Bruce Springsteen Delivers Star-Studded Neil Young Cover with Dave Grohl and Dave Matthews at Power to the People Festival

At the Power to the People Festival in Maryland, Dave Matthews and Tom Morello joined Bruce Springsteen for a powerful rendition of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”

Tom Morello’s Power to the People Festival featured an evening of special performances and surprise collaborations, highlighted by Bruce Springsteen covering Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” with backing from Dave Grohl, Dave Matthews, and Morello himself.

Springsteen’s set of protest anthems—which included only one original, “Streets of Minneapolis”—was punctuated by guest appearances, such as Joan Baez on a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Chimes of Freedom,” and Matthews alongside Nathaniel Rateliff on Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son,” a song Springsteen hadn’t performed live since 2009.

Following the CCR classic, Springsteen welcomed Dave Grohl, whose Foo Fighters had performed earlier, to join him for the iconic Neil Young anthem:

This performance marked the first time Springsteen had played “Rockin’ in the Free World” live since 2004, when he performed it with Young himself, along with R.E.M. and John Fogerty, at a Vote for Change concert in Minnesota.

The Vote for Change concert concluded with Springsteen leading an all-star rendition of Patti Smith’s “People Have the Power,” while the Power to the People Festival ended with a similarly star-studded take on John Lennon’s “Power to the People,” followed by the full ensemble performing Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land”:

Springsteen’s set wasn’t the only one to feature surprise guests: Jack Black’s Black Sabbath tribute act welcomed Geezer Butler, Public Enemy brought out Anthrax’s Scott Ian for “Bring the Noise,” a “Suns of Soundgarden” mini-set took place, and Morello’s performance boasted guests like Serj Tankian, DMC, Cypress Hill’s B-Real, Public Enemy, and Grohl, who performed Kiss’ “Rock and Roll All Nite” with Morello:

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