4 Way Site

Stephen Barncard's comments on Uncut.

"My quotes re. UNCUT were correct, but taken WAY out of context."

First of all, the interview with me was supposed to be about the DEJA VU sessions, and the comments about the current band was really an aside. I had no business commenting on the current situation -- Who the hell is Barncard, anyway? It was just my opinion.

As presented, there were flowing praise about the band from David and Graham and Ahmet, and a negative from me. It really makes me look like a Neil-basher, which I certainly am not.

What is remarkable is what they DIDN'T print, as I talked to the interviewer in two ONE HOUR sessions. They needed a naysayer for 'contrast', and they picked my worst comments and ignored my ones of praise.

I am not a very good interviewee (as I said, who the hell is Barncard, anyway?) and tend to 'blather' and give way too much opinion when talking to the press. (opinions, not personal stuff about the guys - I'd NEVER do that.)

In recent interviews, the magazine guys had to tell me to 'stop talking', they'd had enough.

Also my interviews were conducted last summer, way before 9-11 and this new tour. At the time, my only source of information to comment on about recent CSNY was 'Looking Forward' and the 2000 tour.

As you may remember, the CSNY2K set list featured Neil's songs way more than the other guys -- almost 50 percent! (see http://4waysite.com for stats).

I notice today that the setlists are much more balanced on this tour -- and that's a great thing.

Although I regret using the word 'sappiest' in regard to 'Looking Forward' in the article, I'll have to say that it was not their best effort. It seemed to me by the song choices the guys (or Neil) made were all about saving their best songs for their own solo or alternate band records.

And Neil -- he's a great talent, there's no doubt on that, and the fan response to him is unmistakable, and for whatever the reasons, the rest of the band concurs. It's because of this 'happy agreement' that it all works, and the fans win big -- and it's not likely that Neil will bail this tour- he seems to be having a great time as well.

CSN could never find the "right" producer, because there was nobody that could be heavy enough -- as they themselves were master record makers -- and wrote the book on modern vocal recording methods (my gurus). So it would seem that Neil would be the only cat on earth that would fit the bill for producer.

But it seemed like on 'Looking Forward' that everyone was so busy trying to make Neil happy (or just to get along without strife) that the music suffered.

Not present was the 'fire' that happened on 'Deja Vu' --

That record was no doubt fueled by the competitive tension and one-upmanship that was part of their mode of working that I was witness to many times. But how does a band conjure up the creative tension while at the same time maintain civility and consistency?

So yes, Neil deserves all the praise he's gotten, and it's his duty to come in and kick ass, because nobody else can -- CSN had become a little too comfortable, and Neil's job is to throw a monkey wrench in the works -- such as the new backup band, Booker T., and the banter-less stage presence and professional presentation.

CSNY shows in the 70's were not well presented, because of technology limitations. We all remember the 20 minute tune ups and pitch problems of the past. 4 acoustic guitars on stage with bass and drums was a logistical nightmare and sonic impossibility, and sound reinforcement technology was extremely primitive.

Only in the last decade has the science of staging shows in huge 'blimp hangars' (Crosby's term for large venues) been perfected. I remember delivering a 16 track machine to Pauley Pavillion in LA in 1970 and standing by to watch the end of the CSNY show there that night. This was the same day as the Altamont disaster. The sound at Pauley was horrendous - partially because of inadequate monitors and impossible demands on the crew. The bad tension in the air was strong. I remember Crosby walking out of the auditorium with his bandmates so bummed he couldn't talk to me or anyone that night, and I remember thinking how technology had let the muse down.

Today, they have a handle on the situation, although the arenas that they play in were designed for Hockey and basketball, not music, and there is only so much they can do. Thousands of watts of power, better monitors (and specialist monitor mixers such as the great Rance Caldwell) make their stage experience more enjoyable, hence the performance soars and the audience benefits.

They've done some things to make their shows more large-venue-friendly such as 'flying the main speakers' instead of speaker towers on each side of the stage, reducing the amplifier cluster for each player down to studio-sized setups and depending on monitors for hearing each other's instruments.

The drummer (Steve Potts) has his mix in headphones -- looks dorky but is the best way for a drummer to monitor - and the monitior feed doesn't go back into the drum mics. And the floor monitors are hidden below a grate under the stage (except for Booker T, who is behind the front line. The stage is so 'clean' that the guitar techs have to have little black tents to do their work. This also means there is no 'backstage' to hang out -- so this also solves a lot of problems for the crew. Finally the excellent network-quality video directed by Larry Johnson and crew add a lot to the show.

All in all I'm impressed with todays CSNY presentation.

SQB -- http://barncard.com

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