| Just a Song Before I Go | |
| Cover: | Just a Song Before I Go cover.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Crosby, Stills & Nash |
| Album: | CSN |
| B-Side: | Dark Star |
| Released: | June 17, 1977 |
| Length: | 2:14 |
| Label: | Atlantic |
| Producer: | David Crosby Stephen Stills Graham Nash The Albert Brothers |
| Prev Title: | Our House |
| Prev Year: | 1970 |
| Next Title: | Fair Game |
| Next Year: | 1977 |
"Just a Song Before I Go" is a song by Crosby, Stills & Nash 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,[1] 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.[2]
The song was written by Graham Nash about leaving loved ones behind before going on a concert tour. It was written in Hawaii in about 20 minutes at the piano 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.[3] In a February 25, 2016, interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 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 praised the "hypnotically soothing orchestration" and the vocal harmonies.[4] Cash Box said that "an unmistakable vocal blend and Stephen Stills' smooth electric guitar licks are here" and called the melody "gentle."[5] Record World called it "a quiet, melodic song with a dreamy air."[6]
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.
| Chart (1977) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 59 | |
| Canadian Top Singles (RPM) | 10 | |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 7 | |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100[8] | 8 | |
| United States (Record World Singles)[9] | 12 |
