CSN-After the Storm

After the storm

"After The Storm" is a very average CSN album. The songwriting and performances are all good, but they do not match up with the best stuff these guys have done. There is not much that really stands out here and not much that really sticks with the listener. The high points are few, with David Crosby's "Camera" being the best cut on the album. Stephen Still's guitar playing is another bright spot and he really lights it up on several of the tracks. Overall this is not a bad disc, but far from essential. A little spotty at times,But overall this album features some of their best work in years,especially song's like. It won'tgo away,camera,find a dream,and these empty days.Despite a couple weak song's it's definatly an encouraging boost from the album live it up.

CSN-Daylight Again

Daylight Again

This is without a doubt the best release from CS&N. The most consistent and the best harmony vocals' period.

Much has been said about the lack of participation by David Crosby on this album due to the fact that the album was mostly finished by the time he was invited to be a part of it. Yes, it would have been a better record if such had not been the case. In spite of this, the greatest assets on Daylight Again are his two contributions - when he does sing it's all the more appreciated. There is a certain gut wrenching seriousness to his two songs that stand out from any of the CSN recordings given what was going on in his life at the time. "Delta" is set up wonderfully by Nash's plea to his friend in "Into the Darkness". "Might As Well Have a Good Time" is beautiful, showcasing CSN's harmonies better than any cut on the album. In fact, if someone wanted to know what was so magical about their singing I would point them to this song, post haste. I agree with what someone here said that the expanded version of Daylight Again makes for a better CD. Sure, this album has it's flaws, but you can't argue how important songs like "Wasted on the Way", "Southern Cross", "Delta", and "Daylight Again" are to the live performances of CSN. I think that if "Daylight Again" was the first experience people had with CSN it would probably get no negative criticism. Because there is such a huge mystique and social impact attached to these musicians and such a long hiatus from their work in the early '70s that everything else suffers in comparison.

CSN-Daylight Again

Daylight Again

I was 18 years old when this album came out, so unlike others who were already contrasting the "aging hippies" with their younger days, I knew nothing of previous CSN. (Or of Crosby's drug problems for that matter.) I simply enjoyed "Wasted on the Way" and "Southern Cross" when listening to Casey Kasem's American Top 40, right alongside efforts by Michael Jackson. It never occurred to me that CSN was an "older" group ; I simply loved both of those songs, great singles then, great songs now. I think this goes to show how much more enjoyable music can be when we actually listen to it innocently for its own sake, rather than getting wrapped up into who's "in," "out," "old," or "young."

Anyhow, I officially became a true CSN fan in 1989 at 17, and listened to about half of the songs on this album tirelessly. I think half of the songs are great, if not flat out killer songs that represent CSN/Y at their best, while the other half are just weak filler that are not unlike what we have (sadly) come to expect from this band. The best moments here are "Delta" (my favorite CSN/Y song ever) the two previously mentioned singles, "Song for Susan," "You are Alive," "Might as Well Have a Good Time," and "Daylight Again." The rest I can do without, but anyone who has only listened to the two singles really should give this album another spin because there really are some gems here. These are the type of songs that to me are so soothing and beautiful and unique and eternal, that it's really hard for me to imagine the egos behind the scenes getting into their fights, etc. I experience such serenity when listening to CSN.

In the end I think there are three phases of CSN/Y studio albums : 1) Crosby Stills and Nash (1969) and Deja Vu (1970) - both killer albums from beginning to end 2) CSN (1977) and Daylight Again (1982) - 1/2 gems mixed with 1/2 junk 3) American Dream (1988) Live it Up (1990) After the Storm (1994) Looking Forward (1999) - almost entirely trash, some rare good moments in each at best.

Maybe this album seemed disappointing at the time relative to the first album in 1969 and Déjà Vu in 1970, but wouldn't CSN/Y fans do anything for something like this now? Can you imagine Stills once again managing to write something as good as "Southern Cross"? Why do they (CSNY) keep telling us that they think they are getting better? Even Crosby seems to be apologizing during the CSNY concerts when he explains that "we like the old songs too, but the new songs keep us alive."

