Neil Young - Roxy: Tonight's The Night (LP)

Label: Reprise Records – 9362-49079-7, Reprise Records – 566051-1
Series: Neil Young Archives Performance Series – 05
Format: LP
Country: Europe
Released: Apr 21, 2018
Genre: Rock
Style: Blues Rock, Folk Rock

ROXY represents the first public performance of many of the songs that would make up Young’s seminal album Tonight’s The Night, which would not be released until June 1975. The album’s final track “Walk On” would not appear until the release of On The Beach, in July 1974.

The all-star band on this album features Neil Young (guitars, vocals, piano), Ben Keith (pedal steel, slide guitars, vocals), Billy Talbot (bass), Ralph Molina (drums, vocals) and Nils Lofgren (piano, vocals, guitars) – completed the line-up known as the Santa Monica Flyers. Young would be the first artist to perform at he the West Hollywood landmark, The ROXY Theater on the riotous Sunset Strip, right next door to the already infamous Rainbow Bar & Grille. The shows took place on September 20-22, 1973.

Produced by Young and the late David Briggs, these resultant recordings were mixed by John Nowland with updated post-production and mastering by John Hanlon – along with Chris Bellman - at Bernie Grundman Mastering using the original analog master tape source. Close your eyes and you’ll be right there in that dark, smoky, 500 capacity room in West, L.A. on a hot summer night in 1973.