Neil Young Is Expected to Sign With Reprise : Music: The veteran rock star’s five-album deal is seen as a coup for the new head of Warner Bros.

In a victory for the new regime at Warner Bros. Records, veteran rock star Neil Young is expected to sign a five-album deal today with its sister label, Reprise Records.

Young, whose contract with the Warner-owned label expired last year, was one of several top artists who threatened to jump ship in October following a corporate battle that forced the departure of beloved Warner executives Mo Ostin and Lenny Waronker.

The 49-year-old Canadian rock star’s free-agent status sparked a heated bidding war among Warner’s competitors, generating lucrative offers, sources say, from such heavyweights as Sony Music Entertainment and DreamWorks SKG, the new entertainment venture by David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg.

Young’s decision to stay is seen as a major coup for new Warner Bros. Records Chairman Danny Goldberg, who lobbied hard to keep him from fleeing the Warner fold.

Before Goldberg took over as chairman Jan. 1, Young--along with artists R.E.M. and Paul Simon--had expressed reservations about staying at the label, primarily because of rumored corporate-ordered staff and roster cuts that preceded Ostin’s departure. Warner Bros. Records is a unit of New York-based media giant Time Warner Inc., which also owns Elektra Entertainment and the Atlantic Group and is by far the nation’s leading music company.

R.E.M., with one album left on its current contract, has privately expressed an intention to stay with Warner, while Simon, with two albums left, is undecided. Young’s decision to stay could stem any wholesale exodus of other artists, though no other major performers’ contracts are set to expire soon.

“I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to be doing business with Neil Young,” Goldberg said in an interview Wednesday. “This guy isn’t just a legendary Rock n’ Roll Hall of Famer, he’s an extraordinary artist who for 30 years has remained on the cutting edge of contemporary music. Neil Young is so current he’s out there jamming with Pearl Jam.”

Young is so popular among today’s rock fans that he was asked to headline the youth-oriented Lollapalooza concert tour this summer. He toured with Pearl Jam two years ago and recorded songs with the Seattle quintet last month following his induction in January into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

The entertainer’s decision to remain at Reprise, sources said, was based primarily on longstanding relationships with key Warner executives whom Goldberg has persuaded to stay at the company.

Goldberg has helped stabilize the company by promoting several veteran employees who have worked closely with Warner’s top artists over the years, including Russ Thyret, vice chairman of Warner Bros.; Howie Klein, president of Reprise Records, and Rich Fitzgerald, executive vice president and general manager of Reprise.