The Joe Walsh-led annual VetsAid benefit concert will be a hot ticket for rock’n’roll fans this fall, as it will feature what’s being billed as the final performance of Walsh’s pre-Eagles band James Gang, plus appearances by Dave Grohl, Nine Inch Nails, The Black Keys and The Breeders. The event will be held Nov. 13 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Walsh, who considers Columbus to be his hometown and later became a star amid the late ’60s Cleveland rock scene, curated an Ohio-themed bill for VetsAid, all proceeds from which will be donated to veterans’ services charities in the Buckeye state. Grohl was born in Warren, about an hour southeast of Cleveland, while Black Keys founders Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney grew up in Akron. Nine Inch Nails leader Trent Reznor called Cleveland home well into the early ’90s, while The Breeders remain rooted to their Dayton home base.
“It all started in Ohio,” says Walsh. “Picking up my first guitar as a kid in Columbus set me on a musical journey to Kent State, Cleveland and then the world. It is a great privilege for me to share the stage once again with my original James Gang buddies and this incredible group of Ohio rock legends like Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, The Black Keys, The Breeders and Dave Grohl. I believe in Ohio and look forward to celebrating our musical legacy while honoring our veterans with VetsAid 2022.”
VetsAid will boast James Gang’s first performance since a 2006 reunion tour. The lineup will feature Walsh, bassist Dale Peters and drummer Jim Fox in what’s being billed as “One Last Ride” for the group best-known for classic rock staples such as “Funk #49” and “Walk Away.”
The Black Keys have previously covered “Funk #49” and jammed live on stage with Walsh, most recently at the Forum in Los Angeles in November 2019. Auerbach and Walsh also logged time in the studio with original James Gang guitarist Glenn Schwartz in recent years, before the latter’s 2018 death at age 78.
