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orangefan65's review
3.0
Listened to this on audiobook while in car for work. The epic, exhaustive saga of CSNY with their various collaborations and solo projects. These 4 men (the obsessive loner Young, the straightforward, no-nonsense guitarist Stills, the golden-voiced peacemaker Nash, and the self-destructive narcissistic Crosby) were, at various times, musically prolific, personally irresponsible, and socially active. But the one thing that needs to be always remembered is that even those who are so-called heroes and icons are still just...human. Well researched.
baffy's review
3.0
Well, this book certainly is definitive, I’ll give it that much. I’m a fan but I can’t imagine anyone really needing to know this much about anyone else. Browne is a Rolling Stone journalist and a very good writer who has more than adequately covered his subjects. There are four of them and they are all complicated and conflicted human beings but I found the level of detail in this biography to be overwhelming. In spite of all the detail on the recordings and concerts, however, there are very few photos and the men themselves remain pretty two dimensional.
booksuperpower's review
4.0
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock’s Greatest Supergroup by David Browne is a 2019 Da Capo Press publication.
One of the first rock supergroups, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, have been around, on and off, for over fifty years. Again, that makes this group one of those that I have known nearly my whole life.
Their music has played in the background of my life and I while I am more than a casual fan, I can’t say I am a super fan, knowing everything about them, frontward and backwards. I did know enough to recognize, that despite the talent and their popularity, their best trick seems to be self-sabotage.
Despite the enormous ego clashes, the copious amounts of drugs, the health issues, and the constant second guessing about Neil Young’s ‘will he, or won’t he", the group always managed to sustain itself. Sometimes the effort was puny and sometimes it was simply brilliant, but the band has come together time and time again much to the delight of their loyal fans.
Theirs is one of the most turbulent and maladjusted groupings of musicians in rock history and their story is one that boggles the mind.
So much time to make up everywhere you turn
Time we have wasted on the way…
This a very, very comprehensive biography, and is well organized and obviously well researched. Browne has put a great deal of effort into the book, something I wish I found in other music biographies, many of which are hastily thrown together, using materials one can easily find on the internet. From that standpoint, I think the author deserves kudos for doing the grunt work and giving the book a solid presentation.
However, his subjects are the ones who let him down in the end. As with the Graham Nash memoir, I found the first part of the book of great interest. However, by the time we reached, the late eighties, I was beginning to feel exhausted by all the drama.
The last several decades are just more of the same old, same old. They get together for a concert or collaboration and beg Neil to join. He mostly plays hard to get, claiming he doesn’t want to cope with all the psychodrama- but contributing to it as well. Sometimes he would relent and then bail on them. They get along for a while, then start fighting, then they would scatter to the winds again, working on solo projects or their other bands, until they needed another influx of cash.
Therefore, the book fizzled out and got boring. I skim read the last two segments, if that tells you anything. Perhaps a summary of the 2000s would have been a better approach, although I do think the author meant well.
As for my personal feelings about the group- None of these guys are particularly likable. Some are more of a turn off than others. Unfortunately, their epic meltdowns and drug issues are also a part of their legacy.
However, I love their harmonies, their boldness in which they challenged the ‘establishment’ and their talent, separately and as a unit. I still listen to their music, rarely thinking about all the behind the scenes drama surrounding the group.
I do, however, think of all the group contributed to our musical experience. They’ve been a staple, and part of such an exciting time when so much creativity was emerging during the heyday of rock music, and what a big role they played in it.
They deserve a place in music history and their music, as nostalgic as it may seem now, meant something to people in a time when music mattered, when it made a statement, and was a voice for generations of people.
My favorite songs:
Carry On
Woodstock
Southern Cross
Ohio
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
Overall, if you are a fan of this group, you have probably heard a lot of ground covered in this book before, but I still think there are plenty of details even the most knowledgeable fan might find interesting. If you are not familiar with the band’s back story, this book will tell you all ever wanted to know and then some.
Because it is obvious the author put in a lot of effort and work, I’m going to give this book a nudge up with the rating. The last few segments are redundant, but the author deserves an A for effort.
3.5 rounded up.
One of the first rock supergroups, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, have been around, on and off, for over fifty years. Again, that makes this group one of those that I have known nearly my whole life.
Their music has played in the background of my life and I while I am more than a casual fan, I can’t say I am a super fan, knowing everything about them, frontward and backwards. I did know enough to recognize, that despite the talent and their popularity, their best trick seems to be self-sabotage.
Despite the enormous ego clashes, the copious amounts of drugs, the health issues, and the constant second guessing about Neil Young’s ‘will he, or won’t he", the group always managed to sustain itself. Sometimes the effort was puny and sometimes it was simply brilliant, but the band has come together time and time again much to the delight of their loyal fans.
Theirs is one of the most turbulent and maladjusted groupings of musicians in rock history and their story is one that boggles the mind.
So much time to make up everywhere you turn
Time we have wasted on the way…
This a very, very comprehensive biography, and is well organized and obviously well researched. Browne has put a great deal of effort into the book, something I wish I found in other music biographies, many of which are hastily thrown together, using materials one can easily find on the internet. From that standpoint, I think the author deserves kudos for doing the grunt work and giving the book a solid presentation.
However, his subjects are the ones who let him down in the end. As with the Graham Nash memoir, I found the first part of the book of great interest. However, by the time we reached, the late eighties, I was beginning to feel exhausted by all the drama.
The last several decades are just more of the same old, same old. They get together for a concert or collaboration and beg Neil to join. He mostly plays hard to get, claiming he doesn’t want to cope with all the psychodrama- but contributing to it as well. Sometimes he would relent and then bail on them. They get along for a while, then start fighting, then they would scatter to the winds again, working on solo projects or their other bands, until they needed another influx of cash.
Therefore, the book fizzled out and got boring. I skim read the last two segments, if that tells you anything. Perhaps a summary of the 2000s would have been a better approach, although I do think the author meant well.
As for my personal feelings about the group- None of these guys are particularly likable. Some are more of a turn off than others. Unfortunately, their epic meltdowns and drug issues are also a part of their legacy.
However, I love their harmonies, their boldness in which they challenged the ‘establishment’ and their talent, separately and as a unit. I still listen to their music, rarely thinking about all the behind the scenes drama surrounding the group.
I do, however, think of all the group contributed to our musical experience. They’ve been a staple, and part of such an exciting time when so much creativity was emerging during the heyday of rock music, and what a big role they played in it.
They deserve a place in music history and their music, as nostalgic as it may seem now, meant something to people in a time when music mattered, when it made a statement, and was a voice for generations of people.
My favorite songs:
Carry On
Woodstock
Southern Cross
Ohio
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
Overall, if you are a fan of this group, you have probably heard a lot of ground covered in this book before, but I still think there are plenty of details even the most knowledgeable fan might find interesting. If you are not familiar with the band’s back story, this book will tell you all ever wanted to know and then some.
Because it is obvious the author put in a lot of effort and work, I’m going to give this book a nudge up with the rating. The last few segments are redundant, but the author deserves an A for effort.
3.5 rounded up.
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