Neil Young + Promise of the Real
Jones Beach
July 21th

Neil Young was one of those remaining guys high on my list of people to see before he or I die, and while I’ve had many chances in the past to see him, I kept kinda avoiding it, and apparently for no good reason.  F’reals, cause had I seen him a decade before, I probably would have seen him 10 times already.  YEP, Neil Young live is necessity!!!!  

But did I pick the right show to go to?  He’s supporting a new album (never fun when seeing old fogey musicians), and his backing band features two of Willie Nelson’s sons.  I don’t know them from Adam Nelson or his sons, but I assume they love farms and smoking dope.  Sounds like a match made for Neil Young.  And for me?  Well, their collaborative album – The Monsanto Years – was included with the price of admission [a practice I love!] – and is totally not bad!  It sounds like Neil Young, and he’s even angrier than ever!  The dude TOTALLY hates Monsanto, and Starbucks and WalMart and GMOs.  I try to ignore the ranting and juss enjoy the music, and not juss for Neil, but for all musics.  And live?  The album (and ranting) sounded great!  He could have been singing about how much he hates Popeyes Fried Chicken and it would have STILL fcuking RAWKED!!!

Plus the genius idea to play 5 BEYOND CLASSIC songs solo at the show’s beginning was blammmmmazin!!!

Plus he jammed the hell out of a BEYOND ROUSING 16 minute-ish version of ‘Down By The River’!!!!!  

16(ISHHHH) MINUTES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and every second of it was ear-blowing!!!

But no ‘Cinnamon Girl’?  Hopefully he plays it once out of the next ten times I see him, GMOs or not

Setlist

Solo Neil - After the Gold Rush / Heart of Gold / Long May You Run / Old Man /Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)

with Promise of The Real – Hold Back the Tears / Out on the Weekend / Unknown Legend / Field of Opportunity / Wolf Moon / From Hank to Hendrix / Harvest Moon / Words (Between the Lines of Age) / Lookin’ for a Love / Winterlong / A Rock Star Bucks a Coffee Shop / People Want to Hear About Love / Big Box / A New Day for Love / Down by the River / Workin’ Man / Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere / Monsanto Years / If I Don’t Know / Love and Only Love

Encore – Cortez the Killer