After their get together supporting David Gilmour a couple of years back, Messrs Stills and Nash are now back with their old sparring partner Steven Stills and due back on these shores pretty soon for us to get all nostalgic over. And lets be honest, the sound of the summer of love didn't come much better than when it was accompanied by the likes of Marrakesh Express, Almost Cut My Hair, Déjà Vu, Long Time Gone and Love The One You're With. They were sounds that shaped a generation.

But what self respecting collection doesn't have the defining albums Crosby, Stills & Nash and Déjà Vu from that wonderful 1969 / 1970 period? Well now, you can supplement those golden oldies with some pristine demos - many featuring solo performances, but including a rare harmonies version of Marrakesh Express recorded four months before the release of their debut album.

Nearly all the tracks were recorded at the Wally Heider studios, popular at the time with West Coast musicians from Jefferson Airplane to Creedence Clearwater Revival. And there's no arguing the quality of these stripped back recordings is quite superb. In the first instance, I'd recommend you source the original albums, but if you already have and want to trace the genesis of these classic tracks, then look no further than demos.

***

Review by Pete Whalley