Listen: Isn’t It About Time / Stephen Stills – Manassas StillsAboutTime.mp3

I play this often, all the more shocking because it’s true. And unlikely. Never a fan of The Buffalo Springfield nor Crosby, Stills & Nash, never followed the family trees of all those Southern California bands – my friends simply do not believe me when I tell them, I love this track.

Pretty sure this was from the very final days of Manassas, having overloaded even the most loyal followers with their debut double album. ‘Isn’t It About Time’, from the follow up, DOWN THE ROAD, is all full of slide guitars, shakers and drums playing bongo patterns. You could safely tag their sound as tasty.

I wrongly assumed this was a Tom Dowd / Criteria Studios creation, as it sits nicely next to the feel of those Derek & The Dominoes records. But lo and behold, it is not.

Seems Chris Hillman was a big contributor to both the production and the band. He’s a bit of an under-sung talent – and always had a good haircut too.