Judy Collins and Stephen Stills the former couple in question. And that is the second point that also had a great deal of impact. Even as this song changes shape, being an actual suite of themes, it’s still a pop song, still with a goal of making its message plain to an audience. But, it’s since done more than even that.įirst, it showed that rock music could deal in subtlety and with simple elements like vocal harmony and acoustic instrumentation to carry it, without any undue blues-riffing or extended jamming. Even during the break up period, she recognized that the song would immortalize their relationship in song, even if by then the relationship itself was over by the time she’d heard it. Purportedly, he played the song in its entirety for her in demo form while the album was being recorded.

In this case, the song is about the latter days of the relationship between the song’s author Stephen Stills and his girlfriend at the time, singer Judy Collins, she of the piercing blue eyes as celebrated in the title. And how would they do that?įor one thing, and as this song illustrates very well, the writing on this album came from very personal places.

And along with that, they would usher in a new era for popular music, too. And the magic happened! I’m sure even they were astounded at the results which have since been celebrated for nearly fifty years.Īnd this song was their flag in the sand as a statement that would distinguish them even from their work in the bands from which they had come. Crosby and Stills had performed a tune together, and Nash who had been a part of a band who specialized in harmony singing joined in.

The group formed after the three principles David Crosby late of the Byrds, Stephen Stills formerly of Buffalo Springfield, and ex-member of British Invasion favourites The Hollies, Graham Nash met at a party. It’s “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes”, and epic length slab of prime ’60s folk rock as taken from the then newly formed band on their self-titled debut record released in the spring of 1969.

Listen to this track by three-part harmony supergroup CSN, or rather Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Csn judy blue eyes