No, it’s not the music-loving mechanic from Somerton who drives the beat-up old Ford about town – this is the other Neil Young – the slightly older version than ours and somewhat more famous.

Frontier Touring Company and A Day on The Green have announced the series of arena and winery shows.

With one show only in each location, it is one of Neil Young’s most extensive tours yet with concerts in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, the Hunter Valley, Geelong, Wellington and Auckland. 

The tour will be Neil Young and Crazy Horse’s first headline tour since 2003’s critically acclaimed Greendale shows in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.  

Crazy Horse – Billy Talbot (bass), Ralph Molina (drums) and Frank “Poncho” Sampedro (guitar), was recently described by Neil Young in his autobiography as “a vehicle to cosmic areas that I am unable to traverse with others”. 

The March 2013 shows promise to showcase both new material from their recently released album, Psychedelic Pill (out now through Warner), and the classic hits that helped make Neil Young a household name.  

The Hollywood Reporter wrote of Neil Young and Crazy Horse’s October Hollywood Bowl concert: “The made-for-each-other singer and band seamlessly meld old and new amid a relentless, outstanding torrent of beautiful noise” while the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said: “this tour serves as a reminder of how [Neil] became the Godfather of Grunge, and going on 67, he will still out-grunge anyone who gets in his path”.   

The LA Times’ glowing review painted vivid pictures, including that of Neil Young “hunched over his Gibson electric guitar – known affectionately as ‘Old Black’ – strangling notes out of its neck while standing in front of a Fender amp as big as the Ritz”.

For full tour dates visit the Fronteir Touring website.

Presale tickets are available until noon today (or until the allocation is exhausted).

General tickets go on sale from 9am on Monday at Ticketek and Ticketmaster outlets. 

COUNTRY Music Notes reader Lorraine Reilly from Quirindi is excited about a gig coming up this Saturday in her neck of the woods.

I’ve often told you in this column about that delightful singer from Werris Creek, Marie Hodson. 

Marie’s daughter, Carly Robinson, is the support act for Champagne Charlie’s Jazz Band on Saturday for a music and dance night at Quirindi’s Royal Theatre.

Fortunately, Carly has inherited those vocal genes from her talented mum – and you can’t go wrong when you see Champagne Charlie’s Jazz Band on the bill. Those blokes invented the word entertainment.

The doors open at 7pm and the cost is $20 per person, with bar and canteen facilities operating.

It promises to be a beaut night out in a lovely little town. Have a right Royal fun night out, Quirindi.

IN AN increasingly independent country music scene in Australia, it’s nice to see the major companies still signing artists they believe have the goods.

Congratulations to ABC Music for signing Aussie singer-songwriter and entertainer extraordinaire Jayne Denham to its label.

For several years now, Jayne has sung her story-songs about her chick ute, the farmer’s wife, Cousin Jude the truckie, or simply the Aussie way of life, endearing herself to audiences everywhere she goes with her hot band and energetic stage show.

Jayne writes about Australian country culture and our Aussie lifestyle, and showcases these songs in an unforgettable format in her live performances.

Jayne has almost completed recording her third album, Renegade, under the guidance of iconic Aussie producer Garth Porter, which will be released on the ABC Music/Universal Music label early in the new year.

“This album will have plenty of rocking country songs, with a blend of heartfelt lyrics and melodies to add to the next step of my journey in Australian country music,” Jayne says.

Shelter, the first single from the new disc, shows a more mature Jayne Denham – is a song co-written with Colin Buchanan and Tamara Stewart. The accompanying film clip introduces Jayne on a more personal level to her growing legion of fans.

“Every song I’ve ever sung is about real life – from trucker chicks to mad professors – but Shelter is my most personal song to date,” Jayne says. 

“It was inspired by all the great folks I’ve met over the years on the road who live on the land.

“Hearing their stories and feeling their struggles – but most importantly, feeling their passion for what they do is something I wanted to put across in this new song for those people.”