#pegi young

Book Review: "Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock's Greatest Supergroup" by David Browne

In less than 10 days in 1970, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young launched, then cancelled, a tour; broke up; got back together; fired one drummer; hired another; recorded "Ohio" and "Find the Cost of Freedom;" and rescheduled the aforementioned concert dates.

This compressed spate of ego clashes, personality disputes, stubbornness and childish arguments is a fine microcosm of the fraught, decades-long relationship between the four musicians and appears in chapter three of David Browne's "Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock's Greatest Supergroup." Running 421 pages across chapters that span "Early Years - December 1968" through "January 2008 - September 2018," Browne chronicles CSN (& sometimes Y)'s comings together, fallings apart and comings back together in just the right amount of detail - it's not inside baseball, nor is it a mere glossing over.

Browne, the Rolling Stone contributor who has written about the Grateful Dead in "So Many Roads" and Sonic Youth in "Goodbye 20th Century," scored interviews with Crosby and Nash - Stills and Young declined to participate - and stitched together a compelling story with yarns from contemporaries (the Dead’s Mickey Hart), bandmates (Crosby’s son James Raymond, the Byrds’ Roger McGuinn) and historical sources.

The result is an eminently readable chronicle of the four men from the ashes of Buffalo Springfield (Stills and Young), the Byrds (Crosby) and the Hollies (Nash) to the phoenix of CSNY to the ashes of CSNY and, later, the ashes of CSN.

While the band's story is mostly already known the fans who have followed them throughout the years, there are some nuggets of new information.

But it's the side paths into their respective solo careers, pairing such as Crosby and Nash and the Stills-Young Band, and their personal lives that provide the most insight to the things that motivate and make the musicians tick: Crosby's cockiness; Stills' desire for adulation; Nash's repeated attempts at peacemaking; and Young's interest in only what interests him.

And it’s a powerful reminder of how little music - CSN/CSNY released only three studio albums between 1969 and 1977 and just eight overall - the trio/quartet made together and how far it took them.

It was - and may be again, as long as they're still alive - a volatile mix and resulted in some amazing music over the decades.

As good as it is, “The Wild, Definitive Saga” feels rushed and reads as if it should have had at least one more round of editing before heading to the printers. And in an unfortunate publishing quirk, the book repeatedly refers to Young’s ex-wife, who died on New Year’s Day 2019, in the present tense.

Grade card: "Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock's Greatest Supergroup" by David Browne - B

Wow, can’t believe it is only January 3 and there have already been so many celebrity deaths in the last few days. Since I’m a little behind, here is my lightning round of remembrances:

RIP Mean Gene Okerlund 1942-2019

The Mean Gene figure

WWE announcer Mean Gene has passed away at 76. When I was a kid I got into wrestling, back when it was WWF. In the mid-late 80s I loved wrestling. Mean Gene and Vince McMahon were the announcers and frequently interviewed the wrestlers. Mean Gene even had a figure (I had it) and was featured on the Rock and Wrestling Cartoon. On the 1985 Wrestling Album, Mean Gene even did a cover of Little Richard’s “Tutti Frutti”.

The link above is his obit from Deadline.

Bob Einstein 1942-2019

Larry David and Einstein on Curb Your Enthusiasm

Actor and comedy writer Bob Einstein has died at 76. The older brother of Albert Brooks (talent runs in that family!?!), he was a writer on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in the 60s, through the 70s and 80s he was Super Dave Osborne, and was on Arrested Development in the 00s. But his greatest role of all-time was as Marty Funkhouser on Curb Your Enthusiasm from 2004-2017. He had such a great rapport with Larry David and I laughed out loud at so many of their interactions. Also worth checking out was the 2017 episode of Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee episode with Einstein as the guest.

The link above is the obit from CNN.

Pegi Young 1952-2019

Pegi Young and her dog

Musician, philanthropist and the former wife of Neil Young, Pegi has died at 66. The California native was married to Neil Young from 1978-2014 and the mother of 2 kids with him. She made her music debut performing with Neil at the 1994 Academy Awards, when he performed “Philadelphia” from the Jonathan Demme film of the same name. In the years that followed she released some solo albums and toured with Neil. When I was Neil Young in 2008 at Madison Square Garden, she was among the back-up singers. Some of my favorite albums Neil Young did in the 00s, she sang back-up on, i.e. Are You Passionate?, Greendale, and one of my all-time favorites of his Prairie Wind. She also can be seen in 2 of Demme’s Neil Young concert documentaries Neil Young: Heart of Gold and Neil Young Trunk Show. It needs to be said that she founded the Bridge School and the annual concert benefit became a who’s who of musical talent over the years. Too bad I never got to go to any of the concerts, as they were always in Mountain View, CA.