Neil Young teams with Stephen Colbert for a semi-environmental song

Stephen Colbert, or at least the character he plays on “The Colbert Report,� is not anyone’s idea of an environmentalist. So what was he doing singing a song called “Who’s Gonna Stand Up? (and Save the Earth)� on Tuesday night’s show?

He was providing the counterpoint to musical guest Neil Young’s passionate advocacy for environmental causes as part of the duo, Neil Young and Crazy Host.

Young, who apparently didn’t want to wait for Colbert to introduce him, performed the song with lyrics such as “Protect the wild tomorrow’s child / Protect the land from the greed of man.�

But Colbert, who was also on guitar, gave his own perspective, with the lyrics, “I know it feels good to save the Earth / But what if the dolphins attack us first?�

Young was on the show to promote his new memoir, “Special Deluxe� and told Colbert that he wanted to impeach President Obama for allowing fracking to continue.

Meanwhile, Colbert was singing, “I say solar power is bound to fail / I say it’s time to frack the whales.�

You can watch the rest of the song here.

Follow me on Twitter: @patrickkevinday