Once upon a time, there was a thing called a vinyl recording booth. Usually found at arcades or amusement parks, these machines allowed you to record your own voice (or musical instrument, if you brought one along with you) directly onto a vinyl record.
They’re antiques today, but Jack White had one refurbished, and Neil Young took advantage of it, recording his 33rd studio album entirely within it.
That album, A Letter Home, features an array of cover songs that Neil felt would take on new meaning when recorded in the low-fidelity booth. And wouldn’t you know it, he was right.
A Letter Home is a fascinating album. Each well-known vintage song sounds… well, more vintagy. Especially the album’s penultimate track, a cover of Bruce’s “My Hometown.”
See for yourself–watch the video below, as Neil records the track directly to vinyl. If not for the specific references, you’d think it was recorded in the 1930s rather than in 2014.
Bonus: on May 13, 2014, Neil and Jack made a guest appearance on The Tonight Show, where Neil discussed the inspiration for the album, and for “My Hometown” specifically, somehow segueing from there to Bruce and “Neil’s” cover of “Whip My Hair.”
