CPR - Live at the Wiltern

Recorded after David Crosby Found his Long Lost Son James (An La Musician). This is a Live Album with Current Cpr Songs and Older Hits Too. Guest Artists Include: Phil Collins, Graham Nash and Marc Cohn. Album Details

Just Another Night

This is the second live double CD release from: Crosby, Pevar & Raymond. The first set was entitled: "Live At Cuestra College" and on that set, the band is just the three musicians: CPR. On this set, {released 8 months after the first collection} David Crosby: guitars, piano & vocals, Jeff Pevar: guitars & vocals and David's son: James Raymond: keyboards & vocals, are joined by bass guitarist: Andrew Ford and Steve DiStanislao: drums and all manner of percussion. This is a full band with a very full sound.

When David is a part of CSN or CSNY, he is very much in a support role, and he gets little chance to shine on record or on stage. In those two bands there is a war over just who will get more songs and minutes over the other guys. CPR is David Crosby's band, and it is the band where we can see and hear David as David. As the popularity of CPR never has gotten close to mega-superstar cosmos of CSNY, this group of musicians, are aware that this group isn't about megadomes and private jets. David, pays his bandmates well, and if production costs break even with the gate-receipts, all is well for CPR.

There is a great fan base for this band. That fan base is of older rockin' folks that still want to hear good music performed by veteran players. CPR gives us great vocal work and fantasic players that are sitting on top of a ton a brilliant songs that were mostly writen by David, over the last 40+ years. CPR will perform: "Eight Miles High" or "Everybody's Been Burned" by The Byrds right besides: "Guinnevere" or "Wooden Ships" from the first CSN album.

This second live document of CPR is more "electric" than the first one. "Morrison" starts the show, and it's in a cool jazz groove that the guys of CPR are masters of...this is adult music, on the edge of something different that can travel to many different places within a span of only few minutes. The vocal harmonies here are TIGHT, this is just like the early days of CSN, before vices and age destroyed some voices in that band. There is plenty of acoustic music present on these two discs as Jeff goes 'swampy' on: "Little Blind Fish". "One For Every Moment" a James Raymond original features his singing style, {he's good} and his piano, that is a cross between latin and classical, he is incredible on those keys {as is Jeff, with his guitar solos.} The vocal work, flies above it all, amazing vocal work that you have to hear to believe.

CPR has made a few records over the past decade, and the songs featured on those records are the center of this two CD set. "That House", "At The Edge", "Rusty & Blue" and "It's All Coming Back" are from the first CPR record, and they really shine here in the live setting. Crosby favorites such as: "Homeward Through The Haze" and "Delta" are brought up to a new level by the playing skills of this band. And yeah, of course there is: "Long Time Gone", "Ohio" and "Almost Cut My Hair", played harder than musicans half their age could accomplish on a good night. CPR, plays em' harder and better, every night.

The two keys to the greatness of CPR lie in the performances of: 'Eight Miles High" and "Deja' Vu". The Byrds classic is propelled many miles higher due to the playing skills of Jeff Pevar, who keeps bringing it up as it goes on, rename this tune: "Twelve Miles High" for what Jeff adds to this. "Deja' Vu: is a showstopper at 13 minutes of fantasic work by James on piano and then Jeff, that turn this music into something very majestic and moving. Elders, are outta their seats and screaming loudly, at the conclusion of: Deja' Vu. And I should know, as I was one of those old folks, at the two CPR shows, that I attended! This song truely deserves the standing ovation it receives at every show played.

Phil Collins, is here to sing his part on the hit single: "Hero" and Graham Nash, adds some harmony to "Hero" and three other selections on this. But as good as the guests are here, this show belongs to Jeff, James and David, the three kings of good music. Live CPR is one of the greatest bands on the planet. Here, is your chance to become one of the few. Live CPR in all it's glory!
4.5 Stars!!! December 8, 2008

When is the next one !

