Customer Reviews

Crosby, Stills & Nash

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've been collecting the fine remastered 24K Gold CDs by a wide variety of popular artists and their classic recordings from Audio Fidelity, the California record label who deals in high quality sound reproduction and superior packaging - the CDs are worth the few pennies more you may pay when compared to standard reproductions. I've been very accepting regarding some of the albums that were not necessarily on the top-of-my-want list, but however piqued my general curiosity about remastered recordings.

When the company released the influential, Crosby, Stills & Nash debut recording by David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, they were treading on sacred soil.

I always believed there was more that could be pulled from this record than we were given to
hear, as brilliant as it is, as great as the songs are, I felt something sonically was left behind. Very much a studio record, but no air or life to the fidelity. Yes, this album has been released in many forms and configurations over the years and some of the better among them only served to lend credence to my sense of a missing essence while the others were smothered, dead and lacking substance.

And then, BOOM, just like that, in one auriferous explosion everything shifted with the arrival of Audio Fidelity's game-changing reissue - the bar hasn't just been raised, this production is the Mt. Olympus of Crosby, Stills & Nash while nearly every other version of the historical album is merely mortal.

I trusted this CD would sound stunning and though I thought I knew this album sonically and
where the potential for improvement would rest I joyfully underestimated. There's more here to hear than I suspected beginning with the blending of voices and instruments and sounds I
never heard before. There are noteworthy differences in tonality from the individual solo singing to the group vocals. The vocals are a bit more up front or prominent. The harmonies sound so sweet, you can hear deep into the mix of the vocals with a clarity that reveals a true lifelike sound. With this mastering, credited to Steve Hoffman, the musicians are not so much set on a stage in front of you as they are instead placed in the room around you.

The 24K Gold CD offers an unimaginable new level of resolution, it is nice and clear and not
too bright. There's a warm, really nice sound, smooth with resoundingly deep lows. The bass
is crystal clear - amazingly clean and rich bass notes. More definition around the vocals and
instruments that allow a smooth feeling of separation. I've discovered small details I never
noticed such as the guitar strings being touched and played - nuances in the guitars that
simply weren't there before and an exceptional realism in the sound of the drums and
percussion.

For the first time I am hearing the sheer power of this magical music. There are certain lines in "Marrakesh Express" that I've never heard with such clarity. How could "Suite:Judy Blue Eyes" ever sound better than remembered; well, for one and two, it has a smoother sound and better lows.

Nothing is lost on this special release from the David Crosby "come in my kitchen" piece to
the reintroduction of drummer Dallas Taylor peeking out from behind the broken glass pane of
the closed door pictured on the CD art.

Speaking of the art, before I close something must be said about the CD packaging, starting
with the company's unique slip case to the beautiful and authentic booklet that mirrors the
sense of the original LP album cover in color and texture. Included too are all the song lyrics, the original insert pen and ink design drawing, a copy of the original release 12" labels and the 4-color 2-page spread of the famous photo of the band dressed in parkas against a sun drenched backdrop.

Throughout the entire disc, absolutely nothing stands out as not sounding perfect,it is all just so musical. Presence, detail, depth and warmth are the ingredients every great recording should boast. This CD has become my go-to recording of this classic for without a doubt this is not only one of the best CDs Audio Fidelity has ever released, but they can lay claim to producing the definitive version of Crosby, Stills & Nash.

