Gannett News Service
David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash (left to right) first recorded together as a trio for 1969's "Crosby, Stills and Nash" record.

Gannett News Service
By the time David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash toured, Neil Young (above) had joined the group.

Fans can't forget Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

Band's lyrics still ring true for South Sound listeners

ROSS RAIHALA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Friday, March 15, 2002

The songs of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young influenced an entire generation of people in the late 1960s and early '70s to, among other things, "teach your children well ... and feed them on your dreams."

But when Jeffrey Russell heard the group's "Almost Cut My Hair," he decided it was time to serve his country in Vietnam.

"There's a line in there where David Crosby sings 'Because I feel like I owe it to someone,' " says Russell, an Olympia resident who will turn 50 in September. "I volunteered for Vietnam because I thought I owed somebody.

"You can say that was a good or a bad decision, and the man who wrote the song probably never intended this to happen, but it was an incredible experience."

David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash first recorded together as a trio for 1969's "Crosby, Stills and Nash" record.

By the time they toured, Neil Young had joined the group. The second time Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young played live together, it was in front of the masses of Woodstock.

"Deja Vu" followed in 1970 and has since become acclaimed as one of rock's greatest albums. But by the time the "Four Way Street" live album hit stores, Young had left the band.

In 1974, the four members regrouped for a tour and have since collaborated together on an infrequent basis, releasing albums in 1988 ("American Dream") and 1999 ("Looking Forward").

They toured together as a quartet in 2000 and are now back on the road, including a stop tonight at the Tacoma Dome.

Despite the erratic CSNY output, the group's songs still ring true to Susan Shaw of Tenino.

"They always send a good message with their songs," says the 46-year-old Shaw. "It reminds me of freedom. Back in the good old days, we were a lot more free, even if we didn't think so at the time."

Shaw says she was so enthralled by Neil Young in particular, she taught herself the guitar by listening to his music.

"They sing these songs about raising the quality of life," Shaw says. "That's what the point is, to help people and stand up for what's right."

For Russell, that meant going to war and serving as a special forces medic. When he returned to the States, Russell caught the CSNY 1974 reunion tour. The group played for four hours.

CSNY's music has acted as a sort of soundtrack for Russell's adulthood. Whenever he and his family moved into a new house, he would play "Our House" from the "Deja Vu" album.

"My whole life has been geared toward their songs. I've got 'Four Way Street' in my truck right now," says Russell. "I crank it up. Music is a great motivator."

Doug Spohn of Olympia says CSNY's music "was dramatic, edgy and artistically rendered like no other band. (They) truly represented their era."

The 49-year-old Spohn saw them live in 1970 at the Anaheim (Calif.) Convention Center and still remembers the show to this day.

"Whenever I hear their music it just transports me right back to that time," says Spohn. "Any time you hear one of their songs, you can instantly identify it. They wrote and played their own music, they were really good musicians with excellent voices and catchy tunes. They were the epitome of what a rock group should be."

Ross Raihala covers entertainment for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5406 or rraihala@olympia.gannett.com.

Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

- When: 8 p.m. March 15.

- Where: Tacoma Dome, 2727 East D St., Tacoma.

- Tickets: $40.50-$151.

- For information: Call Ticketmaster Northwest at 206-628-0888.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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