Neil Young Chants “Take America Back!” and Rips Guitar Strings with Willie Nelson

Neil Young played the first of two co-headlining shows with Willie Nelson on Tuesday, September 22nd, at Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Closing out a 12-song set, the 80-year-old rocker delivered a fiery rendition of “Rockin’ in the Free World,” punctuated by chants of “Take America Back!” and the ripping of several guitar strings. Watch footage (shot by Showbiz 411 ’s Roger Friedman) of the badass moment below.

Earlier in the evening, Young joined the 93-year-old Nelson for a rare joint performance of their 1985 collaboration “Are There Any More Real Cowboys?” The duet came toward the end of Nelson’s 21-song set, during which he performed hits including “On the Road Again,” “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” “Whiskey River,” and “Georgia on My Mind.”

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In his review , Friedman described Young’s set, backed by The Chrome Hearts, as mostly a “low key” acoustic performance. It featured the live debuts of “Comes a Time” and “Earth Girl” from his recently released 50th (!) album, Second Song , alongside hits like “Heart of Gold” and “Harvest Moon.”

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However, gears shifted with the two-song encore. Young began with 2006’s “Living with War” — the first performance of the critique of George W. Bush’s Iraq War since 2014 — and followed with “Rockin’ in the Free World.” See the full setlists for Young and Nelson’s performances below.

The duo will play another co-headlining show at Philadelphia’s TD Pavilion at Highmark Mann (get tickets here ) tomorrow, September 24th. Both artists are also set to play Farm Aid 2026 (get tickets here ) on Saturday, September 26th, at Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater in Virginia Beach.

Willie Nelson Setlist

Whiskey River (Johnny Bush cover)

Stay a Little Longer (Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys cover)

Still Is Still Moving to Me

Bloody Mary Morning

I Never Cared for You

Die When I’m High (Halfway to Heaven) [Particle Kid cover]

Workin’ Man Blues (Merle Haggard cover)

Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys (Ed Bruce cover)

Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground

On the Road Again

You Were Always on My Mind (Gwen McCrae cover)

Good Hearted Woman (Waylon Jennings cover)

Georgia on My Mind (Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra cover)

Help Me Make It Through the Night (Kris Kristofferson cover)

Everything Is Bullshit (Particle Kid cover)

Last Leaf (Tom Waits cover)

Are There Any More Real Cowboys? (with Neil Young)

I Thought About You, Lord

Will the Circle Be Unbroken? (William MacEwan cover)

I’ll Fly Away (Rev. J.M. Gates cover) (with Ty Myers)

I Saw the Light (Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys cover) [Instrumental snippet without Willie]

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Neil Young Setlist

Long May You Run (The Stills–Young Band cover)

Human Highway

Comes a Time

Casting Me Away From You (Live debut)

Earth Girl (Live debut)

Old Man

Heart of Gold

Daddy Went Walkin’

Harvest Moon

After the Gold Rush (New full band arrangement)

Encore

Living with War (Live debut by The Chrome Hearts; first time since 2014; new acoustic arrangement)

Rockin’ in the Free World

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_Originally reported by [Consequence](https://consequence.net/2026/09/neil-young-take-america-back-rips-guitar-strings-video/)._