Farm Aid

Festival Location: Chicago, IL, USA

Festival State: Illinois Festivals

Festival Type(s): Charity Festivals , Country Music Festivals , Rock Festivals

America's Farm Aid

by © Paul Dodson 2008

If you like your rock with an American accent, a country twang or a bluesy rhythm, Farm Aid may just be the gig for you. What began in 1985 as yet another in a long line of the era's aid concerts has not only endured but grown to become a rural American institution. Now into its third decade and with the likes of Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews advocating the event and playing to crowds in the tens of thousands year in year out, Farm Aid's future all seems pretty rosy.

But as the name suggests Farm Aid ain't all about the music. Farm Aid's vision is simple. It's about thriving family farms growing quality food for all. And over its twenty year history Farm Aid has nurtured a infrastructure that is taking that message to the people and to those in power.

So what can you expect at a Farm Aid gig? Well lots of farmers, that's a given. According to Carolyn Mugar, the events Executive Director, "Willie always said he wanted to play various locations where farmers could go to the concert" - an important facet of the event that lives on today.

This was the first time Farm Aid had played the Tweeter Center just out of Chicago but the fourth time they'd played the state of Illinois. Past events had been staged in eleven other states from Austin, Texas down south, through to Auburn, Washington in the north.

The car park was full of pick-ups and four wheel drives when we arrived for the 2005 event. A tractor and trailer combo complete with hay bails for seats and a pretty young hostess in a ten gallon hat ferried us the 400 metres from the car park to the gates. "Where y'all from?" she asked. I knew she would.

The day was a peach, not a cloud in the sky. FARMERS kick ass t-shirts (visually represented by the word FARMERS followed by the silhouettes of a kung fu master in a stereotypical kicking pose and a donkey) were almost as popular as no top at all amongst the men folk. And the work hard, play hard credo was on display for all to see. An abundance of beer, an occasional display of less than rhythmical dancing, cowboy hats in their thousands and some hair dos on women that occasionally made me yelp then jump, just added to the spectacle for this city boy.

And the music........... Dave Matthews played an unexpected but spot on acoustic solo set and Mellencamp pumped his fist and raced around the stage with the same gusto he showed when I saw him as a kid some twenty years ago. And at the shank of the evening Willie joined Neil on stage and we even got an On The Road Again.

So if you're in the mood for some home-grown American Country Rock you could do a lot worse than checking out Farm Aid. If you (or a partner) need a little justification for driving half way across the States to attend, just remember it's all for a good cause.

by Paul Dodson