full Review »
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