Concert Review:
The Neil Young Project
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre
When: Thursday night
Grade: B

Was Neil Young in the house? Someone announced it as we milled about in the Queen Elizabeth foyer.

Didn't see the legend being feted for the evening.

But I can only imagine him whincing on more than one occasion during Hal Willner's Neil Young Project last night.

That the Saturday Night Live musical director's massive group performances are events, not tribute homages to an artist's greatest hits, means that they are always a mixed bag.

This show was no different.

When it worked, such as during Eric Mingus's gospel choir rave-up of "For the Turnstiles" or Teddy Thompson's delicious countrified take of "Don't Cry No Tears," pure magic. However, the promise of the opening choral arrangement of "A Dream That Can Last" really only came together a few times.

Otherwise, the concert ventured far too often into mere bar-band mimicry, offering up tame to lifeless versions of classics and more obscure tunes from the massive Young catalogue, with plenty of opportunity to let the guitarists wank. Trouble is, as cool as Apostle of Hustle is, their take of "Mr. Soul" with Julie Doiron was just too spot-on to matter. Of course, fans were freaking over a track they were really familiar with.

Or it became more about the personalities on stage than the music. "A Man Needs a Maid" features some of Young's most precarious lyrics -- mean and vulnerable -- but Metric's Emily Haines and James Shaw didn't convincingly deliver the underlying malice or melancholy of the piece nearly as well as, say, Veda Hille.

People seemed more interested in how "hot" Haines is anyways. Totally not her fault, obviously.

The two heavy hitters proved to be polar opposites as well: Elvis Costello sauntered on stage, crooned his ditty and left. Lou Reed took ownership of "Helpless" to such a degree that he could consider recording it. Perhaps one of the most solidly rocking moments all night.

One thing that held true throughout was the backing band. Chris Brown and Robert Burger -- a Willner project regular -- were awesome on keys while Broken Social Scensters Brendan Canning, Kevin Drew, Sam Goldberg, Bill Priddle and Andrew Whiteman were in fantastic form all night. Ditto Herculean drummer Ben Perowsky.

As guests vocalists, from Land of Talk's Elizabeth Powell to Scottish folkie Alasdair Roberts, tried their hands at bringing something new or vital to the Young songbook, it became increasingly evident that, unlike his earlier Stay Awake project of Disney tunes or incredible Nino Rota release, Willner wasn't hitting this one out of the park.

Or maybe Neil Young doing Neil Young is just the very best way it can be. At least this was true of this show's first 90 minutes.

The second half opened with Brendan Canty's straight-up "Harvest Moon." Certainly a beautiful tune and a fan fave, it was a nice work into the next half if, again, a bit like a late-night open-mic singalong. Clearly, those in the crowd milling about outside desiring more Crazyhorse weren't going to get their wish.

But Alasdair Roberts' string trio-embellished "The Needle and the Damage Done" was one of the evening's highlights. Then Sam Goldberg became the third member of Broken Social Scene to come out reppin' Neil Young vocal stylings. His "Out On the Weekend" had a solid pulse and Jenny Muldaur and Ron Sexsmith didn't let it drop with a raw take of "Star of Bethelem" that was lovely, if -- once again -- mellow.

Text:

:: antimusic.com/... /10/feb/23Neil_Young_Trunk_Show_In_Theaters

Neil Young

Trunk Show — a concert film starring Neil Young — will be released on Blu-Ray and DVD by Reprise Records later this year.

The film is the second in director Jonathan Demme's planned trilogy about the legendary rocker. Demme also directed the 2006 Young documentary Heart of Gold.

Shot on hand-held HDCam, HDV, and Super-8mm cameras, Neil Young Trunk Show features scenes from two shows that Young performed at the historic Tower Theater in Upper Darby, PA, on his 2007 Chrome Dreams II theater tour. Fans are treated to acoustic and electric tracks that span his entire songbook, including rarely performed songs like "Mexico," "Kansas," and "The Sultan," the classics "Cinnamon Girl," "Cowgirl in the Sand," and "After the Gold Rush," and more recent work including "The Believer," and an astonishing 20 minute version of "No Hidden Path." The film also features some offstage and behind-the-scenes footage. Demme's film credits include the Oscar-winning dramas Philadelphia and Silence of the Lambs and the more recent Rachel Getting Married.

Theatrical screenings of Neil Young Trunk Show will be held across the country for one week beginning on March 19th. A list of cities and theaters is below.

:: Watch the trailer here: trunkshowmovie.com/?trailer

Beginning Mar 19:
New York, NY — Sunshine Cinema
Los Angeles, CA — Nuart Theatre
Cambridge, MA — Kendall Square Cinema
Detroit, MI — Maple Art Theatre
Philadelphia, PA — Ritz
Seattle, WA — Landmark Theaters
San Francisco, CA — Landmark Theaters
Berkeley, CA — Landmark Theaters
Chicago, IL — Music Box Theatre
Washington, DC — E Street Cinema
Denver,CO – Chez Artiste

Beginning Mar 26:
Portland, OR – Cinema 21
Minneapolis, MN – Landmark Cinema

2010-02-28
BC Place, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Olympic Closing Ceremonies
Solo

1.    Long May You Run    (acoustic guitar)

Dreaming Man Live on 180 gram vinyl.

By Dean Goodman 31 January 2010, 21:45 GMT

Reuters News

LOS ANGELES, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Eclectic rocker Neil Young, who has made no secret of his disdain for the Grammys, finally won a coveted trophy on Sunday for the first time in a career spanning almost 50 years.

Fittingly, the Canadian singer/songwriter was honored for a long-delayed boxed set collecting more than 120 tracks from his early days.

"Neil Young Archives Vol. 1 (1963-1972)" won the Grammy for best art direction on a boxed or special limited edition package. Young, 64, shared the award with fellow art directors Gary Burden and Jenice Heo.

He will also compete later in the ceremony for the best solo rock vocal Grammy, a tough field featuring Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, Bruce Springsteen and odd-man-out Prince.

"Thanks a lot, everybody," Young said.

On Friday he was honored by the music industry at its annual MusiCares charity fundraiser in recognition of his annual concerts for the Bridge School for disabled children.

The 10-disc "Archives" boxed set has been in the works for years, with Young frequently delaying its release so that new technology could catch up with his vision. It boasts studio and live tracks, demos, outtakes and other rarities, as well as videos and the first digital release of his directing debut "Journey Through the Past."

Fans have the choice of three configurations, CD, DVD and Blu-ray -- the most expensive at more than $200.

Young, famed for such tunes as "Heart of Gold," "Like a Hurricane" and "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)," has confounded fans with an idiosyncratic output spanning folk, rock, grunge, soul and country.

He did not get his first Grammy nomination until 1989, for his "This Note's For You" video, but has since nominated many times since then, including once last year for his album "Chrome Dreams II," and three times in both 2008 (for "Looking for a Leader") and 2007 (for "Prairie Wind").

"I'm not Grammy material," he said in a 1987 interview recounted in the authorized biography "Shakey." "I hate that s---. It has nothing to do with rock 'n' roll. It only has to do with Hollywood, and it's jive -- a buncha people handin' each other awards and talkin' about how they made the best record ... There is no best in music."

He no longer belongs to a select group of influential musicians snubbed by the music industry's top awards. Still awaiting their trips to the podium are such acts as AC/DC, Judas Priest, Pet Shop Boys and Depeche Mode -- all of whom are up for nominations this year. (Reporting by Dean Goodman, editing by Cynthia Osterman)