NASHVILLE –
Texas troubadour Willie Nelson will celebrate his 90th birthday with friends and family at an all-star concert this April, and among the performers is Neil Young.
Folk legend “Moon Moon” will go live for the first time since 2019. He has halted concerts during the COVID-19 pandemic in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. .
Omemee, Ont.-Grow Up Young will be joining the schedule of Montrealer Allison Russell and Orville Peck, who grew up in South Africa but are based in Canada.
Nelson’s two-night celebration — titled Long Story Short — will be held at the Hollywood Bowl April 29-30 and also feature Chris Stapleton, Lyle Lovett, Miranda Lambert, Rosanne Cash, Snoop Dogg, The Chicks, Kacey Musgraves and many more.
Six decades into her career, the singer-songwriter, author and activist is still going strong, with a new album — “I Don’t Know a Thing About Love” — coming out in March and a five-part documentary premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. He’s also been nominated for four Grammy Awards this year. Some of his biggest hits include “On The Road Again,” “Crazy,” and “Funny How Time Slips Away.”
Other performers include Norah Jones, Tom Jones, Tyler Childers, Warren Haynes, Ziggy Marley, Sturgill Simpson, Beck, Billy Strings, Bobby Weir, Charley Crockett, Edie Brickell, Leon Bridges, Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff, Sheryl Crow, The Avett Brothers, The Lumineers, and Nelson’s sons Lukas Nelson and Micah Nelson, who later played the Particle Kid.
Young’s return to live music comes after he pulled out of the 2021 Farm Aid festival in Hartford, Conn., when the Delta variant increased the number of COVID-19 infections.
At the time, he said he felt it was wrong to risk people dying or spreading COVID-19 to unvaccinated children by attending the concert, but he respected appreciate his fellow musicians, including Nelson, who went on with a sold-out fundraiser for America’s farm workers.
Tickets for Nelson’s 90th birthday concerts will go on sale to the public on January 28, with pre-sale starting on Wednesday.
