"Marrakesh Express" | ||||
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![]() West German picture sleeve | ||||
Single by Crosby, Stills & Nash | ||||
from the album Crosby, Stills & Nash | ||||
B-side | "Helplessly Hoping" | |||
Released | July 1969 | |||
Recorded | 1969 | |||
Genre | Pop [1] | |||
Length | 2:38 | |||
Label | Atlantic | |||
Songwriter(s) | Graham Nash | |||
Producer(s) | David Crosby Graham Nash Stephen Stills | |||
Crosby, Stills & Nash singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
"Marrakesh Express" |
"Marrakesh Express" is a song written by Graham Nash and performed by the band Crosby, Stills and Nash (CSN). It was first released in May 1969 on the self-titled album, Crosby, Stills and Nash , and released on a 45-RPM single in July of the same year, with another CSN song, "Helplessly Hoping", [2] as its backing side. The single reached No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 on August 23, 1969. [3] It reached the same position on the Easy Listening chart. [4] The song was best received in the UK and Canada, reaching No. 17 in both nations. [5] [6] As a trio or quartet, this remains their only single to make the UK top 40 chart.
"Marrakesh Express" was written and composed by Graham Nash during his final years as a member of the English rock band the Hollies, of which he was a member from its formation in 1962 till 1968. The band rejected the song as not commercial enough, but it found a home with Nash's new band Crosby, Stills and Nash. [7]
Nash recalled his inspiration for the song occurring during a Moroccan vacation he took in 1966. On the trip, Nash traveled by train from Casablanca to Marrakesh. He began the journey in First Class, surrounded by people he found to be uninteresting—as he described it, they were all "ladies with blue hair." He decided the compartment was "completely fucking boring," so left his seat to explore the other train carriages, and was fascinated by what he saw.
The song mentions "ducks and pigs and chickens," which he saw on the train, and recalled the ride by commenting: "It's literally the song as it is—what happened to me." [8]
The instrumentation of the song seeks to embody Nash's lyrics through an Eastern vibe and a "buoyant" flow carried by Jim Gordon's drumming, to resemble a train ride. Stephen Stills was responsible for much of the creative musicianship, adding a distinctive, unique sounding riff played on two overdubbed electric guitars. [7] He also added Hammond B3 organ, piano and bass. The song was rounded out by Nash's acoustic guitar, and the group's trademark three-part vocal harmony on the choruses. [9]
The second public appearance [10] of "Marrakesh Express" was at the Woodstock Music Festival. Between 3 am and 4 am on August 18, 1969, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young came together as a band for the second time in public and performed a set that included what Graham Nash called "a medley of our hit," referring to this song, the first single from their debut album. [11]
The song has gained attention throughout the years and has remained popular since its release in 1969. Throughout the decades of touring done by Crosby, Stills and Nash, and the sometimes Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, "Marrakesh Express" is the ninth most-played song by them, and has been performed over 450 times. [12]
A Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young tribute band is named "Marrakesh Express: A Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young Experience." [13]
Record World said it was "one of the merriest sides from the album ." [14]
In a 2003 Rolling Stone article, Iggy Pop mentions the song in response to a discussion of the Stooges’ creation acting as a counter against the "hippie movement”. He exclaims, "I mean, 'Marrakesh Express?' It may be the worst song ever written." [15]
Chart (1969) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary [16] | 23 |
Canada RPM Top Singles [5] | 17 |
UK Singles (OCC) [6] | 17 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [17] | 28 |
US Billboard Easy Listening [18] | 28 |
US Cash Box Top 100 [19] | 19 |
U.S. Record World Top 100 [20] | 17 |
In 2012, the song was recorded by the band The Gypsy Queens for their eponymous album The Gypsy Queens, featuring Nash himself and produced by Larry Klein. It was recorded at Jim Henson Studios in Los Angeles, (Jim Henson Company). The Album reached #46 in the English charts.
Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) was a folk-rock supergroup made up of the American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and the English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by the Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young, they were called Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (CSNY). They are noted for their intricate vocal harmonies and lasting influence on American music and culture, their political activism and their tumultuous relationships.
Stephen Arthur Stills is an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and Manassas. As both a solo act and member of three successful bands, Stills has combined record sales of over 35 million albums. He was ranked number 28 in Rolling Stone's 2003 list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and number 47 in the 2011 list. Stills became the first person to be inducted twice on the same night into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. According to Neil Young, "Stephen is a genius".
David Van Cortlandt Crosby was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He first found fame as a member of the Byrds, with whom he helped pioneer the genres of folk rock and psychedelia in the mid-1960s, and later as part of the supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash, who helped popularize the California sound of the 1970s. In addition to his music, Crosby was known for his outspoken personality, politics, and personal troubles; he was sometimes depicted as emblematic of the counterculture of the 1960s.
Graham William Nash is an English-American musician, singer and songwriter. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash.
Déjà Vu, released in March 1970 by Atlantic Records, is the second album by the American folk rock group Crosby, Stills & Nash, and their first as a quartet with the addition of Neil Young. It topped the pop album chart for one week and generated three Top 40 singles: "Woodstock", "Teach Your Children", and "Our House". It was re-released in 1977 and an expanded edition was released in 2021 to mark its fiftieth anniversary.
Crosby, Stills & Nash is the debut studio album by the folk rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN), released in 1969 by Atlantic Records. It is the only release by the band prior to adding Neil Young to their lineup. The album spawned two Top 40 singles, "Marrakesh Express" and "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes", which peaked respectively at No. 28 during the week of August 23, 1969, and at No. 21 during the week of December 6, 1969, on the US Billboard Hot 100. The album itself peaked at No. 6 on the US Billboard Top Pop Albums chart. It has been certified four times platinum by the RIAA for sales of 4,000,000.
