Having paid their dues with the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and the Hollies — David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash came together and created an irresistible vocal blend on the fast track to success. Their debut album was an immediate hit and a defining moment in acoustic rock. Reaching beyond their finely tuned voices and acoustic guitars, Crosby, Stills and Nash realized they needed to bring in some additional musicians to fill out their sound. Somewhere along the line, Atlantic Records’ CEO Ahmet Ertegun expressed his appreciation for Stills’ former Springfield cohort Neil Young. Managers Elliot Roberts and David Geffen took the hint and convinced CSN that adding Young to the line-up would bring a whole other element to the table. Starting with Woodstock, CSN&Y drew an immediate reaction as they intermixed electric and acoustic styles, and adopted a diversified style all their own. In 1970, they cut a four-prong debut called Déjà Vu.
Fast forward 50 years, and it remains one of the most celebrated albums of the classic rock era. Seizing the opportunity, Rhino unveils Déjà Vu 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, a four CD and single LP set that includes the original album remastered, plus unreleased demos, outtakes and alternate versions of the songs. So, in addition to the album’s 10 tracks that include such favorites as “Carry On,” “Teach Your Children,” Woodstock,” Helpless” and “Our House,” there’s unearthed gold like “Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves),” “Birds,” “Right Between The Eyes,” “Horses Through A Rainstorm,” and an early take of “Our House” with Nash and Joni Mitchell, among other nuggets. The music, nearly 50 songs in all, is packed within a hardcover book rounded out with rare photos and liner notes by Cameron Crowe that tell the story of how the album was made.
Déjà Vu isn’t necessarily the culmination of everything Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young were capable of. Rather, it illustrates that within the context of an ego-filled environment, the talent can often outshine the personality. Taken as a whole, the album is a cross-pollinated hybrid that defies easy categorization. Stills’ poignant turn on “4 +20” stands in stark contrast to Crosby’s raw, gut-wrenching vocals on “Almost Cut My Hair.” Nash nourishes the record with simple and cheerful odes like “Teach Your Children” and “Our House,” while Young coherently coos through “Helpless” and “Country Girl.” Together, CSNY swing through Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock” somewhere between simpered finesse and total abandon — injecting far more fuel into its delivery than Mitchell could ever muster.
As the finale, “Everybody I Love You” is suffused with creamy harmonies that slip and slide over the rough and ready terrain of guitar work laid down by Stills and Young. With drummer Dallas Taylor and bassist Greg Reeves holding down the rhythm, Déjà Vu remains the quintessential CSNY album. Subsequent studio efforts featuring the four — 1988’s American Dream and 1999’s Looking Forward — don’t come close to the spirit, urgency, and unity of Déjà Vu. Listening through the original songs, tracking through the demos, exploring the early and alternate takes, glancing over the photos, and soaking up the history, it’s hard to imagine it turning out any other way.
~ Shawn Perry
