David Crosby: If I Could Only Remember My Name (1971)

"It was a joke to call it a "solo record." There were no rules. Because we had just completely grabbed the brass ring with Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, I could afford to go down to Wally Heider's studio every night just for laughs. Anybody that showed up, we'd try something. Paul would show up, Grace would show up, Nash would show up, Neil would show up, Jerry would show up, Phil would show up, Casady would show up, and Jorma would show up. We were just screwing around, and when you screw around with that caliber of players and singers, you goin' to get some shit, if you're patient. And we lucked out..." (David Crosby)

Where: Wally Heiders, San Francisco

When: 2 février 1971

Who: David Crosby (guitar, vocals), Laurie Allan (autoharp, vocals), Jack Casady (bass), Ethan Crosby (vocals), Jerry Garcia (guitars, pedal steel guitar, vocals), David Freiberg (vocals), Mickey Hart (drums), Paul Kantner (vocals), Jorma Kaukonen (guitar), Bill Kreutzmann (drums, percussion), Phil Lesh (bass, vocal), Joni Mitchell (vocals), Graham Nash (guitar, piano, vocals), Gregg Rolie (piano), Michael Shrieve (drums), Grace Slick (vocals), Neil Young (guitars, vocals, bass, congas, vibraphone)

What: 1. Music Is Love 2. Cowboy Movie 3. Tamalpais High (At About 3) 4. Laughing 5. What Are Their Names 6. Traction In the Rain 7. Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves) 8. Orleans 9. I'd Swear There Was Somebody Here

How: Produced by David Crosby

Up: ballade hippie ("Take off your clothes and lie in the sun / Everybody's sayin' that music's for fun") faussement ingénue, Young en renfort dans les aigus, Crosby pacifique et champêtre, angoisse sourde de la basse tardive ["Music Is Love"]... intro façon "Loner", 8"11 sidérantes live en studio pour un OK Corral épique codé, Crosby voix rocailleuse arrosée au Jack Daniel's règle ses comptes ("something here ain't exactly right") avec ses ex-potes - Stephen "Eli" Stills ("our fastest gunner / Kinda mean & young, from the South"), Graham "The Duke" Nash ("our dynamiter"), Neil "young Billy" Young ("who's our sentry") -, Garcia et Young ferraillent à coup d'improvisations rouillées, Crosby aka "Fat Albert" enrage, cherchez la femme bien sûr : Rita Coolidge en "Raven" ["Cowboy Movie"]... acrobaties célestes de Crosby, voix usée sur ballade jazzy, Nash en contrepoint, Kaukonen greffe son Epiphone sur les volutes vocales éthérées de ses potes, finesse ambiante inouïe, Jack Casady traîne probablement derrière tout ça ["Tamalpais High (At About 3)"]... accords surnaturels en open tuning, pedal steel plaintive et déchirante de Garcia, Crosby dans les graves, voix pétrifiante de Joni Mitchell, solaire et cristalline, en invitée de dernière minute ("In the Sun") ["Laughing"]... jam jazzy maîtrisée, la famille Haight-Ashbury au grand complet ou presque, on pioche dans Jefferson Airplane, Santana et le Grateful Dead, ç'aurait été ballot de pas se rejoindre dans les chœurs ["What Are Their Names"]... accords liquides, guitares astrales éblouies par le dulcimer de Laurie Allan, épure acoustique ["Traction In the Rain"]... Crosby envoûte, charme et fascine, piano classe de Gregg Rollie, incursions électriques étincelantes, Garcia et Kaukonen jouent à Wishbone Ash ["Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves)"]... improbable mantra franco-médiéval ("Orléans, Beaugency, Notre Dame de Cléry, Vendôme, Vendôme"), Crosby à la découverte des cathédrales sur fond d'arpèges excaliburiens et d'harmoniques celtes ["Orleans"]... requiem grégorien improvisé en 15 minutes, entrelacs d'overdubs vocaux vertigineux, chef-d'œuvre absolu et terrifiant de 80 petites secondes, Crosby sous le choc de la mort tragique de sa petite amie Christine Hinton ["I'd Swear There Was Somebody Here"]... et puis la prise de son exceptionnelle de Stephen Barncard...

Down: en cherchant la p'tite bête, le premier titre, simplement excellent et donc pas au niveau exceptionnel du reste de l'album...