Neil Young still rules, and tips

Neil Young’s catalog has a breadth that few others can touch. His absurdly rich reservoir of acoustic and electric material was on display at three Orpheum Theatre shows this week, each with some varying song choices that had diehards wondering which was the best night. For me, I only went to the second show, but it’s enough to keep me content for a while.
Neil broke the show into acoustic and electric sets. The acoustic one was the most powerful for yours truly. He has acquired an emotional depth – and an appreciation of life from a scary brain aneurysm a couple of years ago – that made the acoustic set the most personal, and the most fertile. Sitting in a chair flanked by six guitars, a banjo, and two pianos to the side, Neil opened with the panoramic scope of “From Hank to Hendrix,’’ then settled into one gem after another.
The novelty song “A Man Needs a Maid’’ had new depth, while “Love is a Rose’’ took things even deeper. Neil thanked Linda Ronstadt for recording it (one young fan shouted, “Who is Linda Ronstadt?’’), but his version of “Journey Through the Past’’ on piano was the highlight for me. It was on the “Live at Massey Hall’’ album that Neil released earlier this year, right around the time my mother died. I played that song incessantly and it gave me a much-catharsis. Thank you again, Neil, for doing it at the Orpheum. It sounds like a hymn and has a spiritual that turns back the years.
The acoustic set was soon capped by “Cowgirl in the Sand,’’ a stunning choice by any estimation. Neil shambled off, then returned for an electric set keyed by the efforts of drummer Ralph Molina (a veteran of Young’s Crazy Horse group), though it lost some punch because pedal steel guitarist Ben Keith, who is a brilliant player, was not quite up to the rocking edge that the electric set needed. I missed Frank Sampedro of Crazy Horse on guitar.
The set has some classic Neil tracks – “The Loner,’’ “Everybody Knows This is Nowhere,’’ “Spirit Road,’’ and “Cinnamon Girl,’’ which built the concert into a high-energy stew. But as good as Neil still is on electric guitar, it just didn’t dig into my soul the way the acoustic moments had. It did, however, prove that Neil is a master who is still a must-see act from the ‘60s. Long may he roam.
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CRITIC’S TIPS
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals – at the Paradise Rock Club on Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 6-8. Grace & Co. have really gone national since playing the WBOS Earth Fest in the spring. Her Bonnie Raitt-influenced sound is infectious and she’s playing three weekend with three different opening acts – Eli “Paperboy’’ Reed tonight, Sarah Borges & the Broken Singles tomorrow, and Tim Gearan Saturday.

John Mellencamp – at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H. on Thursday, Oct. 6. Word is leaking that Mellencamp will not just be a nominee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, but a full-fledged inductee. It’s about time.

Benefit for Jeanne – at T.T. the Bear’s on Thursday, Dec. 6. Veteran T.T.’s bartender Jeanne Sheehy has been diagnosed with cancer, so the community is giving back with a series of upcoming benefits. This Thursday kicks it off with the Delusions, Wide Iris, Country Doctors, and Doug MacDonald. Other benefits follow on Dec. 21 and 28.

Cake – at the Orpheum on Friday, Dec. 7. The Sacramento-hatched Cake released one of the decade’s best albums in 2001’s “Comfort Eagle,’’ featuring the bitingly sardonic “Meanwhile, Rick James.’’

Bleu – at the Lizard Lounge on Saturday, Dec. 8. Bleu cut his teeth in the Boston scene and his probing pop-rock looked to be the Next Big Thing at one point. Plans are still on hold for that, but Bleu is extremely talented and he may still get there.

Angeline and others – at The Middle East Upstairs on Saturday, Dec. 8. Angeline, whose new album was produced by Boston rock legend Asa Brebner, has been coming on strong. The Nervous Eaters, Fox Pass, and Totaro open up. A great night of rock.

Youssou N’Dour – at the Somerville Theatre on Monday, Dec. 10. N’Dour will forever be remembered as the world music voice on the Amnesty International tour in the ‘90s that featured Bruce Springsteen, Sting, and Tracy Chapman.

Royal Crown Revue – at Scullers on Wednesday-Thursday, Dec. 12-13. The Royal Crown Revue burst out of the neo-swing movement and they’ve received another bonus by having their song “Hey Pachuco’’ featured on the recent finale of TV show “Dancing with the Stars.’’