Neil Young “not sure” if he will ever tour again
Neil Young hasn’t played a live concert since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The legendary singer-songwriter isn’t just hanging out: in fact, he and Crazy Horse just recently released a new album, World Record, a concept record that revolves around environmentalism.
It’s a cause that’s close to Young’s heart, along with telling Spotify to stick it where the sun doesn’t shine. Earlier this year, Young discussed his hesitancy to return to the road. That mainly revolved around the lingering Covid that’s still hanging around, but in a new interview with The New Yorker, Young explained how he would focus on sustainability if ever did return to touring.
“Well, I have a plan. I’ve been working on it with a couple of my friends for about seven or eight months,” Young explained. “We’re trying to figure out how to do a self-sustaining, renewable tour. Everything that moves our vehicles around, the stage, the lights, the sound, everything that powers it is clean. Nothing dirty with us.”
“We set it up; we do this everywhere we go. This is something that’s very important to me, if I’m ever going to go out again,” Young adds, “And I’m not sure I want to, I’m still feeling that out. But if I’m ever going to do it, I want to make sure that everything is clean.”
“What was the last thing you remember eating at a show, and how good was it? Was it from a farm-made, homegrown village? I don’t think so,” Young says. “It was from a factory farm that’s killing us. I’ve been working on this idea of bringing the food and the drink and the merch into the realm where it’s all clean. I will make sure that the food comes from real farmers.”
“Once it’s up and going, and I’m finished with my part of the tour, there’s no reason why the tour has to stop,” Young concludes. “The tour can keep on going with another headliner. It’s about sustainability and renewability in the future, loving Earth for what it is. We want to do the right thing. That’s kind of the idea.”
Those are some interesting ideas, but it still hinges on the notion that Young will eventually want to get back to gigging. That seems like more of an uncertainty, but then again, why would Young come up with all these ideas if he wasn’t going to use them for himself?
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