Red Rocks Live: Neil Young, Friends and Family (2000)
*** (out of 4)
Motorcycle Mama / Powderfinger / Everybody Knows This is Nowhere / I Believe in You / Unknown Legend / Fool for Your Love / Buffalo Springfield Again / Razor Love / Daddy Went Walkin' / Peace of Mind / Walk On / Winterlong / Bad Fog of Loneliness / Words / Harvest Moon / World on a String / Tonight's the Night / Cowgirl in the Sand / Mellow My Mind
Good concert from Neil Young, which was recorded at Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheater over a two day period on Young's 2000 tour. I've heard quite a few negative things about this concert but I think they were a tad bit harsh. Yes, you're not getting a "greatest hits" setlist but that's just Young. He does what he wants and I think that's why fans enjoy him so if you are looking for that greatest hits package it's probably best that you go for a different show. Those enjoy some of the lesser played cuts should enjoy this concert as it offers up some great performances and nice reworked versions. The show gets off to a nice start with a rocking version of 'Motorcycle Mama' and this is followed by a lesser know but effective 'Powderfinger.' Both 'Everybody Knows This is Nowwhere' and 'I Believe in You' are as powerful as they always are. Over highlights include a nice, slow version of 'Harvest Moon' and the rocking closer 'Cowgirl in the Sand' which has Young's guitar going at full blast. The one negative thing that can be said is that the cinematography is rather lacking and often times poor. There's really nothing professional looking about the video but perhaps this is something Young was going for. Thankfully the audio is great so that's a major plus. You can see that it's raining during the shows and there's also some major wind that's doing some work on Young's hair as he sings but it really does add some atmosphere to the concert.