What David did with CSN.. he does it with P& R. great talents together to give us a bit of a jazzy sound.. love it ! Can't wait for CPR to come and perfom in Europe ... I would buy the tickets to all my friends who do not know them !! August 22, 2008

One of Crosby's best

As Crosby mentions on the cd, "I don't want to denigrate CSN or CSNY", but Crosby rocks harder and more convincingly with CPR than he does with CSN and sometimes Y. CPR seems more tauter and focused than CSNY, and the blend of folk, jazz, and rock is among the best music Crosby has ever done (it seems like working with his son has energized him).

The remaking of CSNY classics such as Ohio, Deja Vu are gems, and the new CPR songs such as "Morrison" and "Rusty and Blue" really shine. Right now I prefer the new CPR sound to the older CSNY (which is not to denigrate CSNY). It also doesn't hurt having his old pal Graham Nash coming on stage for harmonies on a few songs. July 25, 2007

Outstanding Band

CPR may not be the most famous band David Crosby is associated with, but it is by far the best! I have always been a huge fan of Crosby and his work with the Byrds, CSN(and once in a while Y)and solo. CPR is simply incredible. When most artists reach this stage in their careers, they are content to coast on their history. Not Crosby! He puts together this exciting band and creates some of the best music in his long and storied musical history. Buy their studio albums. Buy this live recording. SEE THEM LIVE!

If the universe were a fair and balanced place, this music would be all over the radio, instead of all that pre-packaged pop and (c)rap that poses for creativity these days! October 29, 2003

Yet another stoney evening

. . . but this time around, it's drug-free. (This live CD was released within a year or so of the Grateful Dead label's release of Crosby/Nash's 1971 live set, _Another Stoney Evening_.)

I've been very impressed with CPR's two studio CDs, so I finally got around to buying this one. I'm glad I did; it's terrific.

CPR (for David Crosby, Jeff Pevar, James Raymond, and also a pun: it's music for the heart) are one helluva band. Backed here by percussionist Steve di Stanislao and bassist Andrew Ford, they perform live at UCLA not long after the release of their first studio album. And _what_ a performance.

The first CD consists mostly of stuff from the first studio release, the exceptions being a slick and jazzy version of "Homeward Through the Haze" and a dreamy take on "Delta." It's well performed, but except for the expanded version of Crosby's gorgeous "Rusty and Blue," the songs sounds enough like the studio versions that it probably wouldn't be worth buying this live release for these songs alone. They do confirm that the gang didn't use any digital-electronic sleight of hand on _CPR_: they really _are_ this good. But unless you're a dedicated fan of either CPR or Crosby, you _could_ rest satisfied with the studio versions.

It's on the second CD that the training wheels really come off. First we hear a (then) new Crosby tune written for his son Django ("Dream for Him"); then the band is joined onstage by Marc Cohn (for Cohn's "Old Soldier") and Phil Collins (for "Hero," which Crosby and Collins co-wrote). Graham Nash participates in these latter two songs as well.

Then we _really_ cut loose. It's almost too bad the song titles are on the CD, because at the original concert these tunes were delivered as surprises. But it's still pretty fun to hear the audience gasp with recognition when the new arrangements of familiar tunes finally click into focus. (And Crosby is obviously chuckling with delight.)

The highlight is arguably "Deja Vu," which is expanded into a nearly thirteen-minute jazz sonata by the simple device of letting Raymond and Pevar take turns running with it. (And it serves as a sort of anthem for Crosby's trip down memory lane; this set of songs is a sort of career retrospective for him.)

But "Long Time Gone" and "Eight Miles High" burn up the air, and the band's cover of Neil Young's "Ohio" is just _blistering_. (Nash rejoins them for this one, and it sounds as though Crosby is still just as righteously PO'd about the KSU shootings as he was thirty years ago. Justifiably; me too.) And then there's an encore performance of "Almost Cut My Hair."

A great show, and I'm glad Crosby is still around letting his freak flag fly. I'm also glad he's hooked up with two such amazing musicians as Pevar and Raymond, who have plenty to bring to the party themselves. If you're a Crosby fan, you probably already have this CD -- but if you don't, grab it. December 28, 2001

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