Crosby, Stills & Nash treat fans to laid-back, nostalgic (and dry) night

Concert Review |

It was a cold start to the Chateau Ste. Michelle summer concert season. But chilly weather and the threat of rain didn't stop more than 4,000 Crosby, Stills & Nash fans from celebrating the start of the winery's 25th season with the legendary folk trio.

Luckily the rain never came. But even under clearing skies, David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash played two sets and 24 songs suited to an overcast day: low-key and laid back.

On CSN's last tour with Neil Young, the group was passionately political and electrically charged, each of their songs resonating anew. The vibe Friday night in Woodinville was decidedly different. There were a handful of digs at President Bush, and Nash's "Immigration Man" was perfectly biting — but the focus was more on the music than the message.

For a relaxed outdoor concert with free-flowing wine, that wasn't a bad thing. It's been nine years since the folk-rock group's last studio album, but the sold-out crowd Friday was amped for the classics: "Wooden Ships," "Southern Cross" and a singalong "Teach Your Children," which served as the one-song encore.

A cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What it's Worth" also brought the crowd to its feet, but this version, with Stills on lead vocals, felt more like a chipper pop number rather than the rallying protest song it originally was.

"Our House" was the perfect song for the night — sweet and nostalgic, even after a sassy introduction: a University of Washington study, Crosby quipped, found 30 percent of girls in 1969-73 lost their virginity to the song.

After 40 years of playing together in various combinations — most recently, Nash and Crosby released a duo record — the three have a convivial, unpretentious stage presence. Crosby joked that Nash should go on "American Idol"; Stills commented on his own slimmed-down physique, saying that last time the others made him wear a fat suit.

And Nash was the only one who even looked remotely rock star-esque, clad all in black. The other two were Seattle-appropriate in jeans and sweat shirts.

For a group made famous for their tight-knit harmonies, strangely, Friday's stand-out moments came solo, such as when Crosby nailed the gut-wrenching wail of "Almost Cut My Hair." But together their harmonies were often just a tad off or unbalanced.

But when they did gel, on "Guinevere" and "Déjà Vu" in particular, it was possible to forget the cold — and even the decade.

Joanna Horowitz: jbhorowitz@gmail.com