Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash
1969
Album Summary
Crosby, Stills & Nash is the debut studio album by British-American folk rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN), released in 1969 by Atlantic Records. It is the only album released by the band before adding Neil Young to their line-up. The album spawned two Top 40 singles, "Marrakesh Express" and "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes", which peaked respectively at No. 28 the week of August 23, 1969, and at No. 21 the week of December 6, 1969, on the US Billboard Hot 100. The album itself peaked at No. 6 on the US Billboard Top Pop Albums chart. It has been certified four times platinum by the RIAA for sales of 4,000,000.
WikipediaI expected this to be better and score higher, but in reality this album pretty much made me angry. It should be better, it has all the ingredients to be better, yet it is really boring, almost all the songs sound the same, and that same isn't an enjoyable song to begin with. It should probably score 2, but I'm angry at it, so 1 it is.
CSN's self-titled debut cannot be touched! From Judy Blue Eyes to You Don't Have to Cry to Wooden Ships to Teach Your Children Well (and everything in between), there is no better folk rock record of its time. Where is the 6 star option?!
My only complaint is that they don't use an Oxford comma in their band name. Nice combo of nostalgic and folksy rock, this might have been my favorite album so far
Nice but lacking the magic of the previous CSN&Y album I've listened too. Not bad though.
Pleasant but forgettable. Unlike other supergroups these three don't seem different enough to provide an interesting contrast.
High school in the 80's I listen to mostly thrash metal, hard rock and some punk/hardcore with a splattering of some random things like the Cure. I starting hangin out with other kids into different music. One of my first times getting high, my friend puts this album on vinyl, Suite Judy Blue Eyes comes flowing out of the speakers filling my ears and head with those warm sweet harmonies, wow I never heard anything like this. I was hooked, on both the music and the weed. I still love this album and CSN, even though David Crosby is an ass.
Nice and chill album, I get why they were popular. Idk if it's heinous to say it but felt like the Beatles meets Simon and Garfunkel
By far the best thing about CSNY was Y. Without Y they are a one trick pony; they have the lovely harmonies but not a lot else. In particular, the songs on this LP written by C or N are weak.Some of Stills' songs are good and their harmonies make those songs very good. This is the case with Suite: Judy Blue Eyes. The four songs that follow can't be saved by the harmonies. I kind of like Wooden Ships, probably because it sounds like a Neil Young song, lol. I suppose Stills lays down the lead guitar on that track. We must give credit where it's due. Helplessly Hoping is beautiful and the best song on the LP imo. I just don't think a couple of good songs can get the LP north of 3. PS I do like Teach Your Children but didn't let it influence my rating since it's a bolt on to the 2006 re-release and more appropriately considered a Deja Vu track.
I thought this album was good, but not great. I believe Young added a certain something to the mix that just made this band pure magic, and for me, that magic is clearly lacking on this album without him. The impact of this album however, is not to be undermined. This debut album popped up in 1969, just in time to inform and be an inspiration for many 70s soft rock, folk rock, and singer-songwriter acts. They naturally had a sound and a style here that many bands would go on to covet and seek. While Crosby, Stills & Nash was not the first supergroup, they're an incredibly significant one. Before them, any group formed of members from other bands was considered a "supergroup". But Crosby, Stills & Nash all came from already pretty successful bands and created an even more successful band than any of them came from individually. Crosby, Stills & Nash, along with this album, ultimately set a strong precedent for true supergroups going forward; it's a good introduction to that 70s folk rock sound and a good foundation for things to come with this band.
Although I love Neil Young, these guys just rub me the wrong way. So without Neil, CSN is a chore. It's just excruciating for me to listen to their hillybilly harmonies and I couldn’t listen to the entire album
Absolute classic album. One of the best folk rock albums ever. Great guitars, great diversity, and of course, the harmonies. Legends.
I always forget there's CSN & CSNY. This is classic easy, chill, jamming music.
Lots of things going on in this music, but enjoyed the tight harmonies and use of rhythm. Casual yet still precise and professional. Enjoyed listening to the lyrics as well - Teach Your Children brings back memories.
Each track is a classic. Such good harmony and guitar on show here. Fresh.
I usually just think of them as classic rock but I was really blown away listening to the whole album together
There are several songs on here that by themselves would pull an album score up, but to have them all together is bananas. What a monumental album. Wooden Ships hit me hard when I first heard it back in probably middle school and hasn’t ever lost it. I wonder how I’d feel about this album if I didn’t have nostalgia attached to it. The vocal harmonies are timeless and the guitar is still great. I bet still 4 stars at least, but with nostalgia this is an easy 5
Really enjoyed it, very laid back music. Considered giving it a high 4, but Spotify played a bunch of Steely Dan when the album ran out and that put me in a generous mood.
