CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG : LIVE AT FILLMORE EAST, 1969

CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG : LIVE AT FILLMORE EAST, 1969

Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
Blackbird
Helplessly Hoping
Guinnevere
Lady Of The Island
Go Back Home
On The Way Home
4 + 20
Our House
I've Loved Her So Long
You Don't Have To Cry
Long Time Gone
Wooden Ships
Bluebird Revisited
Sea Of Madness
Down By The River
Find The Cost Of Freedom

Label : Rhino Records

Venue : Fillmore East, New York City, New York, USA

Recording Date : September 20, 1969

Release Date : October 25, 2024

Length : 77:20

Review (AllMusic) : Just about a month after playing Woodstock (their second live gig), Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young booked a several-night residency at New York City's Fillmore East, performing acoustic and electric sets at multiple shows a night. Live at Fillmore East, 1969 is mixed and mastered from the original eight-track tapes, documenting the final show of the run. Sounding surprisingly fresh, even 55 years after it was recorded, the 17-song set list of Live at Fillmore East covers a lot of ground, delivering on everything it attempts. The acoustic set kicks off with a high-spirited version of "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes," with the group trying new vocal sidebars and harmony ideas different from the version recorded just months earlier for the Crosby, Stills, & Nash album. CSNY also perform "Helplessly Hoping" (cracking each other up as they do), "Guinnevere," "Lady of the Island," and "You Don't Have to Cry" from their debut album during the acoustic set, as well as a cover of the Beatles' "Blackbird" and the then-yet-to-be-recorded Déjà Vu track "Our House," performed solo on Hammond organ by Graham Nash and lovingly dedicated to Joni Mitchell, whom he wrote the song for and about. It's a touching moment in the set, and a window into the songwriting process for a tune that would be ubiquitous after the public got ahold of it the next year. Songs from Neil Young's self-titled solo record show up on Live at Fillmore East, 1969, as does a burning and jammy rendition of his Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere cut "Down by the River," played second to last in an electric set that moves the night away from the sentimental and more toward the fiery. The electric set consists of just six songs: the aforementioned 17-minute-long jam on "Down by the River," a deeply grooving "Long Time Gone" as well as "Wooden Ships" from Crosby, Stills, & Nash, Woodstock standout song "Sea of Madness," "Find the Cost of Freedom," and Stephen Stills' "Bluebird Revisited," an extension of his Buffalo Springfield hit "Bluebird." While Live at Fillmore East doesn't necessarily fill in any gaps in this extremely well-documented and furiously productive early phase of CSNY, it's still a great listen, and a must-hear concert document for any fans of the group or any of its individual components. Though all of the players were experienced professionals on-stage at this point, the collective energy that they created together was still relatively new, and Live at Fillmore East, 1969 offers an unvarnished view of that very specific excitement, along with the humanizing jitters and joviality that came along with it.

Review (Bourbon And Vinyl) : I will fully admit up front that I was really looking forward this release from the CSNY vaults, a live album culled from a performance by the band at the legendary Fillmore East from September of 1969. I was concerned my high expectations might foil my listening experience – but have no fear, this is an exceptional performance. Apparently all four members of the band – David Crosby, Graham Nash, Stephen Stills and Neil Young – all had a hand in this release but it was Stills and Young who actually mixed, edited and put the album together. The actual performance was 21 songs and they cut it down to these 17 songs, probably so it’d fit onto a double vinyl album. Young is an analog guy. CSNY, performing at the Fillmore East, in 1969… oh yes, sign me up. Makes me want to put on tie-dye and bell bottom jeans…but I don’t cosplay. This is, by my count, the third great live album from CSNY. As most longtime readers know, their first live LP, 1971’s 4 Way Street made our list of Essential Live Albums. In 2014 the band released the three-disc 1974 box which was culled from performances from CSNY’s reunion tour in 1974 that Crosby dubbed “the Doom Tour.” That live album, 1974, was superb and I considered naming that to my Essential Live LP list, but at the time it hadn’t acquired the patina that 4 Way Street had. Although admittedly, I still go back to 1974 quite a bit. I have to say, this record could easily be mentioned as “in the running” for my favorite CSNY live album. I know CSNY have a few other live albums, mostly as a trio, but I prefer my live CSN with some Young. Those years 1969 and 1970 were pretty amazing days for CSNY. Their first album, as a trio before Neil Young joined, was released in May of 1969. By August of 1969 Neil had joined and they played their second gig – at Woodstock. They played this series of shows – two shows a night – at the legendary Fillmore East in September of 1969, a mere month and a half after Woodstock. I can almost smell the incense and pot. It wasn’t until march of ’70 that they released their second album – as a quartet – the masterpiece Deja Vu. That’s quite a journey over 10 months. Life and fame were coming at them pretty damn fast. While there a few flaws here, this is still a great live album. I think Stills and probably more likely Young were a tad harsh on the editing. One of the things I’ve always liked about CSNY live was the stoney banter between songs, as the members talked to the crowd or each other. There’s precious little of that here. There are a few moments when Graham Nash, perhaps my least favorite of the quartet, gets a little overwrought and sings with a bit too much bonhomie. But hey, it’s a live recording, variances from the studio recording is part of the deal. What I like so much about this album is that it really captures a moment in time. They were coming off the high of that first album, Crosby Stills Nash, and had just played their second gig at Woodstock. They still seem to all really be into this group. The esprit de corps is running high here. There’s none of that solo success quite yet to turn each member into a more selfish participant. When they sing the Beatles’ cover “Blackbird,” they all laugh together like they’re just happy they were able to pull it off. They’re still invested in succeeding together. They were in the process of putting together Deja Vu. I don’t sense any of the infighting that would come later. Crosby, in particular, seems joyful. Of course this was right before his girlfriend, Christine Hinton, died in a tragic car crash (September 30, 1969) and I don’t know if he was ever the same after that. The band opens up with their signature song, “Suite Judy Blue Eyes.” The version on 4 Way Street was merely a snippet of the track, this is the full-on, almost 9-minute rendition. It feels like they’re kids with a new toy. They explore their harmonies with awe that they’re able to sound like that. I was really taken with the entire acoustic set. We get songs from the Crosby Stills Nash album along side tracks that weren’t released yet but would come out on Deja Vu and a few that would come out on solo albums much later. We also get some early Neil Young and some Buffalo Springfield. It’s just a great set list. It’s fun to hear these guys laugh their way through “Helplessly Hoping.” “Guinnevere” and “Our Lady Of The Island” are just gorgeous. The harmonies are stunning. Stills lays down some blues on “Go Back Home.” Neil does a wonderful acoustic “On The Way Home” from the Springfield. “4+20” has always knocked me out and this is a great live version. You could hear a pin drop in the Fillmore East. “Our House,” as yet unreleased, is just Graham Nash singing and accompanying himself on organ (at least I think that’s him on organ). It was so different and I’m so used to the studio version it took me a few listens to realize what a great performance it is. Young’s version of “I’ve Loved Her So Long” from his solo debut played here is pretty much the definitive version of that song. So gorgeous! They wrap up the acoustic set with “You Don’t Have To Cry,” and with the soaring vocal harmonies, it’s wonderful. The electric section starts with a spirited rendition of “Long Time Gone,” Crosby’s song about the RFK assassination. Granted Graham Nash gets a little carried away but I like this version. “Wooden Ships” is one of my favorite riffs and they kill this version. I was surprised to hear Stills do “Bluebird Revisited,” his sequel to the Buffalo Springfield tune “Bluebird,” which didn’t come out until Stephen Stills 2. I like it better live. Young does “Sea Of Madness” which he famously performed at Woodstock. I love that song. Young has described the version of “Down By The River” found here complete with a Stills-Young guitar duel as the definitive version. I’m not sure I’m ready to agree with that but at 17-minutes, it’s a pretty raucous version. They shift back to acoustic and just perfectly sing “Find The Cost Of Freedom” and it just about brings tears to my eyes. It’s a brief but beautiful way to end the show. These guys would go on to put out Deja Vu, then everybody put out solo albums and off they all went on their separate ways… only to reunite on occasion over the years. If these guys had been able to stay together as a foursome they’d be thought of in the same vein as the Stones or the Beatles. But, I’ll admit I dig their solo stuff. I just think they elevated each other’s game. Together they just seemed to be more than the sum of their parts… This is a great live album, and I love live albums, that I recommend to all fans of rock n roll, CSNY, or a groovy hippy vibe. Check this one out, post haste! Cheers!