As a head's up, I tend to submit reviews only for CDs whose music or remastering is either very impressive or so lousy that a warning to potential buyers seems warranted. I own a number of Steve Hoffman DCC Gold CDs and they are all winners, with warm yet incredibly detailed sound that, although issued in the 1990's, still beats any subsequent remastering more than 15 years later and somehow -- despite the lower bit resolution -- reasonably competes even with SACDs (at least on up to mid-level stereo systems). In contrast, I find the Audio Fidelity gold reissues hit and miss, at least in terms of having the sonics be revelatory. After playing this new release (with mastering by Hoffman) of the 1st CS&N album yesterday, even from just a single listen I can report this one is a winner. Since at least one reviewer has already provided a highly detailed report, I will just say that the sound reproduction on this AF release brought me closer than any of this album's other previous CD reissues to the sound that I recall when this album was first released in 1969 and I listened to the LP through headphones on a buddy's stereo (which was better than mine). Upon reaching the end of the album of this AF reissue, I realized what little role drumming played in the arrangements (and how much some simple percussion had added) and that the rhythmic propulsion of the non-ballad tunes like "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" and "Long Time Comin'" are almost all due to the creatively melodic lines of Stills' bass playing (which in this instance were more akin to McCartney's or Entwhistle's than those found in the usual rock band simply holding down the bottom) interwoven with his overdubbed acoustic strumming and memorable electric guitar leads. It made me recall how unique and stunning this original CS&N sound was and, although the harmonies remained the same, from Deja Vu onwards when CS&N (&Y) added a full backing band, would never again be quite the same. The clarity of the stereo imaging and sound separation on this AF release also highlights (especially with the organ parts also played by Stills) just how precociously talented and adept Stills was a musician. Just a final note: As with a number of other AF releases (whether mastered by Hoffman or Kevin Gray), I had to raise the volume on my pre-amp to much higher than usual listening levels to get a clear picture of the sound reproduction. I usually listen at around what would would be a 3-4 to my volume knob but needed to turn it up to 5-6 for this and other AF releases. That being said, just from listening (and not from any measurements), I don't detect any noticeable distortion from this necessary volume boost and it did not at all disturb my listening pleasure.

Been listening to CSN formany years. Always buy the latest and greatest masterings. Hoffman has done a excellent job considering the source recording. Vocals are very present. Good definition to the instruments. Some songs were much better than past offerings. The bass much more defind, especially in Marakesh Express. Very enjoyable!

The music is classic. This review pertains to the quality only. I purchased this new and the title side appeared to be deteriorating. The play side had some defects but did play. I have higher-end equipment and really couldn't tell that much difference between the standard CD and the gold (I owned both).

Being a long-time fan of Crosby, Stills, and Nash, and especially of their first album together, I bought this CD. It is a fine remastering. Just to compare, I went to my local library and borrowed the CD. My library has the Atlantic remaster of 1994 (Atlantic 82651). That is a fine remaster, too. I put both CD's in my player. The Audio Fidelity remaster sounds fine. But so does the 1994 Atlantic remaster. The difference is not that great. I think the strings in the Audio Fidelity remaster sound a bit richer and overall the album sounds, shall I say, brighter, more strident, if you will. And as I've noticed in a lot of remasters, the bass is amped up. But not the volume, thankfully. Many remasters are way louder, perhaps because of an improved signal-to-noise ratio.
I'm not disappointed in the Audio Fidelity effort, but you can probably find the Atlantic remaster of 1994 at half the price of the AF, and the difference is almost indistinguishable.

This mastering was absolutely nailed. None of the "veil removed" type mastering which usually just equates to cranked up treble. This is well done all the way through; it has warmth and character without ever tipping over into the "bright" mastering that it seems is so often favored by even the better engineers these days. A fantastic balance of tonality was attained between the different tracks that I think is astonishingly good and really works. I would absolutely recommend that you buy this CD.

I do think that the original Atlantic CD mastered by Barry Diament is also sensational. That version is easily found for a few dollars and is certainly worth owning along with this version. I'm also fond of the Chris Bellman cut vinyl that I believe is still in print on Rhino. Between these three versions, I think you have the sonic possibilities of this album pretty much covered.

5 stars. An essential buy!

Good Amazonians 2 due business with now & inda future, trying to think if there were any mistakes in dis preview butt cannnot finds any

I've been listening to them for 40 years and they are the best. I highly recommend this CD It's a great addition to anyones collection.

I pre-ordered this from the UK so for it to arrive on Christmas Eve was great. I played it in the car on the way to shopping and there were several moments when I had to say "Wow - hadn't noticed that before". Now blasting it through the home system constantly. Fantastic.

STEVE HOFFMAN DID A WONDERFUL JOB AT GIVIVG DIE HARD FANS WHAT THEY WANTED. EVERYTHING UPFRONT THE VOCALS AND THE INSTRUMENTS. NOT WHAT THE REGULAR ALBUM SOUNDED LIKE, SO IT WAS ALTERED. JUST LIKE THE NEW RUSH AND JETHRO TULL AQUALUNG. JAPAN CAME OUT WITH THE SHM-CD OF THIS TITLE AND SOUNDED THE WAY THIS ALBUM SHOULD SOUND. CRISP AND CLEAR WITH GOOD SEPERATION. STEVE HOFFMAN REMASTERED IT WITH GOOD SEPERATION AND GOOD TONE. SO BOTH WERE WORTH GETTING.