“Farmers are the soul of America”: Farm Aid 2026 Report
“Farmers are the soul of America”: Neil Young
Farm Aid 2026 Press Conference - September 26
Here is a special report from a Farm Aid veteran of many decades, ace photographer and our good ol' pal Jim McKelvey.
“Farmers are the soul of America,” Neil Young said at the Farm Aid 2026 Press Conference a few days after the equinox on the Harvest Moon.
“I believe that because they're on the land. As we cruise around playing our concerts over the last 50 or 60 years in our buses and trucks and everything, we see a lot of farmers and sometimes we get to talk to them and talk to their families. I remember one farmer's wife saying how scared she was when she was out hanging the laundry because everything was changing and the crops weren't like they were before and they could feel that something was happening. Out on the farm, out on the land, out in America, the farmers are the ones who see it coming first. They're the ones who are out there in it. They're not inside a city. They're not anywhere else. They're out in America, in the world. They can feel the wind blowing like we can feel this breeze coming in here. Every once in a while it's a big gust. That's the future.”
Neil Young
My first experience with Farm Aid was when Neil Young arranged an interview with Willie Nelson for me in 1985. That interview with Willie Nelson started around 10:30 PM after a show at Pine Knob Music Theater outside Detroit. Honestly, I ran out of tape at three hours, and I think we continued to talk after about myths and movies. It was about ten days before the very first Farm Aid and my quotes from the interview were used on the front page of the Detroit Free Press for the evening and morning editions. My parents watched me go from a Detroit Free Press paperboy with 90 daily and 130 Sunday papers to writing for the paper.
My first time attending Farm Aid was in 2003 as a photojournalist in Columbus, Ohio at the Germain Amphitheater. One person in the photo pit honestly asked me which one is Neil Young for the two songs we were allowed. One of them turned out to be Hey, Hey, My, My which made me a happy camper, for sure! The other song was Down By The River with Willie Nelson as a guest that I was over the moon about in the photo pit. Neil would not stand still so I had a lot of blur in my images, but some of them looked very arty.
On the equinox, which is a vital part of the soul of Farm Aid as far as I’m concerned, a big old nor’easter was blowing off the coast of Virginia and for a while Virginia Beach was in the cross hairs.
A Nor’easter Hits Virginia Beach on Farm Aid Eve
It made for some interesting discussions I’m sure about how to proceed with Farm Aid among the board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp and newbies Margo Price and Nathanial Rateliff.
The FarmAidians, led by our hosts Paul and Renee, got to Virginia Beach from Canada in the early afternoon of Friday, the day before the concert. There were a few adopted FarmAidians who also gathered with them out in the parking lot, and it was kind of breezy there. As usual, they make their own joyful atmosphere that overpowered the nor’easter there for about 36 hours about a dozen miles inland from the coast.
There was an ebb and flow of the storm off the coast, so the outdoor pre-Farm Aid show had to move inside the Hilton Ballroom on Friday evening.
Chris Pierce
There were several Farm Aid Eve acts scheduled, but the superb Chris Pierce was the entertainment for the evening inside. Pierce played for nearly an hour. The sort of never ending local organic buffet was delicious all evening.
A lot of the artists came down front with the FarmAidians for the press conference seen here.
Farm Aid certainly has a high tech production team and this was taken during the press conference!
Daryl Hannah
Walking around the venue to document the show for Thrashers Wheat I ran into Daryl Hannah near the soundboard petting a goat. Got to talk to her for a bit standing behind Micah Nelson and had a nice private conversation with her.
Just as the press conference was getting underway I put down some sacred tobacco, thanked the four directions, and asked the ancestors for help throughout the day in a good way and to also assist with my photography so something I might have missed while taking the images would show up anyway. Four minutes after that I was talking to Daryl Hannah.
To be honest, I’d like her to direct a screenplay of my second book, “Lessons of Pilot Mountain,” that I gave to Neil at the first show of the Chrome Hearts tour in 2025 so we talked about that a bit. My sort of elevator speech about it had her attention and I hope I wasn’t too obnoxious about it (maybe a conscious layer of Ho’ponopono is needed if it was).
“The farmers get the first glimpse,” Neil Young said during his portion of the Farm Aid press conference. “They can see it coming. They feel it. They may not articulate it the same way as someone else will, but they're the ones on the front lines. They're the ones who are really the real people that are feeling what America is being hit with and going to be hit with. This climate thing is huge. We need real leadership.”
