Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Welcome to Rock and Roll Flashback!  I'm Jumpin' John, and in previous episodes of Rock and Roll Flashback podcast I have already reviewed three prominent bands from the 1960's:  The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and the Hollies.  In 1968 one member each from those three bands would join up to form a folk rock supergroup.  This is the story of Crosby, Stills & Nash, as well as their evolution into Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

All podcasts on the Rock and Roll Flashback Podcast are produced by brothers-in-law Bill Price and "Jumpin' John" McDermott. The Podcast Theme Song, "You Essay", was written by John. It was initially recorded by Bill and John on April 1, 2004 with several revisions since then.
Multiple promo videos and photos for Rock and Roll Flashback Podcasts are available on the following social media sites:

https://www.youtube.com/@RockandRollFlashback

https://www.facebook.com/rockandrollflashbackpodcast

https://www.instagram.com/jumpinjohnmcdermott/

Bill and John welcome your feedback and comments, and they can be emailed to rockandrollflashback@outlook.com.
Thank you for listening to Rock and Roll Flashback Podcasts!
Until next time...
Rock On!

Transcript

Thank you for that introduction and welcome to Rock and Roll Flashback!  I'm Jumpin' John, and in previous episodes of Rock and Roll Flashback podcast I have already reviewed three prominent bands from the 1960's:  The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and the Hollies.  In 1968 one member each from those three bands would join up to form a folk rock supergroup.  This is the story of Crosby, Stills & Nash, as well as their evolution into Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

There are conflicting stories about how, when, and where Crosby, Stills, and Nash first met and when they first sang together.  Here is a rough timeline of events, subject to much debate.  

Supposedly Graham Nash first met David Crosby on the Byrds' 1966 tour of the United Kingdom.  They may have rekindled their acquaintance while the Hollies were in Los Angeles, California during their 1966 tour of the United States.  It is not clear when Crosby first met Stephen Stills, however, they certainly knew each other prior to the June 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, when Crosby subbed on stage for Neil Young during the Buffalo Springfield's Pop Festival performance.

In October 1967, David Crosby was fired by the Byrds during their recording sessions for The Notorious Byrd Brothers.  Buffalo Springfield broke up six months later.  Afterwards, Stephen Stills and David Crosby began jamming, song writing, and recording demos together.  For example, in 1968 while in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on David Crosby's boat, the song "Wooden Ships" was written.  Crosby composed the music, while Paul Kantner of the Jefferson Airplane and Stephen Stills wrote most of the lyrics.

Meanwhile, Graham Nash was feeling more and more frustrated with the Hollies, wanting to record more serious material rather than the lightweight pop with which they had made their name.  In February 1968 the Hollies were in Los Angeles to play a Valentine's Day show at the Whisky a Go Go.  Around this time period Graham Nash met Cass Elliott of the Mamas and the Papas.  Later that evening Elliot and Nash went to David Crosby's house in Laurel Canyon, and Crosby took them to a nearby party at the house of Peter Tork of the Monkees for Nash to meet Tork's roommate, Stephen Stills.  

In July or August 1968, Graham Nash flew back to Los Angeles from England to visit Joni Mitchell.  What happened next has been the subject of friendly debate among the trio.  David Crosby and Graham Nash often contended that the trio first harmonized at Joni Mitchell’s Laurel Canyon home.  Stephen Stills has maintained that they first sang together at Cass Elliot’s house.   At any rate, an impromptu singing session took place in Laurel Canyon at either Elliot's or Mitchell's house.  In front of those in attendance, Stills and Crosby sang Stephen Still's song "You Don't Have to Cry".  After listening to the song, Nash asked them to play the tune again.  Then, when Stills and Crosby sang it a third time, Graham Nash added a beautiful high harmony, much to the amazement of everyone present.  The three men broke into laughter, realizing that they had a very good vocal chemistry.  So, an informal jam at a party during the Summer of 1968 wound up resulting in some of the greatest harmonies of the rock era when the trio of David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash first sang together.  

