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Neil hearts new soundtrack

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Neil Young has never beenbig on hyperbole, so when he says the soundtrack to the forthcoming Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young documentary, CSNY: Deja Vu, is the band's best album, we're inclined to believe him.

"It's CSNY,"Young told Billboard recently. "It really is CSNY. It's not overdubbed. There's no fixes. It's straight from the board."

The documentary was shot on CSNY's 2006 Freedom of Speech tour, during which the band made no bones about their political views, playing many of their classic protest songs and material from Young's then-new anti-war album Living With War.

Regarding the recording, Young said the unvarnished production suited the material perfectly: "The basic mixes are the mixes that people heard when we were playing it. So it's got rough spots all the way through it, which I think is refreshing, especially considering the subject matter. Why should we polish? Why polish this? Who gives a shit whether it's polished or not? It is what it is, and that's the message of the music. It's what we're doing. If you don't like, you don't like it. If you like it, you like it. But it is what it is. Chroming it is not going to help it."

Deja Vu will open in US theaters July 25 simultaneous with its home video and retail release. The soundtrack is due July 22 via Reprise.