A quarter of the way into the show, yet only three songs into the setlist? That’s how you know you are at a Neil Young concert. The 79-year-old Canadian legend took to the stage at BST Hyde Park last weekend, fresh from his headline appearance at Glastonbury Festival.
Throughout the day, music across four stages built up the atmosphere, with multinational alt-rock group HOLiDAY MYSTICS and teen singer-songwriter Sam Wilkinson among the upcoming names on the lineup.
Irish folk trio Amble, who only quit their day jobs recently, were on the Great Oak Stage, and you could tell they were delighted to be on a lineup with some of the most important names in folk music.
Next up was iconic singer, saxophonist and harmonica player Van Morrison, who crooned his way through his hour-long set. Although Brown Eyed Girl and other bigger hits were missing from the setlist, opener Into the Mystic and closer Gloria were audience favourites.
While music was available around the site, many stayed at the main stage ahead of the return of folk singer Yusuf/Cat Stevens, who was making his first full concert appearance since his Glastonbury legends slot in 2023.
Opening up with 1971’s The Wind, Yusuf guided the audience through his classics, from The First Cut Is the Deepest to Moonshadow. A rather poignant Where Do the Children Play? followed, not long before Father and Son, both from the Tea for the Tillerman album. Nearing his easily too-short set to an end with Wild World, Yusuf joked organisers would pull the PA plug during his final song – but no one was going to cut off the 60s icon during Peace Train.
Next up was the man everyone was there to see, Neil Young, who took to the stage alongside The Chrome Hearts, featuring Micah Nelson, the son of country singer Willie Nelson.
Walking on unannounced, Neil and co opened up with a rendition of Ambulance Blues. Digging into the Crazy Horse back-catalogue, Cowgirl in the Sand, Cinnamon Girl and Fuckin’ Up were up next, accounting for much of the heavier side of the set.
A rare outing for Southern Man, the song Sweet Home Alabama retaliated against, preceded an acoustic segment of the performance, which featured The Needle and the Damage Done, followed by 1993’s Harvest Moon, one of only two of Neil’s UK top 40 hits.
An audible ‘thank you’ from a fan came after Neil sat down at the piano for a rare performance of After the Gold Rush, which made its debut on the Love Earth tour.
Showing just how versatile they are, The Chrome Hearts were soon back on stage for an incredible rendition of Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black) and getting close to the end of the set, many hoping for an encore checked watches as Old Man began, providing one of the biggest singalongs of the night.
Not letting anyone down, Neil and the band ran over the set time as he came back on to stage with Throw Your Hatred Down and just when it seemed the show was over, the instantly recognisable chords of Rockin’ in the Free World began, securing the audience another ten minutes in the company of the legend.
As the clock hit 10:30 pm, the curfew was hit and the PA was cut, luckily just as the band called it a day. It’s fair to say fans got their money’s worth out of the day.
BST Hyde Park took place across three weekends this year, featuring performances from Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter and Noah Kahan.
