View Full Version : Buffalo springfield
Maybe we should start a new thread "Old and Hippie in the Day". I just got this CD after losing my album back when my dad was restationed to God knows where in the sixtys. The entire album is brilliant. Stills, Young, Furray, Messina. "Kind Women" crys out for a mandolin solo but that pedal steel is soooo sweet. Was that sneaky Pete? I can't remember. I know they were breaking up at this time and just showing up in the studio to do their part, overdub whatever. The Neal Young biography " Shakey" goes into some detail. Stills "Uno Mundo" had to be one of the first Latin/Rock songs recorded. "Kind Women" may have been the first country rock song (1968) if it beat out the Byrds "Sweetheart of the Rodeo". The Beatles White Album seemed to have a big influence on "In the Hour of Not Quite Rain" as far as the orchestration. Probably Jack Nitchse. (sp?) I'm going to work out Kind Women tonight. What a classic song.
Spruce
Nov-07-2006, 5:04pm
I saw the Springfield quite a few times back in the day...
I'll always be indebted to them for listing all their favorite musicians on the back cover of "Buffalo Springfield Again". I made a point of looking for recordings of just about everyone listed, and it was my first exposure to Doc Watson, Clarence White, Doc Boggs, and probably Bill Monroe....
Great band....
Rick Schmidlin
Nov-07-2006, 5:26pm
A band saw back in the summer of 73 was a concert with Seal and Crofts,Souther,Hillman and Furray and Maria Muldair all at thier peak.
Check it out
For What It's Worth (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROi3FETcIvw)
SternART
Nov-07-2006, 5:38pm
That Neil Young bio "Shakey" is an innerestin' read.
For those of us who are "of a certain age" and interested in this band and others like it, I'd heartily recommend a book titled, "Hotel California," which was published just a few months ago. Springfield, CSN, Young, Joni, Judy, Cass, the Eagles and many more all feature largely in this story of life in Laurel Canyon - and also at the Troubador, Ash Grove, etc. I've got a copy and found it to be a great read - especially since as a college student, I was in the audiences at these clubs to hear these artists, and others, weave their magic. Man, where has the time gone?
Oh - of course I have no financial interest in this book.
Peace - Jon
Paul Kotapish
Nov-07-2006, 6:37pm
"Kind Women" crys out for a mandolin solo but that pedal steel is soooo sweet. Was that sneaky Pete? I can't remember.
That was Rusty Young on pedal steel, who later joined Richie Furay in Poco.
I love all of those Buffalo Springfield reocordings, and it's toss up between Again and Last Time Around for favorite. Stills was such a creative force in those years, and few band since have had such an interesting mix and interplay of interesting guitar sounds.
And the intertwining of folk and traditional-music elements was pretty unusual at the time, too. The little hook at the beginning of "Go and Say Goodbye" on the first LP is a flatpicked version of the old fiddle tune "Salt Creek," and Charlie Chin's little banjo riff on the acoustic reprise of "Bluebird" on Again might have been the first time clawhammer banjo (as opposed to Scruggs-style) appeared on a rock album.
http://www.pbs.org/becomingamerican/images/ce_witness_5b.jpg
atetone
Nov-07-2006, 7:26pm
The confidence of those guys just powers right through.
When you're hot you're hot.
It must have really been something to be that good in a day when it was more about the music and the feeling than the marketing strategy.
Not a whole lot of trash talking going on back in those days. You either had it or you didn't.
Klaus Wutscher
Nov-08-2006, 1:33am
When you're hot you're hot.
Not a whole lot of trash talking going on back in those days. You either had it or you didn't.
Amen!
Santiago
Nov-08-2006, 7:20am
I love that beautiful Gibson (yeah, it's just a guitar, not an F5) that Stills is playing! Stills always travels with more stock the Elderly (talk about GAS). I guess if he had to pick just one guitar back then, it might as well have been a sweet one.
I heard a story once that Stills was actually banned from Gruhns becase he kept buying up all their quality inventory!
