19 April 2014

Eat a peach, love Neil

[...] I got some satisfaction hearing war stories about the Stills/Young Band's tour. Seems that it was snakebit from the start. With too little time to rehearse, the band never felt comfortable onstage. A review in the New York Times called the show "an ill-conceived evening", blaming the sound, which was "rough and overly loud". The tour needed work. Stephen [Stills] wanted to stick to a single set list until the band got tight, but that apparently bored Neil [Young]. And eventually, Neil reverted to being Neil. Heading to a gig in Atlanta, he was travelling in his bus down the highway when the driver put on his left turn signal to go to the gig. Neil insisted they go right instead. "But, Neil, the gig is to the left," the driver assured him. Neil got right into his face. "I said turn right!" The next day, at the gig in Atlanta, Neil just never turned up. Instead he sent everyone in the band a telegram: FUNNY HOW SOME THINGS THAT START SPONTANEOUSLY END THAT WAY. EAT A PEACH. LOVE NEIL. He'd gone home and left the entire company - the band, roadies, support staff, and promoters - holding the bag.

- Graham Nash, Wild Tales, New York, 2013, p.236-7.

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