Welcome to the Paradise on this fine Saturday morning. As you know Classic Rock from the Sixties and the Seventies is another passion of mine and today I would like to present to you my Review of the first Crosby Stills & Nash Album recorded in 1969. These guys are all time favourites of mine and very few albums come close to, let alone match the sheer Paradise of the harmony vocals offered by David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash. David the Dreamer, Stephen the Captain and Graham the Ecologist. What a chemistry existed between those three. They still perform but obviously age does count and I prefer to hear them at their best in the late sixties and early seventies.
So have fun reading the Review. Tonight I will start tasting William Lawson's Blended Scotch Whisky. Have a nice Saturday and see you all back tomorrow,
Saude!
Jan
Crosby Stills & Nash I - 1969
Songs: Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, Marrakesh Express, Guinnevere, You don´t have to Cry, Pre-Road Downs, Wooden Ships, Lady of the Island, Helplessly Hoping, Long Time Gone, 49 Bye-Byes.
Type of Music: Folk/Rock with a slight touch of Acid.
Comments:
For me Crosby, Stills & Nash are the true representatives of the Woodstock Generation. Peace, Love and Harmony!! It´s not too acid like Jefferson Airplane or Grateful Dead nor too sweet like Joan Baez. But their music fits perfectly with those long gone Summers of Love.
The combination of the writing and musical skills of Stephen Stills (ex Buffalo Springfield), David Crosby (ex Byrds) and Graham Nash (ex Hollies) produced some of the greatest music of the late sixties, carried by their unique harmonies. Their Debut Album is packed with those songs.
Shortly afterwards, Neil Young joined the band and the power struggle for control over the band between him and Stephen began.
Maybe because of that, our friends would never again be quite able to capture beauty, innocence and delicacy and transform them in sheer musical heaven.
Stephen contributes most of the songs here. With the exception of 49 Bye-Byes they are all great. Most of you will know Suite: Judy Blue Eyes written for Judy Collins. But also enjoy little pearls like You don´t have to Cry and Helplessly Hoping. Graham gives us the happy hash song Marrakesh Express and the honest Lady of the Island. And David wrote the beautiful ballad Guinnevere for all his past, present and future wives, lovers and girlfriends. You remember the Woodstock movie? It still gives me the creeps when the film starts and you hear David´s Long Time Gone.
And then, there´s the best of them all. The slightly psychedelic anthem Wooden Ships, co-written with Paul Kantner from Jefferson Airplane.
It´s about the world or what´s left of it after the Big Bang. Actually our friends got some criticism as the song contains the line: We are leaving, You Don´t Need Us.
But I don´t care about that. I love the song and it´s in my all time Top 10 of Classic Rock songs.
What else is there to say. If you don´t own this album you should do something about that. And Quick!!!!!
Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)
Black = Good Songs
Green = Great Songs
Red = Could Be Better
Who should buy this Record: Everybody.
