Anticipation of an album release hadn’t been as great since the Beatles called it quits. David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash were already a “supergroup” based on their eponymous first album. Now they were adding Neil Young to the mix. They had started working on a new album in July of 1969. It was now well into the new decade, but there was still no album. Fans began to wonder if the group would survive. They found out only later how close that concern had come me to reality.
The pressures of following the near perfect Crosby, Stills & Nash, four big egos – all but one sticklers for getting every detail right, and the practical problem of incorporating Neil’s talents into the band without destroying what was already great, translated into 800 hours of studio time between July and December. Too, the band was in a bad emotional state. Since the first album, Graham had split up with Joni Mitchell, Stephen and Judy Collins had separated, and just before they started recording the new album, David’s girlfriend was killed in a car accident. It’s no stretch to say that Déjà Vu nearly broke the band.
Recording took place at Wally Heider’s studio in San Francisco, CA. The process was grueling. All four members were accomplished songwriters as well as performers. The competition for space on a 10-track album was fierce. Songs were written and tracks laid down by the songwriter. Then the others would come to the studio, usually separately, to critique and hopefully contribute whatever they thought of and could agree upon for each song. Neil even left for LA to record some of his tracks alone, just handing the tapes over upon his return. Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock” was a rare exception where all four recorded together.
A rare sight during the Déjà Vu recording sessions
In the end, talent won out, and on March 11, 1970, the black faux leather gatefold album, with its Gothic gold lettering and a sepia toned cover photo seemingly taken by Matthew Brady, hit record store shelves and, ultimately, the hands of over 8 million listeners. Here is a large, hi-def photo from the cover shoot. Click on it to enlarge.
The tracklist and credits tell the story of the contributions and compromises necessary to produce one of the finest rock and roll albums in history.
Title Writer(s) Lead vocals
- "Carry On" Stephen Stills Stills
- "Teach Your Children" Graham Nash Nash
- "Almost Cut My Hair" David Crosby Crosby
- "Helpless" Neil Young Young
- "Woodstock" Joni Mitchell Stills
- "Déjà Vu" David Crosby Crosby
- "Our House" Graham Nash Nash
- "4 + 20" Stephen Stills Stills
- "Country Girl" Neil Young Young with Crosby, Stills & Nash
- "Everybody I Love You" Stephen Stills, Neil Young Stills with Crosby & Nash
In addition to the four main players, the rhythm section was drummer Dallas Taylor and 16 year-old bassist Greg Reeves (from Warren, OH), both of whom are named and pictured on the album cover. Jerry Garcia played pedal steel guitar on “Teach Your Children” and John Sebastian (Lovin’ Spoonful) played harmonica on “Déjà Vu.”
Déjà Vu was an immediate success. By May, 1970, it had knocked Simon & Garfunkel’s masterpiece, Bridge Over Troubled Water, out of the top spot on the Billboard chart. Three of the four singles from the album charted: “Woodstock” (#11), “Teach Your Children” (#16) and “Our House” (#30). The album became the best seller of all albums released by Crosby, Stills, Nash, or Young, as a group, trio, duo or solo act.
