Stephen Stills and Graham Nash stood together on stage for the first time in almost a decade. The reason for this was the Benefit event Fireaid in the KIA Forum. The musicians played the CSNY classic “Teach Your Children” from 1970, accompanied by the rock band Dawes from Los Angeles.
“I am very happy to be here, especially with the great band Dawes and my long -time partner Stephen Stills,” said Nash of the crowd. “Here in Los Angeles, the home of many musicians, there is a very large community. Whenever Los Angeles gets into trouble, the musicians are on hand immediately. And I’m proud to be one of them. “
Stephen Stills and “Teach Your Children”
Before “Teach Your Children”, Stills played with Dawes and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell the Buffalo-Springfield protest anthem “For what it’s Worth”, which was created in 1967. Stills wrote the song in response to a turmoil that broke out on the Sunset Strip when the city of Los Angeles tried to impose a curfew for young people, but after the fire it was now a new meaning.
The song was an integral part of the live repertoire of Crosby, Stills and Nash, but the group dissolved in 2015 after years of disputes. Before Fireaid, Stills and Nash only played together once after the separation, namely in 2016 at the funeral of her longtime sound engineer Stanley Johnston, where she sang “In My Life” together with photographer Joel Bernstein.
However, there were several opportunities in which Stills played with Neil Young. The last time took place on October 5, 2024 in the Painted Turtle Camp in Lake Hughes, California.
“I don’t think I will ever play together, Stephen and Neil,” said Nash last year to Rolling Stone. “There is no heart. David was the center of everything as crazy he was. And my god, he was crazy. But he was the heart of this band. And that’s why I think people would miss Crosby if Stephen, Neil and I ever play together again. It would just be wrong. “