Review (The Old Grey Cat) : September 20, 1969: Compadres David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young close out a two-night, four-show run at New York City’s fabled Fillmore East. CSNY, as most folks reading this will or should know, is still in its infancy at this stage. The self-titled debut LP from Crosby, Stills and Nash, released in May, turned many ears due to its low-key hipness but, when it came time to hit the road, the three realized they needed a fourth. Rather than hire a sideman, as they would for bass and drums, they deign to go big. But when attempts to woo John Sebastian and Stevie Winwood fail, they agree—at the urging of Atlantic Records’ Ahmet Ertegun—on Stills’ former Buffalo Springfield stablemate, Neil Young. Rehearsals, rehearsals and more rehearsals ensue in New York, with the initial pick to play bass, Bruce Palmer, soon kicked to the curb in favor of Greg Reeves, who’s recommended by Young’s old pal Rick James. Drummer Dallas Taylor, who played on the CSN debut, rounds out the sextet. The original plan to start the tour in the Big Apple is rejiggered, however, when Nash is forced to rest his voice after developing polyps on his vocal cords. As a result, the group debuts their live skills at Chicago’s Auditorium Theater on August 16, where they play an early and late show; Joni Mitchell opens. (Tickets, for those curious, ranged from $3.50 to $6.50.) Two days later, they hit the stage at the now legendary Woodstock music festival at three in the morning. Over the next month, they play a week-long engagement at the Greek Theatre in L.A., film two TV appearances (The Music Scene and This Is Tom Jones) and appear at the Big Sur Folk Festival. Then New York beckons. Live at Fillmore East, 1969 captures the magic. The first half is acoustic, the second electric, while the sound—overseen by Stills, Young and John Hanlon—is pristine. Everything I’ve read indicates that it hails from the late show on the 20th. If the Neil Young setlist site Sugar Mountain is accurate, then, a few songs were left out and the set order tweaked—similar to what Young did with his archival Young Shakespeare a few years back. Between-song patter is also excised. Doesn’t much matter. What’s here is phenomenal. While Young waits backstage, Crosby, Stills and Nash weave ethereal wonders during the initial stretch of songs, with the opening “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes” giving way to a cover of the Beatles’ “Blackbird,” while Crosby’s “Guinnevere” is absolutely stunning thanks to Nash’s genteel harmonies, while Nash’s “Our House”—which he’d record for Deja Vu—will leave you singing along. Neil saunters to stage center for “On the Way Home,” which rightly receives a round of applause at the start. “I’ve Loved Her So Long,” a highlight from his solo debut LP, is a stripped-down delight that’s buttressed by the addition of Nash’s harmonies. The electric section is as fine, if a tad more ragged, with Crosby singing his heart out on “Long Time Gone,” and the band sailing into the sky on “Wooden Ships.” The highlight, however, is a riveting 16-minute “Down by the River” that floods the brain with dopamine. All in all, its an excellent set that’s well worth many listens. It’s available on LP, CD and via the usual streaming sites, including the Neil Young Archives.