Get Out More...............................................Gig Review

NEIL YOUNG (Hammersmith Apollo)

14-03-2008

From violent, feedback-drenched guitar epics to tender, folksy ballads Neil Young is the Everyman of American Rock. Live, though, his shows can teeter between brilliant and awful. Damien Doran checks out his latest form in London.

The last time I saw Neil Young at the Hammersmith Apollo was five years ago on his acoustic solo tour. I was thrilled at the prospect of seeing the great man performing his wonderful songs in such an intimate venue.

Unfortunately he chose that night to play his then unreleased concept album 'Greendale', in its entirety, telling the story as he went along. It seemed to go on for ever and even a four song encore of songs we knew couldn't save the evening.

All artists are entitled to play whatever they want, so long as its good but, save for a couple of songs, 'Greendale' is not Young's best work. I came away convinced he'd lost it.

Since then, Young has recovered from a serious brain illness and returned to work, and to form, most notably on his latest album 'Chrome Dreams II' which is a mix of Young's trademark folk, country, rock and grunge. If you ever doubted him, just listen to all 18 minutes and 13 seconds of 'Ordinary People'.

Young endlessly tours North America but rarely comes here so its hardly suprising that all his UK dates sold out quickly, even at seventy quid a ticket! You never know, this could be his last visit.

The concert is in two parts. Firstly an acoustic set in which Young, dressed in crumpled white suit and old trainers, sits alone on a chair surrounded by his guitars. Between each number he looks around at his instruments or walks slowly across the stage to the piano as if deciding which song to do next.

He's not here to be a showman, he ignores the shouts from the crowd for him to speak or play requests, he just gets on with job.

It’s a classic Neil Young performance with folk guitar, mouthorgan and shaky voice. For a mesmerising hour he plays new songs and old favourites including “Old Man”, “From Hank to Hendrix”, and “A Man Needs A Maid” before shuffling off stage to thunderous applause.

He returns dressed in black accompanied by his band, a group of rock veterans who have played on and off with him for the past forty years. They may look like your Dad, the hair may be grey and receding but I have rarely heard anything as loud and clear in my life.

Under blood red spotlights they rip into screeching guitars, feedback and deep bass. It’s the kind of sound that made 'Weld' such a great live album and earned Young the title 'Godfather of Grunge'.

They play blistering versions of “Down by the River”, “Hey Hey, My My” and “Powderfinger”. The set closes with “No Hidden Path” from the new album, Young's huge frame bent over his guitar as he bounds about the stage. Its terrific.

Now this is the Neil Young I have always wanted to see.

Neil Young's MySpace click here