Neil Young explains tour cancellation, admits he 'felt sick' at the thought of going on stage
Months after Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse abruptly canceled their "Love Earth" tour, the 78-year-old musician is now opening up about what led to the decision.
During a livestream with fans on Wednesday, Young admitted that he came to a realization, both personally and professionally, and "hit a wall."
"I just woke up one morning on the bus and I said, ‘I can’t do this, I gotta stop.’ And it was like, I felt sick when I thought of going on stage," the singer-songwriter admitted. "My body was telling me, ‘You gotta stop.’ So I listened to my body."
NEIL YOUNG AND CRAZY HORSE CANCEL 'LOVE EARTH' TOUR DUE TO ILLNESS
In June, Young announced that they would be taking an "unplanned break" due to illness among various band members.
"The Love Earth Tour has been a great experience for us so far," he wrote in a message posted to his website. "GREAT AUDIENCES AND MUSIC. WE HAVE HAD A BLAST!"
"When a couple of us got sick after Detroit’s Pine Knob, we had to stop," he continued. "We are still not fully recovered, so sadly our great tour will have a big unplanned break. We will try to play some of the dates we miss as time passes when we are ready to rock again! We know many of you made travel plans and we apologize for the inconvenience. Thanks for your understanding and patience. Health is # 1."
"We want to stay and do more shows and more albums for you…. and for us," the message concluded. "With love and thanks to all of you from Crazy Horse….. Neil, Micah, Ralph and Billy Love Earth."
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During the livestream, Young said he knew the tough decision was for the best, despite the frustration they received from fans.
"Then it gets into all the legal matters. ‘You got this, you got that, people bought tickets, they did this, they did that.’ I understand that, but what matters to me is the art of playing, and the music," Young said. "That’s what matters. That’s what people loved. That’s what they loved to come and see. But if that’s not there, me going isn’t happening. My body told me to not do it."
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Though Young admitted he's "starting to feel like I could do it again," some of his band members are "not all the way back."
But, he said, "Crazy Horse will be back, God willing, and we’ll play more. But in the meantime, I have a lot of friends that I play with."
The musician is expected to return to the stage this fall at the Farm Aid festival in New York.
Original article source: Neil Young explains tour cancellation, admits he 'felt sick' at the thought of going on stage
