Stephen Stills (1970)

The first artist to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice in the same year - in 1997, for the Buffalo Springfield and for Crosby, Stills and Nash - Stephen Stills was also the first member of CSN to release a solo album, which came out in the fall of 1970.  Stills' self-titled debut LP is a showcase for his multiple talents as an instrumentalist (especially as a guitarist), a composer, an arranger, and a producer (he co-produced it with Bill Halverson), but also as a musician adept at various forms - blues, jazz, rock and roll, and straight pop.  But while the album makes the case for his abilities, it comes up short in establishing him as a major solo artist.

Stephen Stills features some of his best music, with some majestically orchestrated gospel on "Church (Part of Someone)" and "We Are Not Helpless," and some tough blues on the stripped-down "Black Queen."  Stills holds his own in a blues guitar duet with Eric Clapton on "Go Back Home," and he gets from guest Jimi Hendrix some biting guitar work on "Old Times Good Times," forcefully supported by Stills' own swirling organ.  His singing can be as tender and emotional as it is raucous; the symphonic ballad  "To a Flame" displays genuine emotion in his voice.  But the parts of this record only add up to a whole that's merely competent; Stephen Stills doesn't break much new ground, and Stills plays as if just making a solid album is enough to prove his mettle as a solo performer.  But listeners had a right to expect a whole lot more; anyone who'd heard "Rock and Roll Woman" or "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" already knew he had it in him to make a record on his own.  Ironically, his guest list for this record - besides Clapton and Hendrix, his all-star cast includes Ringo Starr, Booker T. Jones, John Sebastian, Rita Coolidge, and two guys named David  and Graham - suggests that Steve didn't have much confidence in himself and felt he needed some support.  This is despite his name appearing on the album cover in large letters, his only companion in the front cover photo a stuffed purple giraffe (which was a coded message to a former lover).

The big hit from the record was "Love The One You're With," a lightweight but infectious song about communal ecstasy - sex, good times, the whole hippie ideal - that Stills delivers with his tongue firmly in his cheek.  He invites the listener to have a laugh on him with his rough vocal.  Here he displays greatness by not taking himself seriously.  On the other hand, "Cherokee," written for Rita Coolidge, is the most daring track on the album, with Stills throwing in electric guitars, a sitar, a brass ensemble, and flute and saxophone solos to create a delectable stew that's as memorable as Leon Russell's song for Coolidge, "Delta Lady" (covered by Joe Cocker), is.  If Stills had invested more humor and boldness to go with his professionalism and expertise, Stephen Stills might have been more than just a good debut solo record.  And it might have helped Stills get inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a third time - as Stephen Stills.