THIS WEEKEND: Farm Aid 2015: Chicago, September 19th, 30th Annual

Neil Young, Co-Founder and Board Member of Farm Aid performs at Farm Aid 30 at FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island in downtown Chicago, Illinois.
Photo © Paul Natkin/Photo Reserve, Inc

From Chicago Tribune by Greg Kot:

Neil Young looked even more grim and purposeful than usual when he took the stage Saturday at Northerly Island. Farm Aid was wrapping up its 30th year, but Young wasn’t exactly celebrating.

The executive board member in the black hat came out fuming as he went after the corporate farm system, naming names and waving his guitar as if he were wading into hand-to-hand combat with his band huddled in front of the drum riser. Young sang from the perspective of a Monsanto executive, recast as the bogey man: “You're gonna need big money to stand your ground/Or we're gonna bury you, how does that sound?”

The song, “Workin’ Man” evoked the rumble of Bob Dylan’s “Maggie’s Farm,” another song about greed and power. Young’s band included Micah and Lukas Nelson, sons of Farm Aid founder Willie Nelson, who followed Young on stage. The young guys jousted and jostled with Young, who was in finger-pointing mode on a handful of songs from his bluntly accusatory recent album, “The Monsanto Years.”

Lines like “Too big to fail, too rich for jail” get the blood boiling but likely didn’t persuade those already skeptical about music’s ability to change the world – let alone shift the momentum away from the big companies that are relentlessly making family farms obsolete.

But it was Young’s demeanor, the way he threw himself into the music and tore into his guitar solos that spoke loudest.

Neil Young and Promise Of The Real - "Alabama" (1st performance since 1977).

From JamBase:

Neil Young and Promise Of The Real started their set with three songs off their recently released The Monsanto Years LP - "Workin' Man," "A Rock Star Bucks A Coffee Shop" and "Big Box." The biggest surprise of the night came next when Young and his band dug into the Harvest track "Alabama." Young had last performed the controversial song back in 1977, when he dedicated it to Lynyrd Skynyrd as part of a medley with "Sweet Home Alabama" shortly after Ronnie Van Zandt and other members of the Skynyrd died in a plane crash. In Neil's 2012 book Waging Heavy Peace he discussed his thoughts on "Alabama" - "[the song] richly deserved the shot Lynyrd Skynyrd gave me with their great record. I don't like my words when I listen to it today. They are accusatory and condescending, not fully thought out, too easy to misconstrue."

@neilyoung @farmaid @themonsantoyears photo @malibuheaven #loveandonlylove

A photo posted by Micah Nelson (@particlekid) on Sep 20, 2015 at 10:10am PDT

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Scheduled for Sep 19, 2015

"Farm Aid 30 Live Presented by Amy's" will feature performances from Farm Aid's 30th anniversary concert in downtown Chicago at the FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island on September 19.

The Webcast Lineup, Central Time:

2:30 – Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
3:00 – Old Crow Medicine Show
3:40 – Jamey Johnson
4:20 – Kacey Musgraves
5:05 – Jack Johnson
5:55 – Mavis Staples
6:45 – Imagine Dragons
7:45 – Dave Matthews with Tim Reynolds
8:45 – John Mellencamp
9:45 – Neil Young
10:45 – Willie Nelson

(Schedule subject to change.)

More performances from earlier in the day will appear during set changes.

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Donate $60 or more now and get the official Farm Aid 30 logo shirt: at http://farmaid.org/donate

Find all of our new concert merch at: http://shop.farmaid.org
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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.

For more information about Farm Aid, visit: http://farmaid.org/

Farm Aid's performances are donated by the artists in order to raise funds and raise awareness for family farmers. They've raised their voices to help — what can you do?

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Lawn is certainly full for 30th Anniversary of @FarmAid here in Chicago @FirstMeritPav #livenationpremiumseats pic.twitter.com/uqJX8Alxsd

— Chris Gargani (@CGargani) September 19, 2015

Happening now @FarmAid farmers and musicians on the stage together #FarmAid30 pic.twitter.com/k3cG9maPdW

— CarasGarden (@carasgarden) September 19, 2015

Press Conference for Farm Aid 2015
Photo by Tony @ WBKM.org

Rockin at @farmaid press conf w/ @willienelson @johnmellencamp @davematthewsband @neilyoung. Go family #farmers! pic.twitter.com/dAXYKCR1BB

— GDGD Radio Network (@RadioGDGD) September 19, 2015

I'll make us banana pancakes, Jack. @jackjohnson @FarmAid #FarmAid30 pic.twitter.com/dF48htbeDs

— Keelee Leyden (@keeleeleyden) September 19, 2015

It's a gorgeous day for #FarmAid30! http://t.co/IPGLeLubiQ pic.twitter.com/x3kXTepDRo

— Farm Aid (@FarmAid) September 19, 2015

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Farm Aid 2015 will be held in Chicago this weekend on September 19th.

