 by Julian Spivey
The 32nd annual Farm Aid festival benefiting family farmers in the United States took place on Saturday, Sept. 16 in Burgettstown, Penn. where the Farm Aid Board of Directors Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews were joined by Sheryl Crow, Avett Brothers, Margo Price, Jamey Johnson and more. Portions of the benefit show were telecast the same day on AXSTV. Following are the 10 best performances from the AXSTV telecast of Farm Aid: 10. “If It Makes You Happy” by Sheryl Crow It’s easy to forget after 25 years in the music business just how badass and a breath of fresh air Sheryl Crow was when she debuted in the early ‘90s with her brand of pop-rock. “If It Makes You Happy” from her second album in 1996 went to the top 10 on the Billboard charts and continues to be one of her best hits to this day. This was Crow’s second Farm Aid appearance, but first since 2003. 9. “Paper Cowboy” by Margo Price Margo Price made her second consecutive performance at Farm Aid this year and it seems like she might become part of the annual family. AXSTV only aired one performance of hers, which is disappointing, but it was the incredibly “Paper Cowboy.” The song, which she performed at last year’s Farm Aid too, appears on her new EP Weakness. It shows Price isn’t going to be a one-album wonder. 8. “Find Yourself” by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real Naturally as the son of Willie Nelson Lukas and his band Promise of the Real have become an integral part of the Farm Aide family. Lukas and his brother Micah have even backed up Board of Directors member Neil Young at multiple Farm Aids. Nelson & Promise of the Real performed their new single “Find Yourself” on Saturday night and prove the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. 7. “Lawless Times” by John Mellencamp It’s not unusual to see Farm Aid Board of Directors members John Mellencamp and Neil Young get political at the annual Farm Aid concerts, much to the chagrin of some watching. Mellencamp’s first performance at Farm Aid on Saturday was “Lawless Times,” from his 2014 album Plain Spoken. The song basically takes on everything and even though it’s a few years old is a perfect song for 2017. 6. “Willin’” by Jamey Johnson Much like Margo Price it was also unfortunate to see that AXSTV edited down Jamey Johnson’s set list to only give him one performance on the telecast. That performance was actually a cover, as well, but the fact that it was a badass cover of Little Feat’s 1971 song “Willin’” was pretty cool. “Willin’,” about a road-weary trucker who doesn’t always make legal deliveries, was never a hit, but seems to be beloved by many within the music industry. 5. “Need Never Get Old” by Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats If you’ve never seen Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats perform than you’re missing out on way of the most energetic acts in any music genre working today. One of their best songs is the 2016 single “Need Never Get Old,” that the group performed at Farm Aid on Saturday afternoon. It’s quite the musical experience. 4. “Crush” by Dave Matthews Dave Matthews’ set at Farm Aid aided by guitarist Tim Reynolds, as he so often is, was the most uneven of the four Board of Directors member of the festival, but it did feature a great performance of the 1998 Dave Matthews Band single “Crush.” The rock ballad with elements of jazz and blues remains one of Matthews’ staples to this day and I was thankful to hear it Saturday as it reminded me it’s been far too long since I’ve heard this beauty. 3. “Rockin’ in the Free World” by Neil Young Neil Young has often been criticized in the past for not really bringing out his “greatest hits” at Farm Aid. In fact, I remember one recent Farm Aid where he seemed to pretty much just play “fuck you Monsanto” songs. This year he seemingly pleased those critics with many of his best hits like “Heart of Gold,” “Cinnamon Girl,” “Like a Hurricane” and my selection here “Rockin’ in the Free World.” Young was joined by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real for the performance, featuring great guitar work on the song by Young and Lukas Nelson. 2. “Living in the Promised Land” by Willie Nelson “Living in the Promised Land” is a song that Willie Nelson doesn’t seem to perform much. I’ve seen him in concert four times and haven’t seen it performed. In fact, Nelson doesn’t deviate from his normal set list too often and Farm Aid 2017 was really no different. But, it was the right time to play this 1986 cut, and it was fitting that Willie and his songs Lukas and Micah shared verses on the track. This is what America should be. 1. “Small Town” by John Mellencamp John Mellencamp’s set was pretty killer. Of the four Board of Directors sets (the ones AXSTV aired most of) Mellencamp’s was my favorite from Saturday’s Farm Aid. As I was listening to Mellencamp perform his 1985 hit “Small Town” to a crowd of rural Pennsylvanians at an event benefiting the family farmer it occurred to me that it’s the quintessential Farm Aid song. “No, I cannot forget where it is that I come from/I cannot forget the people who love me/Yeah, I can be myself here in this small town/And people let me be just what I want to be.” God bless Farm Aid and the American Farmer. If you would like to donate to Farm Aid you can do so HERE.
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