Neil Young & Crazy Horse @ SECC, 13 June

It would be an understatement to bill Neil Young & Crazy Horse's first Glasgow date since 2001 as an extravagant return. As comically oversized amplifier case props are lifted up from the stage and mad scientist roadies make preparations for the prolific quartet's arrival, Flower of Scotland is blasted over the PA. Naturally, there's a huge saltire strewn up as a backdrop between two giant, retro TV sets.

 

When they emerge, the bulk of material is typically distortion-led; it's more difficult to predict which songs are going to be culled. Love and Only Love from 1990's Ragged Glory is an electrifying opener, and the mid-tempo melody of Rust Never Sleeps' Powderfinger sets the nostalgia stakes even higher. Young's high tenor vocals are frighteningly on form for a man of 67, and his band are fully capable of rocking out with the best of them.

 

They've got an album to promote, so choice cuts from last year's Psychedelic Pill are a given. The studio version of the title track is awash with phaser effects to the point of distraction, but tonight there's no such reliance on trickery. The aggressive, sixteen-minute Giant on the Land towers high with their best work in a live context. Young later performs a solo rendition of Heart of Gold to overwhelming fanfare, with a cover of Dylan's Blowin' in the Wind thrown in for added flower power. A poignant My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue) closes the set in the thunderous manner of its electric counterpart, bringing the curtain down on a rare night in the presence of legends.