Farm Aid 2016

[jluv]

Anyone ever been to a Farm Aid concert? This will be my first one. I just had to create a thread to point out how FUCKING STACKED this lineup is.

Willie Nelson
Neil Young
Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds
John Mellencamp
Sturgill Simpson
Jamey Johnson
Alabama Shakes
Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats
And lots more I've never heard of...


The concert is Saturday, but we're flying out Thursday, and will have all day Friday to do whatever. It's in Bristow, VA, which is pretty close to the DC area. We're staying in a hotel right by Dulles Airport. Never been up there before. I don't give two shits about seeing any monuments or getting shot at by thugs, so we'll probably stay away from DC. What else is cool as shit to do in the Northern Virginia area? Any must-do restaurants? We live in a town of 400 people, and haven't been to a big city since June, so the old lady wants to shop, and I want to get some good grub.

[HarrisonTX]

Shit. That is stacked.

[jluv]

Jamey Johnson is fucking badass!

[jluv]

Sturgill Simspon was a letdown, but it may have just been the sound mix. Couldn't understand a single word.

[LANTIRN]

Bunch of greedy farmers wanting other people's money because they suck at farming.

Willie Nelson is awesome to see in conert, though.

[jluv]

Bunch of greedy farmers wanting other people's money because they suck at farming.

You're kidding, right? I hope so, because that's not what it's about at all.

Willie Nelson is awesome to see in conert, though.

I'm thinking you must be kidding on this one, too. As far as performance, he hasn't actually been good in a very long time. He's just so ancient. It was very cool to see him before he dies, but he doesn't even try to sing anymore. He literally comes out and calmly speaks the lyrics. He also says them quickly and not to the beat at all, so the poor band is caught trying to keep up. It's a train wreck. But, he's a legend, so he gets a pass.

[LANTIRN]

You're kidding, right? I hope so, because that's not what it's about at all.



I'm thinking you must be kidding on this one, too. As far as performance, he hasn't actually been good in a very long time. He's just so ancient. It was very cool to see him before he dies, but he doesn't even try to sing anymore. He literally comes out and calmly speaks the lyrics. He also says them quickly and not to the beat at all, so the poor band is caught trying to keep up. It's a train wreck. But, he's a legend, so he gets a pass.

Farmaid comment was half joke, half kind of serious.

Wiie Nelson was serious, but I saw him in concert around 2004 and his perfomance then was good, but it was also a small venue.

[jluv]

Farmaid comment was half joke, half kind of serious.

It has zero to do with propping up farmers who aren't good at what they do. It's all about keeping local farmers from going extinct in today's age of Mansanto and other factory farms. It's mostly about getting the word out to encourage the public to buy better food from real farmers.

Wiie Nelson was serious, but I saw him in concert around 2004 and his perfomance then was good, but it was also a small venue.

That was a long time ago. I don't see how venue size makes a difference. He's just way too old to sing anymore. He literally just talks the lyrics. Even when it appears that he's trying his best to "sing" a note, it just doesn't come out very well. He also just completely ignores the beat/rhythm. I felt sorry for the band trying their best to make the music match to his mumbling of the lyrics. I've always been a huge Willie fan, so I've seen/heard this from him before over the past several years, so I was expecting it to be exactly how it was, and therefore I wasn't really disappointed. I do wish he hadn't chosen to add "Amazing Grace" and Georgia" to his set list. For me, it was still cool to see him, more for the novelty than anything. And heck, part of me respects him for getting out there and trying at his age, but he looks and sounds like a corpse on the stage. Now, his son, Lukas Nelson was there, and he sounds exactly like a young Willie. That was pretty cool.

On the other hand, Neil Young looked old as shit, but he fucking rocked the house! He sounded great, played guitar and harmonica like a boss, and jumped around the stage like a pup. He had the whole place on their feet.

John Mellencamp was "meh". I've never been a huge fan.

Alabama Shakes was awesome. They get the fuck down!

Of course, Dave and Tim were perfect. My only complaint was they didn't have more time.

Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats seemed to have a good fan base there, but I couldn't really get into it. A little too hipster for my taste. Several of the band members were wearing skinny jeans.

As mentioned earlier, Sturgill Simpson was a disappointment for me. His singing reminded me of Eddie Vedder singing Yellow Ledbetter. The sound of his voice is cool, but I had no idea what he was saying. It didn't sound like English. I'm sure if I knew the songs already, it would have been better.

Jamey fucking Johnson damn near stole the show. I'd never heard any of his stuff before, but I was extremely impressed. Based on this show, he was leaps and bounds better than Sturgill Simpson.

[BradM]

Farmaid comment was half joke, half kind of serious.

Wiie Nelson was serious, but I saw him in concert around 2004 and his perfomance then was good, but it was also a small venue.

I saw him in 2005 and he talked his songs then. I can't imagine what it's like now.

[mstng86]

Jamey fucking Johnson damn near stole the show. I'd never heard any of his stuff before, but I was extremely impressed. Based on this show, he was leaps and bounds better than Sturgill Simpson.

I haven't heard a lot of Jamey Johnson but I will say "Colors" is one of my favorite "newer" country songs.

[Nash B.]

Dave Matthews Band sucks

[Chili]

Dave Matthews Band sucks

It's a good thing they weren't there!

[jluv]

Dave Matthews Band sucks

Nah, they're alright. But as Chili mentioned, they were not part of this show.

[clevelandkid]

I watched the live stream, enjoyed it quite a bit. I'm a huge Sturgill fan, and this was about the worst I heard him sound. He was way better at the Bomb Factory a few months back. I've watched tons of live footage of his, and he never plays the same song the same way twice, I will definitely go see him anytime I can.

Also, Jamey Johnson is a boss.

[bcoop]

Willie is still fun, but yeah, he can't sing anymore.

Love Jamey and Sturgill. I've seen Sturgill 4 times now, and all were great. He kind of has a mumble thing going on so if the sound wasn't great I could see it being a let down.