Neil Young
Farm Aid seems to pattern itself after the Green Corn Ceremony and has for years now. Farm Aid begins with a Native American ceremony for the ancestors, for the land and for the people. The Green Corn Ceremony varied as to timing and location of the tribe, but here is a general explanation...
“Green corn ceremonies have played an important role in the ritual life of the Native American tribes of the southeastern United States. These agricultural rites celebrate the ripening of the corn harvest, marking the New Year and the renewal of all life. Homes and public spaces receive a thorough cleaning, all fires are put out, and old food is eaten. The New Year begins with a priest silently kindling a new flame and offering the first of the ripening corn to celebrate the renewal of all life. A dance and feast follows,” according to the Harvard University on the Green Corn Ceremony held every year around the equinox.
Chris Pierce
“Whatever ‘it’ is in music Chris, you’ve got it,” I told Chris Pierce sitting a couple of seats down from him as the press conference adjourned and he walked past my seat in the front row.
Then the MVP performers of Farm Aid 2026, I’m With Her, walked past and I started chatting with Sara Watkins. I told her I’d love to see a reunion of the original W.P.A. band and she mentioned that Benmont Trench was coming out with a new album.
Chris Pierce took the stage as people slowly filed into the Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater around noon on September 26, 2026. While Pierce just got two songs for his set he was just as great as he was the night before. A songwriter to watch who has a future in the chaotic music business.
The family farmer needs your support, and you need his food tended with their love.
“Don’t pass a family farm stand without stopping,” a Neil Young poster at Farm Aid 2026 said in the VIP area or words to that effect.
Lily Meola wowed the early arrivals at Farm Aid and then came out for the closing set as a guest with Willie Nelson.
Lily Meola
Her song, “Daydream,” had me misty eyed early in the day. For my blood, Lily sings like an angel and writes songs like one, too.
“Darlin' don't quit your daydreamIt's your life that you're makingIt ain't big enough if it doesn't scare the hell out of youIf it makes you nervousIt's probably worth itWhy save it for sleep when you could beLiving your daydream”
The I’m With Her part of Farm Aid sort of set the folk festival vibe in fine style and was amazing.
I’m With Her
“I’m Proud To Be A Farmer’s Friend” t-shirts were also worn for all the guest sets with others.
Mon Rovîa
Mon Rovîa is one hell of a ukulele player with a wonderful band! This brought a nice international vibe to Farm Aid and should be encouraged.
Sierra Ferrell
Sierra Ferrell just wowed the crowd for her set with a crackerjack backing band. I wish she would have gotten a little extra time for her set. Must say, they kept to the schedule at Farm Aid this year and pretty much ended on time. As the FarmAidians walked back to the bus to head for the hotel the nor’easter came around again with bands of rain that lasted the rest of the night.
Jesse Welles
Up until Jesse Welles it sort of felt like a fantastic folk festival at Farm Aid 2026. About two or three hours into it, the electric guitars were unpacked and wowed the heck out of the crowd.
Support live music, indeed!
Mike Campbell
Mike Campbell, of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers fame, returned to Farm Aid after backing Bob Dylan in 2024. Campbell lives loudly and he was a blast! That bass player had his amp blasting!!!
Lukas Nelson
Having seen Lukas Nelson in the Willie Nelson Family band it wasn’t until 2014 at the Farm Aid in Raleigh that I got a chance to see him in front of his own band. Have been a fan ever since.
Sometimes Lukas reminds me of Al Green with such a soulful way with his voice. By the time Lukas hit the stage the venue was packed to the brim and having a wonderful time of it. Such a thrill to get a shout out from the artists onstage to the FarmAidians down front!
Walking around the venue in our loud t-shirts almost everyone is stopped by somebody asking, “Who are you guys?”
Turnpike Troubadours
Nathaniel Rateliff
Nathaniel Rateliff even had I’m With Her out toward the end of his set that was magical.
Nathaniel Rateliff w/ I’m With Her
Nathaniel Rateliff has had a bitter and sweet year with some health issues and has a couple of songs for the soundtrack to writer/director Taylor McFadden’s Lovers. Being chosen to be on the Farm Aid Board of Directors was clearly a big deal for him and he expressed that eloquently at Farm Aid.“
Great solo set by Nathaniel Rateliff!
