Sault Ste. Marie awestruck with Neil Young (20 photos)

From the opening notes of Love and Only Love from 1990's Ragged Glory until the arena lights went up following When You Dance I Can Really Love from his 1970 release After The Gold Rush, the legendary Neil Young had his Sault audience hanging on every word, move and guitar strum.

Singing along more often than not, the record crowd at the Essar Centre last night responded to Young's impeccable performance with roars of approval and transfixed attention.

The set list spanned decades and included such genre-defining selections as My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue), Cortez the Killer, Cinnamon Girl, Needle and the Damage Done, Tonight's the Night, Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, Unknown Legend and Down By the River.

Sandwiched between two intense rock and blues bookends was an inspired and perfectly heart-rending acoustic set during which Young performed Ian Tyson's Four Strong Winds.

And anyone who claims they didn't get choked up during Heart of Gold and/or Old Man is a liar, plain and simple.

Although the evening was saturated with enough classic campfire favourites to please any Young fan, there were a few disappointing omissions, the most notable of which were Keep On Rockin' in the Free World, Powderfinger, Helpless and the entire Prairie Wind album.

With his latest record, Fork in the Road, less than two weeks old, Young instead chose Just Singing a Song, Get Behind the Wheel and Light a Candle from the album to round out the show.

Fork in the Road, based on his 1959 Lincoln hybrid-engine conversion project, echoes past and recent themes of activism, and will most assuredly thrust him once again into the musical forefront.

Click here to view Young's homemade video for the fully loaded rock track Fuel Line from Fork in the Road.

Sault Ste. Marie was given a gift of pure perfection last night.

And 5,000 people were left awestruck, elated in the knowledge that Neil Young is neither burning out nor ready to fade away.