It’s a beautiful Thursday, August 17, 2023 evening in Deal, NJ as concertgoers make their way inside the Axelrod Performing Arts Center for a tribute to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young by The Laurel Canyon Band.
Laurel Canyon is a CSNY tribute band comprised of Mark Hudson, Gary Burr, and Mark Mirando. Mark Hudson — a member of TV’s The Hudson Brothers — is a Grammy-winning songwriter/producer known for his work with artists including Cher, Aerosmith, Ringo Starr, Hanson, and more. In addition to writing “Love’s Been a Little Bit Hard on Me” for Juice Newton, Gary Burr has composed songs for performers such as LeAnn Rimes, The Oak Ridge Boys, Kenny Loggins, and Kelly Clarkson, and has also been a member of Pure Prairie League. Mark Mirando has recorded with artists including Ringo Starr, Harry Nilsson, and Badfinger’s Joey Molland.
Inside the sleek and inviting Axelrod auditorium, artistic director Andrew DePrisco welcomes tonight’s crowd, joking, “Thank you for finding us here in Deal!” After reminding the audience about upcoming events including Celebrating Broadway and Hollywood starring Broadway’s Kate Baldwin and Aaron Lazar on October 14, and The Who’s Tommy starring Remember Jones on November 10–18, DePrisco says, “Please welcome The Laurel Canyon Band!”
The members of the Laurel Canyon Band take the stage and Mark Hudson says, “Good evening, everybody!” as the musicians launch into CSN’s “You Don’t Have to Cry.” Tight three-part harmonies ring out as the trio sings, “In the mornin’, when you rise/Do you think of me and how you left me cryin’?” accompanied by the strumming of Gary Burr’s and Mark Mirando’s acoustic guitars and Hudson’s jingling tambourine.
Haunting vocal harmonies characterize “Find the Cost of Freedom” which segues into “Déjà Vu,” where the musicians intone, “We have all been here before.”
Mirando moves to the keyboard for “Carry On” where the trio sings in pitch-perfect harmony, “Carry on/Love is coming/Love is coming to us all” and music lovers in the audience softly sing along.
The crowd applauds, and Burr responds, “We are Laurel Canyon and we’re going to take you on a little history trip.” Here, he details how Mama Cass introduced Graham Nash to David Crosby and Stephen Stills at her home and the trio first sang together. Burr also explains that he and his colleagues will now perform a medley of songs by the members of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young before they joined the celebrated quartet.
Starting with Graham Nash and his former band, The Hollies, Laurel Canyon performs “Bus Stop” where Mirando sings lead and Hudson handles the high vocal part before side-stepping into a spirited version of “Hava Nagila” to audience giggles and guffaws.
Next up is Neil Young’s composition for Crazy Horse, “Cinnamon Girl,” which is followed by “Turn! Turn! Turn!” the Pete Seeger-composed hit for David Crosby’s former group, The Byrds.
Before the medley concludes, Burr tells a story about Stephen Stills, who was pitching songs to Atlantic Records’ Ahmet Ertegun. When Ertegun said he didn’t recognize any hits among them, Stills replied, “I’ve got one more — for what it’s worth.” Here, the crowd happily joins in singing the famous “You better stop, children, what’s that sound/Everybody look what’s going down” refrain of Stills’ “For What It’s Worth,” which became a Top 10 hit for Buffalo Springfield.
Three strumming acoustic guitars accompany Hudson as he leads the close-sounding harmonies on the bouncy “Marrakesh Express.” Then, all three musicians stand singing in harmony as Burr softly strums his guitar on “Helplessly Hoping.” Setting a warm mood, the trio croons, “They are one person/They are two alone/They are three together/They are for each other,” before the performance ends with a singular ping of Burr’s guitar string.
Hudson models his colorful open-toed shoes for the crowd before moving over to the keyboard for a jamming version of “Long Time Comin’.” The trio follows up with “Only Love Can Break Your Heart,” featuring Burr singing lead accompanied by himself and Hudson on acoustic guitars and Mirando at the keyboard.
Audience members bop in time to the music of Stephen Stills’ “Love the One You’re With” before Laurel Canyon plays a request for CSN’s “Wasted on the Way.” After a train whistle blows outside and the band jokes, “Our ride is here!” audience members sing along on the “Tin soldiers and Nixon coming/We’re finally on our own” verse to the haunting Neil Young composition, “Ohio.”
A highlight of tonight’s show is Laurel Canyon’s take on “Southern Cross” where Mirando sings lead and plays keyboard as the group’s pitch-perfect harmonies sparkle on the song’s well-known “I have been around the world” chorus.
After introducing one another, Hudson’s vocal talents are featured on a performance of Graham Nash’s “Simple Man.”
Burr asks if anyone went to the 1969 Woodstock music festival, joking that he was there but can only remember seeing Canned Heat, at which point the trio launches into an impromptu rendition of “Going Down The Country.” Launching into Joni Mitchell’s “Woodstock,” Hudson plays acoustic guitar and sings the arrangement’s high falsetto harmony. Then, Mirando tells the story behind the song, “Our House,” and the audience happily joins in on the tune’s beloved, “Our house/Is a very very very nice house” chorus.
The crowd cheers, and Hudson exclaims, “It’s been a blast!” as the trio launches into its final number — a rhythmic rendition of “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.” Music lovers sing along with Burr on the song’s “It’s getting to the point/Where I’m no fun anymore” verse as Mirando and Hudson perform on the same mic with their arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders. Hudson adds percussion by tapping the side of his guitar, Burr solos quick and rhythmically on his acoustic guitar, and Mirando gets the audience clapping and singing along on the lively “Doo-doo-doo-doo doo” coda before the crowd reacts with a standing ovation.
For an encore, the trio performs “Teach Your Children” where music lovers sing and dance along before the song ends with the lyric, “And know they love you,” and Hudson exclaims, “We love you, too!”
As music lovers make their way out of the Axelrod auditorium, several comment on tonight’s performance by Laurel Canyon. Whereas Marlene from Long Branch calls the group’s performance “Phenomenal!” noting, “I’m glad we came!” Eddie from Long Branch declares, “They were very good and played so many hits!” Ted from Ocean Grove remarks, ‘It was such an authentic performance, and we appreciated the comedic value, too,” and Elaine from Ocean Grove acknowledges, “I knew every song — it was a lot of fun!”
Halayn from Ocean Grove contends, “I was very impressed with their credentials and they did justice to all the CSNY songs.” Dawn from Ocean Grove agrees, explaining, “I loved their fascinating stories — they made the music really come alive.” Jill from Bradley Beach reflects, “They sounded just like Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young — I loved every song!” Kevin from Lake Tahoe recalls, “I heard many of these songs growing up, and the material in between the songs kept the audience very engaged,” prior to exclaiming, “I really liked Mark Hudson! The minute I saw his colored beard and shoes I knew this was going to be fun!”
Lori from Bradley Beach reveals, “Even though I currently have a broken foot, I had to stand up and dance to their music — music is the one thing that makes me forget I’m on crutches!” Continuing, “I loved the interaction with the audience and all the stories that connected the songs together which brought Laurel Canyon’s show to the next level,” Lori concludes by asserting, “On a scale of 1–5, they’re a 10!”
To learn more about The Laurel Canyon Band, please go to laurelcanyonband.com. For information on upcoming performances at Deal’s Axelrod PAC — including Celebrating Broadway and Hollywood starring Kate Baldwin and Aaron Lazar on October 14 and The Who’s Tommy starring Remember Jones on November 10–18 — please go to axelrodartscenter.com.
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