Music
All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best Of 2009
Best Of 2008
Best Of 2007
Best Of 2006
Best Of 2005
Best Of 2004
Best Of 2003
Best Of 2002
Best Of 2001
Best Of 2000
Upcoming &
Recent Releases
62
50 Cent
70
AFI
65
Air
70
Alice In Chains
53
Kris Allen
78
Amerie
79
Annie
76
Anti-Pop Consortium
86
The Antlers![]()
75
Arctic Monkeys
68
As Tall As Lions
82
Atlas Sound![]()
77
The Avett Brothers
67
Backstreet Boys
59
Bad Lieutenant
68
Devendra Banhart
71
Lou Barlow
88
Baroness![]()
69
Basement Jaxx
81
David Bazan![]()
72
Beak>
72
Brendan Benson
84
Biffy Clyro![]()
72
The Big Pink
95
Big Star![]()
46
Billy Talent
75
The Black Crowes
72
The Black Heart Procession
68
Blitzen Trapper
75
BLK JKS
53
Bon Jovi
76
A.A. Bondy
65
Boys Like Girls
76
Brand New
73
Tyondai Braxton
83
Brother Ali![]()
72
Ian Brown
75
Michael Buble
77
Built To Spill
61
Colbie Caillat
78
Califone
69
Mariah Carey
81
Brandi Carlile![]()
72
Julian Casablancas
83
Rosanne Cash![]()
71
Castanets
65
The Cave Singers
82
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis![]()
64
Exene Cervenka
79
Vic Chesnutt
75
Choir Of Young Believers
81
Circulatory System![]()
67
The Clean
84
The Clientele![]()
72
Cold Cave
85
Converge![]()
71
Eric Copeland
76
The Cribs
79
Cymbals Eat Guitars
62
Dashboard Confessional
71
Datarock
59
Dead By Sunrise
76
Dead Man's Bones
77
Del The Funky Homosapien & Tame One
88
Destroyer![]()
73
Do Make Say Think
63
The Dodos
77
Drive-By Truckers
67
Bob Dylan
58
Echo & The Bunnymen
61
Electric Six
44
The Entrance Band
69
Fanfarlo
71
Jay Farrar And Benjamin Gibbard
63
Felix Da Housecat
68
Fink
66
Orenda Fink
79
The Flaming Lips
66
Flight Of The Conchords
79
Florence And The Machine
67
John Fogerty
83
Fuck Buttons![]()
71
Nelly Furtado
47
Gary Go
68
Ghostface Killah
79
Girls
69
Gossip
62
David Gray
66
David Guetta
65
Calvin Harris
79
Richard Hawley
74
Mayer Hawthorne
66
Headlights
79
HEALTH
77
Joe Henry
67
Hockey
67
Whitney Houston
80
Hudson Mohawke
68
Imogen Heap
59
Jack Ingram
79
Islands
74
Jamie T
65
Jay-Z
51
Jet
68
Daniel Johnston
76
Norah Jones
77
Karen O And The Kids
72
Toby Keith
69
Kid Cudi
75
Kid Sister
66
Kings Of Convenience
62
Sean Kingston
64
KISS
63
Mark Knopfler
73
Kris Kristofferson
68
KRS-One & Buckshot
76
La Roux
85
Miranda Lambert![]()
72
Ledisi
71
Sondre Lerche
56
Juliette Lewis
62
Leona Lewis
82
Lightning Bolt![]()
74
Little Dragon
44
Pixie Lott
83
Patty Loveless![]()
73
Lyle Lovett
79
Lucero
75
Baaba Maal
77
Madness
84
Madonna![]()
85
Manic Street Preachers![]()
61
Maps
73
Mario
55
Massive Attack
57
Matisyahu
62
John Mayer
67
Reba McEntire
66
Tim McGraw
65
Brian McKnight
79
Mew
75
Mika
68
Amy Millan
76
Mission Of Burma
75
Molina And Johnson
80
Monsters Of Folk
66
Morrissey
85
Mount Eerie![]()
76
The Mountain Goats
62
Múm
72
Muse
66
Willie Nelson
82
Nirvana![]()
96
Nirvana![]()
80
No Age
71
Noah And The Whale
75
Noisettes
79
Nudge
64
OneRepublic
47
Dolores O'Riordan
74
Os Mutantes
78
Osso
67
Alec Ounsworth
81
Owen![]()
73
Paramore
78
Pastels And Tenniscoats
54
Sean Paul
80
Pearl Jam
69
Jemina Pearl
72
Jack Penate
65
Phish
82
Pissed Jeans![]()
61
Pitbull
79
A Place To Bury Strangers
79
Polvo
72
Porcupine Tree
72
Port O'Brien
79
Q-Tip
79
R.E.M.
88
Raekwon![]()
69
Rain Machine
70
Ramona Falls
75
Dizzee Rascal
74
The Raveonettes
79
Real Estate
76
Jay Reatard
81
Rodrigo Y Gabriela![]()
66
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
78
Russian Circles
69
Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions
78
Say Anything
61
Sally Shapiro
78
Shudder To Think
70
Simian Mobile Disco
58
Simple Minds
72
Six Organs Of Admittance
80
Slayer
61
The Slits
77
Speech Debelle
58
Spiral Stairs
55
Steel Panther
75
Sufjan Stevens
52
Rod Stewart
68
Joss Stone
83
Barbra Streisand![]()
77
A Sunny Day In Glasgow
74
Susanna And The Magical Orchestra
79
The Swell Season
80
David Sylvian
83
Taken By Trees![]()
80
Tegan And Sara
68
The Temper Trap
78
The Dutchess & The Duke
71
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
74
Them Crooked Vultures
72
Themselves
82
They Might Be Giants![]()
66
J Tillman
69
Times New Viking
57
Tokio Hotel
67
Trey Songz
73
Frank Turner
71
The Twilight Sad
60
Carrie Underwood
56
The Used
68
Various Artists
69
Various Artists
77
The Very Best
70
Kurt Vile
65
Vivian Girls
71
Volcano Choir
73
Rufus Wainwright
78
Wale
57
Weezer
81
White Denim![]()
76
Why?
