"Just a Song Before I Go" is a song by

Crosby, Stills & Nash Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) was a folk rock supergroup comprising the American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and the English-American singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by the Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Youn ...

that appeared on the 1977 album '' CSN''. It was also released as a single and reached number 7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for two consecutive weeks ending August 27 and September 3, 1977, becoming the band's highest-charting hit. It is also one of the band's shortest songs, with a running time of only 2:14. In Canada, it peaked at number 10.RPM Top 100 Singles: September 3, 1977
/ref>

Background

The song was written by

Graham Nash Graham William Nash (born 2 February 1942) is a British and American musician, singer and songwriter. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby, Stills ...

about leaving loved ones behind before going on a concert tour. It was written in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

in about 20 minutes at the

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

while Nash and Leslie Morris were staying with a friend, later revealed to be a rather "low-level drug dealer". Nash had a little while to get to the airport to head back to his home in Los Angeles. The dealer queried Nash something along the lines of "You're a big shot song writer, I bet you can't write a song just before you go." After Nash asking how much the dealer was betting, he responded $500. In a February 25, 2016, interview on ''

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night news satire, news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Stephen Colbert, Spartin ...

'', Nash stated that he still has that $500. This song came in the nick of time, because an upcoming hurricane was about to wreak havoc on the island. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' praised the "hypnotically soothing orchestration" and the vocal harmonies. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that "an unmistakable vocal blend and Stephen Stills' smooth electric guitar licks are here" and called the melody "gentle." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' called it "a quiet, melodic song with a dreamy air." Crosby, Stills and Nash arranged "Just a Song Before I Go" as a straight ballad, with mostly acoustic textures anchored by two electric guitar solos from

Stephen Stills Stephen Arthur Stills (born January 3, 1945) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby, Stills & Nash; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; and Manassas (band ...

Personnel

David Crosby David Van Cortlandt Crosby (August 14, 1941 – January 18, 2023) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He first found fame as a member of the Byrds, with whom he helped pioneer the genres of folk rock and psychedelic music, psych ...

– vocals, acoustic guitar *

– vocals, electric guitar *

– vocals, piano

Additional musicians

* Joe Vitale –

electric piano An electric piano is a musical instrument that has a piano-style musical keyboard, where sound is produced by means of mechanical hammers striking metal strings or reeds or wire tines, which leads to vibrations which are then converted into ele ...

Tim Drummond Timothy Lee Drummond (20 April 1940 – 10 January 2015) was an American musician from Canton, Illinois. Drummond's primary instrument was bass guitar and he toured and recorded with many notable artists, including Conway Twitty, Bob Dylan, James ...

– bass *

Russ Kunkel Russell Kunkel (born September 27, 1948) is an American drummer who has worked as a session musician with many popular artists, including Jackson Browne, Jimmy Buffett, Harry Chapin, Rita Coolidge, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Cass Elliot, Dan Fo ...

– drums, percussion

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Cover versions

*In 2008, drummer

and the group Chateau Beach covered the song on their album "Rivage."

References

Other sources

* Liner notes from the 1991 box set ''Crosby, Stills and Nash: CSN''. The commentary on the songs's genesis is from David Crosby. {{authority control 1977 songs Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young songs Songs written by Graham Nash Atlantic Records singles