David Crosby & Graham Nash: Whale & Fieldworkers Benefit 1974 (Bootleg, San Francisco, CA, Dec 14, 1974)

The credit for this one goes to bigozine2.com:

Wally Heider who recorded Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young at the Fillmore in June, 1970 which became the famous Four Way Street album, was again at the soundboard to record this show in San Francisco. Nothing was released till 1977, when a Crosby & Nash album called Live came out. That album was recorded during the duo’s tours from 1975 to 1977. This show is among the earliest of their professional recordings. It seems to have been edited for a live album but never released.

This was not the country-rock-pop of Loggins & Messina nor the folk-rock-pop of Simon & Garfunkel but soft rock with a conscience. Especially in that vein was Graham Nash’s Prison Song and Chicago. Not to be outdone, David Crosby contributes the angry What Are Their Names?, a song-dirge about accountability that leads into Chicago.

With Stills somewhat distracted and Neil Young tail-spinning into insular projects like On The Beach, these were the years when Crosby & Nash had star power and a real career. But whereas Simon & Garfunkel split over politics [apparently Simon was pissed that Garfunkel was not keen to include Cuba Si Nixon No on Bridge Over Troubled Waters] and Loggins & Messina had too big egos, Crosby & Nash were consumed by their own excesses or at least Crosby’s indulgence with chemicals.

By the end of the ‘70s, the duo or as a trio with Stills could be found at anti-war benefits, anti-nuclear benefits and such shows still holding on to their ideals and those familiar songs. Their solo careers took hiatus as they regrouped to release what can best be said are mediocre albums compared to the first two album as a group or as a duo. When they had stopped listening, they had also stopped creating.

All the happy songs are here in superb hi-fidelity, suitable for entertaining. Play loud. Nothing has been officially released.

- Professor Red

David Crosby & Graham Nash: Whale & Fieldworkers Benefit 1974 (Bootleg, San Francisco, CA, Dec 14, 1974)
(192 kbps, cover art included)