CSN&Y BOOTLEG REVIEW
Author: Graham Clews
Source: So Far Issue #4
Date: November 1996
CSNY - NEW JERSEY 1970
(FILLMORE EAST 7/6/1970)
As anyone who has ever listened to, or collects bootlegs knows,
they are an unpredictable entity; some are brilliant examples of material by artists that
would otherwise be unavailable, but alas, some are dismal. The possible problems with them
are many; often the sound quality is poor due its usually non-professional origin, but
this can be less important or overlooked if the performance is good. However, sometimes
bootlegs unfortunately happen to have been recorded when the band are having a 'Bad Night'
(all bands do). Also, frustratingly, sometimes the music contained is not what is stated
on the cover (wrong dates, tours etc.). Buying bootlegs is a gamble, but sometimes it is
worth it. As a CS&N fan I have critically reviewed two CSNY bootlegs below; one a
great example, titled (Erroneously "CSN&Y New Jersey 1970" and one example
of a mostly poorly bootleg entitled "Neil Young and Friends - Old Country Road",
which is in fact parts of two CSN&Y concerts.
I'll start with the good one. The "CSN&Y New Jersey 1970"
bootleg contains all the elements that got me into CS&N in the first place; a mix of
great acoustic and electric music, brilliant warm harmonies, a great range of songs and an
amusing semi-shambolic air to their gatherings. The vibes on this tape are great, with
some brilliant between-song banter that even the normally recalcitrant Neil Young joins in
on, although at one point he does chide Stills, saying "This is a serious concert you
know!".
The tape box states that this 13-track package is from "Lakehurst,
New Jersey 3/6/70". Now this is a typical example of erroneous bootleg information,
originating because either (A.) the bootlegger was too stoned/drunk to remember where he
taped the show or (B.) doesn't care about accuracy (!). The show is certainly not from
Lakehurst. The Band were playing New York's Fillmore East on 3/6/70 and this is where this
tape is from. The band were playing a week's residency there. However this is not the
3/6/70 performance, as several tracks included weren't played that night. This, I think is
from the 7/6.70 show, as according to Johnny Rogan, the 7th June performance of
"Black Queen" was included on "4-Way Street" and the 1991 Boxed set,
this is the same performance on this tape.
The tape quality, which is only at best of average sound quality, fails
to dim the brilliant performances of CSN&Y in their prime. The tape starts with a
slightly rough "Suite:Judy Blue Eyes". Crosby, who sounds a wee tad stoned, hums
strangely all the way through the track when he isn't singing his parts, but it sounds
okay anyway. After the Suite, which I always thought was a damn hard song to start with,
the trio of Crosby, Stills and Nash pull out one of the gems of this tape, a great slowed
down version of "Blackbird", which easily outclasses the '69 studio version or
the live one off "Allies". The harmonies are superb. After the song as the crowd
goes wild, Crosby can be heard saying "Why didn't we do it that slow before, man ...
I really dug that ... let's do it again!". They don't. Instead Stills says
"Speaking of moments we were waiting to arrive here's Mr Neil Young." You can
just picture him shuffling to his seat and his usual nerve-induced extensive guitar
tunings begin. At this gig, like many others at the time, three to four minutes elapse
between songs, but because of the banter and atmosphere, you don't notice. If anybody else
took four minutes between songs there'd be noone left! Finally, Young asks Crosby if he's
ready, Stills then says "If he was ever ready for anything, I'd wanna know about
it!". Just when you think the song will never start Crosby counts "3, 2, 5,
7" and everyone cracks up. "On the Way Home" follows, with better harmonies
than the "4-Way Street" version, but pretty similar. After that a "4-Way
Street" reminiscent "Teach Your Children" follows. More humour continues as
Stills accidentally bangs the double bass down on the floor, making a loud bang as the
song is finishing. Nash cracks up and for the benefit of "Old Wholesome Bill"
Halverson below, who is recording the set, Stills does it again, probably deafening the
poor bloke.
As mentioned before, the banter is great at this gig and reaches a
height of stoned hilarity with this conversation:
NASH: "Let's swap seats."
YOUNG: "This one's broken man."
NASH: "I dig broken seats man."
CROSBY: "I dig it Neil".
(TO audience girl): "Can you dig it, man?"
GIRL: "I can dig it man."
NASH: "David can dig it man."
YOUNG: "I know David can dig it man."
NASH: "She can dig it man."
YOUNG: "She can dig David digging it."
NASH: "I did her digging David digging it."
STILLS: (Trying to tune up): "Play a D ... D as in Dig it."
NASH: "D I said Dig it!"
At this point Crosby can bear it no more, and frantically strumming his
guitar to drown Nash out, launches into some impromptu Opera style singing, much to
everyone's amusement.
NASH: "Just breaking the tension, folks!"
The acoustic segment also contains versions of Stills' and Young's solo
spots and "Love The One You're With" similar to "4-Way Street", but
one more acoustic gem is included, a stunning version of Young's "Tell Me Why".
Again, like "Blackbird" for some reason on this night, this version sounds so
much more vibrant that the studio version, with great harmonies. The electric set that
follows "Love The One Your With" features songs similar to the versions on
"4-Way Street", but it's interesting to hear how similar songs were night to
night. "Long Time Gone" is a bit more restrained here, which I prefer. However,
one more classic is featured here. Young says "David, Stephen and Graham are now
gonna play you a new song of Stephen's". "As I Come Of Age" follows with
CS&N singing to Stills' piano. This is a great slower version of the song, imparting
much more emotion than either of the recorded versions on the "Stills" album or
the 80's remake featured on the 1991 Box Set.
