Neil Young and the Promise of the Real performs their seventh song at Farm Aid 2016 at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, Virginia, on September 17th.
“There’s a revolution starting!” Neil Young told the crowd early on in his set at the 31st annual Farm Aid. “It’s called eating good food that your neighbors made for you. … Let the earth bring us all together, back to the roots. Eat good food. You don’t need the drugs anymore. It took us a long time to get this far. We have a long way to go. But with people like you, we’re going to make it!”
Neil Young + Promise of the Real performs their second song at Farm Aid 2016 at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, Virginia, on September 17th.
Farm Aid was started by Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp in 1985 to keep family farmers on the land and has worked since then to make sure everyone has access to good food from family farmers. Dave Matthews joined Farm Aid’s board of directors in 2001.
The packed bill featured a mixture of young acts (Insects vs. Robots, Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats), country stars (Jamey Johnson, Margo Price) and, as always, the four members of the Farm Aid board (Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Willie Nelson.) It was a lot to cram into a single day,
Farm Aid was started by Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp in 1985 to keep family farmers on the land and has worked since then to make sure everyone has access to good food from family farmers. Dave Matthews joined Farm Aid’s board of directors in 2001.
Neil Young is the one Farm Aid board member that always delivers an unpredictable set. Last year he tested the patience of the audience by playing unfamiliar new material like “Seed Justice” and “A Rock Star Bucks a Coffee Shop.” (He also did “Alabama” for the first time since 1977.) In 2013, his set was mainly covers. This time around, he opened with “Heart of Gold” and largely stuck to songs everyone knew, including “Harvest Moon” and “Out on the Weekend.” He first played with Lukas and Micah Nelson at Farm Aid in 2014 and they’ve been his band ever since. Papa Willie came out for a duet of “Are There Any More Real Cowboys?” before Neil strapped on Old Black and led the band through ferocious renditions of “Powderfinger” and “Rockin’ in the Free World,” complete with three false endings. It was a mere tiny slice of the amazing shows they’ve been playing during the past couple of years. If they come anywhere near you, check them out. With the very large exception of Crazy Horse, this is one of the best bands he’s ever worked with.
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