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11 October 2011
The tour T-shirt is the cover of "Another Stoney Evening" and that seems highly appropriate for this gig. Not that there's any sign of chemical enhancement in the duo, but more that this is a ramble through some of the obscure, or at the least the less visited, corners of their collective back catalogue. The big CSN hits are there, of course, but in many ways this is a very different set list from recent years. And nothing said that more clearly than the opener - David Crosby has been something of a tease in the past, he'll play a bar or two of Tambourine Man and then it's off to something from the CSN family. Not so tonight - 'Eight Miles High', and if the guitar solos were not quite the Coltrane inspired complexities of McGuinn's playing on the original then that can be forgiven for the chance to hear Crosby singing that iconic song. Following up the instant impact of this with 'Used to be a King' and a fine 'Long Time Coming' with Crosby belting it out as well as ever and on further into CSN territory with 'Marrakesh Express' and the Royal Albert Hall was truly a joyful place.
Crosby's son, James Raymond, not only provides keyboards for the band, but as a songwriter he made valuable contributions to the Crosby&Nash double album. His songs, perfect material for the duo, feature tonight - 'Lay Me Down' is as soft and lyrical as a Nash song, 'Don't Dig Here' has Crosby's trademark anger and plain speaking as it mocks the audacity of the nuclear waste disposal industry. Bury everything in a mountain and seal it up ? Sure - just make you label it up as a danger site for the next 10,000 years - “This sign is a warning so pay attention / open up the earth and you could lose control / this place is full of shit that kills / maybe us and maybe you".
Just a couple of times the vocals were not spot on - and I guess the guys know it themselves as they introduced a lovely 'Wind on the Water' with a recording of 'Critical Mass' - last time out they sang this song without words. But what a tiny thing to worry about - there's good signs too - Crosby has a new song. 'Slice of time', a reflective number drawing on the same wellspring as 'Delta'. This reflective mood carried on into the second set. They'd mentioned David Gilmour a couple of times, going as far as dedicating the gig to him - which may have raised some hopes. However he didn’t appear but instead Graham Nash is reunited with Allen Clarke for a reprise of The Hollies' 'Bus Stop'. Nash laughs afterwards -"I've known him since I was six...twenty years now". And there's similar joking back and forth between him and Crosby, the pair so relaxed on stage - Nash barefoot prancing on a Persian rug, the grey lion maned Crosby no longer hiding behind a baseball cap. Relaxed - but still angry at "the men who run this land" and the corporations who "Want it all".
The beautiful 'Orleans' off Crosby's debut solo album, sung spotlessly and dispersing in an instant any fears over diminished vocals, segued perfectly into Nash's 'Cathedral' which romped along at a wild abandoned pace, images cutting in upon each other, distant things in close up, near things spinning as whipped by the wind. And a solid rocking threesome to close up the set with - 'Deja Vu', a truly superb and spirited all-out attack on "Military Madness" and finally the perfect hippy dream of "Wooden Ships" extended and stretching to allow the band to take a solo each. These are songs you can never tire of hearing live. And a beautiful encore of 'Chicago', the whole of the Royal Albert Hall up on their feet and singing along - "Let a man live his own life. Rules and regulations? Who needs them?" And, just for a few minutes, it actually seems possible - "we can change the world". Naive? Well now, let's look at what's been achieved since 1970 for equality, environmental concern, and questioning of blind obedience to authority. Still sound naive? Don't stop there though, 'Teach your children well' - the perennial gig closer - just seals that moment of optimism for a little while longer. What a band. What a gig. Crosby and Nash - as breath-taking as ever.
Set List
Set 1
Eight Miles High
Used to be a king
Long time coming
Marrakesh Express
Lay me down
Old Soldier
Just a song
Slice of time
Don't dig here
Critical Mass (recording)
Wind on the Water
Almost cut my hair
Set 2
Bus Stop (Allen Clarke guest vocal)
Our House
Guinniveire
In your name
Who are the men (accappella)
They want it all
Taken at all
Orleans
Cathedral
Deja Vu
Military Madness
Wooden Ships
Encore
Chicago
Teach your children