Red Hot Chili Peppers, Neil Young Join Forces for Backyard Benefit
Over the past decade Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea has called on countless friends, from Tracy Chapman and Patti Smith to Metallica, to help him raise money for the Southern California school he started, the Silverlake Conservatory of Music. One artist, however, has topped his wish list: Neil Young. Last night Flea’s dream became reality when the Chili Peppers and Young teamed up for an incredible night of music in the backyard of the gorgeous Paramour Mansion in Silverlake. Along with musical performances, a silent auction was held where a bulk of the funds are raised — Damien Hirst, Shepard Fairey, Autumn de Wilde, and many others contribured pieces that were auctioned off.
See Where ‘Californication’ Ranks on the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
“Neil is the kind of guy that’s just always shown up for everybody and for himself,” Flea told Rolling Stone before the show. “He’s always been willing to take risks and to be willing even to fail. From the rock musicians from the Sixties, he’s kind of the only one that’s still relevant to kids.He was open to punk rock when it happened, he was open to electronic music when it happened. Needless to say, I’m a huge fan.”
At one point, as Young tuned his guitar he joked, “If I have to tune myself, we’re all in trouble.” But there was nothing but beauty, including a Phil Ochs cover, after which he said, “There were a lot of great songwriters back then. People liked to listen to words.” Among his own songs, using only piano, guitar and harmonica at various points, the highlights included “Comes a Time,” a sweet rendition of “Harvest Moon” and the closing “Heart of Gold.”
With the show coming just three days after Young’s annual Bridge School benefit in Mountain View, California, Flea talked about their shared passion for education. “The Bridge School obviously is an incredibly beautiful thing,” he said. “People get challenges in life. Neil had a kid with cerebral palsy, and instead of thinking, ‘Oh, how am I gonna deal with this?’ he’s like, ‘OK, this is a great opportunity to learn about something and do everything I can to help . . . ‘ I’ll play the Bridge School benefit anytime.”
The Chili Peppers, who headline arenas on their own, gratefully assumed the role of opening act. After an extended funk jam between Flea, drummer Chad Smith and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, frontman Anthony Kiedis bounded onstage, and the group launched into a raucous “Can’t Stop.”
While the Chili Peppers’ five-song barrage contrasted sharply with the simple elegance of Young’s acoustic songs, the Chili Peppers approached their set with the same intimacy. “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie” found the quartet again displaying their funk virtuosity, and hearing their quiet cover of Young’s “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” was like a eavesdropping on a soundcheck jam. They rounded out the set with “Around the World” and “By the Way.”
Kiedis also paid tribute to the late Lou Reed, “maybe the coolest man to ever walk the streets of New York.” While people are usually remembered with a moment of silence, he called on the audience to have a “moment of noise for Lou.”
The band’s wall of sound quickly turned into a spot-on snippet of the Velvet Underground‘s “I’m Waiting for the Man.” Young also honored Reed during his set, saying, “We all want more Lou Reed.” On this night, there was nothing more fitting than two great acts acknowledging a fellow musician they admired.