Right By You

Worst album he made.

I love it! I had no idea this existed but am thrilled I bought it. Yes there is a constant beat that I suppose one could call "disco" but it doesn't offend me at all. There are horns which I like. It also showcases Stills' affection and mastery of Afro-Cuban beat. After all, his mother is Cuban. The songwriting is good. I have always enjoyed his lyrics. The other nice thing about this CD is it showcases Stills' ability to play many instruments well. Croz often introduces Stills' as "Mr.Manyhands," due to his multi-instrument talent. That said, old-time Stills' fan looking for a STEPHEN Stills of Manassas days or earlier will not find it here. But if you appreciate Stills while still in fine voice, you will find lots to love here.

OK, so not his best work...and obviously trying to change tempo to meet a new sound...but I find it still refreshing years later. Nothing wrong here but clods who are married to only one sound they want to hear from a performer, and then gripe that they're repetitious. Not for everyone? Neither is anyone else. Stills is great, even here.

What were you thinking!?

Granted there is a lot of techno sound in this album but after a few listens I'll bet there are three songs you will like if not love.

I saw Stepen Stills in San Antonio in 1985 and he put on a magnificent performance. This album, though not groundbreaking, is okay. "I Can't Let Go" has lead vocals by Stephen Stills' keyboard player Mike Finnegan ( I'm pretty sure that is his name ) and is perhaps the best tune on the record. This is worth having in your music library.

--- although there's certainly no need to hear it all. The best tracks (by far) are the last three, each well worth 99 cents to hear. "Only Love" is another in Stephen's line of Neil songs -- possibly intended to signal a desire to patch things up -- and includes an additional verse by Stephen. "No Hiding Place" is acoustic and somewhat bluegrassy -- quite uptempo, and a joy to listen to. "Right By You" is smouldering electric bluesy rock, featuring Stephen's gruff singing and Jimmy Page's searing guitar -- you'll want to hear that at least a dozen times at a loud volume. As for the rest, well, it's largely tolerable, and just as largely dispensible. I bought my vinyl copy in a cutout bin, and only kept it for the last three and the solo in "50/50".

If you have $1 to burn, go to your local going out of business record store and find this LP. Then at least you get the photo of Stills on the back of the sleeve. I think I sold this at a yard sale for $1, so I was out only sales tax. Tough to find on CD, as Amazon has used copies listing for almost $100(!?!) Hard to think of someone's Stills collection starting here. Hardcore fans will point to "I Can't Let Go" as a keeper from this album. Try his early 70s albums instead, like Manassas.