Search - Various Artists :: Bridge: Tribute Neil Young

Sonic Youth's Computer Age rules

J. F. Rick | Atlanta, GA USA | 08/19/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is a fairly uneven collection of Neil Young covers. While some are good (like "Barstool Blues"), others are (weak). The only one that makes the album is Sonic Youth's cover of "Computer Age," originally on Neil's Trans album.This may be the only cover of a Neil Young song that I like better than the original. It's loud and obnoxious and experimental, but it rules!"

Fantastic Album for the Clued in

jeneric132 | 03/02/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This cd reads like a who's who of Alt rock before the major labels crushed the life of it. I mean it came out in 1989 and features the Pixies and The Flaming Lips among a wide aray of other great bands, it is almost a prediction of the future.
And btw, Neal Young was the bridge between old rock and new rock. Hence the title."

A progenitor of what the tribute album has become

H. Geenen | Seattle, WA | 03/25/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For those too young or too out of it to have been around two decades ago, "The Bridge" was one of the very first modern tribute albums and set a high bar for what this new genre came to be in the '90's and '00's. It was a splendid collection of indie and post-punk musicians of the time and most managed to be faithful to the spirit of the originals and yet creatively amplify musical trends at the time of the collection's production.



I simply couldn't believe some of the comments here (has it dated itself so badly?), so I just listened to its entirety in the car during a commute to my evening class and back. While a few of the covers by unknowns Loop and Nikki Sudden were rather harmless, I found most to be inspired and more than up to the task. Victoria Williams, herself the beneficiary of a benefit album only a few years later due to illness, was a revelation here. The Pixies, Soul Asylum, Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth and Bongwater all had outstanding contributions. Even Nick Cave, of whom I am not a fan, used his stylized vocals to great effect in the dirge-like "Helpless."



But I have to add that my favorite track was at the time and continues to be Dinosaur, Jr.'s cover of "Lotta Love." This was not one of Young's strongest songs to begin with, but in the hands of J. Mascis this turned into chaotic genius of speed guitar with heart -- under three minutes.



The fact that some of these covers were amongst the best recordings some of these bands did speaks a great deal to the power of Young's songwriting. It set a standard for what to expect in mixing creative musical vision with musicians willing to put themselves on the line performing material considered to be standards in their chosen creative field.



Thank you naysayers for making me go back and check the original. My faith restored in the original album -- or in my case, cassette -- I just bought a used CD so I can add it to my digital library."