Neil Young finally made it to Glastonbury tonight (June 26) – headlining the Pyramid Stage – 12 years after he was forced to pull out through injury.
The Canadian legend, forced to pull out in 1997 after cutting his finger while making a ham sandwich, played a two-hour plus set featuring a host of his classic songs, including ‘Cinnamon Girl’, ‘Hey Hey My My (Into The Black)’ and his 1972 US Number One single ‘Heart Of Gold’.
However, the biggest singalong was reserved for Young‘s 1989 single ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’, which featured several false endings.
After taking a long bow, Young and his band returned to the stage, finishing with a feverishly-received version of The Beatles‘ ‘A Day In The Life’.
Young made no mention of the death on Friday (June 25) of Michael Jackson, and the strongly rumoured guest appearance of his former bandmates, Crosby, Stills And Nash, did not materialise. The trio play the same stage tomorrow (June 27).
Neil Young Played:
’Hey Hey, My My (Into The Black)’
’Mansion On The Hill’
‘Are You Ready For The Country?’
‘Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere’
‘Spirit Road’
‘Words’
‘Cinnamon Girl’
‘Mother Earth’
‘The Needle And The Damage Done’
‘Comes A Time’
‘Unknown Legend’
‘Heart Of Gold’
‘Down By The River’
‘Get Behind The Wheel’
‘Rockin’ In The Free World’
‘A Day In The Life’
Recommended
NME.COM is coming live from Glastonbury throughout the 2009 festival. Stay tuned for the latest news, pictures, blogs and video interviews.
Head to our NME Festivals section for the latest Glastonbury picture gallery, and check out the NME Festivals Glastonbury blog for dispatches straight from Worthy Farm. For all of our coverage go to the Glastonbury 2009 homepage now.
Plus make sure you get next week’s issue of NME, on UK newsstands from July 1, for the ultimate Glastonbury 2009 review.