Neil Young, Crazy Horse Cancel Remaining Tour Dates Due to Illness: ‘Not Fully Recovered’

Neil Young performs at Harvest Moon: A Gathering to benefit The Painted Turtle and The Bridge School at Painted Turtle Camp in Lake Hughes, Calif., on Sept. 14, 2019. Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Neil Young and his longtime backing band, Crazy Horse, have announced the cancellation of their upcoming tour dates. They revealed they had decided to take an “unplanned break” after several band members came down with an undisclosed illness.

According to a statement shared on the 78-year-old singer-songwriter’s website on June 26, a couple of the musicians became ill after their performance at the Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan, on May 22.

“We had to stop,” the statement reads. “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!”

Earlier in the message, the musicians mentioned that the tour “has been a great experience” so far. “GREAT AUDIENCES AND MUSIC. WE HAVE HAD A BLAST!” they wrote.

“We know many of you made travel plans and we apologize for the inconvenience. Thanks for your understanding and patience. Health is # 1,” the statement continues. “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’ Tour

Since 1969, Mr. Young and Crazy Horse have released over a dozen albums together, including 1979’s “Rust Never Sleeps,” 1990’s “Ragged Glory,” 2003’s “Greendale,” and 2019’s “Colorado.”

On April 20, Mr. Young and the Los Angeles-based rock band debuted their latest album, “Fu##in' Up,” which features a live performance of nine songs from their 1990 album, recorded at a Toronto club in the fall of 2023.

“In the spirit it’s offered, we made this for the Horse lovers,” the Canadian singer said in a February 2024 statement, describing the inspiration behind the album. “I can’t stop it. The Horse is runnin'. What a ride we have. I don’t want to mess with the vibe, and I am so happy to have this to share.”

Mr. Young and Crazy Horse kicked off their “Love Earth” tour on April 24, with a two-night run at the Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre in San Diego, California. Subsequent shows included stops in Phoenix, Arizona; New Orleans, Louisiana; Atlanta, Georgia; and Queens, New York, among other cities.

Following Mr. Young and Crazy Horse’s performance in Clarkston, Michigan, the musicians issued an update on Mr. Young’s website on May 24, sharing that they were postponing their upcoming shows in Chicago, Illinois, and Austin and Dallas, Texas.

“Regretfully, Neil Young & Crazy Horse’s shows at the GermaniaInsurance Amphitheater on May 26th & the Dos Equis Pavilion on May 27 are being postponed due to illness,” the statement reads in part.

The musicians were slated to embark on the Canadian leg of their tour in July with stops in Toronto, Ottawa, London, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver. Mr. Young and Crazy Horse were scheduled to return to the United States toward the end of the summer before closing out their tour in Southern California.

According to Mr. Young’s website, their final shows included a performance at the Ohana Festival in Dana Point, California, on Sept. 28, followed by a concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Sept. 29.

The Ohana Festival took to Instagram on June 26 to share news of the cancellation, sending the band their well wishes.

“We are sad to announce that Neil Young with Crazy Horse will no longer be performing at Ohana Festival 2024,” the festival wrote. “Please stay tuned for a lineup update coming as soon as possible; in the meantime, we are wishing the band a speedy recovery.”

Touring Concerns

“Love Earth” marked Mr. Young and Crazy Horse’s first tour together in over a decade, per Billboard.

In December 2021, Mr. Young, who last performed live in September 2019, told Rolling Stone that he was hesitant to start touring again amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I don’t want to put people in danger,” he said. “I don’t want people to see me out there and think I think everything is okay. I don’t think everything is okay.”

In a November 2022 interview with Q’s Tom Power, the singer expressed his doubts about ever touring again—citing environmental concerns, particularly his desire for people to eat more sustainably.

“When I look at the compromise that I would have to make to do that, uh, the things that I don’t believe in that I'd have to endorse, it’s not absolutely over, but the idea of being responsible for people to come to a venue,” he began.

“I mean, I can deal with the power for the venue, I can make it clean. I can make the P.A. clean, the lights clean, the electricity in the building clean. I can clean up all my vehicles. I’ve got the right fuel. I can do all of that.

“But the food—all those places are fed by factory farms,” he continued. “I can’t support it.”