Muito bonito, gostei bastante. Uma pegada folk maravilhosa, me lembrou muito Simon & Garfunkel.
Took me back. Hard to believe some of the songs were from their first album
I like this album the more I listen to it, and it’s great, but it also makes me just wanna listen to Neil Young
My absolute favorite brand of folk rock. "Marrakesh Express" is one my favorite songs ever.
I had never listened to CS&N before, but there is a warmth and feeling of familiarity that came with it anyway. Loved the album.
Stellar, folksy harmonies with rock instrumentation. Makes you want to put on a shearling jacket and build a cabin.
I was blissfully unaware that this album had been the backbone of every campfire guitar singalong. Songs like Everybody's Talking, Love the one you’re with and teach your children well are it seems the bread and butter of every acoustic guitarist.
Yeahhhh now this is some old-timey music that still crushes it. I've had some 60s folk/singer-songwriter albums of late which have been ... eh. For a most-recent example and in a musical vein that is sort of similar: I'm not a fan of Bob Dylan - maybe he could turn a phrase and accurately tap into the young mood of the time but his music just wasn't very good - almost like a quick basic template for him to write poetry over. Dylan's music for me pales to this - CSN's first album is different and you know it right off the bat - this isn't going to be 40 minutes of basic blues-based V-IV-I progressions. What I love most is that although CSN were all singers, and each excellent (those harmonies are worth the admission), these songs are legit and would be good even without the great vocals. Which is everything. Variety! Progressive rock - folk - straight up rock... often with unpredictable progressions and chord voicings ("Guinevere" is an example that's hard to categorize - lush and strange harmonies over unresolving guitar melodies) It's admittedly hard for me to be objective to music that I've heard for decades - some of these songs are just all-time world classics. Seems facile to say "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" (I thought it was "Sweet Judy Blue Eyes until I was a teenager) is one of my favourites since it's so ubiquitous but it really is that great. It's essentially 3 songs in one - it's Yes before Yes were Yes. But better (and coming from a Yes fan, this). There are some points where the album slows up a bit but I think it may add to the album, giving it all an ebb and flow. "Long Time Gone" as a near-final track is as hard rock as rock could be in 1969 with soft voices and (mostly) acoustic guitars. Overall this is an indispensable album - a template of the best music of its time and holy hell this is a freaking *debut* album. Top notch. 9/10 5 stars
It’s getting to the point- where I’m no fun anymore - I am sorry. Say, can I have some of your purple berries? It’s a 5 if ever there was one.
This is a beautiful album, with such a beautiful sound. Their voices create such perfect harmony it almost is like just one person singing. Talk about a supergroup.
This one surprised me, I've always kinda been "meh" and ignored CSN but wow. The songwriting and production on this is so on point
Oh yeah, fuckin amazing record. Standout songs for me are Suite: Judy Blue Eyes and Helplessly Hoping. Fantastic vocals and guitar work all throughout this album. Some incredibly nostalgic sounding music.
amazing album, I’m a huge fan of that vocal harmony stuff, reminds me of Simon & Garfunkel and Yes while the music itself felt very simple, it has a very likable sound that everyone should check out, I’m giving this a 10/10
Tengo que escuchar más de ellos y a este disco volveré más de una vez. Me han gustado muchas canciones y el disco en general. Favoritas: Suite: Judy blue eyes, Marrakesh express, Pre-Road downs, Lady of the island, Helplessly hoping, 49 bye-byes y Everybody's talkin'. Un 5 estrellas *****.
This was a lovely way to spend a rainy afternoon. The harmonies are beautiful and soothing. I loved rolling along with this album. Of course the two opening songs tower over the proceedings. Suite: Judy Blue Eyes and Marrakesh Express sound as great as ever. An incredible one-two punch that instantly put this band on the map right out of the gate. But I liked the rest really well as well. Really nice.
One of my favorites. Love the melodies, the harmonies, and the layering of the vocals and guitars. This one makes me feel good.
A lovely album! The layering of the instruments and the vocals make for a most enjoyable listening experience. The variety in tempos and style also add interest for the album.
Another wonderful opportunity to listen to a classic album for the first time. "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" is a very familiar classic, of course (though I never knew that it was about Judy Collins!). Much of the album has their amazing signature harmonies, but I really enjoyed the different sounds that they brought to their first album. "Guinevere" and "Lady of the Island" were two new favorites, both apparently taking some inspiration from Joni Mitchell!
