“I just want to play well and share the stage with my friends” says the grand old warhorse Neil Young towards the start of the filming over two nights of the world premiere of his Prairie Wind album in concert at Nashville’s Ryman auditorium back in August 2005.

And that’s just what he does, playing and singing the personal songs about family and friends inspired by the diagnosis of his brain aneurism shortly before, and only fleetingly referred to as band members arrive to join Neil at such a special place and time in a career now in its fifth decade and nearing forty solo albums, not to mention earlier groups and his continued relevance today in acknowledging Johnny Rotten as just as important as Elvis in musical history, and playing with contemporary groups like Pearl Jam.

For Neil Young: Heart of Gold, directed by long time friend and filmmaker Jonathan Demme, who wisely allowed cinematographer Ellen Kuras to focus upon Neil and his joyous interactions with those on stage (with Neil asking in jest, for example, “Is there a guitar player in the house?” as a dozen or so stand beside him, guitars in hand) rather than the usual shots of an exuberant audience, encourages us to be part of what Demme refers to as the “dream experience”, with Neil also selectively journeying through the past, paying tribute to Hank Williams, one of whose guitars Young plays for the first time at the Ryman since Hank, as well as acknowledging some of his own country classics in the second half of this often-mesmerising concert, such as Old Man and Comes A Time.

The first half is a revelation of another kind, though, as simple backdrops of rolling plains and homely cabin scenes are sensitively lit while players including Emmylou Harris, gospel singers, and horn and string sections come and go, adding light and shade to Neil’s usual bunch of deceptively-simple songs of pain and loss, and love of family and comradeship, that so steadily and seductively seep into your consciousness into the quickly-familiar toe-tappers that make up the dramatic tapestry of Prairie Wind. Not that this is ever a maudlin experience of a man focussed on his possible impending death, though, for not only was he recording the album up until the night before his successful surgery, but his entertaining and well-chosen introductions reflect the grace, humanity and humour that so obviously inspired the songs, often themselves wryly reflecting on the past as well as the present, such as his comment “There was a time when I would write love songs for girls my own age” before cheekily adding, “but I’ve still got a few in me.”

And that is probably the most gratifying of many aspects of Heart of Gold, for while he could so easily sit back and retire, or tour a greatest hits concert forever, how many other artists today could so hypnotise an audience with new material for most of a concert, and then delight them even more with golden oldies? You could count them on one hand I suspect, but then we’ve always counted on Neil to surprise and impress us, haven’t we?

**** Superb concert recording that once again proves Neil Young really hasn’t gotten any better over the years, but just simply started out great and continues to dazzle us.

NEIL YOUNG: HEART OF GOLD IS DIRECTED BY JONATHAN DEMME AND STARS NEIL YOUNG. IT RUNS 100 MINUTES AND HAS A ‘G’ RATING.