respectively, while Brit Graham Nash
had come from the Hollies. That
trio’s debut album, Crosby, Stills &
Nash, had produced the hit single
“Marrakesh Express.” Shortly there-
after they hooked up with Canadian
singer-guitarist-composer Neil Young,
another Buffalo Springfield grad (who’d
had a somewhat difficult relationship
with Stills). “We were scared,” Crosby
remembered. “Everyone we respected
in the whole goddamned music busi-
ness was standing in a circle behind us
when we went on... we were the new
kids on the block, it was our second
public gig, nobody had ever seen us,
everybody had heard the record, every-
body wondered, ‘What in hell are they
about?’... I was also toasted because
we had some of that pullover pot, that
incredible Columbian gold that a friend
of mine named Rocky had brought.”
Jitters and controlled substances
notwithstanding, the 3:30 a.m. per-
formance was magical, so much so
that CSN&Y and their music would
be a central theme of the Woodstock
film. The set opened with a sublime
version of “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes,”
Stills’s multipart paean to former girl-
friend Judy Collins. Highlights of
their 90-minute set include, among
others, the Beatles’ “Blackbird,”
“Helplessly Hoping,” “Marrakesh
Express,” “4+20,” “Mr. Soul,” “Long
Time Gone,” “Wooden Ships,” and an
encore of “Find the Cost of Freedom”
and “49 Bye-Byes.” Throughout, Neil
Young was literally a shadow figure—
he objected to Michael Wadleigh’s
film crew, had no desire to appear on
camera, and kept largely out of sight—
though not, thankfully, sound.AFTER WOODSTOCK: The four men went
on to produce more hits, together and
separately, through a decades-long cycle
of estrangement and reconciliation.
Crosby, in particular, has battled per-
sonal demons—including heavy sub-
stance addiction. In 1982 he spent nine
months in a Texas prison on drugs and
weapons charges; other drug-related
brushes with the law followed. In 1994,
Crosby required a liver transplant. He
has since kicked hard drugs and still
performs at 77. So do Stills, 74, Nash, 77,
and the 73-year-old Young.THERE WAS A GREAT DEAL OF
musical curiosity in advance
of the performance of Crosby,
Stills, Nash & Young. Their
debut album (sans Young) had
been a critical and popular
success, but almost no one
had yet seen them perform
live. The members of the
band themselves were, by
their own admission, “scared
sh--less” as Stephen Stills told
the crowd. While the three
originals (above, left to right,
Stills, David Crosby, Graham
Nash) performed up front in
the bright lights, Neil Young
chose to stay, and play, in
the shadows.80 LIFE WOODSTOCK