83
Wild Beasts![]()
80
Wildbirds & Peacedrums
69
Robbie Williams
59
Andrew W.K.
65
Wolfmother
84
The xx![]()
79
Yo La Tengo
83
Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band![]()
52
Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
59
Zero 7
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Living With War

Generally favorable reviews
Based on 24 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 49 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Reprise
Release Date: 09 May 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Rock
Summary
The singer-songwriter recorded this strongly political (and anti-Bush) ten-song set in just two weeks earlier this year.
Also By This Artist: Are You Passionate? Chrome Dreams II Fork In The Road Greendale Prairie Wind Silver & Gold Sugar Mountain: Live At Canterbury House 1968 The Archives Vol. 1 1963-1972
Also On Metacritic
FILM: Neil Young: Heart Of Gold
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Los Angeles Times
The sheer brazenness of this collection is refreshing after years of timidity in the upper echelons of the pop world. [6 May 2006]
Tiny Mix Tapes
Living With War is instantly the most incisive and penetrating album that Young has released in years, and it is arguably the most vital of his career.
Read Full Review >Village Voice (Consumer Guide)
OK, more news event than musical milestone. But a really great news event.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
A revelation, brimming with passion and some of the best melodies Young has penned in the last 30 years. [Jul 2006, p.113]
Dot Music
It may not be his best album but it ranks as one of his most important.
Read Full Review >Uncut
For those of us who prefer Neil when he's plugged-in and splenetic, it's tempting to call the album his best since 1990's Ragged Glory. Living With War, though, is too much of a frontline dispatch, too consumed with the present, to be easily catalogued for posterity. [Jul 2006, p.82]
Lost At Sea
Now then, aside from all that, "After the Garden" and "Families" are right up there with "Rockin in the Free World" for displays of board-stomping bravado, which is of course much less the goal here than raising awareness.
Read Full Review >The Guardian
The challenge of writing songs designed to lodge immediately in people's heads seems to have forced Young to come up with strong melodies, something else noticeably absent in his oeuvre of late.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
Living With War's short gestation benefits Young's performance, inspiring him to make his loudest, rawest release of new material since at least Ragged Glory, maybe even Rust Never Sleeps.
Read Full Review >cokemachineglow
Young's best record since at least Mirror Ball and probably Ragged Glory.
Read Full Review >E! Online
The reactionary disc is a step up from 2003's similarly political offering, Greendale, largely because it doesn't come disguised as some community-theater production.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
With few exceptions, Young's own "Ohio" being one of them, moment-specific protest music tends to dry up and blow away. But that's for the future. For now, Living With War accomplishes exactly what it sets out to accomplish, loudly.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
"Living With War" -- irate, passionate, tuneful, thoughtful and obstinate -- is definitely worth a click.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
In context, no song on Living With War is as simple as it may seem on its own--not a bumper sticker, not a pamphlet, not the slightest wrinkle in a Sunday morning pundit’s furrowed brow. It’s a direct shot into the national discourse from a rock world that has been largely silent until recently.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
[The songs] manage to be unified in a way that Young wanted Greendale to be but didn't quite pull off, yet they also stand on their own and are, overall, more memorable than those on Prairie Wind.
Read Full Review >Blender
It's brave, and it's needed. [Jul 2006, p.95]
Mojo
And the songs? Urgent, instant, bolshie mostly, with a stronger individual melodic sense than, say, Greendale, but without the intense beauty of, say, Ohio. [Jul 2006, p.112]
Paste Magazine
The album has the instantaneous feel of a blog. [Aug 2006, p.93]
New Musical Express
Really, what's to be gained from simplistic sloganeering like, "We don't need no more lies!" [20 May 2006, p.33]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 49 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Benedict A. gave it a9:
I think its amazing how Neil Young has stayed in touch and is still releasing songs that exemplify his rock and roll attitude.
Johanna P gave it a10:
a compelling and beautiful complete work for a world that needs to find peace inside and outside the heart beat.
IlliniQ gave it a7:
Full of lyrical intent and energy, but musically feels like such a rush job rehash of better/older works. Think Ragged Glory without the electric jams that made that album Young's best since the 70s, if not in his entire solo career.
FoxyladyDee gave it a9:
A most welcome blistering attack and righteous indignation at Bush and his cronies. Let's Impeach The President is worth the price of the album alone!!!!!!!!!
Matt D. gave it a10:
What a great CD for the times! It was a nice touch to add 60s-style lo-fi production. It accentuates the protest feel. Favorite song: "Let's Impeach The President," with President Bush's flip-flop statements in the background. The CD also gives a human side to the soldiers fighting in Iraq - the left cares about the soldiers a lot.
Mr. Rabid gave it an8:
this album is for americans, but i still really enjoyed it . its great to hear artists more interested in songs than production values - you can't polish turds
[Anonymous] gave it a10:
neil young raw at his best. furious and political. it doesn't get any better than this.