Margo Price
Margo Price was up next and she did not disappoint. What a set with a great band and she even tossed out roses to the crowd as her set ended.
Those Farmaidian t-shirts sort of standout down front at the venue...they took up a good portion of the first five rows for Farm Aid.
Margo Price w/ Jesse Welles & Dave Matthews
Lots of guests came out during the day, which is always a thrill. Margo Price had Jesse Welles and Dave Matthews plus she already had Logan Ledger in her band on the far right here. Logan Ledger does a fantastic version of Neil Young’s Do I Have To Come Right Out and Say It.
Standing ovation for Margo’s set by the whole venue...
“I know anytime I feel depressed, going out to the garden is an immediate cure for me and I think, you know, farmer suicide rates are up,” Margo Price expressed at the press conference. “Not only that, but people are feeling more and more isolated, more and more disconnected. Going outside, growing your own food, even if it's just a small amount.“I mean, this year I had six different kinds of heirlooms. I had a lot of peppers. I just put my fall garden in, and I always try to kind of barter with people in my neighborhood. My neighbors have chickens and so I trade them tomatoes or maybe cannabis for eggs. But, [laughter] you know, you do what you can. Know where you get your food from, you know, we're up against a lot. I try to show up to city council meetings when I'm home, protest when I can, stay off Amazon, protest data centers, I don't know, there's a lot, but um thank you for the work you're doing.”
Margo Price
Dave Matthews w/ I’m With Her
Even Dave Matthews had I’m With Her out as guests during his set and the photo pit became highly active.
Tim Reynolds
“I'm going to stand because my legs are falling asleep because I'm getting old,” Dave Matthews said at the Press Conference. “But I'm chasing you, Willie! I want to just emphasize I don't know what I'm going to say because it all goes out of my head as soon as I get a microphone in front of me. But I want to say from my heart that the farmers, and small farmers especially, community farmers, are sort of the heart of our community. They're the providers of good food.They're also the people that believe in the health of the land. So, they serve many purposes, and they are examples to us of many things that are good about us and that are good for the planet.
“I feel compelled to say that there are forces both from our political leaders on both sides and from the wealthy to divide us, to divide us up. We have to remember that we have more in common with the example of farmers than we have things that separate us. We are unified by our common humanity. We need to always remember that there's forces that tell us. The farming community believes this or supports this in politics, or they switch to the other side.“They try and make us enemies of each other. And it's the most terrible effort because really what it's doing is trying to steal power away from the small farmers and the family farmers so they can turn a profit higher up. It's all about greed that we have to fight. It's about greed [and] control over our land, over our health, over our food, over our schools. It's all about greed. And if someone, it's like I heard Neil say once before, if you want to find a solution to the problems, follow the money. You follow the greed and we will have solutions. Cuz I know that the people here that are farming are caring for our land and they're caring for our communities. I'm deeply grateful for that. We have to fight for them because they are the people that will help us save this planet from greed and corruption.”
Dave Matthews
Jake Simpson, Tim Reynolds & Dave Matthews
Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds had a guest from Lukas Nelson’s band on “Ants Marching” that had the entire crowd on its feet.
John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp brought a large band for Farm Aid and they were superb.
“That was great!,” John Mellencamp exclaimed when the FarmAidians kept the song going after he’d finished his solo set and was about to bring back his band. This image was from the CNN broadcast.
Lotta love from the crowd for John Mellencamp and is band.
Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts
Of course, Neil and the Chrome Hearts were up next after a couple of warm-up shows with Willie Nelson before Farm Aid.
Neil and Spooner were clearly very energized by the full Harvest Moon. That full moon really seemed to influence all the artists at Farm Aid. Uncle Neil might be on to something with the creativity bounce of a full moon!
Micah Nelson
Micah Nelson sounded great on every instrument he played during the Chrome Hearts and Willie Nelson Family Band sets.
Think we might have to get Larry Cragg to work on Micah’s guitar there...
Just a beautiful version of “Harvest Moon” you can rewatch on YouTube.
There was a video camera on rails in front of us and when Neil broke his guitar strings during an astounding Rockin’ In the Free World, but I missed it. You can clearly see it happening on the YouTube video and he thought he cut his hand for a moment, too.
