The Times (EP)

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The Times
A photograph of Young playing guitar in silhouette
EP by
Neil Young
ReleasedSeptember 18, 2020 (2020-09-18)
RecordedJune 19–23, 2020
StudioNeil Young's porch
GenreLo-fi music
Length26:46
LabelReprise
Producer
Neil Young chronology
Homegrown
(2020) 		The Times
(2020) 		Return to Greendale
(2020)
Singles from The Times
  1. "Lookin' for a Leader 2020"
    Released: August 14, 2020[1]

The Times is a live EP from Canadian-American folk rock musician Neil Young. Released on September 18, 2020, the album is made up of live recordings that Young did in his home for the Fireside Sessions series.[2]

Recording and release

The Fireside Sessions is a series of concerts that Young streamed online for fans to provide some solace during the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] This EP was made available only via Young's site and Amazon Music HD for maximum audio quality.[4]

Critical reception

Review aggregator Album of the Year characterizes critical consensus for The Times as a 73 out of 100 with three reviews.

Pitchfork Media, Jesse Jarnow gave the EP a 6.9 out of 10, praising the "lo-fi but distinctly modern starkness that stands in contrast to Young’s longstanding fixation on sound quality and love of vintage (and expensive) analog gear" and Young's "commitment to righteousness" but noting that the protest songs, "neither hit particularly hard as music".[9] Rolling Stone included this release as one of the 18 picks for the month of September 2020.[10]

Track listing

All songs written by Neil Young, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Alabama" 3:00
2."Campaigner" 3:28
3."Ohio" 2:49
4."The Times They Are A-Changin"Bob Dylan5:01
5."Lookin’ for a Leader 2020" 4:11
6."Southern Man" 3:32
7."Little Wing" 4:45

Personnel

  • Neil Young – guitar, vocals, harmonica, production
  • Niko Bolas – production
  • art direction
    , recording
  • Janice Heo – art direction assistance
  • Dana Neilsen –
    mastering

Charts

Chart performance for The Times
Chart (2020-21) Peak
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[11] 38
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 144
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] 66
French Albums (
SNEP)[14]
 107
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 57
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[16] 10
Italian Albums (FIMI)[17] 89
Scottish Albums (OCC)[18] 14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[19] 31
UK Albums (OCC)[20] 99
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[21] 71
US
Top Current Album Sales (Billboard)[22]
 47
US
Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[23]
 14

References

  1. ^ "Neil Young - Lookin' For A Leader 2020 (Official Music Video)". August 14, 2020 – via YouTube.
  2. Consequence of Sound
    . Retrieved August 18, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Khanna, Vish (September 18, 2020). "Neil Young's 'The Times' Is Timeless, and That's Why It's So Depressing". Exclaim!. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  4. Consequence of Sound
    . Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  5. ^ "Neil Young – The Times". Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  6. ^ Cooper, Leonie (September 16, 2020). "Neil Young – The Times EP Review: Classic Protest Songs Reworked to Reflect the Current Chaos". NME. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  7. ^ "Release Day Picks: September 18th New Album Highlights". JamBase. September 18, 2020. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  8. AllMusic Guide
    . Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  9. Pitchfork Media
    . Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  10. ^ Martoccio, A. (October 1, 2020). "Best Albums of September 2020: Alicia Keys, Neil Young, Toots and the Maytals, and More". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  11. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Neil Young – The Times" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – Neil Young – The Times" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Neil Young – The Times" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  14. ^ "Top Albums (Week 39, 2020)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  15. GfK Entertainment Charts
    . Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  16. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2021. 8. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  17. ^ "Album – Classifica settimanale WK 39 (dal 18.09.2020 al 24.09.2020)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  18. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  19. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Neil Young – The Times". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  20. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  21. ^ "Neil Young Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  22. ^ "Neil Young Chart History (Top Current Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  23. ^ "Neil Young Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
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