Farm Aid, FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, Illinois

Farm Aid is a benefit concert first held in 1985 by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young to raise money for US family farmers. The single day event has been held annually more or less every year since. With a few exceptions, Nelson, Mellencamp, and Young have headlined the festival each year. In the mid-90’s Dave Matthews, either with his bandmates or with Tim Reynolds, became a Farm Aid regular as well. Dave now sits on the Board of Directors with the three founders. The undercard for the festival varies from year to year. It takes place on a single stage with each artists playing an abbreviated set with only a few minutes between artists. In their audience banter, many artists note the importance of family farming and how it relates to their own lives.

A sunny afternoon on Northerly Island marked the 30th anniversary of the festival (though only the 29th iteration since there was no event in 1988 or 1991). In total, I was treated to a total of 83 songs (less than a buck a song) by ten artists. Included among this was 16 covers plus 14 songs from the artists other bands/line ups (though half of that were Dave Matthews Band songs). Many of the covers were of songs by country stars of previous generations, like Woody Gutherie and George Strait.

We arrived a couple hours after the event started, so the lawn was already a bit crowded. Not so crowded that it was difficult to move around, but it took a bit of effort for the two of us to find a place to sit that met my criteria. I wasn’t too concerned with being close, but I wanted a decent view of a screen and most importantly to be optimal distance from a set of speaker. I also would have preferred to stand in the grass instead of the plastic matting that covered many areas of the field. Unfortunately that last aspect wasn’t destined to be. It didn’t help that a lot of the grassy areas were out of bounds, having turned to mud from rain the previous days. As far as the music was concerned, we arrived the perfect time, just a bit before the first act of the day that we wanted to see was taking the stage, Old Crow Medicine Show.  I have seen them before, first when they guested with Mumford & Sons at Bonnaroo 2010, then the following year at the same festival when they played alongside Mumford & Sons on the Which Stage. They were enjoyable, but the day was still ramping up.

Old Crow Medicine Show Setlist:
Brushy Mountain Conjugal Trailer
Alabama High-Test
Take 'em Away
I Hear Them All / This Land Is Your Land [Woody Guthrie cover]
City of New Orleans [Steve Goodman cover]
Wagon Wheel
8 Dogs, 8 Banjos

Next up was country artist Jamey Johnson, who debuted a new song and threw in a couple good
covers. Willie Nelson protégée Lily Meola also joined him on stage for a song; she would make a few other appearances throughout the day. Unfortunately, his style of softer country folk suffered a bit from an audience that really wasn’t all that interested in him. He seemed to fail to really captivate the audience as some later acts of the day would. It was my first time seeing him, and I thought that he was definitely someone worth keeping an eye on. I would also love to catch him on smaller stage.

Jamey Johnson Setlist:
Willie Got Me Stoned and Stole All My Money
Write Your Own Songs [Willie Nelson cover]
In Color
We Go Good in Bad Weather
That Lonesome Song
Wild and Blue [John Anderson cover]
Can't Cash My Checks
Give It Away [George Strait cover]
This Land Is Your Land [Woody Guthrie cover]

Immediately following was country singer songwriter Kacey Musgraves, a personal favorite of mine and someone whose star I hope will continue to rise. I suspect that in the coming years, she might earn a later spot at the festival. Though I’ve seen her before, I was glad to get to hear a couple of her biggest hits again. She seemed to hold the audience a bit more, but perhaps that was my personal bias and the fact that the young ladies next to us were very excited to see Musgraves.

Kacey Musgraves Setlist:
High Time
Pageant Material
This Town
Dime Store Cowgirl
Blowin' Smoke
Merry Go 'Round
Follow Your Arrow
These Boots Are Made for Walkin' [Lee Hazlewood cover]

I wished Kacey would have had a bit more time, but the show had to continue for surf folk artist Jack Johnson. He also debuted a new song, “Willie Got Me Stoned and Stole All My Money,” and was the only artist of the day who didn’t do a cover or song from some other iteration of one of his musical projects. Jack is just always fun, laid back music. He might be the most relaxed man on earth. I had seen him twice before, first at Virgin Fest in 2008, then a few years ago at Bonnaroo when he agreed to take over for Mumford & Sons headlining set when they were forced to bail on the festival at the last minute due to bassist Ted Dwane needing surgery to remove a blot clot from his brain.

