An engaging and illuminating biography focused on the formative and highly influential early years of "rock's first supergroup" (Rolling Stone) Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young?when they were the most successful, influential, and politically potent band in America.

After making their marks in popular bands such as the Hollies and the Byrds, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash released their first album in May 1969. By the time they arrived at Woodstock a few months later, Neil Young had joined their ranks and together, their transcendent harmonies and evocative lyrics channeled all the romantic idealism and radical angst of their time.

Now, music journalist Peter Doggett chronicles these legendary musicians and the movement they came to represent at the height of their popularity and influence: 1969 to 1974. Based on interviews with the band and colleagues, along with exclusive access to CSNY's archive, Doggett provides new insights into their incredible catalog, from their delicate acoustic confessionals like "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" to their timeless classics such as "Our House." Doggett also uncovers plenty of new stories and perspectives on the four tenacious and volatile songwriters' infamously reckless, hedonistic, and often combative lifestyles that led to their continuous breakups and behaviors?extreme even by rock star standards.

"A must for CSNY fans and anyone who remembers the era when it ruled the pop charts" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), CSNY is a quintessential and definitive account of one of the biggest bands of the Woodstock generation.

Peter Doggett

"A must for CSNY fans." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

The first ever biography focused on the formative and highly influential early years of "rock's first supergroup" (Rolling Stone) Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young—when they were the most successful, influential, and politically potent band in America—in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of Woodstock and the formation of the band itself.

1969 to 1974 were true golden years of rock n' roll, bookmarking an era of arguably unparalleled musical power and innovation. But even more than any of their eminent peers, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young channeled and broadcast all the radical anger, romantic idealism, and generational angst of their time. Each of the members had already made their marks in huge bands (The Hollies, Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds), but together, their harmonies were transcendent.

The vast emotional range of their music, from delicate acoustic confessionals to raucous counter-culture anthems, was mirrored in the turbulence of their personal lives. Their trademark may have been vocal harmony, but few—if any—of their contemporaries could match the recklessness of their hedonistic and often combative lifestyles, when the four tenacious, volatile, and prodigal songwriters pursued chemical and sexual pleasure to life-threatening extremes.

Including full color photographs, CSNY chronicles these four iconic musicians and the movement they came to represent, concentrating on their prime as a collective unit and a cultural force: the years between 1969, when Woodstock telegraphed their arrival to the world, and 1974, when their arch-enemy Richard Nixon was driven from office, and the band (to quote Graham Nash himself) "lost it on the highway."

Even fifty years later, there are plenty of stories left to be told about Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young—and music historian Peter Doggett is here to bring them to light in the meticulously researched CSNY, a quintessential and illuminative account of rock's first supergroup in their golden hour for die-hard fans, nostalgic flower-children, and music history aficionados alike.