CSNY 1974

CSNY 1974

Overview

It was, at the time, one of the highest-grossing rock tours ever, grossing over 11 million dollars in an era when such figures were uncommon. Such success camouflaged the chaos behind the scenes -- the bitter fights and feuds, the excess and indulgence that led to Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young pocketing about a half million dollars each, when all was said and done. Big bucks were the reason the CSNY 1974 tour even existed. Efforts to record a new album in 1973, their first since 1970's breakthrough Déjà Vu, collapsed but manager Elliot Roberts and promoter Bill Graham convinced the group to stage the first outdoor stadium tour in the summer of 1974, with the idea that CSNY would test-drive new material in concert, then record a new studio album in the fall, or maybe release a live record from the historic tour. Neither happened. The group cleaved in two upon the tour's conclusion and the live tapes sat in the vaults until Graham Nash decided to assemble a box set of the tour just in time for its 40th anniversary in 2014. Nash and producer Joel Bernstein -- the driving forces behind the excellent new millennial archival CSN reissues -- culled the best moments from the nine recorded shows, sometimes cobbling together composites, then assembled the whole thing as a three-CD set designed to replicate the mammoth three-hour sets the quartet played in 1974. That very length indicates how there was room on the 1974 tour for every aspect of CSNY, giving space to sensitive folk, woolly electric guitar jams, hits, and unheard songs. Several of those new songs showed up on albums by CSNY in various permutations, while a few -- mostly written by Young -- never got an airing outside of this tour, so the first official release of "Love Art Blues," "Pushed It Over the End," and even the throwaway Nixon jape "Goodbye Dick" is indeed noteworthy. But what makes CSNY 1974 a substantial chapter in their legacy is how it captures the band in full flight just as its moment is starting to slip away. Stills and Young play with the burly force they channeled into Manassas and Crazy Horse, providing a startling contrast to both the sweetness of disc two's acoustic set and Crosby's excursions into the haze of If I Could Only Remember My Name. Hearing the band pull apart as its members come together is simultaneously thrilling and enervating because Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young remain locked in a battle to outdo one another; it's fascinating to hear them spar, but also draining. Nevertheless, that messy competition is why CSNY 1974 is a vital addition to their canon. Tales of CSNY acrimony are legend, but this rancor rarely surfaced on record. Here, those brawling egos are pushed to the forefront, with all the pretty harmonies operating as an accent to the main event.

Product Details

Release Date: 07/08/2014
Label: Atlantic
UPC: 0603497899920
catalogNumber: 541732
Rank: 4945

Tracks

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young   Primary Artist
Graham Nash   Acoustic Guitar,Piano,Electric Guitar,Vocals
Steve Stills   Acoustic Guitar,Piano,Electric Guitar,Vocals,Clavinet
Neil Young   Acoustic Guitar,Harmonica,Electric Guitar,Vocals,Hammond B3
David Crosby   Acoustic Guitar,Electric Guitar,Tambourine,Vocals,Guitar (12 String Electric)
Tim Drummond   Bass
Joe Lala   Percussion
Russell Kunkel   Drums

Technical Credits

Graham Nash   Composer,Producer,Art Direction
Steve Stills   Composer
Neil Young   Composer
Bob Hammer   Personal Assistant
Paul Kantner   Composer
Mark Morris   Audio Technician
Stephen Barncard   Engineer
Joel Bernstein   Producer,Art Direction
David Crosby   Composer
Gene Eichelberger   Engineer
Mac Holbert   Personal Assistant
Stanley Johnston   Engineer
Elliot Mazer   Engineer
Tim Mulligan   Engineer
Denny Purcell   Engineer
Elliot Roberts   Management
Patrick Stansfield   Stage Manager
Michael John Bowen   Management
Bob Hurwitz   Accounting
Bill Graham   Director
Brian Porizek   Art Direction
Arthur Rosato   Transportation
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young   Producer
James Mazzeo   Personal Assistant
Barry Imhoff   Production Chief
Ben Lesko   Guitar Techician
Bob Kelley   Transportation
Craig Reynolds   Audio Technician
Del Furano   Merchandising
Donald Miller   Management
Steve Gagne   Engineer
Ed Stewart   Electrician
Bob Sterne   Monitor Engineer
Steve Neal   Audio Technician
Alan Bagshaw   Electrician
Cree Miller   Management
Frank Barsalona   Booking
Clayton Johnson   Electrician
Michael Hopper   Stage Crew
John "Stranger" Adams   Transportation
Glenn Goodwin   Equipment Manager
Ryan Bird   Transportation
Carlos Trenary   Transportation
Paul Dana   Transportation
"Crash" Kennedy   Transportation
Walker Kamm   Stage Crew
Steven Cohen   Lighting Director
Sal Cappozoli   Transportation
Randy Noble   Transportation
Paul Wasserman   Publicity
Michael Berlin   Transportation
Mark Bethel   Stage Crew
Kevin O'Connell   Transportation
John Talbot   Equipment Manager
John Ransome   Transportation
Jim Flibott   Transportation
Jim Deluca   Transportation
Jeff Panek   Accounting
Jay Jones   Audio Technician
Jay Drevers   Stage Crew
Harry Donovan   Stage Crew
Guillermo Giachetti   Personal Assistant,Equipment Manager
Gino Elarcosa   Stage Crew
Fred Meyers   Audio Technician
David Noffsinger   Lighting Director
David "RD" Cline   Personal Assistant
Dave Furano   Tour Manager
Dan Martin   Transportation
Chris O'Dell   Tour Manager
Bill Hodge   Stage Crew

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