Klaus Wutscher
Nov-08-2006, 7:51am
Probably true. I do know for certain that, during his Manassas days, Stills was shopping at Gruhns with Chris Hillman. Hillman was checking out a Loar (with vizi, I recall) and Stills came over and asked "Do you like it?" Hillman said yes and Stills said to Gruhn "Put it on the bill"... those were the days!
I think Hillman still has that Loar.
Santiago
Nov-08-2006, 8:49am
Someone with that many guitars has to have a mandolin somewhere in his closet!
interesting- i went to that you tube clip (thanks alan n), and there was another one from monterrey 1967- no neil- but, looked like crosby with the springfield.
I've always wanted to purchase the "Stills Alone" CD, but I can never find it at discount and refuse to pay full price for barely more than 30-minutes of music. Anyone heard it?
Paul Kotapish
Nov-08-2006, 11:17am
I've always wanted to purchase the "Stills Alone" CD, but I can never find it at discount and refuse to pay full price for barely more than 30-minutes of music. Anyone heard it?
Stills Alone could have been a great album, but the engineering of the guitar sound is so badly botched that it kind of ruins an otherwise pleasant acoustic outing.
Stills is legendary for capturing some of the most gorgeous acoustic-guitar sounds ever with his famed collection of vintage Martins and some very savvy studio miking, and engineers have pulled their hair out trying to reproduce the lush, complex sonorities of the guitar on some of those CSN&Y and solo recordings. But on this recording it sounds like everything was recorded with a piezo undersaddle pickup and then processed like crazy.
Stills has been slowly going deaf for many years--partly from hereditary causes, partly from playing really, really loud for many years--and I can only imagine that he couldn't tell how disappointing the guitar sounded on this effort.
That said, however, the repertoire is interesting, with some great covers of traditional and newer songs and a few originals, Stills is in reasonably good voice. and the guitar playing itself is lovely.
If you are a Stills fan, it's worth owning.
Stills has a link to an interview with he and Neil Young on Buffalo Springfield on his website. Appears to have been done at Neil's ranch by the redwoods. If I was a bit more computer literate I'd set up the link. They talk about the rush of making it big back in those days, Neil's arrest and subsequent beating by the cops, and a funny anecdote by Stills where they recorded a six minute long song, only to have the producer ask if they could play it faster to shorten it up!
Klaus Wutscher
Nov-08-2006, 1:56pm
Stills Alone could have been a great album, but the engineering of the guitar sound is so badly botched that it kind of ruins an otherwise pleasant acoustic outing.
Stills is legendary for capturing some of the most gorgeous acoustic-guitar sounds ever with his famed collection of vintage Martins and some very savvy studio miking, and engineers have pulled their hair out trying to reproduce the lush, complex sonorities of the guitar on some of those CSN&Y and solo recordings. But on this recording it sounds like everything was recorded with a piezo undersaddle pickup and then processed like crazy.
Stills has been slowly going deaf for many years--partly from hereditary causes, partly from playing really, really loud for many years--and I can only imagine that he couldn't tell how disappointing the guitar sounded on this effort.
That said, however, the repertoire is interesting, with some great covers of traditional and newer songs and a few originals, Stills is in reasonably good voice. and the guitar playing itself is lovely.
If you are a Stills fan, it's worth owning.
What Paul said. Sadly, Stills also lost most of his voice in the process. If you listen to his records, his very clear Buffalo Springfield aera voice gets darker and more raspy through the years and he sounds GREAT until the early- mid 80ies. Since then, his singing went down slowly, both voice- and intonation wise. I find that truly sad because in his prime, he was one of the best rock singers of his generation and he still is certainly one of my favourite musicians - great singer, KILLER acoustic guitar player, electric guitar player, keyboarder, bassist, drummer, great songwriter, ... he was the Tim OŽBrien of the LA Folkrock scene
caddy jim
Nov-10-2006, 10:09pm
Ira, your right that was David Crosby on the clip....from what I found out, ole' Neil was having one of his temper tantrums and had decided to sit this one out??? I hear that this went on quite regularly. I corresponded with Richie Furey on Wednesday. He's doing some of the old Springfield stuff when he's in concert, along with his gospel music. He's mainly doing songs that he sang lead on, but said that he's brought in "Clancy" and more. Jim