Nash returned one more time to England with a new career focus.  A couple months later Stills and Crosby went to England to do some rehearsing with Nash.  The threesome tried unsuccessfully to get a record contract with Apple Records, the Beatles’ new label.  In December 1968 Graham Nash officially left the Hollies.  He had fallen deeply in love with Joni Mitchell, so he moved to Los Angeles.  Graham tentatively planned to become primarily a songwriter, but also looked forward to blending voices again with Crosby and Stills.  Ahmet Ertegun then signed the threesome to Atlantic Records in February 1969.  

The trio decided not to be locked into a group structure.  They used their surnames (Crosby, Stills & Nash) as identification to ensure independence and a guarantee that the band could not continue without one of them.  They also have been referred to as "CSN".  They chose a management team of Elliot Roberts and David Geffen.  Roberts kept the band focused and dealt with egos, while Geffen handled the business deals.  Before recording with Atlantic, they had to iron out a recording contract.  Stills was already signed to Atlantic Records through his Buffalo Springfield contract.  Crosby had been released from his Byrds deal with Columbia, as he was considered to be unimportant and too difficult to work with.  Nash, however, was still signed to Epic Records through the Hollies.  Ertegun cut a deal with Clive Davis, transferring Nash to Atlantic in exchange for the band Poco.  Poco's leader, Richie Furay, had previously been signed by Atlantic by virtue of his membership in the now defunct Buffalo Springfield.

[Here is an excerpt from Crosby, Stills and Nash's version of "Marrakesh Express"]

During February and March of 1969 Stephen Stills practically lived in the Wally Heider Studio in Hollywood, California.  Stills handled most of the instrumentation on the band's debut album, including every lead guitar, bass, and keyboard part.  Drum parts were primarily performed by Dallas Taylor and only a handful of rhythm and acoustic guitar parts from Crosby and Nash.  After lush vocal harmonies were recorded, the trio's first album, Crosby, Stills & Nash, was then released in May 1969.  The LP was a major hit in the U.S., peaking at #6 on the Billboard album chart during a 107-week stay on the chart.  It also produced two Top 40 hits.  They were "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes", which reached #21 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Marrakesh Express", which reached #28.  Sales of their debut album ultimately earned a RIAA triple platinum certification in 1999 and, after exceeding 4 million in sales, quadruple platinum certification in 2001.

[Here is an excerpt from Crosby, Stills and Nash's version of "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes"]

Flush with the album's commercial success, Crosby, Stills and Nash were presented with a dilemma.  Due to the LP's popularity, there was great demand for them to tour.  However, with Stills having recorded most of the instrumental parts by himself, they needed to hire additional touring personnel.  Ahmet Ertegun suggested adding Neil Young to the tour.  Young was also managed by Elliot Roberts, and Neil could assist with guitar and keyboards by alternating with Stills and Nash in a live setting.  Despite initial reservations from Stills and Nash, the trio expanded to a quartet after Young had lunch with Nash.  The terms of the contract allowed Young full freedom to maintain a parallel career with his new band, Crazy Horse.  Completing the touring rhythm section were Dallas Taylor to handle percussion and Motown session bassist Greg Reeves.

The now expanded group embarked on a four-leg, 39-date tour that ended with three European concerts in January 1970.  Their first major public gig was on August 16th, 1969, at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, with Joni Mitchell as their opening act.  They mentioned they were going to someplace called Woodstock the next day, but that they had no idea where it was.  Their one-hour show at the Woodstock Festival in the early morning of August 18th, 1969, was a baptism by fire.  Before they started, Stills told the crowd [and I quote] "This is the second time we've ever played in front of people, man.  We're scared shitless" [end quote].  That appearance at the Woodstock festival, their presence in the movie Woodstock, and their recording of the Joni Mitchell song memorializing Woodstock, all boosted the popularity of the quartet. 

