Neil Young helps wife with first solo record

Musician Neil Young (L) and his wife Pegi (R) arrive at the premiere of ''Neil Young: Heart of Gold'' at the 25th annual Sundance film festival in Park City, Utah, January 23, 2006. Pegi Young has toured as a backing vocalist with her husband Neil for years, but she will take the spotlight on June 12 when she releases her debut album.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Pegi Young has toured as a backing vocalist with her husband Neil for years, but she will take the spotlight on June 12 when she releases her debut album.

The self-titled Warner Bros. project blends originals such as "Heterosexual Masses," "Fake," "Love Like Water" and "White Line in the Sun" with covers of Spooner Oldham and Den Penn's "I'm Not Through Loving You Yet" and three cuts penned by Will Jennings: "When the Wildlife Betrays Me," "Hold On" and "I Like the Party Life."

"They helped tell this story I was thinking about and was taking shape in my head; it's sort of a melancholy theme and a reflective record," she tells Billboard.com.

Young recorded the album in her husband's studio at their northern California ranch. And yes, Neil helped out on a host of tracks, including an electric sitar solo on "Love Like Water."

"Leading up to it, I put the band together and we just sort of avoided discussing whether Neil was going to play on it or not," Young says. "He dropped by the first day and kind of listened, and the next day, the guys at the studio had wisely created a little space for him, should he want to participate at all. And then he just ended up playing on everything, all the way through."

The sessions were so productive that Young already has a dozen fully mixed songs ready to go for a future release. "The more I write, the more I write," she says. "It's not necessarily condition-specific; all of the sudden there's an idea and it comes out in verse. It starts to make itself a poem or a future song."

Young hopes to play live in the months ahead, having already spent three days rehearsing with a retooled version of her studio band. And Neil fans can rejoice, as Pegi confirms all signs point to a fall release for the former's long-awaited "Archives Vol. 1" boxed set.

"You know, from your lips to god's ears!," she says with a laugh. "From what I've seen and gleaned from just being around, it looks like the first bit of it will be out this year."

Reuters/Billboard