Happy Birthday Graham Nash 1942 "Songs for Beginners (1971)

Este disco es una obra maestra con mayúsculas del ex componente de los Hollies y miembro de Crosby, Stills & Nash. Un imprescindible trabajo que recuerda en muchos de sus tempos al Neil Young más folk-rock, en especial a su disco "After The Gold Rush".

Las hermosas composiciones, de maravillosas melodías y sutiles letras, se expresan en templados ritmos acústicos (las canciones más rítmicas son las de materia más combativa a nivel político como "Military Madness" y "Chicago"), con aportaciones instrumentales de grandes nombres de la época:

Jerry García en la steel guitar, John Barbata en la batería, Dave Mason, Joe Yankee (que es Neil Young), y David Crosby en la guitarra eléctrica, o Dorian Rudnytsky al cello, quien aparece acompañado por el fiddle de David Lindley y el piano del propio Nash en la preciosa balada de piano "Simple Man", una de las cumbres de este fascinante LP, esencial para cualquier amante de la buena música. En esta inolvidable y sensible pieza también aporta voces Rita Coolidge, quien escolta en casi todo el álbum y de manera celestial la magnífica voz de Graham Nash.

Side one

1."Military Madness"  Graham Nash 2:50

2."Better Days"   Graham Nash 3:47

3."Wounded Bird"   Graham Nash 2:09

4."I Used to Be a King" Graham Nash 4:45

5."Be Yourself"  Graham Nash, Terry Reid 3:03

Side two

1."Simple Man"  Graham Nash 4:09

2."Man in the Mirror"  Graham Nash 2:47

3."There's Only One"  Graham Nash 3:55

4."Sleep Song"  Graham Nash 2:57

5."Chicago"   Graham Nash 2:55

6."We Can Change the World"  Graham Nash 1:00

Graham Nash-Songs For Beginners [Full Album] 1971

Graham Nash — vocals; guitar all tracks except "Better Days" and "Simple Man"; piano on "Better Days," "Simple Man," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"; organ on "Better Days," "There's Only One," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"; paper and comb on "Sleep Song"; tambourine on "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"

Rita Coolidge — piano on "Be Yourself" and "There's Only One"; electric piano on "Be Yourself"; backing vocals on "Military Madness," "Better Days," "Simple Man," "There's Only One," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"

Jerry Garcia — pedal steel guitar on "I Used to Be a King" and "Man in the Mirror"; piano on "I Used to Be a King"

Joe Yankee — piano on "Better Days" and "Man in the Mirror"

Dorian Rudnytsky — cello on "Simple Man" and "Sleep Song"

Dave Mason — electric guitar on "Military Madness"

David Crosby — electric guitar on "I Used to Be a King"

Joel Bernstein — piano on "Military Madness"

Bobby Keys — saxophone on "There's Only One"

David Lindley — fiddle on "Simple Man"

Sermon Posthumas — bass clarinet on "Better Days"

Chris Ethridge — bass on "Man in the Mirror," "There's Only One," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"

Calvin "Fuzzy" Samuels — bass on "Military Madness," "Better Days," and "Be Yourself"

Phil Lesh — bass on "I Used to Be a King"

Johnny Barbata — drums on "Military Madness," "I Used to Be a King," "Be Yourself," "Man in the Mirror," "There's Only One," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"; tambourine on "Chicago"

Dallas Taylor — drums on "Better Days"

P.P. Arnold — backing vocals on "Military Madness"

Venetta Fields, Sherlie Matthews, Clydie King, Dorothy Morrison — backing vocals on "There's Only One," "Chicago" and "We Can Change the World"