CSN is the third studio album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, released on Atlantic Records on June 17, 1977. It is the group's second studio release in the trio configuration. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart; two singles taken from the album, Nash's "Just a Song Before I Go" and Stills' "Fair Game" charted on the Billboard Hot 100. It is currently the trio configuration's best selling record, outselling 1969's Crosby, Stills & Nash by 200,000 copies. It has been certified quadruple platinum by RIAA.
So Far is a compilation album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, and their third as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Shipping as a gold record and peaking at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart, it was the band's third chart-topping album in a row. It has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA, and is the second best-selling album by any configuration of the quartet in tandem after their 1970 studio album, Déjà Vu.
"Chicago" is the debut solo single by English singer-songwriter Graham Nash, released in 1971 from his debut solo album Songs for Beginners. The song reached number 35 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 29 on the Cash Box Top 100. It is his highest-charting single. In Canada, "Chicago" peaked at number 19. The song also made the Dutch charts in 1971, peaking at number 5.
Replay is a compilation album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, appearing in 1980 on the Atlantic Records label. It contains no material with Neil Young, but does include CSN solo projects. It peaked at No. 122 on the Billboard 200, their first album not to chart in the top ten.
Crosby & Nash were a musical duo that maintained a separate career in addition to the solo endeavors of David Crosby and Graham Nash, and separate from the larger aggregate of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Crosby and Nash performed and recorded regularly during the 1970s, issuing five albums including three of original studio material. After the more or less permanent reformation of Crosby, Stills & Nash in 1976, the duo continued to play sporadic concerts from the 1980s through the second decade of the 21st century, issuing another studio album in 2004 and going on an extended concert tour in 2011.
American Dream is the fifth studio album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, and their second with Neil Young. Released in 1988 on Atlantic Records, it peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. To date, it is their final album of original material to receive either a gold or platinum citation by the RIAA. It is the highest-selling album by Neil Young in the 1980s. The album is dedicated to Jan Crosby, Anne Stills, Susan Nash and Pegi Young.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, released by Rhino Records in 2005. It peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200, debuting at that position on April 2, 2005 with first week sales of 33,000 copies, and spending eight weeks on the chart. Its current sales sit at over 640,000. The album was dedicated to Cass Elliot with great thanks to Neil Young.
Allies is a live album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, released on Atlantic Records in 1983. A live concert clip for "Wasted on the Way" received some rotation on MTV at the time, as did the single "War Games". It peaked at No. 43 on the Billboard 200.
"Teach Your Children" is a song written by Graham Nash in 1968 when he was a member of the Hollies. Although it was never recorded by that group in a studio, the Hollies did record it live in 1983. After the song was initially recorded for the album Crosby, Stills & Nash in 1969, a much more enhanced version of the song was recorded for the album Déjà Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, released in 1970. As a single, the song peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts that year. On the Easy Listening chart, it peaked at No. 28. In Canada, "Teach Your Children" reached No. 8. Reviewing the song, Cash Box commented on the "incredible soft harmony luster" and "delicately composed material." Billboard called it "a smooth country-flavored ballad that should prove an even bigger hit on the charts [than 'Woodstock']." Stephen Stills gave the song its "country swing", replacing the "Henry VIII" style of Nash's original demo.
4 Way Street is a live album by Crosby, Stills & Nash, and their second album as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. It was originally released as Atlantic Records SD-2-902, shipping as a gold record and peaking at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. A document of their tour from the previous year, the live recordings presented were taken from shows at the Fillmore East on June 2 through June 7, 1970; The Forum on June 26 through June 28, 1970; and the Auditorium Theatre on July 5, 1970.
"Helplessly Hoping" is a 1969 song by the American folk rock group Crosby, Stills, and Nash written by Stephen Stills, and using both alliteration and wordplay in its lyrics. They recorded the song at Wally Heider's Studio 3, Hollywood in December 1968 during their first recording session as a group, with producer Paul Rothchild. The song was first released by Atlantic Records on Crosby, Stills, and Nash's eponymous debut album on May 29, 1969. In June 1969, they released it as the B-side of their debut single "Marrakesh Express".
Carry On is a 4-CD career retrospective box set by Stephen Stills. It features highlights from his career as a solo artist and with groups including The Au Go Go Singers, Buffalo Springfield, Manassas, and various permutations of CSN&Y. The tracks are arranged in general chronological order of release. The album also includes previously unreleased material.
CSNY 1974 is a live album by Crosby, Stills, & Nash, and their seventh in the CSNY quartet configuration. Issued on Rhino Records in 2014, it consists of concert material recorded in 1974 on the band's tour during the summer of that year. It was issued in several formats: a standard compact disc box set consisting of three audio discs and a standard DVD; as one pure audio Blu-ray disc and a Blu-ray DVD; and a more expensively packaged limited deluxe edition consisting of the material on six vinyl records along with the Blu-ray discs and a coffee table book. Three single disc samplers were also issued: one of the acoustic material exclusively available at Starbucks in the United States and Canada; a second at normal retail outlets; and a third included as a covermount disc to the 250th anniversary issue of the UK music magazine Mojo issued as "an exclusive audio-visual sampler of the new CSNY 1974 box set." Each of the non-sampler sets also contained a 188-page booklet, and all formats were released the same day, with the Mojo sampler arriving with the September 2014 publication of that edition. The three-disc and DVD package peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard 200, while the Starbucks sampler peaked at No. 37 and the selections sampler at No. 81.
"Country Girl" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's 1970 album Déjà Vu.