Early into the Crosby, Stills and Nash show at the Corel Centre Tuesday, Graham Nash remarked that he had a special affection for Ottawa. Concert-goers might not have caught all of Nash's remarks, but most would have heard him say something about "Joni Mitchell 30 years ago."

Harvey Glatt, president of radio station CHEZ 106 and a pioneer of Ottawa's rock music scene, knows exactly what Nash was talking about.

Ottawa, Glatt says, was at the genesis of Crosby, Stills and Nash.

Here's the story:

Nash, who 30 years ago was a member of the English pop group the Hollies, was appearing at the Capitol Theatre, the grand old movie palace, since demolished, then standing on the site of the present-day Capitol Square Cinemas.

After the Hollies show, Glatt took Nash to the now legendary Le Hibou coffee house on Sussex Drive, where Joni Mitchell was performing.

Later, Glatt, Nash and Bruce Cockburn visited Mitchell at her Château Laurier hotel room, where the three musicians talked into the night and swapped songs.

"It was clear something was happening between Graham and Joni," recalls Glatt, "so Bruce and I left."

Shortly after, Nash left the Hollies, moved to California and continued his blossoming relationship with Mitchell, who introduced him to her good friend David Crosby. Nash and former Byrds member Crosby hit it off, and stars were born.

"That's how Crosby, Stills and Nash began," says Glatt.

"Since Tuesday's show, several people have asked me if I knew what Nash was referring to. That's the story. Crosby, Stills and Nash got their start in Ottawa."