Friday, February 17, 2006

Wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a white suit, and clutching a scratched-up, worn acoustic guitar, old warrior-musician Neil Young performs his latest round of songs in Nashville's storied Ryman Auditorium with an unmistakable air of celebration. In Jonathan Demme's understated documentary "Neil Young: Heart of Gold," the Canadian singer-songwriter has every reason to rejoice.

He had been told he faced a life-threatening aneurysm, and before submitting to the surgeon's knife, he composed and recorded a flood of songs for an album, "Prairie Wind." Thankfully, the now 60-year-old musician survived the operation, and, surrounded by close friends and family, including his wife, Pegi, Emmylou Harris, Diana DeWitt, Ben Keith and Spooner Oldham, he is at his relaxed, philosophical and endearing best, both in his songs and the soft-spoken patter between.

Director Demme is smart and sensitive enough to sit back and listen to the music without attention-getting intrusions. The tunes are subtly compelling, about the pain of watching a 21-year-old daughter leave the nest ("Here for You") or the deep appreciation he clearly feels for his father ("Prairie Wind"). He also breathes new presence into such staples as "Old Man" and "Heart of Gold." And in one of the most touching moments, Young offers a verbal salute to Hank Williams, whose guitar he now holds in his hands. He then performs "This Old Guitar," proving why he should be the caretaker of that instrument. As we see at the Ryman, Young still has a lot of road -- and music -- in front of him.

-- Desson Thomson

Neil Young: Heart of Gold PG, 103 minutes Contains some drug-related lyrics. At AFI Silver Theatre and Landmark's E Street Cinema.