When David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young formed rock supergroup CSN&Y, photographer Henry Diltz was there from the beginning, and he spent decades capturing the magic of the music with his camera.
And with the upcoming release of his new book, CSN&Y: Love the One You’re With, hundreds of photographs, personal notes, and contributions from rock stars like Joni Mitchell and Bonnie Raitt will be available to the public.
An excerpt from “CSN&Y: Love the One You’re With” shows Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash on the left page, and Joni Mitchell on the right page. Credit: Henry Diltz.
To Diltz, this book is a compilation of his life and best memories. “I thought to myself about this book, ‘Well yeah, I’ve photographed these guys for half my life,’ but then when I sat down and did the math, it’s really two-thirds of my life!” says Diltz.
The book follows CSN&Y through LA’s Laurel Canyon during the 1960s rock explosion to the 21st century. Many of the photos are intimate explorations of the band members’ lives, relationships, and even endeavors. How’d Diltz manage to get so close? He credits his ability to capture raw, natural moments to being a musician himself.
“When you're a musician, you belong in the club with all the other musicians; you're not an outsider. If I was just a photographer, I'd walk in and everything would stop and they say, ‘Okay, we gotta take pictures,’” explains Diltz. That comfort is clear in the photos.
Henry Diltz sits with his book “CSN&Y: Love the One You’re With.” Credit: Paul Stead.