Neil Young is Furious Over Concert Announcement with Bob Dylan
News broke recently that Neil Young and Bob Dylan would be playing a show together in London’s Hyde Park this summer. The problem with this news? Fans weren’t supposed to know about it yet.
This was one of the biggest gripes Young had in a post to his official website about the announcement. The lengthy post apologized to fans about the announcement, which Young stated he “had no idea…was coming that day.”
He continued, “I was still finessing the art for the poster and trying to make sure that all the details of the show were agreeable to me. Then suddenly, someone jumped the gun. The tickets were put on sale and the announcement was made, all without my knowledge. We promised you that you would learn first at NYA [Neil Young Archives, his official website] about all of my activities and have first access to pre-sale tickets. You didn’t. I was angry.”
Young’s other issue with the announcement was learning the gig was being sponsored by Barclays Bank, which he referred to as “a fossil fuel funding entity.”
Young has long been known for championing environmental causes and issues, so learning of the Barclays sponsorship, Young said, “That doesn’t work for me. I believe in Science. I worry about the Climate Crisis and am deeply concerned about its massive global ramifications and my beautiful grandchildren’s future.”
The gig, itself, could potentially be up in the air with Young writing, “At the moment, we are trying to rectify the situation and will soon update you on the status of the Hyde Park show. We have been talking about requiring a different sponsor as one option.”
There appears to be no known resolution to all of this, so stay tuned for the latest. Needless to say, this could get interesting.
Erica Banas is a rock/classic rock blogger that loves the smell of old vinyl in the morning.
