In March 2005, Neil Young was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. Four days before he was scheduled for a lifesaving operation, he headed to Nashville, where he wrote and recorded the country folk album PRAIRIE WIND with old friends and family members. After the successful operation and recovery period, he returned to Nashville that August to play at the famed Ryman Auditorium, once again gathering together friends and family for this special performance. He also brought along Oscar-winning director Jonathan Demme, who in addition to making such hits as THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and PHILADELPHIA has made such successful concert films as STOP MAKING SENSE (with the Talking Heads) and STOREFRONT HITCHCOCK (with Robyn Hitchcock), as well as videos for the Pretenders and Bruce Springsteen. NEIL YOUNG: HEART OF GOLD begins with brief interviews with many of the participants, but then it's all about the music. Supported by his wife, Pegi, country star Emmylou Harris, the Nashville String Machine, the Memphis Horns, the Fisk University Jubilee Singers, and musicians Ben Keith, Spooner Oldham, Rick Rosas, Grant Boatwright, and others, Young leads an ever-changing collection of musicians through nine of the ten songs from the remarkable PRAIRIE WIND, an album that poignantly deals with love and loss, life and death. Young even gets reflective at the show, telling moving stories from his past in between playing guitar, harmonica, piano, and banjo. He also delights the crowd with a long set of encores of past acoustic hits, going through his vast repertoire to find memorable songs that examine life and death as well, including "The Needle and the Damage Done," "Old Man," "Comes a Time," and Ian Tyson's "Four Strong Winds." NEIL YOUNG: HEART OF GOLD is an extraordinary document of one of the world's greatest songwriters staring death in the face--and letting the music save him.

"Heart of Gold -- filmed in much the same manner [as Stop Making Sense], with pristine sound and a notable lack of audience shots -- is a deeper and infinitely more touching piece of work."
-- Boston Globe

"This smart, aesthetically understated concert film from Jonathan Demme will transport Young's legions of baby boomer fans back to the future, as 1969 re-invents itself in 2005 for Young."
-- Hollywood Reporter

"It's a sentimental show, sure, but Young's pantheistic hymns to family, friendship, and 'the time we share together' are nothing if not heartfelt. Turns out it's better to fade away after all."
-- Village Voice

"Jonathan Demme's concert film captures Neil Young in a ruminative state of mind at Nashville's storied Ryman Auditorium, original home of the Grand Ole Opry."
-- New York Times

"One might call Neil Young: Heart of Gold soothing, even becalmed, but mellowness and ripeness, when they exist at this high level of craft, should have their season, too."
-- New Yorker

"One of the new year's most satisfying films."
-- Denver Rocky Mountain News

"Young, wizened yet valiant, his voice still braying at the moon, delivers these songs of aging and loss as if caught in a beautiful dream of what lies waiting for him on the other side."
-- Entertainment Weekly

"A film that is both a celebration and a wistful look back."
-- Toronto Star

Actors: Grant Boatwright, Larry Cragg, Anthony Crawford, Chad Cromwell, Diana DeWitt, See more
Directors: Jonathan Demme
Format: Color, Dolby, Widescreen, NTSC
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Number of discs: 2
Rating PG
Studio: Paramount Home Video
DVD Release Date: June 13, 2006
Run Time: 103 minutes
ASIN: B000F48D00
DVD Features:
* Available Subtitles: English
* Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (DTS 5.1)
* Bonus song: "He Was the King"
* Rehearsal diaries, narrated by director Jonathan Demme
* Six in-depth featurettes: Fellow Travelers, Cruising with Neil, These Old Guitars, Cruising With the Players, Finishing Touches, Warming Up With Neil and the Jubilee Singers
* Blast from the past: 1971 Neil Young performance on the Johnny Cash Show

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