The 30th anniversary concert will be held at [Giant Corporation] Pavilion at Northerly Island.

Performances will include Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews, as well as, Jack Johnson, Imagine Dragons, Kacey Musgraves, Old Crow Medicine Show, Mavis Staples, Holly Williams, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Insects vs. Robots and Blackwood Quartet.



More on last year's Farm Aid 2014: Raleigh, North Carolina.

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Photo of the Moment: Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Neil Young - 1986

Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Neil Young,1986 photo Lynn Goldsmith pic.twitter.com/3WrNW3kdhJ

— alexia d'arnault (@d_arnault) September 15, 2015

The Photo of the Moment is Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Neil Young in 1986 at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame by Lynn Goldsmith.


Neil Young Inducting The Pretenders
2005 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Ceremony

Neil Young is a 2 time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame recipient as a solo artist (1995) and with the band Buffalo Springfield (1997). Young has *six* time been an inductor of a Hall of Famer:

• The Everly Brothers in 1986
• Woody Guthrie in 1988
• Jimi Hendrix in 1992
• Paul McCartney in 1999
• The Pretenders 2005
• Tome Waits in 2012

Paul McCartney inducted into Rock & Roll Hall of Fame by Neil Young - March 1999
More on Neil Young: The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

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The Impact of The Monsanto Years Continues to Resonate: California Just Announced It Will Label Roundup as Cancer Causing

The impact of The Monsanto Years and activists continues to resonate.

The bad news for Monsanto corporation just keeps on coming. Most recently, Greece and Latvia are calling for Monsanto to stop contamination of their food with genetically modified crops after Scotland and Germany voted to outlaw GMOs.

From The Antimedia "California Just Announced It Will Label Monsanto’s Roundup as Cancer Causing" by Claire Bernish:

(ANTIMEDIA) Sacramento, CA — California just dealt Monsanto a blow as the state’s Environmental Protection Agency will now list glyphosate — the toxic main ingredient in the U.S.’ best-selling weedkiller, Roundup — as known to cause cancer.

Under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 — usually referred to as Proposition 65, its original name — chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm are required to be listed and published by the state. Chemicals also end up on the list if found to be carcinogenic by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) — a branch of the World Health Organization.

In March, the IARC released a report that found glyphosate to be a “probable carcinogen.”

Besides the “convincing evidence” the herbicide can cause cancer in lab animals, the report also found:

“Case-control studies of occupational exposure in the U.S.A., Canada, and Sweden reported increased risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma that persisted after adjustments to other pesticides.”

California’s decision to place glyphosate on the toxic chemicals list is the first of its kind. As Dr. Nathan Donley of the Center for Biological Diversity said in an email to Ecowatch, “As far as I’m aware, this is the first regulatory agency within the U.S. to determine that glyphosate is a carcinogen. So this is a very big deal.”

Now that California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has filed its “notice of intent to list” glyphosate as a known cancer agent, the public will have until October 5th to comment. There are no restrictions on sale or use associated with the listing.

Monsanto was seemingly baffled by the decision to place cancer-causing glyphosate on the state’s list of nearly 800 toxic chemicals. Spokesperson for the massive company, Charla Lord, told Agri-Pulse that “glyphosate is an effective and valuable tool for farmers and other users, including many in the state of California. During the upcoming comment period, we will provide detailed scientific information to OEHHA about the safety of glyphosate and work to ensure that any potential listing will not affect glyphosate use or sales in California.”

Roundup is sprayed on crops around the world, particularly with Monsanto’s Roundup-Ready varieties — genetically engineered to tolerate large doses of the herbicide to facilitate blanket application without harming crops. Controversy has surrounded this practice for years — especially since it was found farmers increased use of Roundup, rather than lessened it, as Monsanto had claimed.

Less than a week after the WHO issued its report naming glyphosate carcinogenic, Monsanto called for a retraction — and still maintains that Roundup is safe when used as directed.

