Neil Young and Crazy Horse “Stricken With Illness” – Cancels Tour

Due to persistent health issues, Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse have chosen to postpone their Love Earth Tour. A band member’s illness forced them to make this tough decision while they were still touring North America.

On June 26th, Young and his longtime bandmates announced that “a couple of us” had been sick for a while. They haven’t recovered yet, and the physical demands of touring have led them to halt the tour.

Seven Canadian shows set for July and three U.S. shows scheduled for late September, including performances at the Hollywood Bowl, Eddie Vedder’s Ohana Festival in California, and Kentucky’s Bourbon & Beyond Festival, have all been canceled.

The Love Earth Tour started in late April, but according to Deadline, the band hasn’t performed since May. It’s still unclear what the illness is or which band members are affected.

In a statement on his website, Young explained that some of the band members fell ill after their last show on May 22nd in Clarkston, Michigan. Young shared:

“The Love Earth Tour has been a great experience for us so far.
“GREAT AUDIENCES AND MUSIC. WE HAVE HAD A BLAST!”

He continued:

“When a couple of us got sick after Detroit’s Pine Knob, we had to stop. We are still not fully recovered, so sadly our great tour will have a big unplanned break. We will try to play some of the dates we miss as time passes when we are ready to rock again! We know many of you made travel plans and we apologize for the inconvenience. Thanks for your understanding and patience.”

Young concluded:

“Health is #1…. We want to stay and do more shows and more albums for you…. and for us…. With love and thanks to all of you from Crazy Horse….. Neil, Micah, Ralph and Billy… Love Earth.”

Album Release Coincides with Tour Break

This news comes as the band prepares to release Early Daze, a collection of previously unheard recordings from 1969, on June 28th. That year was significant for them as they released their first album together, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, which was influential in the alternative rock genre. It featured the powerful guitar work of Young and the late Danny Whitten, Crazy Horse’s guitarist who passed away in 1972.

Young has been very active in 2024. In April, he and Crazy Horse released FU##IN’ UP, an album reimagining songs from their past catalog. The Love Earth Tour was meant to celebrate this release.

Additionally, in March, Young returned to Spotify after the streaming platform’s exclusive deal with controversial podcaster Joe Rogan ended.