[Here is an excerpt from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's version of "Woodstock"]

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (or "CSNY" as they are sometimes referred to) appeared at other prominent festivals later in 1969, including the Big Sur Folk Festival and the violence-plagued Altamont Free Concert.  Meanwhile, from July 1969 through January 1970 the band was recording songs at the Wally Heider studios in San Francisco and Hollywood, California.  This second album was produced by all four members of the band.  Each of the individual tracks display meticulous attention to detail.  Anticipation for the album was high, and by January 1970 Atlantic Records had taken in two million dollars in preorders.  On March 11th, 1970, the expanded supergroup's first album with Neil Young was released.  Entitled Déjà Vu, it topped the Billboard album chart for one week, was certified Gold in the U.S. only 14 days after being released, and spent 88 weeks on the Billboard 200 charts.  The LP generated four singles.  In my opinion, the best of the four was "Carry On", but that single failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.  The other three charted.  "Woodstock" reached #11, "Teach Your Children" reached #16, and "Our House" reached #30.  

[Here is an excerpt from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's version of "Teach Your Children"]

In 2020 Déjà Vu  was ranked #220 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.  VH1 named Déjà vu the 61st greatest album of all time.  Déjà Vu was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2023.  In 2012, Déjà Vu was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.  Certified seven times platinum by the RIAA, the album's sales currently sit at over 8 million copies.  It remains the highest-selling album of each member's career to date.

[Here is an excerpt from Neil Young's song, "Country Girl", from the CSNY Déjà Vu album] 

The popularity of the album contributed to the success of the four albums released by each of the members in the wake of Déjà vu.  Neil Young's After the Gold Rush peaked at #8 on the Billboard Albums chart.  Stephen Stills' self-titled solo debut LP hit #3.  David Crosby's If I Could Only Remember My Name reached #12.  Graham Nash's Songs for Beginners reached #15. 

Conflicts were growing within the band.  Greg Reeves was replaced before their next tour by Calvin "Fuzzy" Samuels.  After the tour kicked off at the Denver Coliseum on May 12th, 1970, Dallas Taylor was replaced by John Barbata.  A week before the Denver performance, Young and Crosby were staying at a house near San Francisco when reports of the Kent State shootings arrived, inspiring Young to write the protest song "Ohio".  Recorded and rush-released weeks later with the new rhythm section, it peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1970.

[Here is an excerpt from Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young's live version of "Ohio"]

CSNY's music reflected the tastes and viewpoints of the counterculture in the late 1960's and early 1970's.  With protest against the Vietnam War gearing up in 1970, the group made no secret of their political leanings against the war.  Their outspoken positions on social and political issues have continued to the present day.  On the first CSN album, David Crosby wrote the song "Long Time Gone" on the night that Bobby Kennedy was killed.  Crosby admired what the Kennedys stood for and was angry about both Jack and Bobby Kennedy being killed.  I will conclude this podcast with Crosby, Stills and Nash's version of "Long Time Gone".

As the 1970 23-show tour progressed, tensions between the band members worsened, with their dressing-room fights becoming the stuff of rock legend.  The tenuous nature of the partnership was strained by Stills's alcohol and cocaine abuse.  Also singer Rita Coolidge had been romantically involved with Stills, and her leaving him for Nash added to the drama.  Concert recordings from that tour assembled by Nash produced the 1971 double album 4 Way Street.   4 Way Street topped the Billboard 200 album chart during a 42-week stay.  Although they continued to collaborate in various permutations and to work on solo projects, the four members did not come back together in earnest until their 1974 reunion tour.

After a couple of false starts in 1973 toward reconvening the quartet, in March 1974 Stephen Stills announced a CSNY summer tour and a projected studio album.  CSNY reassembled that summer with sidemen Tim Drummond on bass, Russ Kunkel on drums, and Joe Lala on percussion.  They rehearsed at Neil Young's Woodside, California ranch before embarking on an historic two-month, 31-date stadium tour.  