On Thursday, an appeals court in Lyon, France, upheld a 2012 ruling in favor of farmer Paul Francois, who claimed he had been chemically poisoned and suffered neurological damage after inhaling Monsanto’s weedkiller, Lasso. Not surprisingly, the agrichemical giant plans to take its appeal to the highest court in France.

It’s still too early to tell whether other states will follow California’s lead.

The Monsanto Years - Neil Young + Promise Of The Real
(Click here to enlarge/zoom)
Also, see Corporate Food, Will It Make You Fat and Sick?

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Lineup for 2015 Bridge School Benefit Concert Announced

Here's the lineup for the 29th Annual Bridge School Benefit Concert 2015:

• Neil Young and Promise of the Real
• Ryan Adams
• Dixie Chick
• St. Vincent
• Sheryl Crow
• Gary Clark Jr.
• Spoon
• Nils Lofgren

Dates for the 29th Annual Bridge School Benefit Concert are October 24 & 25, 2015 at Shoreline Amphitheater, Mountain View, CA.

Tickets will go on sale Fri 9/18 at 10 AM PDT.

In the coming days The Bridge School will have more announcements. They will also be first revealed via The Bridge School | Facebook and Bridge School | Twitter.

More on last year's Bridge School Benefit Concerts - October 25 & 26, 2014.

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"Neil Fest": Bowery Ballroom, NYC - September 13 & 14, 2015

"Helpless" - Finale with All

Last night kicked off the first night of "Neil Fest" at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, NY.

The two-night celebration of Neil Young's music will benefit Sweet Relief Musicians Fund and the Jameson Neighborhood Fund.







Bands performing include:
Cabin Down Below Band, Norah Jones, Ryan Adams, Body/Head, Patrick Carney of The Black Keys, Ruby Amanfu, Jakob Dylan, Brian Fallon of Gaslight Anthem, Butch Walker, Matt Hitt, Nick Zinner, Valerie June, Charles Bradley, Sharon Van Etten, Adam Green, Ryan Miller of Guster, Elvis Perkins, Summer Moon, Danny Masterson, Adam Busch, Michelle Branch, Donald Cumming, Sammy James, Steve Schiltz, Nicole Atkins, Sasha Dobson, Jade Castrinos formerly of The Magnetic Zeros, Caveman, Danny Clinch, Johnny T, Chase Cohl, Daniel and David Gibson

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25th Anniversary of Ragged Glory - Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Interview

Ragged Glory - Neil Young & Crazy Horse
(Track Listing & Preview Tracks)

It's the 25th Anniversary of the release of Ragged Glory by Neil Young & Crazy Horse.

In honor of the release, an interview with Neil Young that was conducted at the time of the album's release is now streaming at In The Studio. From the promo:

Released this week in September 1990, it was the Village Voice Album of the Year 1990. Rolling Stone Album Guide gives Neil Young‘s sixth album with Crazy Horse, Ragged Glory, a max five stars. Their Kurt Loder deemed it “a monument to the spirit of the garage- to the pursuit of passion over precision”. And in ranking Ragged Glory as the #77 album of that entire decade, Rolling Stone wrote, “To kick-start the Nineties, Neil Young reunited with Crazy Horse, cranked the amps and, as a songwriter, took a look back to see if anything was still standing…The long guitar solos are this album’s real story, however, and they turn this look back into a look ahead: The guitar barrage of grunge is right around the corner.”

The very first portion of this 1990 interview reveals how many long time collaborators have passed on and out of Neil’s tight knit inner circle: pedal steel guitar player (and Neil’s son’s namesake ) Ben Keith, bass player Rick Rosas, and veteran Crazy Horse producer David Briggs are all dead now, sadly. Neil frankly addresses multiple topics head on, such as censorship and corporate compromise of rock, and is uncannily prescient with his prediction that the “green” environmental movement would re-emerge after the Earth Day false start twenty years earlier. Hear a delightfully candid Neil Young with the voices of Crazy Horse-men Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina, & Frank Sampedro from “The Days That Used to Be”.

– Redbeard

More on last night's edition of Thrashers Wheat Radio Hour.

Also, see A Perfect Summer Soundtrack: Ragged Glory .

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peace & love. stay calm. no fear. think for yourself. use discernment. recognize the illusion. ask questions. be the wheat. prepare for the big shift and keep on rockin' in the free world.

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