I guess I'm pretty neutral in my opinion of this group. I mean I appreciate their great harmonies but can't say I went out and bought any of their albums. This debut has some rock radio heavy hitters in "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes", "Marrakesh Express" and "Wooden Ships." It appears they took a democratic approach in the songs switching lead singers after every song. Thinking back and actually forward, their approach probably was very unique for folk with their blend of acoustic and electric guitar songs and their complex harmonies. This is a great sounding and produced album. Outside their hits, I appreciated "Guinnevere" - subtle and acoustic love song, "Lady of the Island" - another very soft song about Nash's relationship with Joni Mitchell and "Helplessly Hoping" - maybe my favorite harmonizing on the album, which surprsingly are led sung by each of the three. Not really any stinkers or fillers here to me. Although you hear enough of this album on the radio, this is definitely an album worth going back to listen to as a whole.
Had to listen to a different album with most of the same songs. Saw them in concert s few years ago. Awesome harmonies.
What a fantastic album, super easy listening while never being dull, boring or simple. As always I love the guitar work of Stephen stills and them combining their voices with harmonies in the majority of the songs was the last puzzle piece that I was missing from their other albums
Quintessential hippie folk music. Listening to it makes me want to go buy a VW bus, wear a bunch of tie dye and grow out my hair. Time to turn on, tune and drop out
I could imagine Neil Young collaborating well with these young upstarts
Good album, I knew a few songs and will probably remember them forever
Absolute gold! These guys were talented individually but together they are magic. The songwriting, those gorgeous harmonies. If I could give it a sky full of stars I would.
Brilliant and beautiful -- is there a better or bolder track 1 of a debut album than "Suite Judy Blue Eyes"? The rest of the record holds true, too, and the strength of the lesser known songs is testament to the overall quality. Deja Vu might be even better. One wonders how modern production techniques would have lifted the sound, elevated the harmonies even higher.
Pretty much a perfect album. Easy listening with some beautiful lyrics that likely go overlooked. Lots of favorites on here: Judy Blue Eyes, Guinnevere, Pre-Road Downs, Marrakesh Express, Helplessly Hoping, 49 Bye-Byes.
Trop bon, quel talent. Un apercu de ce qui s'en vient avec young et Deja vu mais quand m^peme un super album qui résume bien le courant musical. 5
one of few groups that had their best album as their debut album. besides the commonly known songs, the album has unbelievable depth.
Classic CSN album from '69, not the same classic status as Deja Vu, but still an easy 5 stars, just like the classic CSN album from '77 (the latter being the ultimate yacht album after all). I realized that the debut album of the modern CSN variant, Fleet Foxes, is also approaching semi-classic status status (released 15 years ago) yet that album is not in the same league as CSN(Y)...
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes- 9/10 Marrakesh Express- 9/10 Guinnevere- 7/10 You Don't Have To Cry- 10/10 Pre-Road Downs- 10/10 Wooden Ships- 10/10 Lady Of The Island- 5/10 Helplessly Hoping- 9/10 Long Time Gone- 10/10 49 Bye-Byes- 10/10 Do For The Others- 7/10 Songs With No Words- 9/10 Everybody's Talkin'- 10/10 Teach Your Children- 8/10 Crosby, Stills & Nash- 9/10
становится понятно, думаю, что мне уже очень сложно ставить оценки... но это будет очередная пятёрка, потому что нет причин ставить меньше (как можно не оценить хотя бы song with no words)
Beautifully crafted instrumentals and exquisite harmonies. It gets a highest rating from me and when you consider that they released Deja Vu the following year, I can't think of better back to back offerings from anyone.
This album is full of hits. And it proves to me again that Nash is my favorite songwriter of the bunch, with Marakesh Express and Teach Your Children being the standouts for me.
David Crosby er faen et unikum med stemmen sin. Dog tenker jeg bare på den rare luen han går med nå som han er gammel. Steven Stills smeller fra seg med gitaren, noe som gjør det lekende lett å høre på. Det er så forbanna bra.. Jeusus christ... låt #3 er det villeste bruken av vokaler. 6/6
Lovely album of soft psych tinged folk rock, rich in those west coast harmonies and vocal prowess, fantastic playing by some of the finest in the American music scene at the time, it is warm and autumn golden like honey. Alternatively it’s the sound of bloated fly blown rich asshole rock stars indulging their excessive egos with vast capitalist fantasies of self indulgence and blissful/wilful ignorance of harsh and unfair reality and suffering of others Whichever takes your pick, or a bit of both? This is the sound of the blossoming hippie ideal, albeit seen through the eyes of the sometimes unpleasant, Stoned, talented, privileged and lucky
Much of this album I'd heard before. Beautiful folk with layered vocal harmonies and acoustic instruments.
Heerlijke folk/rock. Erg fijne stemmen om naar te luisteren en een feel good vibe.
Great album! Unmistakable sound. Judy Blue Eyes is obviously the best track.