Customer Reviews

Earth & Sky

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

 

 

I was very excited when I saw this album had finally been released on CD as I had long since worn out two copies of the LP. When this album first came out it was in my car player for months. It's is Nash's most personal album and deals with the early years of his marriage, the birth of his first child and his hopes for the future. It is a window into a truly gentle soul who has the perfect voice to convey those feelings. Musicanship is great with camos from Stills and Crosby. The packaging is decent with full credits and lyrics provided. Liner notes would have helped. The CD it self has excellent sound in a 24 bit remaster. For the heftly price it would have been nice to get some bonus tracks.

The 1977 "CSN" album had been a smash hit for Crosby, Stills & Nash. In typical fashion, the guys just couldn't get their heads together for a follow-up, not least due to Crosby's descent into "drug madness" (as Nash puts it), which also did away with a reuniting of the Crosby * Nash duo team. So, Nash decided to carry on with a solo record, his third, with "Earth & Sky" coming out in early 1980.

Basically, this album sounds exactly like you would expect. It's a soft rock album all the way, totally sounding like it was recorded in 1979 or '80--a booming drum sound, chorused rhythm guitars, tinkling electric pianos, etc. If you're a sucker for that kind of sound (and I don't fault you if you are!), you'll really like this album.

No, it's not a masterpiece. "Skychild" and "Helicopter Song" are forgettable, and the ballad "Magical Child" is okay but suffers from sickly sweetness.

It's often great though. The title track has that trademark lilting Graham Nash melodicism (it features instantly recognizable slide guitar from Joe Walsh). "Love Has Come" is a wonderful soft-rock ballad. The waltzing "It's All Right" is another soft-rock ballad, similar in theme to "Love Has Come", and it's a little cheesy and brought down by toothless female vocals toward the end, but it's still very pleasant. The starkly-arranged, yet dreamy, minor-keyed "Out On The Island" is simply blissful; and heard today, it curiously seems to foreshadow the title track for David Gilmour's "On An Island", the latter of which Nash even sings background vocals on! The anthemic "Barrel Of Pain (Half-Life)", another in a large stack of late '70s songs written about the dangers of nuclear waste, is quite powerful. And the rousing, quick-paced album-closer "In The 80's" is infectiously upbeat, optimistic, and catchy.

All in all, this is not quite as well-written as 1971's "Songs For Beginners", nor is it as insanely catchy as 1986's "Innocent Eyes", but "Earth & Sky" is still highly worthwhile.

However, I recommend you steer clear of the Magic Records CD release of "Earth & Sky"; providing you have a quality turntable, you'd almost undoubtedly be better off with the original vinyl. I've gotten a couple of other CD reissues from Magic, and they each have incredibly cruddy remastering, clearly done from either vinyl or cassette copies--may the buyer beware.

Well, we've waited a long time for this one to be on CD, and musically speaking it's well worth the wait. But I have doubts about the source tapes used for the remastering process. Yes, it probably was 24-bit, but did they master this one off of a cassette? Limited dynamic range, compression, etc. Maybe someone will do a better mastering job on this good album.

This record came out during rock's punk/new wave phase and was dismissed by the critics of the day. I have always enjoyed this record (MAGICAL CHILD has long been a favorite) and I am glad it is back in print. It is not as good as "Songs for Beginners" or "Wild Tales", but it is better than "Innocent Eyes". The cd version is a nice addition to the CSNY canon.

Track Listings
Side One
1. Earth and Sky
2. Love Has Come
3. Out of the Island
4. Skychild
5. Helicopter Song
Side Two
1. Barrel of Pain
2. TV Guide
3. It's All Right
4. Magical Child
5. In the 80's

Graham Nash has always had a nack for writing great songs. He wrote many of the C.S.N. classics such as "Our House", "Marakesh Express" and others. It is surprising that his solo career has has limited success. This recording is another example of good music that is not widely known. The songs are solid and the players are the best of the time. I feel that if you enjoy his work with David Crosby or with C.S.N. (&Y) then you will find yhis music familiar.

I had this album on vinyl over 20 years ago and lost it in a move - to my great distress. I've looked for it off and on all this time but it's been out of print and I couldn't find it. The price is high for a 10-song CD but even Rhapsody doesn't have it, BUT the price is low for the songs on it and the opportunity to hear Graham Nash again.
FAV song on this album is Skychild, but Earth and Sky is full of the emotion I have only found here. There's nothing dramatic about the album; it's light sound for a girl who thrives on punk & so on, but the bottom line is that these songs get into your soul and if you're listening, you can feel them. That's the best recommendation I can give; these are songs that have stayed with me for over 20 years without hearing them because they truly live. Thank God for imports. If you're a CSNY fan or enjoy any of the solo work of these dudes, grab this before it disappears again!