On This Day in 1970

On this day in 1970, Crosby Stills Nash and Young topped the US albums chart with Déjà Vu. Featuring the hits Teach Your Children, Our House, and a cover of Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock, it was Crosby Stills and Nash’ second album collaboration, following Crosby Stills and Nash in 1969, and the first to feature Neil Young.

The album was recorded in the second half of 1969 between San Francisco and Hollywood, and produced by all four members of the band. Drummer Dallas Taylor and bassist Greg Reeves play on the majority of tracks, and are credited on the cover. Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia plays pedal steel guitar on Teach Your Children, and former Lovin' Spoonful leader John Sebastian plays harmonica on the title track.

Image of the band during the recording of Déjà Vu in July 1969. Pictured from left Graham Nash, Dallas Taylor, Stephen Stills, Greg Reeves and Neil Young, with David Crosby front and centre.

The recording process was long and strained, plagued by clashes of personality, recent relationship breakups and the death of Graham Nash’s partner, all of which contributed to a darker, more mournful mood than Crosby Stills and Nash. Great detail was paid to all elements of it's production, and Stephen Stills estimated that the album took around 800 hours of studio time to record.

The popularity of the album contributed to the success of the four albums released by each of the members in its wake – Neil Young's After the Gold Rush, Stephen Stills' self-titled solo debut, David Crosby's If I Could Only Remember My Name, and Graham Nash's Songs for Beginners. 

Déjà Vu was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2023. In 2012, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It remains the highest-selling album of each member's career to date.