Neil Young and Crazy Horse have cancelled upcoming shows of their Love Earth Tour.
The Canadian rock legend and his longtime backing band announced Wednesday the U.S.-Canada tour will go on a “big unplanned break” as some members of the band recover from an unspecified illness.
“When a couple of us got sick after Detroit’s Pine Knob, we had to stop,” a message posted on Young’s website said.
Young and Crazy Horse scrapped tour dates through the end of July. They were scheduled to play in Toronto, Ottawa, London, Ont., Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton, and finish the Canadian slate with two dates in Burnaby, B.C. July shows in Oregon, Utah and Washington were also cancelled.
In Winnipeg, ticketholders were notified Wednesday they would be refunded their tickets for his scheduled July 17 concert at the city’s Blue Cross Park.
The Love Earth tour was announced this February, two years after the songwriter said he would no longer tour unless he was able to do so in an environmentally sustainable way.
Young and the band apologized to fans for the cancellation, but added that “Health is #1.”
“We will try to play some of the days we miss as time passes when we are ready to rock again,” the message said.
“We want to stay and do more shows and more albums for you.”
Ticketmaster said on its site that those who bought tickets should expect refunds to their accounts in 14 to 21 days.
LISTEN l Young in conversation with Q for release of 2022’s World Record LP:
Q34:39Neil Young on his new album and 50 years of Harvest.
Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young returns to Q to talk about his latest album with Crazy Horse “World Record.” He delves into his love and grief over the world around him, plus the 50th anniversary of his legendary album Harvest.
The London and Ottawa dates were to be festival appearances.
Ottawa’s Bluesfest said in a social media post that Offspring will now headline the July 11 night. Single-day ticket holders for that date will receive further information soon, organizers said.
Rock the Park in London said Wednesday that Bryan Adams has now been added to the bill on July 13, the night Young was to play. Those who purchased tickets for that date will be emailed about the change and given the option of a refund, organizers said.
Young, 78, has been backed on the tour by longtime Crazy Horse members Billy Talbot on bass, Ralph Molina on drums, and newer addition Micah Nelson on guitar. Nelson is the son of country music legend Willie Nelson.
Young and band did manage to play a Toronto show on May 20, just before the aforementioned Detroit date. Late May dates in Chicago, Dallas and Austin, Texas, were then scrapped.
Young’s schedule still includes September dates in Kentucky and California.