TeachRock

Folk Rock supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young rose in the late 1960s from the ashes of several highly successful acts. Both Neil Young and Stephen Stills were previously part of Buffalo Springfield, David Crosby was a member of the Byrds, and Graham Nash arrived from the British Invasion group the Hollies. Known for their soaring harmonies and laid-back Folk Rock sound, the group’s core is the trio of Crosby, Stills, and Nash, with Young as an on-and-off fourth member.

The group initially formed after Crosby, Stills, and Nash sang together at a party in Los Angeles and were excited by their vocal blend; Nash was still a member of the Hollies at the time, but quit to work with the pair. The trio signed to Atlantic and released an eponymous debut that yielded immediate hits in "Marrakesh Express" and "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes." At the suggestion of Atlantic Records head Ahmet Ertegun, the trio brought Young aboard, and in the summer of 1969 embarked on a tour, the second stop of which (and only the group’s second public show) was at the Woodstock festival. CSNY released Déjà Vu the following year, and the record became a smash, producing three hit singles: “Our House," “Teach Your Children,” and a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock.“

A few weeks after the album’s release, the National Guard shot and killed four students during an antiwar demonstration at Kent State University. In response, Young wrote "Ohio," which the group recorded quickly and within weeks released as a single. Encapsulating public rage over the incident, the song became a hit, and established the singers as voices of the counterculture in a turbulent age.

Despite the overwhelming success of Déjà Vu and the subsequent live album 4 Way Street, personal issues broke up the band. Crosby, Stills and Nash reunited to release the multi-platinum CSN in 1977 and Daylight Again in 1982, as a quartet with Young they made American Dream in 1988 and Looking Forward in 1999. They re-grouped once again in 2006 for the "Freedom of Speech" tour to promote a Neil Young solo project, Living With War. The trio of Crosby, Stills and Nash has remained active as a touring outfit, and released the live album (CSN 2012) in 2012.