CD and vinyl numbered box sets available this fall
Neil Young continues his Official Release Series (ORS) with the next installment of four classic titles from the 1990s. ORS Vol 6: Discs 26, 27, 28 & 29 collects Harvest Moon, Unplugged, Sleeps With Angels, and Mirror Ball in the ongoing reissue series and is set for release on October 24th via Reprise Records.
Each disc in the limited edition, numbered box sets will contain four albums with the original, historically accurate artwork, and will be reissued on double vinyl LPs, while the CD box contains single CD sets per title. Mirror Ball is an analog recording, and the album has been remastered from the original analog masters by John Hanlon and Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering. Additionally, four of the tracks have been remixed by John Hanlon and Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering. (“I’m The Ocean,” “Big Green Country,” “Truth Be Known,” “Throw Your Hatred Down”).
Harvest Moon (ORS Disc 26), originally released in 1992, helped open a new decade of Young’s music with what would become instant new classics like the title track “Harvest Moon,” “From Hank to Hendrix,” and “One of These Days.” It included originals written in the 1980s as well as brand new songs, which quickly became fan favorites and one of the most beloved albums in Young’s recorded output.
Unplugged (ORS Disc 27), originally released in 1993, was first recorded for an MTV Unplugged concert, along with additional live recordings. Young thoughtfully assembled a group of musicians he had recorded with over the years for this special aggregation that quickly became a collector’s item as tapes were first shared from the show among his fans. The official live album is considered an acoustic one-of-a-kind release from Young’s ’90s canon.
Sleeps With Angels (ORS Disc 28), originally released in 1994, is an album that wrote its own legend when released. Including the 14-minute song “Change Your Mind” and “Unknown Legend,” it had a distinctiveness with Crazy Horse that Young achieved by keeping the sessions as spontaneous and immediate as possible, allowing the tracks to breathe and come to life in real time. Sleeps With Angels was the last album to be produced by Neil’s long-time collaborator David Briggs, who passed away in 1995 at age 51, which also brings a special meaning to these recordings.
Mirror Ball (ORS Disc 29) is a double-album originally released in 1995 and recorded with Pearl Jam. Considering the Seattle band was one of the prime movers of rock bands in the 1990s, it was an event immediately upon its release, and found a rabid, younger audience and inspired long-time fans alike with its inherent high energy. Songs like “I Am The Ocean,” “Throw Your Hatred Down” helped impact so much of the second half of the 1990s.
The Official Release Series Volume 6 – Discs 26, 27, 28, 29 (ORS Vol 6) captures a large visceral part of the era, when Young was contributing his exploration of music with an unrelenting edge, in ways he hadn’t done before. These four releases took him towards a new century and anticipated some of the musical places he would soon explore. These songs also capture some of the massive changes that the 2000s would bring, and ways that music would take on challenges that are still very much being met.
All formats will be available at the Greedy Hand Store at Neil Young Archives (NYA) and music retailers everywhere. Hi-res digital audio will be available at Neil Young Archives and most DSPs. All Greedy Hand Store purchases come with the free hi-res digital audio downloads from the Xstream Store.
