Arriving after a decade-long wait, picks up where its predecessor left off -- that'd be in 1972, just after gave the singer/songwriter his first and only number one single in "Heart of Gold." later said "Heart of Gold" brought him to the middle of the road so he decided to turn into the ditch, and this second Archives documents that leftward turn by presenting highlights, outtakes, alternate versions, and live material from the years that brought 's greatest albums: , , and . Some of the rare material surfaced previously in the Neil Young Archives series -- months before this box, the shelved 1975 album appeared and it's here in its entirety, along with the and live albums -- but the appeal of this ten-CD box set is hearing all of this music in context, letting the songs speak to each other as the moods shift from melancholy to euphoria. Surprises both large and small abound. don't seem quite so bleak when re-sequenced and surrounded by session outtakes, while the parting of the skies on gets reinforced by tentative readings of songs that would surface on . This subtle but distinct reframing is as worthwhile as the treasure trove of officially unreleased songs. Combined, they make for an absorbing, essential box set. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine