Neil Young cancels UK tour including opening night of LIMF Festival at Liverpool Echo Arena.
Neil Young and Crazy Horse have cancelled their UK tour including the opening night of the Liverpool International Music Festival at the Echo Arena on August 18.
Young took the decision after Crazy Horse guitarist Frank “Poncho” Sampedro broke his hand.
‘It’s a mild fracture,’ a source close to the Young camp told US magazine, Rolling Stone. ‘He’s expected to make a complete recovery in time for the North American tour.‘
Neil Young and Crazy Horse are start their short North American tour on August 31 at the Greenbelt Harvest Picnic in Dundas, Ontario, closing on September 7 at the Interlocken Festival in Arrington, Virginia.
Sampedro was quoted earlier this year saying, ‘My gut tells me this is really the last tour.
‘I hate saying their ages, but I’m 64 and I’m the baby of the band. I love playing and we’re playing as good as we ever did, but at any time, something could go down with any one of us.‘
A statement from the band read: ‘Due to an accident involving Crazy Horse, the remaining dates on the Neil Young and Crazy Horse tour of Europe and the British isles have been cancelled.
‘We are sorry for any inconvenience this causes to our fans or the Festivals where we were scheduled to appear. As you must be, we too are disappointed at this unfortunate turn of events.‘
The Liverpool date was the Canadian singer songwriter’s first since playing the city’s Empire theatre in 1973 as part of his Tonight’s the Night tour with The Santa Monica Flyers.
Getintothis last reviewed Young, as part of his stunning Chrome Dreams II tour, back in April 2008 at the Manchester Apollo, where he showcased his remarkable back catalogue across a stunning two and a half hour set.
Young’s date also formed part of the new Liverpool International Music Festival, which replaced the much-maligned Mathew Street Festival.
Young’s in Liverpool date was part of his scheduled Summer 2013 tour, the first time he has toured in the UK since 2009 when he headlined at Glastonbury, the Isle of Wight Festival and Hard Rock Calling.
It was to be the first time the 67-year-old has performed in Britain with Crazy Horse since 2001. The trio, without Young, performed at the ECHO Arena in 2010.
Last year Young and Crazy Horse released double album Psychedelic Pill.
The record includes the longest track of Young’s career, the 27-minute opus Driftin’ Back, which was recorded in Hawaii.
They recently toured North America and are set to tour Australia and New Zealand in March.
The band first performed with Young in 1968, releasing legendary albums including 1969’s Everybody Knows This is Nowhere and 1979’s Rust Never Sleeps.
Young’s date forms part of the first LIMF Festival which also features a host of musicians performing at various venues across Merseyside including Rebecca Ferguson, The Charlatans, the Marley Brothers and Soul II Soul.
Claire McColgan, Director of Culture Liverpool, said: “We are of course gutted to hear the news about Neil Young and Crazy Horse who were a great opener for the Festival. We wish Frank “Poncho” Sampedro a speedy recovery.
“Liverpool International Music Festival will be a fantastic musical celebration for the City – with the Marley brothers announced this week in Sefton Park, Martha Wainwright at Summercamp and a host of household names from Soul II Soul to JLS performing across the City. We are working with ACC Liverpool to explore an LIMF offer to ticket holders.”
More news or plans of a rescheduled date as Getintothis receives it.
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