Go for Daylight Again if you are in any way a fan of CSN's music. And pray that they will make an album like this again someday.

CSN-Allies

Allies

There are several reasons why fans of Crosby, Stills and Nash would sell their eye teeth to obtain a copy of 'Allies'. First off, there are several songs available here that can't be had elsewhere... and they're darn good songs, too. The other reason is the sheer rarity of the disc... it was only released briefly in Japan and scant copies made their way to foreign shores. The lead track, 'War Games', was withdrawn at the last minute from its intended role as the theme song for the 1983 hit film starring Matthew Broderick. The album was soon engulfed in legal tangles from which it has never emerged. For these reasons, 'Allies' is the CD equivilent of Babe Ruth's rookie card.

As far as the content of the disc is concerned... it's certainly good, but not great, and it has a patchwork quality that renders it the misfit in the CSN catalog. The tracks are drawn from three sources. The first source are two new studio tracks, the aforementioned 'War Games', a fiesty Stephen Stills anti-military-industrial complex tune. Stephen was a pioneer in the use of the moog synthesizer, and it is used to great effect on both new songs, but especially on the charging 'War Games'. The follow-up is a Stills-Graham Nash composition, 'Raise A Voice', another protest tune, but this one possesses a bright, optimistic sound. It is interesting how the songwriting styles of both Stills and Nash can be heard in the elements of this song, and once again we are treated to a tempered and creative use of the synthesizer, a device which became imfamous for it's overuse, misuse, and abuse later in the decade.

Most people are aware that by 1982 David Crosby was caught in the throes of a disabling drug addiction, and his contribution to CSN's last important album, 'Daylight Again', was severely compromised. In fact, Stills and Nash made extensive use of Timothy B. Schmit and even Art Garfunkle to mask the absence of Crosby's vocals on that disc. On this disc, two live tracks from the earlier CSN reunion (in 1977) are featured to establish Crosby's presence. Both 'Shadow Captain' and Joni Mitchell's 'For Free' (the latter performed solo by David) are vibrant and emotionally gripping performances. Other tracks from this show in Houston are available on the 'Long Time Gone' video, but only on 'Allies' can fans appreciate these two rarities.

The remainder of the tracks on the disc are derived from the 1982 New Universal Amphitheatre performances that wound up on the 'Daylight Again' video tape, now available on DVD. Two are Stills songs ('Dark Star' and 'For What It's Worth'), two are Nash numbers ('Barrel Of Pain' and 'Wasted On the Way'), one is by Stills and Nash ('Turn Your Back On Love'), and 'Blackbird' is a Paul McCartney composition, treated with loving, harmonic resonance by CSN. All are excellent recordings... the only criticism being that the "Hey", in the lyric "Hey, what's that sound" from 'For What It's Worth' is left for the audience to fill in. Relying on amateurs causes this great classic to lose some steam.

Good luck finding a copy.

Crosby, Stills & Nash - Dark Star

Dark Star

This is one of those albums that raises the metaphoric middle-finger to "conventional opinion," which said that Crosby, Stills and Nash was a spent force by the time they recorded and released this album in 1977. Baloney. This is, in fact, a stupendous album made BY grown-ups FOR grown-ups. If it has no incandescent moments of flashy show, what compensates are solid songs (mostly)and solid musicianship (totally). There's an air about this album of "after all the crazy times, what we have left are some of the lessons we've learned along the way and some of the questions we still have." Self-deprecation abounds; it's in Still's plaintive "See The Changes" and Crosby's reflective "Anything At All." Both songs are somber, but more with bemusement than pathos, with both Stills and Crosby looking hard at themselves and not being totally pleased by what they see. Nash, for his part, takes more of the snapshot approach, looking at what's happened to him at various points in his life (up to that time) and how it's hit him. "Cathedral" and "Cold Rain" are the two best examples of that, as well as being the most elaborately produced tracks on the album. Those signature harmonies are as potent as ever, harking back to when they really were a special, musical experience. It may not be the case now, but that in no way diminishes the impact of this album, arguably CSN's finest.