On August 19th, 1974 Atlantic released a compilation album, So Far, to promote the summer tour.  Shipping as a gold record and peaking at #1 on the Billboard Albums chart, So Far was the band's third chart-topping album in a row.  Selling more than 6 million copies, it has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA.  It is the second best-selling album by any configuration of the quartet in tandem after their 1970 studio album, Déjà Vu.

The 1974 tour was a record-breaking triumph, but it also marked a transition.  Over the next few years, the members of CSNY would continue to pursue their solo careers.  Then, in 1977, Crosby, Stills & Nash reunited.  On June 17th Atlantic released CSN, their first album as a trio in seven years.  The LP peaked at #2 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart in the summer of 1977 during a 33-week stay on the chart.  As of 2012 it is the trio configuration's best selling record, outselling 1969's Crosby, Stills & Nash by over 200,000 copies.  It has been certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA.  Two singles taken from the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100.  They were Graham Nash's "Just a Song Before I Go",  which hit #7, and Stephen Stills' "Fair Game", which reached #43.

Over the next two decades other studio albums by CSN and CSNY would chart on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.  This included Replay by CSN which reached #122, Daylight Again by CSN which reached #8, Allies by CSN which reached #43, American Dream by CSNY which reached #16, Live It Up by CSN which reached #57, and After the Storm by CSN which reached #98. 

CSNY reunited to play the Bill Graham memorial concert at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on November 3rd, 1991.  By the late 1990's, CSN and CSNY found themselves without a record contract. They began financing recordings themselves, and in 1999 Stills invited Young to guest on a few tracks.  Neil Young increased his level of input, turning the album into a CSNY project entitled Looking Forward.  The album was released via Reprise Records on October26th, 1999.  Looking Forward peaked at #26 during a 9-week stay on the Billboard Albums chart.  The album also laid the groundwork for CSNY to tour together again.  They went on the road as CSNY in 2000 and again in 2002.  Both tours were major money-makers.

Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young were notorious for their arguments and disagreements.  The members often quarreled and split into side projects.  However, Crosby, Stills & Nash always reunited (sometimes with the assistance of Young), as the chemistry and cultural impact they had as a group proved too hard to resist.  Nevertheless, each musician's confidence in their musical abilities often led to intense conflicts within the band.  The members’ strong personalities and egos often clashed, creating an environment ripe for tension and drama.  Their relationships were not only often strained by disagreements over musical content and direction, but they were also challenged by drug (particularly cocaine) and alcohol abuse, wasteful spending, failed marriages, David Crosby's promiscuous lifestyle, and Crosby being arrested and jailed on drug and weapons charges.

On June 21st, 1978, Crosby, Stills & Nash received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  As a solo artist, Neil Young would also receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010.  CSN were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.  CSNY is the first band to have all its members inducted into the Hall twice.  Crosby, Stills, & Nash were also inducted for their work in other groups:  Crosby for the Byrds, Stills for Buffalo Springfield, and Nash for the Hollies.  Young was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his prolific solo work in 1995 and for Buffalo Springfield in 1997.  In 1998 CSN were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.  In 2006 CSN were honored as a BMI Icon at the 54th annual BMI Pop Awards. They were honored for their "unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers."  On January 18th, 2023, David Crosby died at the age of 81, ending any possibilities of a full reunion.

Let me summarize this podcast episode by quoting from the band's official website.  [And I quote]:

CSN and CSNY didn’t just redefine what it meant to make music as a group; they reshaped the cultural landscape of their era. Through their distinctive harmonies, evocative storytelling, and unwavering dedication to social causes, they created songs that transcended entertainment, becoming rallying cries for change and reflection. Their music captured the spirit of a generation, while also paving the way for future artists to blend art with activism. Decades later, their songs continue to resonate, standing as timeless testaments to the enduring power of music to inspire, provoke thought, and unite people across generations.[end quote]

Thank you for listening to this episode of Rock and Roll Flashback, where I discussed the career of the supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young!  So, fellow travelers, may your path be smooth and your music always be rockin'!  And until next time...Rock On!