Live It Up (Crosby, Stills & Nash album)

Live It Up
Studio album by Crosby, Stills and Nash
Released June 26, 1990
Recorded February 1, 1986 - February 5, 1990
Genre Rock
Length 39:17
Label Atlantic Records
Producer Crosby, Stills & Nash
Joe Vitale, Stanley Johnston
Crosby, Stills and Nash chronology
American Dream
(1988)American Dream1988		 Live It Up
(1990)		 CSN (box set)
(1991)CSN (box set)1991
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Live It Up is the tenth album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, their fourth studio album in the trio configuration, released on Atlantic Records in 1990. It peaked at #57 on the Billboard 200 with current sales of 300,000. It is the first of their studio albums not to gain either a gold or platinum certification by the RIAA.[2] It was issued in all formats at the time – compact disc, cassette tape, and vinyl record. It is currently out of print, but available for streaming on Spotify and both streaming and download on Qobuz.

Background

After David Crosby's release from prison, he reunited with Stephen Stills and Graham Nash for CSN tours in 1987 and 1988.[3] The recording of the second CSNY studio album with Neil Young took place over the course of those years, but the quartet opted not to tour to promote it. The album was not terribly well received, with Stills viewing it as 'contrived.'[4] In 1989, Stills and Young commenced tours with their own bands, while Crosby and Nash began work on what was to be a new Crosby & Nash record. Crosby also recording and issuing his second solo album Oh Yes I Can that same year.[5] Stills regrouped with Crosby and Nash to perform at the fall of the Berlin Wall in late 1989, and the sessions for the new Crosby & Nash album evolved into the new Crosby, Stills & Nash one instead.[6] Atlantic had encouraged the inclusion of Crosby into the Stills-Nash project that became Daylight Again back in 1981.[7] Knowing that the trio billing had to date guaranteed platinum album sales, the label undoubtedly preferred Stills joining the Crosby-Nash sessions.

Content

The album was recorded at numerous recording studios in Los Angeles. The majority was recorded at The Record Plant, although part of "Live It Up" began at the Home-Brew Studio in Ohio and was finished at the professional location. "If Anybody Had a Heart," "Arrows," and "After the Dolphin" were recorded at Devonshire Studios; "(Got to Keep) Open" was recorded at Capitol Studios.

Nash, the nominal leader of these recordings, expressed misgivings about the sessions. In addition to feeling uncomfortable in a leadership position, he stated that "only once did we sing together on one mike. So in that sense, it was not really a true CSN record."[6] Indeed, Live It Up has the fewest songwriting credits to members of the principal trio of any album in their catalogue. It received unfavorable reviews from professionals and fans alike.[8][9][10] The band toured to promote the album in 1990, but none of these songs found a permanent place in the group's repertoire, with only "House of Broken Dreams" and "Yours and Mine" being performed a handful of times beyond the 1990 outing.[11]

Track listing

Side one

No.TitleWriter(s)Lead VocalsLength
1."Live It Up"Joe VitaleNash3:54
2."If Anybody Had a Heart"John David Souther, Danny KortchmarNash4:28
3."Tomboy"Stephen StillsStills3:22
4."Haven't We Lost Enough?"Stephen Stills, Kevin CroninStills with Crosby & Nash3:06
5."Yours and Mine"Craig Doerge, David Crosby, Graham NashCrosby4:21

Side two

No.TitleWriter(s)Lead VocalsLength
1."(Got to Keep) Open"Stephen Stills, Graham NashStills4:40
2."Straight Line"Tony BeardNash3:12
3."House of Broken Dreams"Graham NashNash3:18
4."Arrows"Michael Hedges, David CrosbyCrosby3:51
5."After the Dolphin"Graham Nash, Craig DoergeNash5:05

Personnel

Additional personnel

  • Joe Vitale – drums; synthesizers on "Live It Up," "If Anybody Had a Heart," "Tomboy," "Yours and Mine," "(Got to Keep) Open," "House of Broken Dreams," "Arrows," and "After the Dolphin"; keyboards on ""Live It Up," "If Anybody Had a Heart," and "Yours and Mine"; organ on "After the Dolphin"; percussion on "Straight Line"
  • Craig Doerge – keyboards on "If Anybody Had a Heart," "Yours and Mine," "Straight Line," "House of Broken Dreams," "Arrows," and "After the Dolphin"
  • Bob Glaub – bass on "Tomboy," "Yours and Mine," "Straight Line," and "House of Broken Dreams"
  • Leland Sklar – bass on "If Anybody Had a Heart," "Arrows," and "After the Dolphin"
  • John David Souther – vocals on "If Anybody Had a Heart"
  • The Williams Family – vocals on "Live It Up"
  • Branford Marsalis – soprano saxophone on "Yours and Mine" and "Arrows"
  • Mike Landau – guitar on "If Anybody Had a Heart" and "After the Dolphin"
  • Roger McGuinn – guitar on "If Anybody Had a Heart"
  • Peter Frampton— guitar solo on "Straight Line"
  • Bruce Hornsby – piano, accordion on "(Got to Keep) Open"
  • Tony Beard – percussion programming on "Yours and Mine"; electric guitar on "Straight Line"
  • Mike Fisher – percussion on "If Anybody Had a Heart" and "After the Dolphin"
  • Michito Sanchez – percussion on "Tomboy" and "(Got to Keep) Open"
  • Vince Charles – percussion on "Arrows"
  • Rand Wetherwax – sound design including radio broadcast voices of Simon Jones and Harry S. Truman on "After the Dolphin"

References

  1. ↑ Ruhlmann, W. (2011). "Live It Up – Crosby, Stills & Nash | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  2. ↑ "RIAA - Soundscan". Greasylakes. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  3. ↑ Zimmer, Dave. Crosby, Stills & Nash The Biography. Da Capo Press 2000, ISBN 0-306-80974-5, p. 265.
  4. ↑ Zimmer (2000), p. 266.
  5. ↑ Zimmer (2000), pp. 267-268.
  6. 1 2 Zimmer (2000), p. 268.
  7. ↑ Zimmer (2000), pp. 229.
  8. ↑ Entertainment Weekly album review retrieved 23 August 2015
  9. ↑ Popdose website retrieved 23 August 2015
  10. ↑ Rate Your Music website retrieved 23 August 2015
  11. ↑ list.fm/stats/crosby-stills-and-nash-33d6f8a1.html Setlist.fm website retrieved 23 August 2015
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