Spooner Oldham
I do wish Spooner Oldham would have gotten a chance for a song, but there wasn’t time. I was fortunate to catch a rare Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham full show at a screening of the Muscle Shoals documentary in Greensboro, North Carolina and they were fantastic!
This might be my favorite image from this set that really captures the joy of Farm Aid.
Willie Nelson & Friends
Didn’t have a wide enough lens to capture the whole gang during the finale. What is the deal with the pineapple?
What a time to be alive!
As always my son Charles and I can’t thank Renee and Paul enough for having us at the best party of the year. Clearly, Thrashers Wheat was well represented at the Farm Aid Eve party!
“So, please farmers continue doing what you're doing and do it with all your heart, please be together and please vote for America,” Neil Young closed his portion of the Farm Aid Press conference with.“Thank you all for coming to Farm Aid 2026,” Willie Nelson told the crowd. “We started Farm Aid forty-one years ago because we saw small family farms disappearing and we find ourselves in that situation yet again. I want to thank Neil, John, Dave for taking this ride so many years ago and to folks like Margo and Nathaniel for helping to keep it going. And I would especially like to thank Carolyn Mugar and [applause and cheering] and the whole Farm Aid staff, Glenda, Jed, Charlotte, for making us all look good and for all their outreach to farmers in need of help.“So, thank you all who participate today with donations and tickets for helping us help those who help us all, including the planet that sustains us and again, thank you.”
Neil Young
Willie Nelson & Friends
That's a wrap on #FarmAid2026! Thanks for joining us and we can't wait to see you next year! https://t.co/3dFA4nZmfz
— Farm Aid (@FarmAid) September 27, 2026
Thanks for the report Jim! What a great day for a great cause.
Here are are a few more Farm Aid memories with our FarmAidian friends Paul & Renee & Crew.
Photos by Jim, thrashette, others/tbd.
The FarmAidian Crew - "we were half a [.001] million strong"
The legendary FarmAidian van!
Hangin' w/ Chris Pierce
Hangin' w/ E2F
On The [Virginia] Beach ...
the day after ...
See you next year FarmAidians!
Labels: 2026, concert, Dave Matthews, farm aid, john mellencamp, margo price, neil young, photos, review, willie nelson
by thrasher@PermaLink: 10/09/2026 05:00:00 PM
47 comments
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47 Comments:
Jim & Thrasher: Thank you so much for the excellent Farm Aid photos & report. Wish I could have taken it in in-person. Supreme kudos to you both for sharing your experience.
It was a honor and privilege to attend Farm Aid with family, FarmAidians and good friends.
A great day of music, food and fun for the farmers.
I have spent a lot of time with farmers, admittedly of the mass production sort, but why not teachers as the soul? Or how about we just stop saying such things?
Abner, thanks. Not trying to be dense here but what are you really suggesting?
Or what should have Neil said when handed the mic? Seriously.
Heartland Soul.
Salt of the Earth.
Makes sense to me.
Farmers…They are the stewards and caretakers of Earth. They see & feel the changes. First.
They provide the sustenance. For Life.
Soul Food.
OR
Is it because those who cannot do…
Teach. Your children. Well.
Thanks Herb W.
Makes sense to us.
Thrasher, you are not being dense! Sorry for not being clear. Farmers as the ultimate in human virtue is a mythology in these parts. In Iowa, the majority of the farms are corporate operations. For a long time now, the slogan "Iowa Feeds the World" has played into the mythology. Farming has ruined the state in a systematic fashion. Many of the farmers I have met are patriarchal and amazingly closed-minded. But I get what Neil was saying and I don't mean to diminish the real activity of farming or the smaller, diversified farm. All of the problems with industrial agriculture are tied to our most pressing social and cultural problems. This is why I suggested teachers as the soul. In short, I am dedicated to the end of industrial agriculture. If you take a look, you will see that there is a really important campaign right now in Iowa, Chris Jones for secretary of agriculture, is a guy who is taking on big Ag. He is very articulate about the meaning and value of farming. I hope this clears up what I said and I am sorry for being opaque. I am immersed in the struggle.
And please, if you have time, check out the cancer problem in Iowa. You will be shocked and horrified. The beautiful farms with pristine rows of corn and soybeans are fields of death. This is a definite moment in time where a change could actually take place. Republicans and democrats, and everyone else with a brain, is taking on the cancer causing agriculture.
Thanks so much for the clarifications here Abner. Very helpful clarification.
Yes, education is key to better agricultural practices in all manifestations.
And that - we believe- is a vital to the core role of Farm Aid, The Farmers Village workshops through out the day.
BTW, this may not have come across in the broadcast, but Big Data Centers were identified as the latest threat to the family farm.
Once a data center goes in, like any development, that land will never again be productive agriculturally speaking.
(We say as we here at TW chew up the data. That said, we try and do our part as best we can. We continue our practice of not utilizing AI to generate content. TW is 100% human derived. )
What a choice or, what choice?
Big AG Farm production with GMO seeds, Toxic Fertilizers & Weed Killers/Insecticides are poisoning our food, laying waste to the land, by products & waste water runoff in our fresh water sources.
OR
MEGA HUGE A.I. data centers displacing green, open spaces, depleting natural resources all while adding greenhouse gases & increasing the demand and costs of utilities. Noise & Light pollution.
We gotta get big money out of American politics.
Special interest lobbyists are killing us.
ALL OF US.
Vote. Like your life depends on it.
#Abner Knowing where you are located I perfectly understand what you are trying to say. Any McDo meal reveals the triuth: The American farmer sold his soul to Bayer/Monsanto, Coca Cola and Walmart. That's where the American consumer is buying it. The American farmer that Neil Young is talking about might occupy a niche here and there. For many years he lived on a ranch with a garden that provided enough to feed the extended family. I doubt it that he went to an American super market during the last fifty years. (Somewhere I read he once owned shares of Safeway for some time, though)
One of the big problems I encountered when travelling in the US (and Canada) always was how to get access to food that really is fit for human consumption as opposed to mainly catering to the greed of conglomerates, food processors, and mega-retailers. Locals might have their sources and know their where-to-gos, strangers face a dietary abyss.
Looking at HW's last sentence fromm the outside: It does.
I was not knocking Farm Aid. The readers of this thread need to know the dimensions of the problem. I am certain that the overall destruction of this state will be in history books. The cancer problem is very bad and some of us have been trying to get this out for years. Now many citizens are getting it and there is much anger. Chris Jones, who graduated from our college (Simpson College) in Iowa is leading a true revolution. Maybe, just maybe, there is a chance for real change. At this point it is hard to tell. The republican running for governor is a guy with strong ties to the Koch Brothers- investors in nitrate based pesticides and long time big AG profiteers. All the corruption is linked, as is all the environmental destruction.
Another teachable moment.
As one farmer said regarding data centers being put on top quality farming soil: "You can't eat data."
What a fantastic TW trove of love for Farm Aid 2026! Impressive & everyone in the pics having lots of fun while supporting a great cause: the independent farmers.
Thank you for delivering such reports with a passion that impresses so many of us. You are the Michael Jordan of separating wheat from chaff.
I was just hanging out with a bunch of Thrashers Wheat fans at a Dave Alvin show at Seattle’s Tractor Tavern!
Christy McWilson opened the show. She was a member of the well loved PNW band, the Pickets. She also has done solo projects with Dave Alvin as a collaborator.
She had her long time drummer & Bass player, with Christy on acoustic guitar. She sang very well & was a pleasure to hear & watch. She is still excited about rock & roll! She also joined Dave Alvin for many songs as Chris Miller accompanied on guitar, no drummer, no bass player. It was a wicked good musical stew they cooked up!
Dave Alvin is a fiery guitar player of the country blues lineage. He always delivers & he loves the Tractor, and we love him, & Chris & Christy. Her drummer is a fun 1-drum player who sings as well. He was rocking out later in the show with all the rest & he broke the tip of his drumstick and splinters were flying in the front row.
I was “on the rail” with long time Thrasher’s Wheat readers Bob, Bruce, Jake the candy man, Willie D (not the rapper) & a few of their friends. What a great bunch of guys, all sitting in the front row seats. Brad & I sat in the .5 area on concrete for awhile with the TW fans & inevitably got up to save the old bones.
I have been seeing Dave Alvin at the Tractor for like 20 years, pretty much every year. What a pleasure to hear these two masters of the Fender guitar. Dave plays a Strat, Chris & Telecaster. These two have incredible licks, twang, searing blues, complicated rhythms that they make look easy.
Dave Alvin is “the King of California” & was a founding member of the epic band from Downey CA, The Blasters. He was the songwriter & lead guitarist. He is a living legend who has won Grammy, But I am glad if you never heard of him! Because I still get to see him in tiny venues that rival the Old Princeton Landing in intimacy!
Part 1.
Your rustie grain
Brother Alan in Seattle.
We did take some group pics. I will send to Thrasher for his amusement.
PS -Neil Young played well at farm aid with the Chrome Hearts.
And thanks Theasher / Thrashette for the great rebel content / other, for us hard core Neil Young fans. Most of us are big fans of a lot of different kinds of music & Rock. But Neil Young has created a great body of Art in song. He has done something amazing; we could not look away from what he was doing because it delivered riches beyond our wildest dreams. Songs are important. Albums are important. Sound resolution is important! Spotify sounds so thin! I want ALL of the sound, if possible. You can’t get that from mp3 / standard streaming,
Save Earth! Save US from Trump! We stand for justice & a limit to the national train wreck that is Diaper Don T’s Russian marching orders. He has given Putin everything he wanted, every time.
Yrgbais
Thanks for being with us, supporting us and being our brother in Seattle, Alan.
fyi - look for a somewhat significant update from us in the coming days or weeks -- depending. We're trying to chart our next path for TW during this Neil lull.
In the meantime, consider how TW might navigate and surf the next wave into 2027, our collective futures and beyond.
Thrasher, ever get the feeling TW is being shadowed by Archives folks? Quite a compliment!
RITFW…
😎
Thanks HW!
Suppose maybe you're referring to the Season of RITFW post we did recently, maybe?
That post was reflected in Rolling Stone by Andy Greene, which was then mirrored over on NYA.
We've run into Andy and his partner Angie M at a few Neil gigs over the years.
Like us (t & t-ette), Andy & Angie are major Neil fans.
Pretty cool if we say so yes, definitely.
Quite right! That last sentence nails it!
Your rustie grain
brother Alan in Seattle
Because Riundup etc causes cancer, and that’s the way it is. Not an expert, I Marched Against Monsanto years before the Neil Young : “Monsanto Years.”
Cornell symposiums, a rigged result, self testing by Monsanto. “No rat tumors in 90 days!” What a victory. Trading employees back and forth with the FDA & Monsanto / Bayer.
Weed killers also kill humans! It does not stop killing. It keeps killing whatever the hell it touches. It is in the rainwater and all of OUR bodies!
Those who eat organic have less roundup in our bodies. It’s hard to do & expensive too. Since the whole game is rigged by Diaper Don the dip shit to help his coal buddies.
With Roundup & Glibal Warming, again, it sucks to be right!
I knew the fix was in because my eyes were open. I was an Environmental Studies major in the late 1980’s. I was worried about all the grandkids. Now we are in it ourselves, waist deep in the big muddy! And the old fool says “Push On.”
Your Brother Alan in Seattle
Roundup & all the other weed killers cause cancer! yrgbais
Yes!
Thrasher, it would not be the same if I spelled it right !!!
I didn’t realize Roger Daltry was such a, what’s the word…?
WANKER!
Lotsa back handed shade towards Neil.
F*ckin’ Up describes Thrasher’s Wheat if I were to take the helm for 10 minutes. I would steer it right into the iceberg almost as if I meant to, it’s called ADD.
Long May You Run! And-God forbid you would ever turn over the keys to the TW kingdom, but if you did… we could only pray to the Rock Gods that they would do 25% as good of a job as you have & do!
Trust me on this. You will be at the Great Gig in the Sky for your live show dedication alone, not to mention this Epic blog!
I must earn my way in or sneak in, as that is my way. After all, I have somehow snuck into a few Neil shows! Or climbed through a human-stopping barricade to weasel in from 2nd best to best seating area at the White River Amp! I had to carefully time it for the moment when 3 different security guards in 3 different areas all turned their backs at the same time. Me & my gallon of water. Bled from a small scrape on the lower leg… as that is the price of admission sometimes: blood.
I intend to join the rest of you true rockers at the Great Gig in the Sky. Daily shows, on the rail, with my bros & sisters. Jimi & Chuck! What the duck! Ear candy & Luck, more likely. Earned through devotion to the Gods of Rock & Roll!
