We continue our look back at the music of 50 years ago…..
We’ve mentioned before how musical artists would escape their pain by heading to the studio. thus, it was for Stephen Stills in 1971. CSNY had splintered, he had lost both Judy Collins (the love of his life) and Rita Coolidge who had left him for Graham Nash. he had overdosed on pills and been busted for possession. And even though his first solo album had been a success and only been out for few months…Stills headed back to the studio (this time in Florida) to record a new record. He would work at all hours, sometimes for days straight recording this LP. Regardless of his condition, he had written a bunch of new songs. So many, in fact, that he wanted to do a double LP. His record company said no. So, many of his new songs would have to wait until next year when the fantastic Manassas LP would be created.
One change for this record was the addition of horns. He wanted to get a Ray Charles sound not only on record but also the upcoming tour. He had liked what he heard from bands like Chicago & BST and sometimes it works. “Ecology Song” in particular has that Chicago sound. At least two of the songs are about Coolidge…”Sugar Babe” and ‘Singin Call’ although if you read Coolidge’s autobiography, Stills made much more of this relationship than was ever there. He also re-works his old Buffalo Springfield song ‘Bluebird” (about Judy Collins, Miss Judy Blues Eyes herself) into “Bluebird Revisted” a song he had done in concert with CSNY the previous year.
The two singles on the record, “Change Partners” and “Marianne” are solid tunes but didn’t do much on the charts. One song that stands out is ‘Fishes & Scorpions” which features Eric Clapton and dates back to the recording sessions for his first solo LP. “Open Secret” is another standout tune that stands with anything he’s ever done.
The two acoustic tunes on the record have some interesting trivia behind them. “Know You Got To Run” was a phrase he had used in a previous song…and he took it , added a chorus and gave it to REO Speedwagon who did a speeded up rock & roll version on “Ridin The Storm Out”
And Word Game, his furious screed against prejudice, appears in rock & roll form years later with his band The Rides which featured blues guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepard.
The songs “Nothin to Do But Today” and “Relaxing Town” round out the LP. I particularly like the former with its bluesy guitar fills.
The ubiquitous Nils Lofgren plays and sings on the record (did he ever take a day off in 1971?). Stills is also joined by old friends Paul Harris, Dallas Taylor & Fuzzy Samuels( who would join him in Manassas the following year), Billy Preston, Dr. John, David Crosby…and Jerry Garcia, who flew to Miami to lay down the steel guitar lines on Change Partners.
Most of the critics didn’t like this record. Some called it “trivial, cloyingly self-important and shallow”. Stills was personally a mess at this time and was drinking heavily. It led to a chaotic tour that had some high points but many more low ones.
How you view this LP will depend on how much you enjoy the songs, guitar and voice of Stephen Stills. Not as much fun as his first solo effort, but it does have some moments that show the talent he has. The magic of the CSN & CSNY days would return with the Manassas record in 1972.
Comments