Neil Young and Crazy Horse take it on the road

It's hard to believe it has been nine years since Neil Young and Crazy Horse launched a full tour (and some fans don't even count it - at every show on the 2003 tour, "Greendale" was performed in its entirety with sets and actors, with just a handful of Young classics thrown in as encores). With the album "Americana" due out June 5, Young has announced several dates over what looks like a very slim summer tour. Those include two nights at Red Rocks in Colorado (where Young filmed a show for release in 2000), the Outside Lands festival in San Francisco for three nights and then three more nights at New Orleans' Voodoo Fest in October.

That's one odd touring schedule no matter how you cut it. Presumably the missing dates will be filled in soon.

Fans who worried about "Americana" - it's all covers of classic American songs - are breathing a little easier as tracks emerge. The song "Jesus' Chariot" (better known as "She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain") has been released and there's plenty of Crazy Horse rock along with wailing guitar solos to satisfy the hardcore.

Like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Neil Young and Crazy Horse is one of those pairings that fans just expect to see -- but history has shown us in both cases that it can be fleeting. This is the must-see tour of the summer.