When Neil Young announced his tour with Crazy Horse back in February, he didn’t announce much else. All fans really knew was that Young and his longtime on-and-off backing band would play 16 shows (since increased to 28) with Willie Nelson‘s son Micah taking over guitar duties for Nils Lofgren who is touring with Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. Those who showed up to his tour opener on Wednesday in San Diego rolled the dice on what they might get, and they were rewarded for their faith with a night full of classic songs, a “new” verse on an old favorite, lengthy bouts of improvisation, and a solo acoustic interlude.
As the crew drew back a curtain to reveal the oversized amplifiers and road cases from the 1978 Rust Never Sleeps tour (H/T Rolling Stone), Young took the stage at the Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre alongside Nelson, drummer Ralph Molina, and bassist Billy Talbot. Armed with Old Black, Young started the show off with a bang on a 14-minute version of “Cortez the Killer”. Amid the tight, heavily distorted jamming, Young unveiled a lost verse for the 1975 Zuma favorite which was left off the original recording because the studio console briefly lost power. Young recently stumbled upon the original lyrics and revealed earlier this month that audiences would hear the song as it was originally written.
“I floated on the water,” Young sang. “I ate that ocean wave/Two weeks after the slaughter/I was living in a cave/They came too late to get me/But there’s no one here to set me free/From this rocky grave/To that snowed-out ocean wave.”
Neil Young & Crazy Horse — “Cortez The Killer” — 4/24/24
[Video: Todd Norris]
Young and Crazy Horse delivered a one-two punch of classics by following up “Cortez the Killer” with “Cinnamon Girl”. After that came “Scattered (Let’s Think About Livin’)” from 1996’s Broken Arrow, which proved the newest song played all night. The band dug deep for lengthy runs through “Down by the River” (15 minutes) and “Love and Only Love” (16 minutes), while between jams Young romped through “Don’t Cry No Tears”, “Everybody Knows This is Nowhere”, and “Powderfinger” with vigor unexpected from a near-octogenarian.
Following the lengthy “Love and Only Love”, Young eschewed his bandmates and strapped on his harmonica for a solo interlude. The acoustic-armed Young led singalongs on “Comes a Time”, “Heart of Gold”, and “Human Highway” before bringing the band back out to stomp through a finale of “Don’t Be Denied” and “Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)”.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse return to Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre tonight, April 25th, for their second of two sold-out shows. Check out some videos of the tour opener from Todd Norris below.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse — “Cinnamon Girl” — 4/24/24
Setlist: Neil Young & Crazy Horse | Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre | San Diego, CA | 4/24/24
Set: Cortez the Killer, Cinnamon Girl, Scattered (Let’s Think About Livin’), Don’t Cry No Tears, Down by the River, The Losing End (When You’re On), Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, Powderfinger, Love and Only Love, Comes a Time [1], Heart of Gold [1], Human Highway [1], Don’t Be Denied, Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)
[1] Neil Young solo acoustic
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