David Crosby, Stephen Stills & Graham Nash: The Solo Albums (Rhino/Atlantic)
One of the crown jewels of RSD 2026
The trio of Crosby, Stills & Nash arrived in 1969 and almost immediately imploded from the talent (and strong egos) in the band. After expanding to a quartet with the addition of Neil Young, the group released the phenomenal Deja Vu before going on the first of many hiatuses.
The Solo Albums, a Record Store Day Exclusive, is a 4-LP box set, bringing together the first release each by Crosby, Stills & Nash, plus an additional LP of rarities.
Stephen Stills’ debut is far and away the best, as far as breadth and scope. He tackles gospel (“Church (Pt. Of Someone”), hard rock (“Old Times, Good Times” – with Jimi Hendrix on guitar), funk (“Go Back Home” – with Eric Clapton on guitar), and delta blues (the searing “Black Queen”). Yet, he still has time for the gorgeous “To A Flame,” and the catchy, hit single, “Love the One You’re With.”
Graham Nash’s Songs For Beginners is the most confessional of the three. He’d just ended a relationship with Joni Mitchell and “Simple Man” is just beautifully heartbreaking. He tackles the war of his youth (“Military Madness”) and calls Stills and Young out for not coming to help with his cause (“Chicago”). There’s a lot of introspection that most artists wouldn’t have the courage to attempt (“Man in the Mirror” and “I Used to Be a King”).
David Crosby’s first solo offering, If I Could Only Remember My Name, is the most adventurous of the three. Many of the songs have little or no words – yet the mood is eerie. His girlfriend, Christine Hinton, had just been killed in a car accident, and Crosby was reeling from intense loss. “Music Is Love” opens as a prayer (with help from Nash & Young), while “Cowboy Movie” transforms the members of CSNY into a lengthy Western tale. “Tamalpais High (At About 3)” is a gorgeous, wordless piece full of dense harmony, while “Laughing” (featuring Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead) is the closest thing to a conventional rock song. “Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves)” would be attempted many times, and this is one of the best. “I’d Swear There Was Somebody Here” is downright spooky – as if he’s communicating with his dead girlfriend through this otherworldly harmony.
Of the rarities, Stills’ “The Treasure” is a really good song, and you wonder how it didn’t make the cut, Crosby’s “Dancer” sounds like the start of “Song With No Words,” complete with that same, strange tuning. One of the biggest surprises is hearing Crosby’s “Everybody’s Been Burned” done by Nash.
Stills’ “My Love is a Gentle Thing” is another fine outtake, while “Kids and Dogs” is Crosby’s finest buried treasure. Nash’s songs were already intimate, but the demo to “Sleep Song” makes you feel like you’re in the room with him while he’s writing.
The set comes housed in a cloth box, featuring all three solo albums, faithfully replicated (the gatefold on the Crosby LP is particularly nice). There’s an accompanying booklet with an essay written by David Fricke, who’s talked extensively with the band over the years.
The Solo Albums gives each member of CSN a chance to shine individually, at a time when they all were brimming with ideas. It’s a shame that they didn’t make more great music together. —Tony Peters