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October 3, 2006 at 08:25:00 AM
Matthews draws female crowd to annual event, which also included performances from founders Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, and Neil Young.
While Farm Aid may belong more to cofounders Willie Nelson or Neil Young, it was Dave Matthews alone who filled hundreds of seats at the event's 21st annual show, held Saturday near Philadelphia.
Willie Nelson at Farm Aid 2006
As Matthews performed a solo, mostly acoustic set, his faithful (especially his female devotees) beamed and swayed in the aisles at the Tweeter Center in Camden, New Jersey, matching him word for word.
Like Young and another cofounder, John Mellencamp, Matthews played a six-song set. It kicked off with the bouncy "Everyday" and featured the solo songs "Gravedigger" and, most notably, the delicate electric guitar lullaby "Some Devil."
Following performances from political reggae act Steel Pulse, polka king Jimmy Sturr, and jam kingpins Gov't Mule, Matthews was one of the few to address the whole point of the show, in more than two or three words: "Every farm should be run by a family--people who love the earth," he said, in addition to repeatedly (and jokingly) remarking, "There ain't nothing better than a good tomato."
Young took the stage in tandem with his wife Pegi, who sang backing vocals throughout and even took center stage with an acoustic guitar for a duet on "Four Strong Winds." The set also included the trumpet-lined "Field of Opportunity" and a guest appearance from Nelson on "Homegrown."
Mellencamp revisited '80s anthems like "Pink Houses" and "Rain on the Scarecrow" and rocked up "Authority Son" for an extended version that bordered on heavy metal, while Jerry Lee Lewis drafted Nelson for "Jambalaya" and also played "Bright Lights, Big City," "Roll over Beethoven," and "Great Balls of Fire."
In traditional fashion, Nelson capped the evening, running through his sing-along "City of New Orleans" (a nod to Arlo Guthrie, who was absent due to illness), "Whiskey River," "Good-Hearted Woman," and "Crazy," among others.
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