In 1984, Geffen Records sued Neil Young on the grounds that he had submitted uncharacteristic, uncommercial records to the label.
By the time a settlement had been reached, Young had been on the road with a country band called the International Harvesters for over a year and recorded a revamped version of Old Ways, a 1982 recording originally rejected by Geffen that was cut in the style of Harvest and Comes a Time, but with a stronger country leaning.
Young depends heavily on friends, especially for vocals -- Waylon Jennings sings harmony on six out of the ten tracks, and one of the others is a duet with Willie Nelson.
Though populated by cowboys and country references, Young's take on the genre is typically idiosyncratic, including a reworked version of his autobiography in "Get Back to the Country," a cover of the 1956 Gogi Grant hit "The Wayward Wind," and the uncategorizable "Misfits," which portrays astronauts watching Muhammad Ali fights on television in space.
Old Ways is not a great Neil Young album and at the time of its release served to alienate him even further from his audience, but it has its moments.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Wayward WindStanley Lebowsky, Herb Newman | Neil Young | Play | 03:12 | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| 2 | Get Back to the CountryNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 02:51 | 6 MB | 18 MB |
| 3 | Once an AngelNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 03:56 | 9 MB | 21 MB |
| 4 | MisfitsNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 05:07 | 11 MB | 26 MB |
| 5 | California SunsetNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 02:57 | 6 MB | 18 MB |
| 6 | Old WaysNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 03:08 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 7 | My BoyNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 03:38 | 8 MB | 21 MB |
| 8 | Bound for GloryNeil Young | Neil Young | Play | 05:50 | 13 MB | 33 MB |
| 9 | Are There Any More Real Cowboys | Neil Young | Play | 03:07 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 10 | Where is the Highway Tonight | Neil Young | Play | 03:05 | 7 MB | 16 MB |
| 36 mins | 84 MB | |||||
| 36 mins | 214 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joseph Allen | Bass |
| 2 | Bobby Arnold | Engineer |
| 3 | Kristine Arnold | Vocals |
| 4 | George Binkley III | Strings |
| 5 | Grant Boatwright | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic) |
| 6 | John Borg | Strings |
| 7 | David Briggs | Producer |
| 8 | Larry Byrom | Piano, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 9 | J.T. Cantwell | Assistant, Assistant Engineer |
| 10 | Roy Christensen | Strings |
| 11 | Virginia Christensen | Strings |
| 12 | Johnny Christopher | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic) |
| 13 | Chuck Cochran | Mixing, String Arrangements |
| 14 | Dana Cooper | Vocals |
| 15 | Doana Cooper | Vocals (Background) |
| 16 | Anthony Crawford | Mandolin, Performer, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 17 | Gail Davies | Guest Artist, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 18 | Denise Draper | Vocals |
| 19 | Tim Drummond | Bass, Drums |
| 20 | Ray Edenton | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic) |
| 21 | Gene Eichelberger | Engineer |
| 22 | Charles Everett | Strings |
| 23 | Béla Fleck | Banjo, Guest Artist |
| 24 | Carl Gorodetzky | Leader, Violin |
| 25 | Larry Greenhill | Engineer |
| 26 | Betsy Hammer | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 27 | Larry Harvin | Strings |
| 28 | Mark Hembree | Strings |
| 29 | Karl Himmel | Drums |
| 30 | Waylon Jennings | Guest Artist, Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals |
| 31 | Dennis Keeley | Photography |
| 32 | Ben Keith | Arranger, Dobro, Guest Artist, Guitar, Guitar (Steel), Producer, Vocals |
| 33 | Mary Ann Kennedy | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 34 | Dave Kirby | Guitar |
| 35 | Lee Larrison | Strings |
| 36 | Stanley Lebowsky | Composer |
| 37 | Mike Leech | Arranger |
| 38 | Elliot Mazer | Producer |
| 39 | Betty McDonald | Strings |
| 40 | Terry McMillan | Guest Artist, Harmonica, Harp, Jew's-Harp |
| 41 | Dennis Molchan | Strings |
| 42 | Ralph Mooney | Guitar, Guitar (Steel) |
| 43 | Farrell Morris | Percussion |
| 44 | Tim Mulligan | Engineer |
| 45 | Willie Nelson | Guest Artist, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Performer, Vocals |
| 46 | Herb Newman | Composer |
| 47 | Keith Odle | Engineer |
| 48 | Spooner Oldham | Piano |
| 49 | Kristine Oliver-Arnold | Vocals (Background) |
| 50 | Janis Oliver-Gill | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 51 | Joe Osborn | Bass |
| 52 | Rick Palombi | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 53 | Denny Purcell | Mastering |
| 54 | Mike Ragogna | Reissue Supervisor |
| 55 | Hargus "Pig" Robbins | Piano |
| 56 | Elliot Roberts | Direction, Director |
| 57 | Pamela Rose | Vocals |
| 58 | Clarke Schleicher | Assistant, Assistant Engineer |
| 59 | Gove Scrivenor | Autoharp |
| 60 | Pamela Sixfin | Strings |
| 61 | Tommy Steele | Design |
| 62 | Beth Stempel | Project Coordinator |
| 63 | Marty Stuart | Guest Artist, Mandolin |
| 64 | Mark Tanner | Strings |
| 65 | Gordon Terry | Fiddle, Violin |
| 66 | Rufus Thibodeaux | Fiddle, Guest Artist |
| 67 | Bobby Thompson | Banjo |
| 68 | David Vanderkooi | Strings |
| 69 | Gary VanOsdale | Strings |
| 70 | Carole Walker | Strings |
| 71 | Leona Williams | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 72 | Stephanie Woolf | Strings |
| 73 | Neil Young | Arranger, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Harmonica, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |