Neil Young, Band of Horses - July 16, 2015 - Susquehanna Bank Center, Camden, NJ

A cool, breezy night for July was accompanied by great music from Band of Horses and the legend Neil Young at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ. Before either band came to the stage, an unconventional opening act, the Apache Stronghold, a group of dozens of activists and supporters of the Arizona San Carlos Apache tribe hit the stage. As their drum beat and tribal chant echoed, their message was shared. These activists and supporters are trying to preserve and protect their land called Oak Flat in Tonto National Forest, just outside of Phoenix. Their land is to be transferred to Resolution Copper, a subdivision of the international mining company Rio Tinto. With Neil Young's help, the Apache Stronghold is touring to save not only their land but their heritage.

Band of Horses followed and started promptly at 7:30. I was excited to see them for the first time and they didn't disappoint. They played the favorites "Laredo", "Is There a Ghost", "No One's Gonna Love You", and of course "The Funeral". The setlist was evenly distributed with at least one song played from each of their 4 albums. Although the older crowd didn't seem very familiar with the band, by the end of the setlist they showed their appreciation for the band's heart and good music with a generous ovation.

About 75 minutes after Band of Horses hit the stage, the lights went out at the Susquehanna Bank Center, signaling that Neil Young was ready to go. The dark stage was illuminated with one beam of light which shined down on Young at the piano. He went right into "After the Gold Rush" to the pleasure of the crowd. Young started the show with 5 solo acoustic songs which included hits "Heart of Gold" and "Old Man" and a neat, chilling version of "Mother Earth" performed on a pump organ. The sound of the organ with Young's signature voice and skillful harmonica playing would give anyone chills. As the song come to a close, Willie Nelson's sons Micah and Lukas and Lukas' bandmates in Promise of the Real joined Young on stage as his backing band. As a band, they were really impressive. They showed great energy and could not only play but sing. The harmonies between Neil and the Promise of the Real reminded me of Neil with Crosby, Stills, and Nash and with Crazy Horse.

The show was part of the Rebel Content tour to promote The Monsanto Years, a concept album to protest corporate government and more specifically Monsanto, an agriculture and agrochemical company that forces farmers to use GMOs (genetically modified organisms) in their products. Young boycotted Starbucks last year after claiming that Starbucks teamed up with Monsanto to sue the state of Vermont over GMO labeling requirements and to stop accurate food labeling altogether. Nobody wants GMOs in their food and people should have the right to know the ingredients that are in the food that they eat. The album was recorded at the Teatro theater in Oxnard, California, the same place where Willie Nelson made his 1998 album Teatro. Neil Young and the Promise of the Real also released an hour long film documenting the process of the making of the album.

Eight of the nine songs off The Monsanto Years were played throughout the show as well as the Neil Young classics "Harvest Moon", "Walk On", and an riveting 20 minute version of "Down by the River." They capped off the show with an encore that consisted of Crazy Horse staples "Cortez the Killer" and "Cinnamon Girl." A good amount of Neil Young and Crazy Horse was played but I wanted to hear more. Songs like "Hey Hey, My My", "Like a Hurricane", and my favorite "Rockin' in the Free World."Although Young is 71, he can still jam and sing as he always has. Not to mention that he played for almost 3 hours and the show ended at 11:30.  It was amazing to see the "godfather of grunge" first hand and I would definitely see him again, hopefully next time with Crazy Horse.

Setlist:

Band of Horses:
1.  The First Song
2.  Compliments
3.  Laredo
4.  The Great Salt Lake
5.  Is There A Ghost
6.  Cigarettes, Wedding Bands
7.  No One's Gonna Love You
8.  Ode to LRC
9.  The Funeral

Neil Young:
Solo Acoustic:
1.  After the Gold Rush (Neil on piano)
2.  Heart of Gold
3.  Long May You Run (The Stills-Young Band song)
4.  Old Man
5.  Mother Earth (Natural Anthem) (Neil Young & Crazy Horse song) (Neil on pump organ)

Neil Young and Promise of the Real:
6.  Hold Back the Tears
7.  Out on the Weekend
8.  Unknown Legend
9.  Peace of Mind
10. From Hank to Hendrix
11. Harvest Moon
12. Wolf Moon
13. Words (Between the Lines of Age)
14. Flying on the Ground Is Wrong (Buffalo Springfield song)
15. Walk On
16. Bad Fog of Loneliness
17. A Rock Star Bucks a Coffee Shop
18. People Want to Hear About Love
19. A New Day for Love
20. Down by the River (Neil Young & Crazy Horse song)
21. Workin' Man
22. Big Box
23. Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Neil Young & Crazy Horse song)
24. Monsanto Years
25. If I Don't Know
26. Love and Only Love (Neil Young & Crazy Horse song)

Encore:
27. Cortez the Killer (Neil Young & Crazy Horse song)
28. Cinnamon Girl