Counterfeit wristband created on very short notice & a quick trip to the drug store at Half Moon Bay. My friend was driving his truck fast enough for us to walk in minutes from showtime, to walk past an angel at the door of the Old Princeton Landing in 1996!
I guess I may have already been to the great gig in the sky, & let me tell you, it was beautiful! Never need to hit the bathroom or concessions. Sometimes mere mortals can catch a glimpse right here on Earth! It was that wa a last night at Dave Alvin!
Love, your rustie grain
brother Alan in Seattle
It WAS “that way” last night baby!
Right, not so much “big brother” so much as “a friend of Mother Nature.” Let them love. This is where the real shit goes down, other than Neil solo &/or with friends! And NYA.com ! Live shows so numerous I have only listened to half of them!
Still got my cassettes from the old Princeton landing ‘96. I will send Thrasher a long version of this story at some point!
yrgbais
Thrasher, maybe someday one or more of these tech savvy youngsters with old souls &?a serious Neil Young obsession, appreciation of…. Uncle Neil!
If such a need arises, I hope the “chosen one(s) can step forth, with trunks of memories to share, hopefully!
I hope I am taking this out of context entirely. If so, apologies!
Perhaps you were referring to Neil’s “sabbatical” which would never be free of creative & fascinating songwriting… threatening to break out!
Serve the muse. They may live together! Not my biz! Just Thanks Neil for all the damn good recordings!
When the Heck are we going to get our hands on the studio version of Barefoot Floors!?
Dream Machine! Dock of the Bay.
your rustie grain
brother Alan in Seattle
(Caps by auto correct)
Regarding the intersections between TW, NYA, Rusted Moon et al.: Many of the regulars on all of the fan sites, blogs, and facebook groups seem also to hold a subscription to NYA, so they frequently show up in the LTTE column, too. I am pretty sure that there are people at NYA who somehow "monitor" things, maybe there is even a "rustie grains list"? At any rate, very often when I write to the LTTE box, my comment or question appears two weeks later or so, sometimes even with more than a nod by Neil Young. Also they make sure that there always is some European, Canadian or other non-US representation among the letters published. On the occasional video live meetings at the end when everybody is waving good-bye one gets to see the faces of many of these regulars from all the corners of "Neil world". Needless to say that I enjoy all of this intersecting a lot, even if that means the official channels take some away from the fan-based projects. But maybe that's just my perception. Did the emergence of NYA drive away readers and commenters from TW?
Good points and question Dionys.
We have some thoughts on all of this which we plan to address here as mentioned above.
Thanks for being with us.
FWIW, imo: I do agree w/ Dionys re: NYA but there is no denying the immediacy of the interaction here on TW.
So, towards that end, there will always be a place outside of “official “ channels.
As long as Thrasher keeps on keeping on.
😎
In my imagination there are two interdependent dimensions of fandom. Naturally the first one is the communication between stage and audience, Neil Young and the grains, on all levels, in all formats and through every channel. However, this dimension needs to be balanced because the stage-audience communication between the individual fan and her or his hero is asymmetrical by definition. The balance is maintained by analog and digital barns, porches and campfires (Hyperrust, BA, TW, Rusted Moon, ny noticias, Sugar Mountain, etc..) and symmetrical exchange of views, experiences, emotions. And that for decades now has been the great strength and source of vitality of the Neil Young fan community. (Insert: applause for David Lybrand, Alan Jenkins and Scott Sandie, Tom Hambleton and Thrasher and the many other contributors and commenters keeping hope alive for long times). In organizational theory movements, networks and - well organizations go through regular stages of evolution. The first being the charismatic phase whose protagonists I just mentioned. The second phase will be an institutionalization or it won't be at all, I am afraid. To keep up the balance between stage and audience the heroic efforts of individuals for all too human limitations will not be enough in the long run, and truly it's been a long run already. And that includes the gravitation center, Neil Young himself. The other option would be a more or less monumental (digital?) museum, an almost frozen entity mostly pre-occupied with keeping itself visible. Is there anybody out there, who has been to the Guthrie and Dylan museums in Tulsa?
Hey, I wanted to say that I am open minded that there are social media locations where many serious NY fans mingle. Let them Love! Just like grandpa used to say. I am not into any other social media NY focused groups. I judge not, this is just the way I have always done it. Right here on Thrasher’s Wheat! Thank heavens for this blog! It has enriched my life hugely!