Jack Johnson Setlist:
Taylor
Sitting, Waiting, Wishing
If I Had Eyes
Bubble Toes / Not Fade Away
Banana Pancakes
Wasting Time
Flake
Willie Got Me Stoned and Stole All My Money

Following Jack Johnson’s mellow set, R&B diva Mavis Staples kicked it back up a notch with some soulful ballads. Though she may be getting old, she still certainly has a powerful set up pipes. Mavis began her career with her family’s band, The Staple Singers, consisting of patriarch “Pops” Staples and his children, before going on as a solo artist. Her style and voice are similar to Aretha Franklin, but even though they’re part of the same generation of singers, Mavis never achieved success on par with the Queen of Soul. Nonetheless, she’s a legend in her own right.

Mavis Staples Setlist:
If You're Ready (Come Go With Me) [The Staple Singers song]
Slippery People [Talking Heads cover]
Can You Get to That [Funkadelic cover]
You Are Not Alone
Freedom Highway [The Staple Singers song]
I'll Take You There [The Staple Singers song]

The sun was finally setting as Imagine Dragons began their set. I’m a casual fan of theirs, but ended up really enjoying their set. More than any other artist that day, I was surprised by how much I ended up liking it. As far as I was concerned, I think they really benefited from a short set. They have yet to cultivate a deep catalogue of songs that I would have wanted to hear, so having them play just a nine song set gave them a chance to cycle through all their best songs and maintain my interest throughout.

Imagine Dragons Setlist:
It's Time
Shots
I Won't Back Down [Tom Petty cover]
I'm So Sorry
Gold
Demons
On Top of the World
Roots
Radioactive

Now on the other hand, I could have heard Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds play all night long. It was fully dark by the time the pair took the stage, which is fitting because I have never seen Dave Matthews perform while the sun is up. However, though I’ve seen the pair play before, never before was it without the rest of the band. The set consisted of all Dave Matthews Band songs, except for “So Damn Lucky” which was released on Some Devil (2008), Dave’s debut solo album. However, the band frequently plays that song during their shows. Unsurprisingly, Dave Matthews never fails to please, and I was doing some serious wiggling and singing throughout the set. I really wish I was there with someone who properly appreciated his music, as Lindsey mostly just stared at me laughing and shaking her head. As I have seen Dave Matthews Band ten times before, I had heard each of the songs in tonight’s set on previous occasions at least twice before.

Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds Setlist
What Would You Say
Satellite
The Space Between
So Damn Lucky
#41
Cornbread
Crush

Though I was happy to hear sets from the Farm Aid founders, I have to admit that following great sets from Imagine Dragons and Dave & Tim, the rest of the evening was a bit anticlimactic. I’m not a huge Mellencamp fan, so I was mostly excited to see him for posterity and out of respect for his long career. While I was disappointed that that he didn’t play “Jack & Diane,” he did play a few other songs that I knew and liked.

John Mellencamp Setlist 
Lawless Times
Small Town
Stones in My Passway [Robert Johnson cover]
Check It Out
Rain on the Scarecrow [with I Need a Lover intro]
Paper in Fire
Crumblin' Down
Authority Song
Pink Houses

On the other hand, Neil Young is by far my favorite of the Farm Aid founders. By my count, this would be my fourth time seeing Neil Young, but each time was with a different line up and iteration of his music. The first pair of times were his old bands, Crazy Horse and Buffalo Springfield.  I also saw his solo act just last year. For his Farm Aid set, he would be supported by Promise of the Real, normally fronted by Willie Nelson’s son Lukas and known as Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. Young collaborated with Promise of the Real on his most recent album, The Monsanto Years (2015). The entire album is more or less dedicated to condemning agribusiness, particularly Monsanto. I really like the album, even if I find Young’s choice of topic a bit alarmist and hypocritical. Nonetheless, the concept album certainly does fit in well with Farm Aid’s stated goals. Lukas is still part of the band, just without separate billing. Micah Nelson, another son of Willie, is also a member of the band. Normally his role within Promise of the Real is artwork, including painting on stage like the folks from Cloud Cult. Though I don’t think he had brought his paint and brush this evening.

In addition to songs from The Monsanto Years, Young played a pair of rarities, including the Neil Young song “Alabama” which he had not played since November 12, 1977 and the Neil Young & Crazy Horse song “Western Hero” which had not been played since January 14, 1995. It was also the live debut of the song “I Won't Quit.” With Young, I more or less knew what to expect, but was really impressed with lead guitarist Lukas Nelson. He’s a better guitarist than his father, though he has yet to have any of his own big hits which is what really matters is a musician wants to become famous to the general public.

Neil Young + Promise of the Real Setlist
Workin’ Man
A Rock Star Bucks a Coffee Shop
Big Box
Alabama [Neil Young song]
Western Hero [Neil Young & Crazy Horse cover]
I Won't Quit
Love and Only Love [Neil Young & Crazy Horse song]

The honor of closing down the festival was reserved for country legend Willie Nelson. Of course in this case, a lot of the audience had left by the time he took the stage. By the end of his set, the lawn was mostly empty. Again, I’m not a huge Willie Nelson fan but have a whole lot of respect for who he is and what he’s accomplished in his career. So I was certainly happy to cross him off the bucket list. He played a few iconic songs and was joined by his son Lukas, Lily Meola, and the Blackwood Quartet (who had joined a couple artists that day). He closed the day with a cover of the Hank Williams song “I Saw the Light.”

Willie Nelson Setlist:
Whiskey River
Still Is Still Moving to Me
Beer for My Horses [Toby Keith cover]
Good Hearted Woman [Waylon Jennings cover]
Funny How Time Slips Away
Crazy
Night Life
Texas Flood [Larry Davis cover]
Will You Remember Mine
Will the Circle Be Unbroken? [traditional]
It's All Going to Pot [Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard song]
Family Bible
Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die
I Saw the Light [Hank Williams cover]

AC/DC, Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois

AC/DC’s show sold out quickly and ticket prices remained a couple multiples above face in the days leading up to the show. I suspect the high prices were at least partially because the beloved hard rock Aussie legends haven’t toured in about five years. The fans pouring into the stadium were older than most of the other shows that I go to, obviously, and also fitting with AC/DC hard rock style, many were dressed like they had just come from biker rallies. Having never seen them before, the show was definitely on my bucket list, and I wanted to get inside the venue and into a seat in which I could hear, if not see, well. Luckily for me, my uncle has an ongoing relationship with someone in AC/DC’s technical crew through which he was able to get us some amazing tickets. Our seats were in the very first row of seats on the field, slightly house right of center, directly behind the large GA pit. While tough to gauge, I’d estimate that we were somewhere between 50 and 100 feet from the stage. On the way into the venue, the band’s vendors were peddling red illuminating plastic devil horns. I couldn’t believe how much they were asking for the glowing pieces of plastic, nor how many fans were actually buying them. Though I do admit that the thousands of horns illuminating the entire interior of the venue was a captivating site.

A massive stage was erected in the outfield of the stadium, including a large pair of devil horns built into the stage to match the fans’. The show opened with an elaborate video introduction featuring a train from the moon crashing into earth. I found it kind of strange to open the show by obliterating your audience and the rest of the world. As pieces of earth floated off into space on the screen, AC/DC took the stage to the sound of a driving guitar and the thunderous applause.

The backbone of AC/DC has traditionally been the Young brothers, Scottish born Australians, including lead guitarist Angus Young and his brother Malcom. Angus took the stage in his trademark schoolboy uniform complete with jacket, white shirt, tie, and shorts. As the night wore into his energetic performance, he got sweatier and sweatier and started wearing less and less of the uniform. Though he started the band with his brother, Malcom retired as the band’s rhythm guitar player permanently the previous year following a diagnosis of dementia. He was replaced by Stevie Young, the son of Malcom and Angus’ eldest brother. His departure left Angus as the sole remaining founding member of the band. Also taking the stage was lead singer Brian Johnson, wearing his signature Newsboy cap. He was animated, but did a whole lot less moving that Angus. Johnson famously joined AC/DC after original lead singer Bon Scott’s death in 1980. The band is rounded out by long time member Cliff Williams on bass guitar and drummer Chris Slade. Both were more in the background of the show. The show mostly featured Malcom and Brian, plus a bit of focus on Stevie.

Not surprisingly, AC/DC spent the evening cycling through all of their hits, throwing in just a couple newer songs for good measure. They also included a few novel theatrics during the show which synced up some of their famous songs. At about the halfway mark, a large bell descended from above the stage, swinging in time with the opening of “Hell’s Bells.” A bit later, they flashed the chorus of “You Shook Me All Night Long” on the LCD screen behind them in time with the lyrics, as if anyone needed help. Perhaps the most outrageous bit was the addition of an enormous inflated sculpture of a corpulent exotic dancer during “Whole Lotta Rosie.” The billowing character was complete with dollar bills hanging from her garter belt and an ability to jiggle and stroke her inner thigh.

The main set ended with an extended Angus guitar solo, as he thrashed around the stage and performed his own variation of the Chuck Berry duck walk. By this point, he had stripped off his jacket and tie and unbuttoned his shirt. It was good the show was ending because I really didn’t want to see him take off any more clothing. He jammed on a raised metal platform before the stage exploded in showers of confetti. After a brief break, the band returned for a short encore.

Setlist:
Intro
Rock or Bust
Shoot to Thrill
Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be
Back in Black
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
Thunderstruck
High Voltage
Rock 'n' Roll Train
Hells Bells
Baptism by Fire
You Shook Me All Night Long
Sin City
Shot Down in Flames
Have a Drink on Me
T.N.T.
Whole Lotta Rosie
Let There Be Rock
Encore:
Highway to Hell
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)

Brandon Flowers, Riviera Theatre, Chicago, Illinois

We didn’t arrive with a lot of time to spare, but it was easy to squeeze into the back of the main floor at the Riviera Theater. I have seen The Killers four times before, and they’re consistently one of my favorite live bands. Every time I’ve seen them, I’ve loved it. Three of four of those times, the experience was even better than I thought it was going to be. And obviously only one of those shows could have been seeing them for the first time. But somehow, I wasn’t as thrilled to see frontman Brandon Flowers’ solo show when it was initially announced. While his first solo album, Flamingo (2010), was fine, it mostly just sounded like a collection of The Killers’ B-Sides tracks. However, his second solo album, The Desired Effect (2015), was quite a bit stronger. In the run up to the concert, I had been listening to a lot of this recent album and appreciating it quite a bit. Seeing that he typically plays a good number of The Killers songs at his shows also piqued my excitement.

Just as when he’s with The Killers, Flowers took the stage without an instrument. He just had a different band behind him. He wore a stylish black suit, not nearly as flamboyant as some of his previous costumes when preforming with The Killers. As the show went on, he shed layers to reveal more layers of black beneath – vest, tee, etc. The band was supported by just some generic stage lighting, nothing particularly glamourous or unique. He began his set with a few of his solo songs, some of which were damn good. Half a dozen songs in, he finally played a Killers song, the murder ballad “Jenny Was a Friend of Mine.” However, it was a kind of slow acoustic version of the song. I kept hoping for the synths to kick in on one of the choruses, but it never happened. So in that sense it was both the most satisfying and most frustrating song that I’ve ever heard live before. He was giving us what we wanted to hear but at the same time, not.

His last solo song of the main set was “Magdalena” which he opened by telling a long, captivating story about an encounter with a disheveled man outside a Mexican restaurant in New Mexico. After giving the man the rest of his delicious pork something-or-others, the man told him that he was undertaking a 60 mile pilgrimage from Nogales to Magdalena, both in Mexico, even though Flowers noticed that the man didn’t have much way of quality footwear. The song tells this man’s story. Interestingly, in other sources, like an interview with Rolling Stone, Flowers claimed the inspiration came from a documentary he saw about a pilgrimage between these two cities that occurs every October. So it was kind of cool that his own experience with a supposed pilgrim has become part of the lore surrounding event. He wrapped up the main set with a few last Killers songs, including the Jacques Lu Cont Remix of “Mr. Brightside.” The show could have ended there as far as I was concerned. We watch the encore, which was a couple more of his solo songs, from the back of the room.

Setlist:

Come Out With Me
Dreams Come True
Can't Deny My Love
Crossfire
Jilted Lovers & Broken Hearts
Jenny Was a Friend of Mine [The Killers song]
Lonely Town
Diggin' Up the Heart
Read My Mind [The Killers song]
Untangled Love
The Way It's Always Been
Magdalena
Human [The Killers song]
Mr. Brightside [The Killers song] (Jacques Lu Cont Remix)
Encore:
Between Me and You
Still Want You
Only the Young