The first day of Neil Young's Bridge School Benefit concert had some fun surprises including Ryan Adams singing an improvised song to a shirtless fan in the audience as well as Spoon covering Van Morrison's "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)."

The world knows that Adams is a fan of covering acts he loves, especially after the much talked about Taylor Swift covers album of her 2014 hit, 1989. However, fans that haven't made it out to his live show yet, might not know he's an avid improvisational songwriter as well.

According to Stereogum, he's sung in the past about an audience member with balloons and a soft tune about a loaf of bread. Where those efforts were a little bit more extensive and sounded more like real songs complete with guitar solos, his "No Shirt" song is a sillier mariachi sounding tune.

"What's next? He'll have no shows. Actually what's next is he will probably have some more booze," Adams sang to the man who began running away from the stage. Watch the clip via Twitter below.


Spoon also had a surprise for the crowd when it broke out into a cover of Morrison's "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)" supported by a horn section. The clip is unfortunately very short, but it certainly gives you a sense of the performance space. Watch it below via Instagram.

Neil Young, The Dixie Chicks, Sheryl Crow, St. Vincent, Gary Clark Jr. and Nils Lofgren also performed for the benefit concert, which helps support The Bridge School's mission of helping individuals with severe speech and physical impairments achieve full participation in their communities. The concert took place at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California to a packed crowd.

Join the Discussion