So fun to have an unofficial “Thrasher’s Wheat meetup” unplanned / expected at the Dave Alvin / Chris Miller / Christy McWilson show at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. It is by far my favorite music venue in Seattle.
Spontaneous combustion occurred when my buddy & I chanced to again bump into this group of TW rail riders again at a Dave Alvin show!
Whether it’s his band “The Third Mind” (a must see & hear!), or any of his bands or projects, I hate to miss him! It hurts! Like some of those Neil tours I missed when my kids & I were young! But such is the nature of parenting, money, etc.
It was so nice to meet up with my buddies TW soul brothers, Jake, Bruce, Bob the Builder (of guitars!), Willie D (not the rapper) & friends!
We have hatched plans to attend more live music locally. We are like fishermen casting nets for wicked good music, mingling in the historic Swedish fishing village of Ballard. It had more bars per capita than any town west of the Mississippi 120 years ago.
And the rising Sonic tide lifts all boats together in the local Thrasher’s Wheat music fan community!
We are a world epicenter of Thrashers Wheat meetups! Come join us & hit a show! Hopefully Neil will be rolling into town! Neil could shift the venue to Boise Outlaw Field as far as I am concerned! Dan 🙏🏼 is ready to join us there! 2016 was so damn cool! “Hearing” the sound check was one of my all time greatest live music experiences. 6 songs, 4 new on Peace Trail shortly after this gig. Neil playing his harmonica thru his guitar rig! It was insane! Got to see that twice in one day, truly! And, Surfer Joe & Moe the Sleaze! That is the one time I have seen that song live. What a treat. My haircut matched the local cops who were doing security. I just walked right in around 3 when ai rolled up to hear the band playing! In I went without the usual fences….. that was the great gig in the sky if my expectation is correct! Holy shit it was good! Promise of the Real! Neil was o
Pissed at the local sound crew(?!). He was livid. He squeezed every bit of rage into his harmonica and it was glorious! Nobody got hurt! It was an inspiring thing to witness. He is a little bit of a bad boy. No wonder I love him so damn much! Thanks for the music Neil!
Yes, Let them Love, as Grandpa used to say (my grandfather Tarkel, Norwegian).
That was before the fascists took over the US Government under the Diaper Don! His judgement day draws closer on Election Day.
He will arrange for some false flag gas lighting but the people are so sick of his evil shit & idiot kingly-ness that he & his band of ass kissing knee benders will be removed by constitutional reasons in short order!
We are transitioning from Evil to Goode!
Spelling Pretti intentional. Fuck Nazis!
much Love, your brother Alan in Seattle
Brotha Alan, et al:
nokings.org
And vote EARLY if @ all possible!
Wow! Check out this setlist:
https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/real-young-and-lazy-horse/2026/industry-city-bandshell-brooklyn-ny-537f8bad.html
No Kings Day is today, Saturday 10/17 !!! Be there or be square
yrgbais
Holy shit! That was the show!
#NoKings NoKings.org
Voter registration drives today! No Kings Day! Thanks Herb.
Neil Young Radio!
Update yer app 😎
Not on Android yet, at least not for me in the UK.
Tried it on the web version though - 1st track was Stupid White Men from Dead Man
Not sure what a casual listener would make of that :-)
I decided to dedicate it to the Orange fella and the war criminals in charge of Russia and Israel
What's the difference between the war criminals and the Orange fella? He did start no stupid war, he totally lost it.
Very little if any difference to be fair.
The other two aren't orange?
Blood-red Orange 🩸 🍊
They are ALL war criminals as far as I’m concerned.
War. Of. Stupid. White. Man.
Unfortunately, “NOBODY” Will Observe.
@Ron:
According to the NYA development update Android & IOS world-wide.
Did you delete & re-install the app? I don’t use an Android device, but on my primary IOS the “update” worked without deleting or reinstalling. On a secondary, older IOS device the update alone did not work. I had to remove the app, re-download & re-install.
Short of contacting support, hope this helps?
From the NYA newsletter email last night - "iOS version is out, the Android version is in review and will be released shortly"
I can be patient
Ah. Didn’t see that in my NYA newsletter email but I do use Google on the desktop and, according to the development page, Google is ass dragging.
That’s why I’m not a doctor…
I have no patience 😎
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