DAVID CROSBY & GRAHAM NASH – Wind on the Water – (Polydor) – 1975

Sometimes you get two voices that compliment each other well.

And that is the case here despite one being American and the other a Brit.

Not coincidentally, despite being from opposite sides of the Atlantic, both came from multi vocal pop or folk groups that traded on their harmonious vocals as much as they did on their instrumentation. Crosby, one of the sweetest voices in The Byrds meets Graham Nash, one of the sweetest voices in The Hollies.

By 1975 this wasn’t new to them – they had been in Crosby Stills Nash and Young and they had already done a joint album. Three more would follow after this one.

Despite the "duo" status by and large Crosby or Nash takes the lead while the other lends vocal support. Which is different to The Everly Brothers who tend to tackle songs on an equal pegging. This is more akin to Simon & Garfunkel in vocal arrangements though even there Simon & Garfunkel trade (on occasion) lead vocals during the course of the song.

This is not a criticism I just point it out. In fact what we have is a good arrangement for artists who also put out solo albums. You get to write your own songs and then perform them with a trusted friend and musician.

Having said that, this is all well and good but if the music is drek then it is to no avail.

The music here is MOR rock with country overtones.

1975 was not necessarily a great year in pop and rock. Country Rock’s best years where behind it, everything was becoming slicker, and punk was around the corner.

With this staring them in the face it is perhaps surprising that Crosby & Nash have put together a persuasive (but not great) album.

There is some bite and idealism to some of the songs which you would expect from a pair of 60s stalwarts but what dominates is the sureness of the music.

OK, this album was probably, always going to be, a hit. Crosby Stills Nash & Young (together, individually and in various permeations) had their loyal army of indiscriminate record buying drones but the album still holds up. There are some missteps but generally this is superior, err country rock with MOR rock overtones.

There is a gentle lying on the beach (or maybe the bank of an inland lake) vibe going on. To laid back for rock n roll ears but lets face it , those ears need a rest every now and again. I should say there are some more strident rock songs ( the Nash ones) are perhaps the weakest.

You could do a lot worse than this.

The harmonies are sweet (as if they wouldn’t be) and the playing is excellent … Danny Kortchmar, David Lindley, Russ Kunkel, James Taylor, Carole King, and Jackson Browne lend a hand.

Recorded in LA (naturally) and produced by Crosby & Nash.

Tracks (best in italics)

Carry Me – (David Crosby) – a excellent song. To be sure there are some precious lyrics but who cares.
Mama Lion – (Graham Nash) – hmmm, pleasant, but ….
Bittersweet – (David Crosby) – more precious lyrics but pretty heartfelt.
Take the Money and Run -(Graham Nash) – a tour de force for Nash. I’m not sure who is offering the money that the person runs off with. I assume the person is running off with the ex-lovers emotions.
Naked in the Rain – (David Crosby, Graham Nash) – a gentle song which is very pastoral in feel though very personal in lyric.
Love Work Out – (Graham Nash) – a stridently obvious gentle thumper from Nash with slide guitar from David Lindley.
Low Down Payment – (David Crosby) – more strident music …it doesn’t convince.
Cowboy of Dreams – (Graham Nash) – now this one works … I like songs with "cowboy" in the title. What’s wrong with that, fuck ya. Not a perfect song but clearly Nash’s cowboy is a man of his word who wants his actions and life to be the measure of him. That’s my vision of a cowboy also, regardless of what the reality may be. Yup, I like song with "cowboy" in the title.
Homeward Through the Haze – (David Crosby) – heavy (by these standards) and not particularly memorable.
Fieldworker – (Graham Nash) – a great song, no doubt, drawing from the disharmony and protests or working (mainly Mexican) farm workers in California and Texas in the 70s. Levon Helm from The Band plays drums on this one.
To the Last Whale: Critical Mass/Wind on the Water – (David Crosby, Graham Nash) – starts of with a bit of faux Medieval harmony ( shades of the The Hollies circa 1967) before moving to a moving elegy to the whale. String arrangements are by Crosby, Nash and the legendary Jimmie Haskell

And …

Good, not great, but a worthwhile addition to my country rock section (I don’t have a MOR rock with country overtones section) …. it certainly is easy on the ear. I’m keeping it.

Chart Action

US
Singles
1975 Carry Me The Billboard Hot 100 #52

Album
1975 Wind On The Water The Billboard 200 #6

England
Singles
—

Album
—

Sounds

Carry Me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcdSDMNx5Y8
live recentlyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guU1odrfgT4

Mama Lion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SahSPXnvaJ0

Bittersweet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfLWHTo-AXU

Take the Money and Run
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d16qRoUWMgg

Naked in the Rain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgxnja6ZEhQ

Love Work Out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5NXJGeaYuQ

Low Down Payment
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj-SkPDVlmw

Cowboy of Dreams
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ea5tArHF5NE

Homeward Through the Haze
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CTWHTcUypk

Fieldworker
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cX0mt2vV-lI
mp3 attached