Far more than being a poorer quality "4-Way Street", this
bootleg encapsulates all the vibrance and emotion that made CS&N great. It is criminal
that these versions of "As I Come of Age", "Tell Me Why" and
"Blackbird" were not included on "4-Way Street, as this show was taped for
that reason, but at least they are available here.
Now the bad!! "Old Country Road", is unfortunately a classic
example of a poor bootleg. The main body of it is from the closing gig of the US leg of
the 1974 CSN&Y reunion tour at Roosevelt Raceway Stadium, NY 8/9/74. Tucked onto the
end are four tracks from the 28/8/69 CSN&Y show at the Greek Theatre (which I will
mention separately at the end). The sound quality throughout has an annoyingly hollow
trebly quality to it, but is not actually too bad. The main problem with this CD is that,
through the tracks chosen and performances, it captures the infamous ramshackle, shambolic
nature of early 70's CSN&Y, not creating an amusing, quality performance (as many of
the '74 shows were) but instead, giving sometimes very rough sounding readings of songs.
All the ten songs featured are written by Neil Young, and perhaps the performances at this
gig of the other members' songs are better? I don't know. Unfortunately, except for a
couple of tracks, the songs sound under-rehearsed and some a bit lack-lustre. Even the
normally brilliant "Ohio" drags. It's played miles too slow like everyone's
going to sleep and the vocals sound ragged. Even the excellent "Long May You
Run" is ruined by Young playing it in so low a key he can't sing it decently. Stills,
probably used to playing it in the right key is also way out on his backing vocals. It
pis**s me off that nowadays Neil Young is often praised as the sole redeeming, infallible
member of CSN&Y and never criticised by a lot of the music press and some rock fans.
Whilst, like the rest of CSN&Y he is a brilliant performer and writer, I'd argue he
has put in just as many, if not more duff performances as Crosby, Stills & Nash. I'd
love to play some N. Young-grunge loving, die-hard CSN critics "Hawaiian
Sunrise" from this tape (complete with pseudo Hawaiian guitars and Young shakily
singing dodgy lyrics like "Pretty moui mamma lying over the water with the sun in
her eyes ... From my hotel window in the clouds I love you out loud.") and see
their faces! Whilst I (like many reading this) am a huge Neil Young fan, this song is, in
my opinion, none too clever. Equal in it's lack of cleverness is shouted, frantic
"Revolution Blues" which peters out to nothing and evokes virtually no audience
response.
Luckily the presence of the classic "Old Man" and "Don't
Be Denied" (poignantly dedicated to Danny Whitten) brings the quality up
substantially; however, these too suffer from the band being (instrumentally) drastically
out of tune. The piano's out with the acoustic guitar, Stills' electric guitar goes out
and Neil Young's harmonica is so out of tune with everything it's painful to listen to.
After struggling through several numbers blighted by being out of tune, Young finally
comments after "Revolution Blues": "Whoever tuned this guitar was really
high, really high".
The other overriding problem with this bootleg is the guesting
appearance of Joni Mitchell. Whilst I consider Joni Mitchell to be an excellent
singer-songwriter, who has made some great CS&N related guest appearances like
"Another Sleep Song" and "Laughing", at this gig she adds nothing to
the vocal blend, crowding songs like "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" where
vocals are adequately performed by CSN&Y, and there is no place for her. She
hesitantly suddenly joins in on the last few lines of many of the songs and drowns out the
other members. "Ohio" and Joni just don't mix! sorry.
The final four tracks from 1969 however, are a different story. Whilst
they sound a bit out of place after the '74 stuff, the two acoustic Young pieces
"Birds" and "I've Loved Her So Long" are great with brilliant Nash
harmonies. "Sea of Madness" is virtually identical to the "Woodstock"
album version (indeed it might be the same one, the track on the album was not recorded at
Woodstock). Finally a prolonged electric "Down By The River" finishes the CD on
a far better note than it starts. Vintage '69 era, featuring some great Stills' answer
vocals and Stills/Young guitar interplay.
So this (except for the last tracks) is an example of a not so
successful bootleg (I apologise if anyone out there disagrees), which certainly shows that
Neil Young isn't always (certainly wasn't at the Roosevelt Raceway) the star of CSN&Y.
Indeed the only reliable facet of the CD is Crosby & Nash's harmonies, still I won't
get started on that! The only summing up I can give from this is that some bootlegs are
great and some are crap. It's just luck!
CSNY - NEW JERSEY 1970
(FILLMORE EAST 7/6/1970)
1. SUITE: JUDY BLUE EYES
2. BLACKBIRD
3. ON THE WAY HOME
4. TEACH YOUR CHILDREN
5. TELL ME WHY
6. THE LONER/ CINNAMON GIRL/ DOWN BY THE RIVER
7. BLACK QUEEN
8. 49 BYE BYES / AMERICA'S CHILDREN/ FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH
9. LOVE THE ONE YOU'RE WITH
10. AS I COME OF AGE
11. PRE-ROAD DOWNS
12. LONG TIME GONE
13. SOUTHERN MAN
"NEIL YOUNG AND FRIENDS - OLD COUNTRY ROAD"
1. HELPLESS
2. WALK ON
3. ONLY LOVE CAN BREAK YOUR HEART
4. HAWAIIAN SUNRISE
5. LONG MAY YOU RUN
6. AMBULANCE BLUES
7. OLD MAN
8. DON'T BE DENIED
9. REVOLUTION BLUES
10. OHIO (from 1969)
11. BIRDS
12. I'VE LOVED HER SO LONG
13. SEA OF MADNESS
14. DOWN BY THE RIVER (electric)
